A/N: Yay for my new computer! Boo for having to figure out all of the annoying little kinks in Microsoft Word to get it how I like again. Sorry if there are random spaces. I tried to fix it.

So last weekend I went to this Harry Potter themed burlesque show. Just thought I would share. Who knew it was a thing?!

Also, what are everyone's thoughts on Tumblr? I am considering making one but am not really sure I'd be active on it. Should I or shouldn't I?

I will try to be better about updating in February. But, since our last update, CaBW has now reached over 1,000 favorites! I never thought I'd see the day! Thanks everyone!

I know, I know, I'm saying a lot of random things in this A/N. Sorry!

Now, let's get started …

Draco awoke in the middle of the night feeling a bit cold since Hermione always insisted they keep the balcony doors open. She preferred the room around her to be freezing while she was nice and snugly against him in his bed. Pulling the covers over his shoulders, Draco reached over to pull her warm body into his, but she was not there. His eyes opened and he sat up, using the starlight shining in the room to search it for her. Her things were still scattered around, as they always were, so she was here.

Standing up, Draco first looked on the balcony to see if she was getting some fresh air. She was not. Then he checked the washroom, but it was dark and the door was open.

Draco left his bedroom and walked through the halls towards his small library, knowing it was one of the few places in his house she actually knew how to get to. She had not even seen his big library yet. Not to his knowledge, at least.

When he got to the library, it was completely empty, but the door leading to the hall on the other side was open a crack, something he never did. He walked through and headed towards the drawing room. Empty. On instinct, he walked towards the only other place in his house he had ever seen her.

When Draco entered the kitchen, he was more than a little surprised to see Hermione sitting on his counter, wearing nothing but one of his button-up shirts as she dug her fingers into a jar of something.

"Hermione."

She whipped her head towards him, her eyes wide as she was mid-bite of what he could now tell was a pickle.

"What are you doing?" he asked.

Hermione finished her bite and said, "Do you know that you have absolutely no food in this kitchen? The only thing I could find even remotely edible were these pickles and, if I'm being honest, they're not the best." She took another bite. "What's a girl to do when she's craving a midnight snack?"

Draco smirked and walked towards her. "Just wake me and I'd be more than happy to give you something to fill your appetite."

Hermione rolled her eyes. "Seriously, Draco, do you never eat here?"

"Rarely," he answered. "For all of my life, I had a house-elf to do all of my shopping and cooking for me, and since I lost Wimsy I haven't really gotten around to figuring that whole cooking thing out. I tend to just eat out."

Hermione nearly dropped her pickle. "How are you not twenty-two stone?"

Draco shrugged. "Good genes, I suppose. Not one tubby Malfoy on our family tree."

"That's ridiculous. On Sunday I'm taking you to a Muggle Farmers Market and we're picking you up some necessities. Not to mention a few beginners' cookbooks."

Draco stood between Hermione's legs and wrapped his arms around her waist. She held the pickle to his mouth and he took a bite. She was right. Not the best.

After he finished chewing, he asked, "Do you often crave a midnight snack?"

"Only when I'm nervous," she admitted, taking another bite.

"And what are you nervous about?"

Hermione blushed and coyly looked away. "Brunch tomorrow. Or today, I guess. I haven't seen your ex since we started this and I just feel like I have what we're doing written all over my face."

"So?" he said. "She's sleeping with a bloody eighteen-year-old. She has no right to judge anything we do."

"Is that still happening?" asked Hermione.

"I don't know and I don't care. I am finished being concerned about anything she does."

Hermione took the last bite of her pickle and closed the jar. Draco took it and put it back in the refrigerator. While he was doing that, Hermione jumped off of the counter and wrapped her arms around him from the back. Draco twisted in them and hugged her head into his chest.

"Ready to head back to bed?" he asked.

"Are you telling me that we're both up in the middle of the night and you're not even going to attempt to shag me?" she asked, smiling into his skin.

"It's late and we need our rest. But don't worry. I have every intention of shagging you in the morning."

"I look forward to that," she said just before Draco Apparated them to his bedroom. It was very cold so he was quick to pick her up and carry her to the bed, wrapping them both securely in the comforter while holding her body against his. Both of them were finding it much easier to sleep these days.

Hermione cried out as she slammed her fist into the wet stone, the water from the shower head scorching hot and burning her back as Draco took her from behind. He had not been kidding about shagging her in the morning. They had already done it twice in the bed and he had gone down on her the moment they turned on the water. Considering how stressed she was, it was a wonderful release. She could already feel her next orgasm approaching.

Draco's fingers were digging deeply into her hips as he watched his cock sliding in and out of her. Her arse was jiggling wildly and he wanted nothing more than to bite it. But that would require removing his cock from the warm haven he was currently penetrating, and that simply would not do. So he did the next best thing. He slapped it. Hard.

Hermione jumped and looked over her shoulder. "Did you just slap me?" she asked with wide, surprised eyes.

"Yes," he answered. "I've done it before."

"Only that first night when I was so drunk I barely noticed."

Draco smirked, pulled his cock out a little farther and slammed it back in. She moaned and looked towards the shower wall again.

"Do you not like it?" he asked, slapping it again and then gripping it hard.

Hermione's moans grew louder. "Do it again," she ordered.

He did and, this time, he moaned louder, the wonderful feeling of her insides clenching around his cock making them both feel fantastic. He slapped the other cheek.

"Harder!" she screamed.

Draco was not sure if she was talking about his slaps or his thrusting so he drew his hand farther back and quickened his pace, tightening his grip on her hip as she began to melt beneath him.

