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CHAPTER 6

"Hi," Hermione said as I opened the door. Her smile was bright, her eyes shining, and my insides began to stir. But it was pointless to get excited; I wasn't alone.

Scorpius appeared around the archway into the small foyer of my flat, his eyes going wide when he spotted Hermione, and then he dashed away.

"My family is here," I explained quickly. "And Scorpius is very shy, so don't take it personally."

"Oh, I can come back later."

"You're welcome to come inside… if you want to meet them, that is."

She lowered her voice. "Have you told them anything?"

"Not about us, only about the wall thumping."

"Perfect," she muttered, then followed me inside. "Let's get this awkwardness out of the way."

I quickly kissed her cheek and she squeezed my arm, the simple gesture clenching my stomach tighter. I loved my son and his family, but if they were to magically disappear at that moment, I wouldn't have cared.

"I wanted to pick up where we left off this morning," I whispered.

"So did I." She lifted up on her toes and kissed me. "But I'm sure we can manage a bit longer."

She followed me into the living room — Draco was making coffee in the kitchen and Katie was on the sofa while Scorpius stood close to her, eyeing Hermione suspiciously — and I made the introductions.

"This is my son Draco and my daughter-in-law Katie. And the little one who scampered away is my grandson, Scorpius. Draco, Katie, this is Hermione Granger, my neighbour."

"I think you may have already heard all about me," Hermione deadpanned and they both chuckled.

"Yeah, Father was rather annoyed," Draco said. "I'm glad you've both sorted out your differences. He needs new friends."

"You call him Father?" Hermione's eyes widened. "Wow. You really are posh."

"He insisted I call him that," Draco told her. "It's completely pretentious and completely him."

"It's what I called my father and what he called his father. It's tradition." I moved into the kitchen to help Draco.

"And what about this sweet little guy?" Hermione smiled at Scorpius, who was hugging Katie's leg, "Does he call you Father?"

"No, I'm Daddy." Draco looked adoringly at his son as Katie brushed her hand through Scorpius' hair.

Hermione squatted down to Scorpius' level and smiled. "Hi Scorpius. I'm Hermione. I'm a friend of your grandpa."

His little face scrunched up and his lips moved, but her name was a puzzle to him. "Nee?"

"It's hard to say, isn't it? But you can call me Nee if that's easier." She picked up a train from the floor. "Do you know what I love? Trains. They're my favourite."

Scorpius clutched Katie's leg tighter and frowned at Hermione, as if not believing her. But she held up the small red engine and nodded.

"This is James." She picked up the green one. "And this is Percy."

His face lit up and he began to babble quickly, releasing his grip on Katie and picking up a train in each hand.

"Annie," he said and shoved the carriage in Hermione's face, then switched to the other. "Toby!"

Hermione nodded enthusiastically and sat on the floor, crossing her legs lotus style then picked up another train. Scorpius plopped down in her lap, holding up the carriages and continuing to babble, the occasional word making sense. But Hermione replied as though she understood every syllable he was saying.

"He doesn't like anyone who's not us," Draco noted, looking at me with an expression of surprise.

"Yes, well, Hermione really is a child; she suits his age group perfectly."

Hermione narrowed her eyes at me but smiled. "Your grandpa thinks he's funny, my little friend, but he's not funny at all."

"Gah-pa, no fun?"

Hermione snorted and hugged Scorpius. "That's right, baby. Gah-pa no fun."

Scorpius giggled. "Gah-pa no fun."

"Do not corrupt my grandson against me," I warned her. "I'm his favourite person."

"Looks like you might be handing that crown over, Lucius," Katie said, smiling as Scorpius scrambled off Hermione's lap and began dragging the wooden tracks closer to her.

"Nah, Lucius is right; I am a child," Hermione admitted. "I'd rather play trains than be an adult."

"Well, I'm sure Scorp will love having a new friend to play with; he knows a good person when sees one," Katie assured her, then asked, "What is it that you do, Hermione, when you're not playing trains?"

"I'm a dancer with the Royal Ballet." She nodded at Scorpius while she spoke to Katie, listening as he explained about Thomas the blue train. "Which one is the best? Blue or green or red?"

