At the Shore of The Heart

For the next few days, Severus tagged along with Hermione wherever she decided to go. With the exception of the thermal spa, which he had felt very uncomfortable about, even though it had been relaxing, he had enjoyed himself very much. The highlight for them both had been the day trip to Rome. They had visited museums and art galleries, eaten in a small bistro, and ended the evening watching Madame Butterfly in an opera house that was off the beaten track.



The time had passed so quickly, and their friendship had grown. Hermione told Severus about her parents and their life in Australia, and also her frustration at the break down of her friendship with Harry, all due to his blind loyalty to Ron. Severus had listened and given her good advice, and found himself enchanted by her. There was a lot more to Hermione than he had realised, and they discovered they had many things in common. They shared a love of strong Italian coffee, and sitting reading for hours on end with no interruptions. They started to debate various subjects and he found her knowledge of potion making was almost as great as his, much to his surprise and delight. After the first two days in her company, Severus acknowledged that his grief for Lucy had stopped him seeing the real Hermione, and the fact that she was probably the best friend he had ever had. Even better than Lily.



*****





Hermione was in the kitchen in the villa, cooking sardines for herself. She was about to toss the salad when she looked at the clock. Severus was going to be late. She took the fish off the heat and walked over to his room, knocking on the door.



‘You will be late,’ she called to him.



‘I’m not going,’ she heard him mutter on the other side. Taking a deep breath, Hermione pushed the door open and saw Severus pulling at his collar.



‘You can’t invite a girl to dinner and then not turn up, Severus. It’s not gentlemanly. Come here,’ Hermione said, as she stepped up to him and unfastened his tie, and then unbuttoned the top two buttons of his shirt, ‘much better.’



Severus scowled at her. ‘This was a bad idea,’ he said, running his hands through his hair.



Hermione looked at him, and her eyes started to fill with tears. He seemed so lost. She took his hand in hers and squeezed it softly, and he raised his eyes to her.



‘Relax, Severus,’ Hermione smiled softly, ‘it’s only dinner, and you already know she likes you. It’s just a small step forward, that’s all.’



Severus smiled down at her gratefully. ‘You are such a good friend, Hermione. I would be lost without you,’ he said quietly.



Hermione felt her eyes filling again and brushed away a stray tear. ‘You have been a good friend too,’ she smiled, and on an impulse, she reached up and kissed him softly on his cheek. Severus stared at her for a moment, and then Hermione broke away and walked towards the door.



‘You really should get going,’ she said, as she went back to her cooking. Severus followed her out of the room and paused, still staring at her.



‘I will be back before midnight. We should drink the red wine later and celebrate our holiday,’ he murmured as he walked to the front door. He was just about to step outside when Hermione called him back. He turned to look at her, his eyebrow raised in a question.



Hermione paused and shook her head slightly. ‘Have fun,’ she smiled at him. He looked at her, then waved briefly, closing the door with a bang as he left



Hermione stared after him for a moment. ‘Shit,’ she muttered to herself, and ran her hands though her hair, pulling at her curls in frustration. She had almost begged him not to go, and the words that Ines had said to her on the first day came rushing back to her. She plated up her sardines and salad, grabbed a bottle of white wine from the ‘fridge and went to sit on the decking. It was a warm and balmy night, and the sun was setting slowly behind the cliffs. Around the deck, small lights came on, triggered by the lack of daylight, and a glow fell around the villa. Hermione poured herself a large glass of wine and started to eat, then stopped mid-forkful. The fork fell1 from her hand and her jaw dropped slightly. She was feeling jealous, and she didn’t want Severus to be with Ines. She wanted him to be with her. Hermione rubbed her eyes in a bid to clear her head, but all she could think about was kissing his cheek, and her hands went to her lips as if she could still feel his smooth skin there.