"Oh, gods! Draco, more!"

Hermione stiffened her legs and brought one of her hands down to rub her clit, coming soon after and gushing all over him.

Draco stopped his slaps but did not slow his thrusting. He watched as her hand moved back onto the dark stone, suddenly wanting to be even closer to her. He straightened her body so her back was practically pressed against his chest, then brought one of his hands up and moved her wet hair aside, kissing, sucking and biting on her neck. His hand lifted and landed on top of hers on the stone. Without hesitation, she opened her fingers and entwined them with his.

Draco stared at their entwined hands, not even hearing the water as he continued to move. All he heard was her, moaning his name as they joined together in a way he was not used to. In all of his years of experience, he could not recall ever getting such a strong urge to hold someone's hand while fucking them before.

Her grip on him tightened as she got closer to her next release. On instinct, Draco pulled out, turned her around and lifted her up by the arse, thrusting into her while her back scraped against the wall. He grabbed her hand again and held it beside her head, kissing her while he brought them to their climaxes.

As Hermione grew closer, her grip on him tightened until it was practically cutting off circulation, but he held back, not even noticing the pain as her screams released into his mouth, his own soon following.

Once they both had a moment to catch their breath - their eyes wide open and gazing into each other, and their lips still entangled - he pulled out and lowered her to her feet, but he did not let her go.

Their kissing continued until their bodies became prune-like, neither of them wanting to stop until they realized they needed to be at brunch in thirty minutes.

"We're going to be late," said Hermione, still unable to pull herself away from him.

"Worth it," said Draco, caressing her hip with his free hand and wanting nothing more than to have her again.

Hermione laughed as he began nipping at her lips. "Draco, you know we have to be there."

"I have no interest in planning this wedding," he said. "Every detail they decide is one step closer to this ending," He pulled her closer, "and I would rather not think about that."

Hermione pulled away. She frowned and said, "Well, we can't exactly help that now, can we? The date has already been decided."

She went into the water and cleaned herself quickly, leaving Draco standing there as she stepped out and dried herself off.

When Draco finally emerged, she had the towel wrapped around her and her makeup was just about done. He grabbed his own towel and put it around his waist before walking up behind her. She looked at him in the mirror and he held her from behind, planting sweet kisses on her freckled shoulders while never breaking eye contact.

"This is a dangerous game we're playing, Draco," she said, putting her hands on his and leaning into him.

"I know," he replied. "But chances are we'll hate each other by Easter anyway, right?"

Hermione smiled halfheartedly and said, "Right." But, at this point in time, she had her doubts that she would ever hate him.

Draco went into the other room to get changed while Hermione used her wand to dry her hair. When she was finished, she took off her towel and was just about to walk into the bedroom when she caught sight of something in the mirror.

"Dammit, Draco!" She stormed into the other room. "You left a huge mark on my arse!"

Draco looked up after pulling on his trousers and laughed as she showed it to him. "Poor, baby," he said, taking her into his arms. "Shall I kiss it better?"

Hermione narrowed her eyes. "You'd like that, wouldn't you?"

"Very much so, yes." Draco dropped to his knees and turned her around so he could give the mark that was quickly turning purple a kiss. "Nothing a quick spell won't fix." He went over and grabbed his wand off of the dresser, casting a Healing Charm on her. When the mark was gone, she kissed him in thanks and went to grab her overnight bag. She dug through it and started getting dressed.

"Dammit!" she yelled again after several minutes.

"What now?" he asked.

"I brought the wrong bra again," she said, letting out a huff of air as she held a black one up next to her white blouse. "I can't believe it. That's twice in one week. I really need to get my mind together." She put on the blouse without a bra. "I need to run home and fix this. I'll meet you at the restaurant."

Hermione went over and kissed Draco before grabbing her purse and her bag, taking them with her as she left.

Draco watched her go, his eyes filled with sadness as he thought of the reality of what they were doing today. They were planning the end of their time together. It was completely morbid.

When Hermione got to the restaurant, everyone else was already there. Draco must have been the last to arrive before her because the only available seat left was between him and Astoria. She knew he did not get along with his ex-wife, but he actually chose to sit next to Ron instead of her, and Hermione knew why. That jealousy of his really needed to come down a few pegs.

"Sorry I'm late," she said, giving Rose a kiss on the cheek before taking her seat. Draco immediately put his hand on her knee. She gave it a stroke before folding hers in front of her on the table.

"Were you working down in the archives again?" Rose asked suspiciously.

"No, just had one of those mornings," Hermione answered.

The waitress came by and dropped off everyone's drink orders before taking Hermione's. Astoria was the only one drinking alcohol. She had a Bloody Mary while everyone else just had juice or coffee. Hermione got the latter.

"So have you made any decisions on the venue?" Hermione asked as they all browsed their menus. She could swear Astoria kept staring at her, but tried to convince herself she was just being paranoid. Still, she was eager to get this brunch started and over with.

"No," answered Rose. "Scorpius is taking me to see the venue he wants next weekend. We're making a trip out of it." She smiled at him affectionately.

"And what are your backups?" Hermione questioned.

"I don't think we need any," said Rose, looking at her mother. "I'm sure I'll love the place."

Hermione raised her eyebrows. "Hmm."

"Mom, don't give me that look!" she snapped. "This isn't like picking classes or a job. I don't need any backups. If he likes it then I like it."

"Yes, of course," said Hermione. She paused. "But it never hurts to be overly prepared –"

"Fine! If I don't like it then my backup is …" She glanced up and bit her lip in Hermione fashion. "Granny and Granddad's backyard. Like you and Dad, and Aunt Ginny and Uncle Harry. We'll keep family tradition alive."

