Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or any of the characters.

Chapter Four

Comfortable

Ron stayed like that for only a few seconds before he pulled away and looked down at the beautiful girl in his arms. The kiss was so simple, scarcely a brush on the lips, but it felt like so much more to him. It felt like his whole body was on fire and all he wanted to do was kiss her again … to do all sorts of things to her, but he didn't want to push her too fast.

Hermione had kept her eyes closed, as she took in the kiss, and knew she had never felt like this before. Opening her eyes, she could see the fire he was feeling, and all she wanted was to have more of him. As soon as that desire crossed her mind she acted upon it, leaning up and capturing his lips again, this time putting her arms around his neck and threading her fingers through his hair (his silky and soft hair that she had fantasized about ever since the first time she saw him).

He only hesitated a second, taken surprise by her actions, but he quickly responded in kind, putting his hands on her hips and pulling her closer to him. He then deepened the kiss as he ran his tongue along her lower lip and when she opened her mouth, they both moaned in pleasure. It was some time before she pulled away, having a need for air, and he groaned at the loss. She turned slightly so she could open the door, her hand grabbing his so she could pull him into her flat. As soon as he was in, he pulled her back to him, turning so that, as he closed the door, he was able to lean her back to it before capturing her lips again.

"Meow!"

"Just ignore him," Hermione said about her cat's attempt to get her attention (or maybe at his disapproval of her), Ron had startled at the sudden sound, and she was annoyed that he didn't immediately start kissing her.

Ron moved one of his hands up, brushing a piece of hair away and cupping her face. "You're so beautiful," he said in awe.

Hermione barely had time to gasp before he captured her lips again, the intensity of the kiss causing her to wrap her arms around his head again, trying to pull him closer to her. She lost all track of time as she reveled in the feel of his firm body against hers, his hands moving along her side …

Then Ron was suddenly pulling away from her and she groaned her disproval of the loss of him, as he looked at their ankles. She just barely caught sight of Crookshanks's tail before it disappeared from sight, and her mouth thinned in amusement as she looked back at Ron and saw the expression he made (and heard the curses he was muttering) at her cat.

"He's rather protective, isn't he?" Hermione laughed moving away from Ron so she could lean down and remove her heals. "But I know what to do," she added and, before Ron could respond, she grabbed his hand and led him to her bedroom.

As soon as Ron got into the door, he made a quick check making sure there was no cats waiting to pounce on him again (causing Hermione to laugh). He made sure the door was closed tight and turned to her and she was immediately in his arms … he wasn't sure if he had stepped toward her or if she moved to him. Either way he was kissing her passionately again, his hands were in her hair … on her back … her arse …

"Oh …" she gasped, their mouths breaking apart as she fell onto her bed and they looked into each other's eyes, she could see lust and something that she's never seen before, but that made her stomach melt and cause her to ache for him more. She reached for him, pulling him close to her until his lips were covering hers in heavenly bliss. She would like nothing more than to stay like this forever.

And they did stay like that for a long time, as he found a comfortable position in her bed, leaning on his elbows so he could hover over her as they kissed passionately. He wasn't sure when she had managed to unbutton his shirt, but when her small warm hand touched his bare chest, it sent a shiver down his spine. He unlocked their mouths so he could move to her neck making her moan in pleasure.

When his hand moved to her back and started to unzip her dress, her eyes opened and the small part of her brain (the part that she always listened to) woke and made her realize that this was all happening too fast. "Ron …" she said breathlessly, "Ron … stop."

He was still kissing her neck, contrary to her words, her hands were still in his hair seeming to be encouraging him (not to mention the moan she had just breathed out), but he couldn't keep doing this. With great effort he pulled away from her, breathing heavily, and trying to gather himself.

Hermione was breathing heavily too, feeling relieved that she was able to stop herself when she was so out of control. But more importantly she was relieved that Ron had stopped; had listened to her even though he so obviously wanted to continue. At the same time, she was feeling overheated and unsatisfied and there was an overwhelming urge to turn over and pick up things where they left off.