Hermione felt confused. Was it lack of male company that had her feeling like this, or had Ines been right in her assumption that Hermione had feeling for Severus? He had certainly looked handsome tonight, she mused, but there was no way anything could happen between them. It would spoil their friendship, of that she was certain, and he didn’t seem at all ready for another relationship at the moment. Hermione shook her head and laughed at herself. Lucy had been very beautiful, and Ines was stunning. There was no way she could compete with that. Severus would never see her as girlfriend material.

Taking a large gulp of wine, Hermione decided to finish her meal and shower to take her mind off things.



*******



As the water ran through her hair, Hermione managed to convince herself that she felt nothing but close friendship for Severus, and that what she had thought was jealousy was in fact her over-protective nature. She just didn’t want him to get hurt.



Feeling happier, she stepped out of the shower and into the bedroom, smothered herself in her favourite vanilla-scented moisturiser, and then dressed in her white sundress and bright pink cardigan. She dried her hair lightly with her wand, leaving her curls to tumble freely over her shoulders, and then sprayed on a little perfume. She didn’t stop to wonder why she was making such an effort with her appearance. She checked herself in the mirror, and then walked back out to the deck.



As Hermione stepped outside, she gasped. Severus was standing staring at her, his eyes black and smouldering, his fists and jaw clenched tightly. Tentatively, she walked towards him.



‘What happened?’ she whispered, sensing he was as tightly coiled as a spring.



‘I left. It was a ridiculous idea,’ he spat out. He started to pace up and down the decking, and Hermione watched him in silence for a moment, sitting slowly on the cream corner sofa.



Eventually she said, ‘something must have happened, Severus. Tell me.’



Severus stopped walking and looked at her. ‘We ate. The food was passable. We talked a little,’ he ran his hand though his hair and started to pace again.



‘Then what?’ Hermione said.



Severus stopped and stared over the cliff, not meeting her gaze. ‘I walked her home and she invited me in. I really wanted to go in with her. She looked incredible tonight, and god knows I could do with a fuck, it’s been so long,’ he spat out hoarsely, ‘but I couldn’t do it. I looked at her and all I could think about was Lucy.’



His shoulders fell, and Hermione stood and walked over to him. She wrapped her arm around him gently and gave him a small hug. ‘Go and sit down,’ she murmured, ‘I’ll get the wine.’



Severus was slumped on the sofa with his head in his hands when she returned, and she poured him a large glass before sitting beside him.



‘Drink it. It’s too expensive to waste,’ she laughed softly.



Severus sat up and looked at her sadly. ‘You must think me a fool,’ he murmured.



Hermione looked into his eyes and smiled at him. ‘Never. These things take time, Severus. You just aren’t ready yet, that’s all.’



Severus took a drink of his wine, and then twisted his mouth into a wry smile.



‘What?’ Hermione smiled at him.



‘I was just thinking, you always seem to there when I need you the most,’ he smiled at her.



‘That’s what friends are for,’ she grinned at him, ‘although there are some things we won’t need to share. Like when you finally get your fuck, for instance.’ Hermione started to giggle and covered her mouth with embarrassment.



‘Now you’re laughing at me!’ he exclaimed, and then started to chuckle a little.



‘I’m sorry,’ Hermione gasped, ‘it must be the wine.’



Severus looked at her as she laughed and he grinned at her, his eyes flashing a little. As she stopped laughing, their eyes met and Severus held her gaze.



‘You look beautiful tonight,’ he whispered softly.



‘That’s the wine talking,’ Hermione breathed, running her tongue over her bottom lip slowly.



Severus shook his head and moved his body around so her was facing her. Hermione held her breath as he lifted his hand and gently stroked her cheek.



‘I meant it, Hermione. You really are beautiful,’ he whispered, moving her face closer to hers.



‘What are we doing?’ she whispered. She couldn’t take her eyes from his face.



‘Taking another step,’ he murmured quietly, and covered her lips with his own.





********



I know I promised a lemon, but it didn\'t work no matter how I squeezed it...so you will have to wait unitl tomorrow.... sorry!!!! Let me know if I am on track with this? Thanks