Both Draco and Astoria scoffed.

"A Weasley's backyard. I don't think so," said Astoria, wagging her pointer finger on the hand that was holding her Bloody Mary. "If Scorpius' surprise venue does not tickle your fancy then the only other exception is the Chateau de Fleurs Magiques in Provence."

Draco chuckled. "Are you mad? Not only do you have to book that venue two years in advance, but the cost is ghastly. Even I would not give them the money they demand. There are plenty of beautiful castles in the world for a better price."

"But none with such a spectacular rose garden." Astoria took a sip of her drink and glanced sideways at him. "Daphne and Gregory got married there."

"Yes, I recall," said Draco. "In fact, you never let me forget it, but I am going to tell you the same thing now that I told you when we were planning our wedding. I am not paying nearly a million Galleons for bloody roses."

"They're literally blood-red," said Astoria, ignoring Draco and leaning in towards Hermione. "Not one tarnished spot on them. They are supposedly the most beautiful during the snowy season." She paused and looked her over. "There's something different about you from the last time we met. What is it?"

Hermione blushed. "I don't know. I cut my hair."

"No, that's not it." Astoria leaned one elbow on the table and continued to stare at her. "You're brighter or something. Do you have a different foundation?"

"It's probably just the lighting." Hermione noticed that Draco's hand moved farther up her leg. From the corner of her eye, she could tell he was smiling.

"If you insist on a backyard wedding, little flower, then might I suggest the manor," said Draco. "It even has roses." He glanced at Astoria, who was still staring very closely at Hermione, and smirked.

Now it was Ron's turn to scoff. "Why? So the entire wedding can be haunted by the people who were murdered by Death Eaters there?"

The entire table went silent. Hermione's hands tensed on the table before she looked very sharply at him. Scorpius looked especially angry and Astoria's eyes had narrowed into thin slits. But Draco was not fazed.

"Actually, the entire place has been redone since then - thank you for not noticing by the way, Weasel. When our family moved in, I had the entire garden ripped out and Astoria worked with a landscaper to redesign it all, Scorpius, even though he was just a toddler, chose all of the artwork on the entryway and drawing room walls, every last lighting fixture was changed for something brighter, all of the furniture was replaced, and the Malfoy family portraits were all put in the cellar, which was then cemented and sealed. It is not the same place anymore."

"We worked hard to rid the manor of those memories," Astoria snapped, looking just about ready to pour her drink over Ron's head. "I even let Draco talk me into putting bloody plush carpet in the libraries and our family room to make them more homely, and he absolutely refused to replace the shattered crystal chandelier in the drawing room. When we need more light we use floating candles." She paused. "Needed," she corrected before taking another sip of her drink.

"The point is really moot," said Scorpius, eager to get everyone away from what was so obviously going to be an argument. "Rose is going to love the place I chose so there will be no backyard wedding."

"Are you still refusing to tell any of us where it is, darling?" asked Astoria, finishing her drink and looking around for the waitress. She shook he empty glass at her so she would know it was time for a refill.

"Yes," answered Scorpius. "I'll tell you as soon as we get back."

"Not good enough," said Astoria. "Send me an owl when you get there."

Scorpius smirked. "Yes, Mother."

"And what day are you leaving again?" she asked. "Friday?"

"Thursday," he answered.

Rose suddenly choked on her pumpkin juice. "What? I thought we were leaving Friday!" she said in a panic.

"No, Rosie, Thursday," said Scorpius. "I told you I wanted to spend a long weekend there. If you're worried about your boss I already checked with her and she says it's fine -"

"No, it's not that," she said, looking across the table at Hermione and frowning. "Thursday is my mom's birthday. She's halfway through her forties to fifty! I can't miss it!"

Hermione blushed.

Ron laughed and said, "Why in the name of Merlin would you word it like that , Rosie?"

"She did the same thing when I turned thirty-five," said Hermione. "But forty was much easier to accept than fifty and it was definitely cuter coming from an eight-year-old."

Rose smiled.

Scorpius did not. "I can try and change our reservation for -"

Hermione held up her finger. "No, Scorpius, don't. I don't plan on doing anything for my birthday but staying in and reading. An entire cake to myself may or may not be involved."

While thinking that her real Thursday plans would probably consist of Draco, she suddenly realized that his hand was no longer on her knee. She glanced sideways to see that he was leaning back in his chair looking a bit pouty.

"But, Mom -"

"No buts," Hermione ordered her daughter. "Your fiancé planned this trip for you and you're going. The important birthdays after your twenties are in increments of ten, not five."

"Okay, fine," said Rose with a little sigh.

"You're a very demanding person, aren't you?"

Hermione turned to see Astoria was staring closely at her again.

"At least your child knows your birthday. Ask Scorpius when mine is. I can promise you he doesn't remember."

Scorpius turned red. "Of course I remember your birthday. It's in April."

"April what?" she asked.

"Nineteenth," he answered.

Now Rose turned red. "Oh."

"It appears the little flower has caught on," said Astoria. The waitress came by then and handed her a new Bloody Mary.

"Scorpius, that's the Saturday before Easter next year," said Rose. "You know. Our wedding day."

He suddenly went very stiff.

"I believe we're all ready to order," Astoria said to the waitress. "Just a fruit cup for me. Berries only. If I taste even a hint of honeydew juice on my fruit then you can be sure I will be calling your manager over."

The waitress gulped and went on to the next person. No one else's order was quite as vexing but Draco's was very specific. Spinach omelet with egg whites only and sourdough toast, burnt but not black. She had come to learn that he liked his this way, mainly because he liked the smell.