"Gree!" he exclaimed excitedly, picking up the green train and continuing his babbling.

"Wow," Katie said. "The Royal Ballet?"

"She's a principal," I cut in, sitting in the armchair beside where Hermione was on the floor with Scorpius. "And has been for three years."

"Principal? Jesus, how old are you?" Draco asked, sitting beside Katie and handing her the coffee he'd just made.

"Twenty-five."

"I thought you had to be old and established to be a principal," Katie said.

"It depends on how talented and skilled one is." She shrugged one shoulder. "I've been dancing since I was three, so I guess I'm okay at it."

The small wince I noted when both Katie and Draco disagreed with her, insisting she must be more than just okay, gave me another sinking feeling. She was once again reluctant to receive praise, an odd response when she was front and centre in her chosen profession.

Her reactions to the praise she'd been given — both by me in the previous weeks, and now by Draco and Katie — were the same. It seemed she shied painfully away from any kindness, especially towards her talents. It was concerning. I may have been out of line in my concern — our relationship hadn't really even begun — but I couldn't help but feel the same sense of uneasiness I had felt previously as to why praise unsettled her

"You're a Chemical Engineer," she pointed out to Draco, deflecting the attention away from her. "And you're the same age as me, apparently. So you're just as accomplished."

"No, I'm still at the bottom of my field; I only finished University two years ago, so I'm not as accomplished as you'd think. Also, I can't dance for shit."

"It's true," Katie teased. "It's embarrassing how badly he dances."

"I'm sure it'd be more embarrassing if I tried to concoct some kind of chemical potion. I'd probably start World War Three."

"Apparently you already have the screaming sounds down," Draco said with a smirk.

"Draco!" I scolded and shook my head at my son, wincing as I glanced at Hermione.

"Ha, ha," she drawled, then she whispered loudly to Scorpius. "Your Daddy isn't funny either."

Scorpius toddled over to Draco and hugged his leg. "Daddy no fun."

"That's right," Hermione laughed. "Gah-pa and Daddy no fun. Especially Gah-pa. I've not heard one war sound from his side of the wall."

"We have been encouraging it," Draco informed her.

"Is that so?" She turned to look at me, a smug smile on her face. "And has he acted upon this encouragement yet?"

"Pfft," Draco huffed. "He's been out of the game too long, or so he says."

"Lucius is a bit old-fashioned," Katie added sweetly. "He's just waiting for the right woman to come along so he can be a gentleman and sweep her off her feet."

"I'm quite content in my life, thank you," I answered, not looking at Hermione, sure I would give us away if I did. My daughter-in-law was far too shrewd to not notice anything that may have passed between us, no matter how innocent.

"Aww, come on, Lucius," Hermione leaned over and poked my shin. "I'm sure Mrs Trelawney would love to have a crack at you."

"Mrs Trelawney?" Draco asked.

"The mad woman downstairs," I explained.

"Mad woman?" Katie began to laugh. "How mad?"

"She's been known to dance naked in the garden under the full moon," Hermione said with a shrug. "Some kind of monthly moon ritual."

"Seriously?"

"Seriously. Although it's been a while since she's actually danced naked, and Lucius hasn't yet had the pleasure of witnessing it."

"Maybe we should stop in and say hello to Mrs Trelawney when we leave." Draco grinned at me. "Encourage the madness."

"I have one mad neighbour who bothers me enough," I retorted and shot Hermione a smug smirk. "I don't need another mad woman fighting for my attention."

Hermione rolled her eyes and ignored me, then pushed a small train across the tracks she'd been helping Scorpius assemble. He clapped his little hands and hugged her tightly.

"Nee! Train!" he squealed as he helped her line up the little trains.

"I know! So much fun!" she cheered, pushing the trains around the tracks.

"Gah-pa no fun," Scorpius said seriously.

Hermione glanced at me with a wicked grin. Draco snorted and Katie began to giggle.

"Yeah, you'd better hand over that crown, Lucius."

