His Saving Grace

CHAPTER SIXTEEN: In the Still of the Night











Grace was completely exhausted when Draco and Hermione brought her home. They wiped down the barely conscious baby and dressed her in her pajamas. Draco went through what had become the normal nighttime ritual. He held her close against him, humming softly as he rocked her back and forth for a few minutes before kissing her cheek and laying her in the crib. He covered her, raised the side and whispered the little poem before telling her he loved her and closing the door.







He could hear the shower running and sat on the edge of Hermione’s bed. He rubbed his sweating palms over his thighs and smiled as his stomach filled with butterflies.





“She loves me.” He said to himself as he stared at the bathroom door. He felt the urge to laugh, feelings of pure joy welling up inside him. Finally, someone loved him just as he was. She didn’t want anything from him other than for him to be himself and for that he would give her anything.







His heart began to pound expectantly when he heard the shower turn off and then the sounds of her readying for bed could be heard through the door. He bent down and removed his shoes and socks, sliding them under the edge of her bed. He frequently spent the night, sleeping beside her and holding her close, touching but not taking. He reached behind his head and fisted the black cashmere turtleneck in his hands and yanked it forward and off, tossing it across the room into a chair.







The door opened and she turned the light off before opening it all the way. The soft scent of Jasmine drifted to him on the humid air that billowed out from within the small bathroom. His breath caught when he saw the short, satin chemise she was wearing. Deep, ruby red, it reached to mid-thigh. The neckline drooped low, suspended from spaghetti thin straps over her shoulders. Her curls were still damp and clung to her bare arms and shoulders. She looked stunning, Draco had never seen her wear anything like that to bed before, it was normally cotton sleep pants and a tee or tank.







Hermione stopped in the doorway and stared at the beautiful man sitting on her bed. He loves me. she thought. She still couldn’t believe he had said it and she had seen in his eyes the truth behind his words, he really meant it.







“You look ravishing, love.” He whispered hoarsely as she stepped from the doorway and walked slowly towards him. “Um…is that new?” He asked, indicating the tiny slip of a gown that rippled and clung to her body with every step that she took.







“Yes, do you like it?” She asked, biting her lip nervously as she came to a halt between his knees. “I wore it for you.”







“For me?” He reached out and gently ran his hands along the curve of her waist and over her hips. “I love it…and I love you.” He said quietly, slipping his arms around her waist and laying his cheek against the softness of her stomach. Hermione smoothed his pale locks and enjoyed the feel of his arms around her. She was overwhelmed by his tenderness.







“I love you too, Draco.” She said, running her fingertips around the shell of his ear. She bent low and kissed the top of his head softly. She could feel his hot breath through the thin satin of the gown, tickling and warming her skin. “Draco?” She whispered.







He pulled back and looked up at her. Need and love shone in her eyes. Draco splayed his hands over the small of her back and pulled her forward, his lips pressing into her stomach as he kissed her softly before he lay back on the bed slowly and pulled her with him. The cool, slick material of her gown slid over his bare chest and made him shiver just a bit as she was pressed along the length of his body.







“You feel so good in my arms, love.” Draco said as he slid his hand up her back to thread through her damp curls. He pulled her head down so that their lips met. The kiss was so soft and sweet, lips touching and pressing gently, tongues brushing and sliding together. Hermione clung to his shoulders, holding on tight as heat began to spiral in her belly and spread throughout her body. Draco held her, one hand on the back of her head, the other on the swell of her bottom and he rolled her onto her back.









She moaned into his mouth when he settled between her thighs. She liked feeling the weight of him on top of her, the warmth of his naked torso. She danced her fingertips over every tight muscle in his back. this beautiful man desires ME, loves me. she thought, her stomach clenching.







Draco smoothed his hand down over her bottom and along the back of her thigh, grasping her behind the knee and pulling her leg high over his hip as he pressed into her. He was hard and aching, the snug trousers becoming more and more uncomfortable with every kiss, every caress. He slid his lips from her mouth and down the side of her neck, sucking softly at the base of her throat.