As soon as the waitress was gone, Scorpius looked at Astoria and said, "Mother, I'm sorry. I didn't realize the date was -"

"Not important," said Astoria, even though she had been the one to bring it up. "It's not even an increment of five so it's hardly a birthday. In fact, I don't know if anything at all goes into forty-three."

"Nothing does," Hermione and Rose said together.

"It's a prime number," Hermione added.

Astoria stared at her blankly for a moment and then blinked. "Right," she said haughtily before taking a sip of her new Bloody Mary.

"So in hopes that this venue is, in fact, the one," said Rose, getting them back on topic, "I have already made appointments with three florists and two bakeries for the first weekend in October. They say it is very important to figure out every detail early in case something goes wrong. That way you have time to rectify the problem."

Astoria laughed. "Dearie, it doesn't matter how well you plan, something always goes wrong on your wedding day. Whether it be an ice sculpture of a dragon showing up instead of a swan, or your groom being forty-five minutes late because he was busy with the two women he had brought home for his last single night turned last single morning."

Draco gave no reaction as he took a sip of his coffee. "I was only twenty minutes late, darling ."

Hermione could literally see the steam shoot out of Astoria's ears.

"I do have one request," he said, ignoring Astoria and turning his attention to Rose. "When you do your dress shopping my mother would like to come along. She wore her mother's dress and so did Astoria so she's never been."

Rose smiled. "Of course. We'd love to have her."

Astoria snorted. "You say that now."

The majority of the brunch was just Rose going over her plans with Hermione and coordinating their schedules. Since the maid of honor was away at school a lot of her responsibility was falling on the mother of the bride. Rose did not have many friends since she had always been a quiet girl and the majority of her wedding party was family. Dominique was willing to help but, until Victoire's baby was born, she was spending all of her time helping her big sister prepare, and Roxanne was not the most feminine of women. Neither was Percy's daughter, Lucy. His other daughter, Molly, was but she had her own wedding to plan that was to take place the following summer. In the Weasleys' backyard, of all places.

When the excruciating brunch finally ended, Hermione went home to repack her overnight bag. Once she made very certain that she had the right bra, she Flooed to Malfoy Manor. When she got to Draco's bedroom, he was standing on the balcony, staring out at the garden. She went up behind him and wrapped her arms around his waist. Standing on tiptoe, she put her chin on his shoulder.

"I did notice the differences in this place," she said, following his gaze to the garden. While there were still hedges, they were made of roses now. All in bright colors. "Especially the lack of chandelier."

Draco said nothing.

"Is something wrong?" she asked, moving under his arm and forcing him to look at her.

"No," he said, slowly moving his eyes so they were looking at her. "Were you not even going to tell me about your birthday?"

"Oh," said Hermione, a little thrown off. "I … I don't know. Maybe I would have. Birthdays aren't really important to me. It's just a day. And …" She sighed. "To be perfectly honest, since my parents died they have never felt quite right. The past few years, Ron and I have just ordered in so I don't have to cook."

"Why didn't he cook?"

Hermione laughed. "Ron couldn't come up with an edible meal to save his life. All of those years forced to help in the kitchen by his mom and he learned nothing." She reached her arms up and wrapped them around his neck. "Are you really that upset that I didn't tell you?"

"No," he said quickly. "It just seems like something you should have mentioned."

"Well, I'm sorry," she said, leaning up and giving him a kiss. But then she had to ask. "Was that true what Astoria said about your wedding day?"

"Yes. The ice sculpture was terribly wrong."

Hermione frowned. "You know what I mean."

With a sigh, Draco said, "It was a bit of a half-truth. I was late because I had cold feet, not because of the women. But there were women. Astoria and I were engaged but we weren't together so I didn't see it as cheating. She showed up on my doorstep in the middle of the night drunk of her arse and wanting to give me her flower , as she put it, before the wedding night so I wouldn't have to worry about being gentle our first time as man and wife. And then she stumbled into my bedroom and met my other two guests. She stormed out and I had hoped she was going to call off the wedding but she didn't. Until today, she had never even mentioned it again."

"I think that's cheating," said Hermione.

"It wasn't," insisted Draco. "I had never even kissed her before our wedding day. We had barely hugged. Neither of us had anything to do with the wedding plans, it was all our parents. The only thing she ever asked for was the venue and I shot it down because my father told me to. He didn't want to spend the money on a wedding no one was excited about."

Hermione did not say it, but she was fairly certain Astoria had been excited about it. Just a young, naïve girl with absolutely no clue about what she was getting herself into.

Draco leaned in and kissed her lips. Then her chin. Her ear. He slowly began to move down her neck, sucking softly. "You know, during all of that remodel talk I suddenly got this strong urge to shag you on the plush carpet in the library. Any interest?"

"Could it be your bigger library?" she asked. "I still have never seen it."

Draco smiled against her neck and nodded. "Maybe after I will finally give you a proper tour of the place."

"Yes, after almost three months of coming here it only seems appropriate."

The two of them laughed as Draco scooped her up and Apparated them to his large library, ready to get the proper use out of the soft, barely touched carpet.

When Wednesday came around, Draco found himself having some trouble concentrating in his office. He swiveled around in his chair a bit before noticing the orchid by his window. On instinct, he pressed the orb on his desk and said, "Mrs. Lupin, will you come in here, please?"

"Yes, Mr. Malfoy."

There was only a ten second gap before Victoire was walking through his office doors with a notepad and quill. She walked up to his desk and waited.

Draco paused for a moment, unsure of what it was he really wanted.