Hermione had excused herself when the topic of dinner came up. Draco and Katie encouraged her to stay, but she insisted she'd intruded enough.

I'd seen her out and she whispered a promise of sneaking back when they left. I'd laughed, feeling like a teenager keeping a secret from my parents, and told her there was no need to sneak anywhere. If she wanted to see me, she was welcome anytime.

Call me when they're gone, she'd instructed cheekily then kissed me quickly before disappearing into her flat, leaving me wanting to strangle my family.

"She's adorable," Katie said as she settled Scorpius into the wooden high chair I kept for him. "That guy is lucky to be banging walls with her."

Lucky was probably correct but I flinched at the thought.

"I've not heard any noise for a few weeks," I said with a nonchalant flip of my hand. "She's in rehearsals for Romeo and Juliet and is spending most of her time with the ballet company, so presumably she doesn't have time for much else."

Draco tilted his head and eyed me thoughtfully as I handed out plates. The Italian food they'd ordered had arrived and while I would have preferred to cook for them, this would suffice for the night.

"That's interesting," he mused with the subtlety of a sledgehammer. "You're sure she hasn't dumped him for someone else? She could be banging walls in another flat across town."

"I've no idea. I don't discuss her private life with her."

"Really?" Katie asked, sounding surprised.

"Yes, really. Why is that a surprise?"

"The two of you seem very comfortable with each other."

I felt the poke of inquisition; Katie had definitely noticed something.

"She makes herself at home here every Thursday. I've had no choice but to become comfortable around her."

"How comfortable though?" Draco asked while making a grab for Scorpius' hand as he dove into the bowl of pasta.

"I'm not sure what you're asking?"

"Oh, come on!" Draco laughed. "You know exactly what I'm asking."

"There's more than just Thursday night dinners going on, right?" Katie was grinning as stupidly as Draco. "Something has definitely happened."

"No—"

"Liar," Draco shook his head. "You were looking at her like a lovesick puppy."

"I was doing no such thing," I huffed in annoyance. Several quick kisses and as many interruptions wasn't anything that was worth sharing. And I knew I had kept my feelings hidden; I'd learned to do so very early in my life.

"She's perfect for you, Lucius. And I really think she genuinely likes you," Katie pressed. "You are going to pursue her, right?"

"I'm pretty sure he's already pursued her." Draco's hand whipped out to stop Scorpius from tossing his bowl on the floor.

Scorpius scowled at him. "Daddy no fun."

"That's correct, Scorp," I chuckled, Hermione's influence already shining through. "Your Daddy is no fun."

"Lucius," Katie began. "There's something more than just neighbourly friendship between the two of you. It was clear the second she walked in here."

"Nothing—"

"Don't say nothing, Father," Draco interrupted.

"If you would let me speak."

Draco held his hand up, "Sorry."

"Nothing has been going on between us other than neighbourly friendship," I explained. "She was the absolute bane of my existence when she returned home from France. The wall thumping has been quite the inconvenience, and something I never thought I'd have to deal with. But then I met her. And, as I said, Hermione made herself at home here and has been eating dinner with me each week. And while I was uncomfortable at first, she has become someone I have come to care for."

"And she feels the same?" Katie asked carefully.

"Yes."

"Yes?" Draco gave me a look that told me he wouldn't leave this be until I confessed everything.

"Yes, Draco, she feels the same way."

He smirked at me. "So, we interrupted your evening?"

"No, nothing was planned, and since this whole thing is very new, I'm still figuring out how I should be with her."

"What do you mean?" Katie asked, cleaning up the mess that was Scorpius and lifting him from the chair. Completely disinterested in the adults, he scampered back to his trains.

I studied them both and sighed. "You keep telling me I'm old fashioned and, unfortunately, it's a habit I'm struggling to break."

"I'm sure she knows that," Draco said.

"I'm sure she does, but," I paused and glanced between them. "Since she's half my age, I'm not sure what she expects."

"She expects you to be you, that's all," Katie said. "She clearly sees something she likes and maybe the old-fashioned gentleman in you is a part of that."

"Maybe you need to talk to her about this," Draco suggested.