"I'm sorry," Ron groaned, he had turned on his back and was now holding his head quite upset with himself. Dammit, why the hell did I let this happened, I pushed her too fast and now she's not going to want to be with me anymore, he thought bitterly, he had let himself get carried away even though he had noticed that Hermione was much more reserve than other girls.

"Ron," Hermione said sweetly, touched by the apology and even more by his obvious concern (and turmoil) he had believing he had pushed her. She had never meant anyone like Ron. "You didn't do anything I wasn't … er … encouraging."

"I didn't!" Ron said turning so he could look at her and then gave her his lopsided grin (that made her heart skip a beat) as he could see she meant what she said.

"Not for one second," she said breathlessly, focusing on his lips lustfully, before forcing herself to continue. "But ..."

"It's okay … I understand," he sighed, closing his eyes as he tried to regain control of himself. "I should probably get up …"

"Do you have to leave?" she asked softly. "I don't want you to go."

"I don't want to go either," he admitted but he shook his head, "but I don't think I can stay in control of myself … you're rather irresistible," he added smiling at her, looking at her hair wildly hanging around her, he swallowed hard, yes, he would have no control what-so-ever.

"Oh," she said biting her bottom lip, he was right, but she didn't want the night to end.

"You really want me to stay?" he asked watching her and he knew how she was feeling, "I could just … er … take a few minutes … see if that will work."

"Thank you," she smiled at him shyly.

"I don't want this night to end either," he said softly, and kissed her briefly as he got up.

As soon as Ron left the room, she got off the bed, and turned on her reading lamp. She was still worked up from everything that happened, and she found it was difficult to calm herself down, but she forced herself to focus on getting ready for bed (instead of the other more enjoyable things she wanted to think about). As soon as she was ready, wearing her pajama bottoms and a tank top, she picked up her book … one of her boring and dry textbooks that she forced herself to read as she waited for Ron.

It took Ron some time to calm himself down and it wasn't made easier when he wondered what he would find when he got back to Hermione's room. Will she still be wearing her dress … something else … nothing … Ron groaned shaking his head from that stupid thought, knowing that wasn't going to happen. These thoughts were putting him in a difficult spot, he knew that he would never do anything that would hurt her (any girl really but especially her), but he was also sure that he wouldn't be able to go back into that room and be near her again and keep control of himself. He would have to leave, and he really didn't want to do that. So, he cast a charm on himself to keep him calm and waited a few more minutes so it had time to go into effect. When he came to the door and he watched her as she sat in her bed reading, he was glad he cast the charm because he found her completely adorable.

"There you are," Hermione smiled a few moments later when she felt his eyes on her. "Are you going to just stand there all day?"

"I was thinking about it," Ron smiled back at her. "I do have a rather nice view from where I'm standing."

"Hm, well, I prefer you come closer," Hermione said as she set her book on the bedside table, and she patted the side of her bed for him to join her. Ron walked over to her as fast as he could, sitting next to her and kissing her again. "We'll be back where we started if you keep that up," she said after a moment pulling away from him, "you must really like my bathroom."

"It is a rather nice bathroom," Ron chuckled and thought, maybe I should have waited a few more minutes for the charm to get stronger. He felt a little awkward, not knowing what to do now.

"Just lay back, love," Hermione said blushing at her use of 'love' there, though Ron's goofy smile made her feel better. Ron did as he was told and it wasn't long before she put her head on his chest, his arms automatically wrapping around her. He had never held anyone like this, he never really felt the need to, but she felt so right in his arms. "That's better," she sighed in contentment.

"So, what do we do now?" Ron asked playing with her hair absentmindedly; he loved how soft it was as it curled around his fingers.

"Tell me more about yourself," Hermione said as she snuggled closer to him, making herself more comfortable. "Tell me what it was like living with such a big family. Tell me more about your mum and dad."

"Haven't you heard enough on that," Ron replied. "You've hardly told me about your family."