"Mrs. Lupin, you're a woman, right?"

Victoire blushed. "Umm … Yes, I suppose I am."

"And what sort of gifts do women, like yourself, prefer to receive on their birthdays?"

Her eyes lit up. "Mr. Malfoy, who told you it was my birthday?"

Draco went white. "I -"

Victoire laughed. "Relax, I'm only joking. I'm an Aries."

He made a mental note to look up the time of year Aries' were born later.

"I know exactly whose birthday it is tomorrow, but I'm a little surprised that you do. Normally, Aunt Hermione is very quiet about it. She doesn't like making a fuss."

"Oh," said Draco. "So I shouldn't -"

"Of course you should!" she exclaimed. "Just because she doesn't like making a fuss doesn't mean you shouldn't! I mean, you're like … her boyfriend or something. Right?"

Draco blinked. "I don't know."

"You are," insisted Victoire.

"So then what do you recommend?" he asked. "Jewelry?"

"No. She inherited all of her mother's jewelry when she died. That's pretty much all she wears now. How about flowers?"

"That's fine," said Draco. "I want you to research places that deliver early in the morning so we can get them there before she arrives. And make it autumn colors. She seems like an autumn."

Victoire wrote that down.

Draco paused. "But what else?"

"I don't know," said Victoire. "Obviously, you have money to buy her anything she wants, but Aunt Hermione has never been very materialistic. In my family, gifts are often made. My granny says they come right from the heart." She touched hers.

"I don't know how to make anything," he said, for some reason becoming very worried.

"Well, you don't have to make it, per se. Just do the unexpected. I'm sure you'll think of something." She smiled.

"Right," said Draco, leaning back in his chair. "Let me know as soon as you find a florist so I can approve what goes in the bouquet."

"And what about the card?" she asked.

"I'll write something and owl it over."

"I will get right on it," said Victoire, grinning widely as she exited the office.

As soon as she was gone, Draco leaned forward on his desk and pressed his fingers into his forehead. The unexpected … The unexpected … What the hell was unexpected?

And then his eyes drifted over to the apple on his desk. It was from the Farmers Market Hermione had taken him to the previous weekend and he was surprisingly happy to have food in the manor again. That was when it hit him.

Hermione took the lift in the Ministry alone on the morning of her birthday. She was a little early so she would not run in to anyone and Draco was not working at the Ministry that day. Even if he was, she had not stayed over at his place the night before so they most likely would have arrived separately. While she liked spending her nights in his arms, she felt obligated to stay at her place at least twice a week. Draco had not come flat out and said it but he had hinted at it being all right if she invited him over to her place one night, but she had not been able to bring herself to do it. The mattress may have changed over the years, but her bed was still the one she had shared with Ron for the majority of their marriage, and she just did not think she was ready to share it with another man yet.

The doors to the lift opened and Hermione headed towards her office. When she got there, a man she did not recognize was standing outside of her door.

"May I help you?" she asked as she arrived.

"Are you …" He looked at his clipboard. "Hermoninny Wesley?"

"More or less," she answered.

He held out his clipboard. "Sign here, please."

Hermione read quickly and saw that he was delivery something. She signed. He took back his clipboard and walked away.

"Wait, where's my delivery?" she called after him.

"In your office," he called back.

Hermione stepped into her office and was immediately met with a beautiful fragrance. Her eyes grew wide as she stared at the absurdly large bouquet of flowers on her desk. There were gold's, oranges, and reds; all of her favorite autumn colors and abundant, not riddled with filler like baby's breath. She picked up the card that was placed in the center of the flowers.

Knock. Knock. Knock.

"Hermione Weasley."

This person got it right. She looked up. A man was standing in her doorway carrying a vase of a dozen red roses with none other than baby's breath.

"I have a delivery for you," said the man, looking curiously at the bouquet she already had.

"Just put them anywhere," she said, taking the card out of the envelope. Then she read:

Happy Birthday, even though you didn't feel the need to tell me about it.

She laughed and rolled her eyes.

Since you don't have plans for the occasion, dinner at my place. Eight o'clock. I'll wear something sexy.

-DM

Hermione laughed again. She looked up to see the delivery man standing in front of her, holding out his clipboard. She took it and signed.

"If this is a competition then I think our flowers lost."

"It's not," said Hermione with a smile. Of course, she was sure Draco thought otherwise. She knew who those roses were from even without reading the card. Only one person ever bought her red roses and she was happy Draco had not gone the traditional route.

As soon as the delivery man was gone, Hermione grabbed her phone out of her purse and called the person who had already made it to her favorites list.

"Well, well, if I isn't the birthday girl," said Draco's sexy, drawling voice after just one ring. "How's it going, doll?"

"All right. I just walked in to a rather embarrassing display of flowers on my desk."

"Did you now?"

"Yes, from some creepy man who insists I come over for dinner tonight."

"And what did you tell this ' creeper '?"

Hermione smiled. "I told him yes. Obviously. With flowers like these it would be rude not to."

"That was what I was going for," said Draco with a laugh. "I have a meeting at lunch today but I'll see you at eight."

"And don't forget that something sexy," she ordered.

"Of course I wouldn't. Happy birthday again, doll. See you tonight."

Hermione hung up the phone, grinning madly as she looked at her flowers again. It had been years since she had been so excited about her birthday. Then her eyes drifted to the smaller vase of red roses that had been placed beside it. Her grin vanished.

Knock. Knock. Knock.

Hermione looked over to see Ron standing in her doorway. She was not blind to the way his eyes drifted over to the excessively large bouquet.