"I haven't had the chance."

They looked at each other, then back at me.

"How new is this?" Draco asked.

"Yesterday. No, last night, actually."

"Last night? No, I mean, before you... did whatever last night—"

"Don't be presumptuous," I snapped. "She finally learned who I was yesterday—"

"She didn't know before now?"

"No, it hadn't come up. And you know I hate the notoriety. So she found out who I am and in her haste to have me sign books for her, she locked herself out of her flat. So she spent the night here—"

"Nice," Draco chuckled under his breath.

"In the guest room," I finished. "We had a small disagreement this morning, which led to us both admitting feelings. And just now was the first time I've seen her since then; she had dance rehearsal all day."

Katie looked apologetic. "We did spoil your evening."

"No, as I said, we'd not made plans. And now I'm nervous that this may have been too much too soon."

"No," Katie assured me. "She was perfectly at home with us here. I'm sure she won't be put out at meeting us so soon."

In my own mind, I wasn't so sure. They knew about her wall thumping escapades, thanks to me, and I wasn't sure if she truly appreciated that fact.

"This is a good thing, Father. Don't be afraid of it. Besides, our opinions don't matter. What you want does. And if that means pursuing her in your old-fashioned way, then so be it."

"I'm not sure it's that easy. I mean, are you okay with me seeing someone your age?"

He laughed. "Father, listen. If you hadn't liked Katie, I would have married her anyway. Your opinion when it came to her honestly meant little. I loved her — love her — and no one would have stopped me from being with her. So, if you want to be with Hermione, be with her. My opinion is irrelevant." He shrugged, "Besides, I do like her. I think she's perfect for you."

I shot him a look that said I found it hard to believe him.

"I mean it, Father. If you let all your concerns about what everyone else thinks cloud your judgment, you'll miss out on what could possibly be the best thing that ever happened to you. So, don't be stupid and mess this up."

With my son's words echoing in my head, I closed the door to my flat and made my way down the hallway. Draco and Katie had departed, assuring me they both thought Hermione was ideal for me. Her age seemed irrelevant and her wall thumping escapades only seemed to make her more intriguing to them. Even Scorpius had been taken with her, and my grandson's radar for good people was never wrong.

After her departure from my flat that morning, I'd gone about my day as usual, although notably more carefree. The heaviness I had felt in the months since my divorce seemed to have lifted considerably, and my day seemed to breeze by. I'd even opened my laptop and written the beginning of an outline for the final book in my series. And all it had taken was one kiss from her for the little cogs that had slipped and turned my life into a jumbled mess to begin to slide back into place.

I had assumed Draco's urging me to find someone new meant someone my own age, so his reaction had been a huge relief now that I was beginning to return to a semblance of normalcy.

Well, as normal as my life could be with my mad neighbour slipping so easily into it.

"Hi," she greeted me with a bright smile when she opened her door. "I wasn't sure if I'd be seeing you."

"After an interrogation from my son and daughter-in-law, they finally let me out."

"Oh," she paused as she stepped back to let me inside. "You told them?"

"They suspected something, and I simply didn't deny that something had begun between us. I hope that's alright."

"It's fine." She ushered me inside. "Maybe it's a bit weird since we haven't really discussed anything,"

"Should I have not said anything?"

"I don't know." She shrugged. "This is all so new, I'm not sure of the rules."

"There are rules?"

"Usually," she said and led me into her flat, and I realised this was the first time I'd been here.

Her flat was indeed a mirror image of mine, and surprisingly, neat as a pin. Nothing was out of place. The kitchen sparkled, the floorboards shone, and the furniture looked to be placed very specifically to best enable conversation when people were over. Even the books on the shelves were alphabetised.

"Not what you were expecting?" she asked, watching me closely as I took it all in.

"It's definitely neater than I assumed."

"Did you think I was a slob, Lucius Malfoy?"

"Maybe not a slob, but your casual demeanour suggested less precision."

"Would you like me to throw some clothes about? Maybe leave some dirty dishes in the sink?"

"Sorry," I apologised. "It's refreshing to see this side of you."