"I know, I'm being horribly unfair," Hermione chuckled and then admitted sleepily, "I like hearing your voice."

"Okay," Ron said smiling, what could he say to a compliment like that. "Er … well, my mum stayed at home to raised us all. She's the best cook there is on the planet. I remember this one time when I was six, she made me get a bucket full of apples. Fred and George were still sleeping, the lazy gits, and Ginny was off pretending to be Misses Harry Potter."

"Your best friend?" Hermione asked, she remembered that Ron had mentioned that his friend Harry was famous, but she had never heard of Harry Potter … especially not in a way that would have a girl pretending to marry him.

"Yeah, but this was before we knew him personally," Ron answered, surprised that he had mentioned his sister so casually and didn't get that hollow feeling that normally comes with thinking about his sister and what she had gone through.

Hermione looked up at him, she could feel his tension and she wondered why, though she thought that it might mean something bad for his sister. Throughout the night he had faltered many times as he talked about his family, and she knew that he had lost two of his brothers, but she was afraid that something more had happened. She didn't want to push him for more information tonight, but she was wary (and curious) about what had happened to him … and his family.

"I bet you teased her about that," she said wanting him to start the conversation again and hoping that this wouldn't upset him more.

"All the time," Ron laughed, "she nearly cursed me when I mentioned it after the two of them got together."

"Your sister and Harry!" Hermione sat up so she could look at him in his eyes and he nodded with a sad smile.

"I'll tell you more later," Ron promised, "It's kind of … er … very complicated."

"It seems like you're teasing me too," Hermione grumbled as she made herself comfortable again. "Bringing up all these things and then saying it's complicated."

"I might be," Ron chuckled, and she liked the rumbling feeling it caused. "How about I get back to the story," he said, and he felt her nodding her head as he started playing with her hair again. "When I got back to the kitchen with the apples Mum asked for, she turned to me and said, 'Ronnie I know how much you enjoy eating, I think it's time you learn how much work goes into making something.'

"And then she helped me make my own apple pie," the amusement was clear in his voice as he chuckled at the memory. "It was lumpy, a little burnt and I was covered in flower by the end of it, but I was actually able to do it. And it served two purposes for me. First, I was proud I was able to pull it off, the pie was pretty good tasting even, and second, it made me appreciate Mum so much more."

"Mm …" Hermione hummed as she struggled to keep her eyes open.

"Are you awake," Ron asked softly a moment later looking down at her with a smile.

"Mm …" she answered and snuggled closer to him. His smile widened and became more genuine as he watched her breathing become more even … she looked so peaceful that Ron didn't have the heart to try to wake her or to get up to leave (not that he wanted to, anyways). He decided that he should turn off the lamp with a quick spell, and as his eyes adjusted to the light, he took in the sight of Hermione laying in his arms again. He wasn't planning on staying there the whole night, but he couldn't get himself to leave and soon he joined her in sleep.

A/N: This fic is rated T, I believe this chapter is rated T, though some people might argue. I'm finding as I'm re-writing this fic, that I don't know too much about what's going to happen while writing future chapters, but when Ron and Hermione's relationship progresses, I have no plans on going into any more details than I have in this chapter. I have written a few rated M fics, using my other penname jlmill9, but I have no plans on doing that again in the future. It's not that I didn't enjoy writing those stories, I just don't want to go there again.

On another note, I have decided to end this chapter here, instead of going on to the talk Ron and Hermione had the next morning. By the time I had finished with the edited chapter it was over 8000 words and I have found that I don't like long chapters when I'm reading a fic. I know that's not true when I'm waiting for a fic to update, but I feel that if I either stick with my updating schedule or I update an extra chapter, it will be okay if I split a chapter or two in the future. Of course, this chapter is only 2500+ words and the next chapter will still be sort of long with 5500+, but this was the only place that I could stop the chapter without hurting the flow of the story. Again, I decided to post this chapter a little early since it sort of goes with the last chapter ... and it also goes with the next chapter, but I'll still be posting that on Friday.