"Morning," she said, hiding the small card from Draco behind her phone.

"Happy birthday," he said, trying hard to look at her and not the flowers. "I see you got my roses."

Hermione attempted a smile. "Yes, they just arrived. Thank you. I haven't had a chance to look at the card yet but when I saw red roses I knew it was you."

"It always seemed appropriate after our red Rose was born."

Now she smiled genuinely. "Is that why?"

"I got them for you the day she was born. Don't you remember?"

"Yeah, I do," said Hermione. "You gave them to me and said, 'Now wouldn't that be a pretty name? Rose. Sounds so much nicer than Perdita.'"

Ron chuckled. "I really hated that name." His gaze became foggy. "Are you angry we didn't name her Perdita?"

"No, of course not," she said. "Why would you think that?"

"I hadn't thought about it in years until Rose was naming that kitten of hers," he said, frowning slightly. "I didn't even know she knew about that."

"Only because she asked me about it when we were reading the play together a few years ago. All I said was that we had considered it. It wasn't a big deal. Now, it's hard to imagine her as anything but Rose."

Ron nodded. He looked at his flowers, so small in comparison. "I was hoping you had already read the card but, since you said you weren't planning anything the other day, I was wondering if I could take you to dinner tonight."

"Oh." Hermione blushed. "I, umm … Well, I actually have plans now. I'm going over to a friend's for dinner. Nothing extravagant. We're just keeping it simple."

"Uhuh." Ron's eyes drifted over to Draco's bouquet again. "Who -?"

"Thank Merlin you're bloody here," said Theo, storming into her office and immediately heading for her desk. "I have been in meetings with that fucking prick, Bentley ' the thrasher ' Tasher, since six this morning." He went into her drawer and pulled out her secret stash of cookies he knew was there from previous encounters. "I'll replace these," he said as he began to munch on them.

"Still negotiating his contract?" asked Hermione.

"You know we are. Git thinks he's worth the bloody moon and stars or something." Theo paused and looked around her desk. "What's with all the flowers?"

From the corner of her eye, Hermione noticed Ron let out a small breath of relief.

"It's my birthday," she said nonchalantly.

Theo raised his eyebrows. "It is? Well, it's a good thing I'm a bloody wizard." He put down the cookies, held out his arm and somehow pulled a bright red balloon out of his sleeve. "A little trick I learned to impress the ladies when I was younger." He winked and handed it to her. "Happy birthday, Granger."

"Thanks," she said, taking the balloon and tying it to her quill holder.

"I'm guessing these roses are from you, Weasel," said Theo without even a glance at Ron. "But who are the flashy ones from?"

Hermione held back her nerves and very calmly said, "They're from a client." It was not a lie. "They were just being nice."

"Male?"

"Yes."

"Then they weren't just being nice." Theo went back and grabbed a few more cookies before putting them away. "I better get back. We still on for lunch even though you neglected to mention it's a special day?"

Hermione smiled. "It's just a day like any other day, Theo. I'll see you at noon."

"All right." Theo stuffed a cookie in his mouth and nodded at Ron as he exited.

"Guess that answers my question about lunch," said Ron, trying hard not to frown.

"Sorry," said Hermione. "Thursdays have become our regular lunch day."

"Then how about tomorrow? We can grab lunch then go by that bakery you like after and get you the red velvet."

She liked the buttercream. Rose always got the red velvet.

"Sure," she said awkwardly, feeling slightly trapped.

"Okay." She was fairly sure he noticed. "Happy birthday again. I'll see you later." He took one last glance at the huge bouquet from some male client and left.

As soon as he was gone, Hermione grabbed his card. She stared at it for a long while before finally opening it.

Happy birthday, Hermione. I was hoping I could take you to dinner tonight to celebrate. I'll come by and see you. Have a great day.

Love Ron

Hermione bit her cheek. She wondered if he truly did not see the awkwardness of it all. Even his words did not seem right anymore. She stuffed the card away in a desk drawer and looked at Draco's again, smiling as she read and reread his words. Everything seemed so natural with him. Like it used to feel with Ron. But that feeling was gone now, and a new one was quickly filling its void.

Hermione checked her appearance in the mirror several times before deciding she just needed to leave. She had changed out of her work clothes but still wanted to look nice without seeming like she was trying too hard. Originally, she had put on the black dress she had worn to Rose's graduation, which was the whole reason she was able to get Draco's attention to begin with. But when she realized that was definitely trying too hard, she put on jeans and a nice sweater instead. Still, the outfit seemed very underwhelming for spending her first birthday with a new man. The only birthday she would be able to spend with him.

Hermione frowned as she looked at herself, finally giving in and putting the black dress back on. She threw a cardigan over it to seem slightly more casual, took one last look at herself before grabbing her overnight bag and heading for her fireplace.

When Hermione got to the manor, she first put her bag down in his bedroom, noticing the small box wrapped on his dresser. She fought the urge to give it a shake before walking out the door and heading for the dining room. Draco had finally given her a tour of the place so she knew how to get there in the least amount of time.

The dining room consisted of one long, oversized, wooden table. Enchanted candles were floating all around the room and two places were set at the very end of the table with a vase of white roses. A bottle of wine was already there and waiting. She grinned as she noticed how romantic it all looked.

Something crashed in the other room.

"AH! Fuck!"

Hermione headed towards the voice, going through a swinging door to enter the kitchen. The entire room was filled with smoke, Draco's silhouette just visible hovering over the stove. She took out her wand and waved it to clear the smoke. Draco turned to face her.

"You're early!"

"Actually, I'm ten minutes late," she said, unable to hide her smile. "What are you doing?"