"You see me plenty," she remarked and moved into the kitchen. "We eat takeaway together every Thursday."

"Yes, but it's always you who brings it and it's always at mine." I nodded when she asked if I wanted tea, then laughed as she held up the teapot I had gifted her. "And correct me if I'm wrong, but you've never invited me over."

"This is true," she agreed. "I guess I just like your place."

"It's the same as this one," I pointed out.

"My place doesn't have a hot blond in it… not before now, anyway."

I grinned. "So… Charlie's not blond then?"

"Ha, ha. No. He's a redhead, kind of looks like that Scottish guy from that time-travel show."

"Doctor Who?"

"No, the other one. With all the sex and naked chests."

"I think I missed that one."

"You should watch it." She winked at me. "He's hot."

"Oh, that's definitely a reason to watch it then." I rolled my eyes and crossed the room to sit on the sofa. "The hot, shirtless, ginger Scot."

"It really is," she teased. "You can watch it with me one night. We can drool together."

"That sounds like a wonderful first date."

She tilted her head to one side and twisted her lips into an odd smile. "Haven't we already been dating?"

"I do not consider eating dinner together on my sofa once a week while you're still sleeping with another man as dating."

"I haven't been sleeping with him," she replied, then at my expression added, "I haven't been sleeping with him for a while."

"I don't want to start anything with you, Hermione, if he's still around."

"He's not still around," she said, then hesitated. "Not in that sense. But, he is my friend. He's Ginny's brother and I've known him more than half my life. I won't simply stop being friends with him because it makes you uncomfortable."

I nodded, but still felt uneasy. This man knew her much more intimately than just as a friend. An intimacy I had been privy to more times than I cared to think about.

"Lucius—" she placed the tea cups on the coffee table and sat beside me, clasping my hand in hers. "—I already told you, Charlie and I had an arrangement. Sex once a week, and nothing more. It might be hard for you to believe but, I honestly didn't — and don't — have feelings for him past that."

I brushed my thumb over hers and spoke carefully. "I'm not bothered by your arrangement with Charlie, not entirely in any case. And I'm certainly not judging you. But, I am somewhat old-fashioned when it comes to being with a woman. If I'm with a woman, I'm with her. Not in an arrangement, or seeing other people, or allowing her to do the same. I don't want to control you, Hermione, but I also cannot abide you with another man."

"I don't think it's controlling, Lucius. What happened to you destroyed your trust and means you're cautious, and I get that. But please believe me when I tell you I have no plans to see anyone else." She squeezed my hand. "And I know I want more than just an arrangement with you."

I smiled at that; I definitely wanted more than just an arrangement.

"Good, we're on the same page then."

"Which page is that?"

"Page one of what I'm sure will be an epic adventure."

She picked up the television remote and smirked at me.

"A Scottish time traveler adventure?"

I poked her playfully in the ribs. "I do not need to know who you're fantasising about when I'm not around."

Without a thought, she nestled herself against me and my hand instinctively went to her thigh. And when her head dropped to my shoulder and she sighed contentedly, everything felt natural, easy. Comfortable.

"You've been the only fantasy I've had lately, Lucius."

I kissed the top of her head. "That's page two."

"Fantasies are page two?" She lifted her head to look at me, her face coloured with amusement.

"Page one; no arrangements. Page two; fantasies. I thought everyone knew this."

She snorted. "What's page three?"

I winked at her. "We have to get through page two before we even think about page three."

She shook her head and laughed, nestling back into me. "You're not as old-fashioned as you'd have everyone believe."

"Oh, I am old-fashioned. Why do you think we're not moving onto page three tonight?"

"Because you're jealous of my fantasy time traveller."

"I can keep up with any fantasy time traveller," I challenged. "And, rather boringly, page three is dinner. So, when does your busy schedule allow for that."

"Are you asking me out, Lucius Malfoy?"

"I am asking you to dinner, Hermione Granger."

She hesitated before responding, "Tuesday night."

"Right." I nodded slowly. Tuesday nights were now free and I found I was perfectly okay replacing her usual arrangement. "Tuesday night, we'll move on to page three."