His cheeks flushed and he turned away quickly. "What does it fucking look like?"

Hermione chuckled and walked over to him. "It looks like you're having trouble cooking chicken breasts." She looked at the charred remains in the skillet. He had tried to pick off the black skin. She chuckled again.

"Victoire said I would be able to do this fucking recipe." Draco slammed his hands on the counter before picking up the skillet and dumping the chicken in the rubbish. "That's it," he said, slamming the skillet back down. "I'm just going to say it! I miss having a bloody house-elf!"

Now Hermione full-on laughed. "Obviously. But I thought you were at least hiring one to clean."

"Wimsy sneaks over here and does it." Draco's hands clenched around the edge of the counter. "I'm sorry. I thought I could do this."

"Draco, this is nothing. You have more chicken." She pointed to the raw remains on the counter. "We can try again. I'll help you." Noticing another pot on a burner, she lifted the lid to see some sort of rice dish. "This looks nice. But it's finished so we should probably take it off of the heat." She did just that. And then she looked at Draco again, who was very clearly avoiding her gaze. She grabbed his chin, as he so often did to her, and forced him to look into her eyes. "Draco, it's fine. You're just learning. Nothing you cook for the first time is going to be perfect. Unless you're some sort of prodigy."

Draco gave her a small smile. "I had been hoping for that." His eyes drifted downwards. "Are you wearing the black dress?"

"What black dress?" she asked, giving him a sly smile.

His hands lifted and began caressing her hips. "Fuck, Hermione. You shouldn't have done that. I've been fantasizing about fucking you in this dress from the first moment I saw you in it." He lifted her up and sat her on the island in the center of the kitchen, tearing off her cardigan so she was in nothing but the dress. "Dinner is going to be a little late, doll."

Hermione laughed as Draco kissed her, his hands moving to the inside of her dress and pulling off her knickers. It was safe to say that she had made the right wardrobe choice.

It was only a matter of seconds before Draco's trousers were undone and he was thrusting into her, but the counter was a little high for comfort and he ended up moving her farther back and climbing on after.

The dress stayed on, even after Draco had ripped off his own shirt. He could not get enough of her lips today, loving the vibrations he felt as she hummed sounds of pleasure into his mouth. His thrusts were quick but not brutal, and when he pulled back for just the briefest of moments to get a look at her in that dress, panting beneath him, he suddenly found himself really looking.

Hermione was there, looking back at him with her amber eyes, heavily lidded and watering slightly at the corners. Her lips were parted as she let out her soft moans and he could not remember a time where she had ever looked more beautiful. It was in that moment when he realized for the first time that something was different. This was not the fantasy he had pictured that first night. This was something more. Something real.

Draco had not even realized he stopped until Hermione reached up and touched his cheek.

"Draco … is something wrong?"

His head shook slowly. "No. I …"

He did not know what he was supposed to say. There were no words for how he was feeling, none he could express without scaring her off, at least. But she was here, with him on her birthday. She had chosen him over everyone else in her life. That had to mean something.

Draco took her hand that was on his cheek in his and moved it to his lips, giving each finger a soft kiss before going in for her lips again. He recommenced his thrusts, repositioning her leg and making her moan even louder.

"Draco!"

The sound of his name coming from her lips had never sounded so perfect. And he knew right then and there that he was in deep shit.

After their small detour on the counter, and another bent over it, Draco and Hermione finally got to their cooking. By this time, she was wearing nothing but his dress shirt, which he was convinced looked better on her anyway, and he was wearing his boxers with an apron they had found buried in the pantry.

Hermione stood behind him and helped him chop some carrots. Every few seconds, his eyes would drift over to where their chicken was cooking to make sure it was not burning. By the end, everything turned out perfect. Or at least edible, but Draco's standards were pretty low after his earlier attempt.

While they were sitting at the table, Hermione moved her chair as close to the corner as she could get so she could hold his hand on his knee while they ate. Astoria had never done this once during their marriage. She had always sat a good two feet away from him. Maybe more, because that's what was proper.

"You know, when you invited me over for dinner I thought we would be ordering in," Hermione confessed as she took a bite of the rice, which really had come out nice.

"I figured I would get use out of those cookbooks you made me buy," he said. "Are you disappointed?"

She smiled and said, "Not at all. This is one of the best birthdays I've had in a long time."

Unable to control himself, he leaned in and kissed her, never able to get enough. When he pulled away, she was still smiling.

"We should make cooking a regular thing, so you can learn to make a meal without burning down your fancy kitchen."

Draco laughed. "We can."

Hermione set down her fork and put her legs over his, snuggling close to him. Draco leaned in and kissed the top of her head. "Are you ready to take me to bed?" she asked.

"Not quite yet," he said with a sly smile.

Grabbing his wand off of the table, he gave it a wave and the enchanted candles instantly rose, fading to a gentle, shadowy, orange glow. A light flickered on the table and, when Hermione looked back down, an oddly shaped cake with uneven chocolate frosting and a single flaming candle in its center was in front of her.

"It tastes better than it looks, I promise."

Hermione brought her hand up to her mouth, trying to hold in the happy sob that was in danger of escaping. "You made me a cake?" she asked.

Draco smiled and wrapped his arm around her waist. "I did."

"When?"

"I left work early since I knew I had a lot to do." He paused and looked at her expectantly. "Well, are you going to make your wish?"

Hermione nodded. She held back her hair and leaned forward, glancing sideways at him and winking before blowing out the candle.

"Does that mean the wish was about me?" he asked.

She smirked and said, "Now, Draco, you know I can't tell you that. Wish rules."

Draco waved his wand again and the candles turned brighter. A large knife appeared behind the cake and he cut two slices. He was not lying. It did taste much better than it looked.

When Hermione was finished, she kissed him, tasting chocolate on his tongue. "Now are you going to take me to bed?" she asked.

Without answering, Draco waved his wand, sending all of the dishes flying into the kitchen before tightening his grip on her and Apparating the two of them to the bedroom. They already did not have much clothing on but what they did have came off quickly. Draco tossed her into the center of the bed and they immediately began what he now recognized as something more than fucking, more than just sex but not quite making love, which he had always assumed was the next step. Only he had never experienced it before. His intimate moments with Astoria were hardly romantic. With Hermione it was something different, something better, something on the verge of being great.

But they could never get there.

When it was over, Draco laid on his back while Hermione kissed his chest. He grabbed her chin and brought her up so their lips could meet.

"Good birthday?" he asked.

Hermione smiled. "It was all right. The sex was pretty lousy, though."

Draco's jaw dropped.

Hermione laughed and nudged it shut. "Don't worry. I'll give you at least one more shot before we go to sleep."

Draco narrowed his eyes and said, "I don't know where you've been for the last hour, but the sex I just had was anything but lousy."

"Aww, did I hurt your feelings?" She kissed his cheek before making herself comfortable on his chest, her eyes drifting over to the small present on the dresser.

"Don't get too excited," he said, obviously following her eyes. "It was something I was getting you anyway but thought I would wrap it."

"Can I open it?" she asked.

"Of course. But, really, don't get too excited."

Hermione was already out of the bed with the sheet wrapped around her and heading for the gift. Draco got up slowly and joined her, hugging her from behind while she undid the bow. He should have guessed Hermione was not one to tear her gifts open. She took her time undoing it perfectly and setting the ribbon and paper aside for whatever reason. The box was meant to be slid open and immediately became three times longer; the beauty of magic. She opened it, pursing her eyebrows a bit when she pulled out a purple toothbrush.

"I didn't think you seemed like a pink person," said Draco, giving her neck a kiss.

Hermione moved her head so she could see him and smiled. "Is this your way of saying you like it when I stay over?"

Draco smiled back and kissed her. "I filled the shower with all of your toiletries too so you don't have to bring them with you all the time."

Hermione blinked. "You've paid attention to what products I bring?"

"Of course I have," he said. "And there's more in that box."

She shook the box over her hand and, sure enough, something fell out of it. A golden key.

"Draco … is this to your heart?" she mocked.

"Obviously not but I think you'll like this much better."

His eyes trailed downward. She followed them and only then noticed a small keyhole on his top-right dresser drawer.

"You're giving me a drawer?" she asked, sounding absolutely delighted.

"I am. So we won't have any more bra mishaps."

Hermione squealed and put the key into the lock. She twisted it and pulled it open, gasping when she saw what was inside. Reaching her hand in, she picked up an antique-looking locket, rustic gold and oval shaped with an owl in its center. She opened it, her eyes instantly tearing when she saw a photo of her parents on one side and her children on the other.

"Victoire told me you had enough jewelry but, when I saw this, it just seemed like you."

Hermione nodded, unable to speak with the rawness swelling in her throat.

"She got the photos for me. I hope you don't mind."

She shook her head. "Can you put it on for me?" she asked in a choked whisper.

Draco took the locket and Hermione held her hair up. He wrapped it around her neck and clasped it in place. She released her hair, looked down at it and smiled. Then she sighed.

"Draco, we have a problem."

"What is it?" he asked, sounding a bit worried.

Hermione turned in his arms and wrapped hers around his neck. She looked into his silver eyes and said, "I think I'm falling for you." With a soft smile, she added, "I told you that first kiss was a bad idea."

Draco just stood there, mute for a moment as he gazed back at her. Then his grip on her tightened. He leaned in and kissed her softly, letting out a small sigh as he pressed his forehead against hers. "Do you think I would be doing all of this if I wasn't falling for you?" he said. "Hell, I have bloody fantasies about breaking our children up so we don't have to end this." They both chuckled. "Is that terrible?"

"Yes," she answered, biting her lip as she gazed off to the side. "But I would be lying if I said I haven't thought about it too."

They chuckled again.

"We're horrible people," said Draco.

"No," she said back. "We just have incredibly bad timing."

There was no better way to put it.

Hermione looked down at her locket again and stroked it. "This really has been the best birthday. I was actually sort of sad that Rose wasn't going to be around for it since she's been at school for the last seven of my birthdays, but this … it really was perfect." She kissed him. "Thank you, Draco."

They stood there for a moment, lost in each other's eyes as it all started to become horribly real. This was going to have to end. But, until then, all they could do was enjoy every moment.

Hermione wrapped her arms tighter around his neck and pressed herself even closer to him. "You know I was lying before. The sex was great."

Draco smirked. "Of course it was."

"But I still think it could be better. Care to give it a go?"

"Absolutely."

Draco and Hermione kissed then, stumbling their way towards the bed until their feet got caught in the sheet she still had wrapped around her. They fell to the floor but their lips remained locked, immediately forgetting all about the bed as she climbed on top of him, moving rhythmically as he caressed every inch of her body, pulling her head down while roughly gripping her hair so he could claim her lips along with the rest of her.

"Hermione …" he whispered as she continued to move on top of him.

"Yes?" she moaned in return.

"I want it to always be like this."

Something wet fell onto his cheek. Even without looking, he knew it was a tear. What they had was real, and it was a shame that anything that felt so perfect ever had to end.