“Mmm, Draco.” She sighed, tilting her head back and arching her hips against him. Her fingers slipped beneath the waist band of his trousers and bit into the upper swells of his bum. She wanted him closer, needed him to be closer. She began to whimper in frustration, her body writhing beneath him.







Draco wondered if she was trying to tell him to stop and he pulled back, pushing himself up onto his arms.





“NO!” She cried, wrapping her legs tight about his waist and digging her nails into his back as she struggled to bring him back to her.







“Hey, easy there….what’s wrong?” He asked a bit breathlessly.







“I don’t know, I need you closer.” She whispered as he looked down at her. “Don’t go….”









“My love, nothing could make me go…I don’t think I can get any closer though….what are you feeling?” He asked, lowering his body back onto her. He tugged one thin strap until it dropped from her shoulder and he could push the neckline further down, revealing the rounded softness of her breast. He cupped her gently and brushed his thumb over her nipple, watching the soft pink bud pucker before he lowered his head and swiped his tongue over it.







“Oh gods, Draco, more!” She cried, squeezing her eyes tightly closed and arching her back, pressing into his mouth. He sucked tenderly, his other hand lowering the other strap and freeing her other breast. Her tiny whimpers and sighs were sending shivers up his spine and tiny pulses of heat through his loins. She wanted him, desperately and that knowledge filled him with pride and longing.







He moved to her other breast, laving and suckling as he tugged on the hem of her gown, pulling it up so that it was now bunched like a belt around her waist. He leaned up slightly, his eyes hot as he stared at her, his fingertips feathering over the slight swell of her lower abdomen just below her navel.









“Drop your legs, love. Let me loose so I can ease your ache.” He whispered. She unlocked her ankles and let her feet drop slowly to the bed. Draco slid to the floor, kneeling at the bedside as he grasped her hips and tugged her to the edge. He wrapped his arms around her thighs and blew softly into the chestnut curls crowing her sex.







“Draco, what are you doing?” Hermione raised her head, looking down at the man kneeling between her splayed thighs in confusion.









“I want….I want to kiss you…..to taste you.” He said, his eyes locked on the soft, pink core of her.







“What? Why?” Her voice trembled as she watched his heated gaze moving over her.











“I don’t know…I just need to know how you taste.” He leaned forward and licked tentatively along the seam. A hoarse cry slid past her lips and she fisted both hands in his hair when he did it again, this time harder, parting her folds and sliding along the slick, sensitive flesh hidden within. She was sweet, musky and clean, her scent intoxicating. His tongue brushed over the firm bud of her clit and she nearly came off the bed completely, her hands twisting in his hair.







“Oh my god, Draco, it’s too much, you’re killing me.” She cried. His scalp ached where she pulled at his hair.









“Love, let go of my hair.” He growled against her hot, slick flesh.









“I can’t! If I let go I’ll fly apart!” She moaned. Draco chuckled and reached up, loosening her grip and lowering her hands to the bed.







“I’ve got you.” He whispered before lowering his head and returning to the task at hand. He ran his tongue over every inch of her, swirling, licking and probing. Her nearly violent reactions were almost enough to have him coming in his trousers. He held on to her thighs when he sucked her clit into his mouth, sure she would close her legs on his head. He felt her tense, her thighs beginning to tremble. He had touched her enough over the last several months to recognize her response, she was going to come and it was going to be intense.







Her hoarse cry rent the air as she pulsed against his lips. He continued to lick at her until her pulsing subsided, thankful for the silencing spell that Harry had given them, otherwise he was sure the other wizard would have come running. Draco leaned back and stared at her, her face flushed and sweating as she lay on the bed panting, she was trembling and moaning softly. Draco licked his lips and his eyes widened. Wow, not bad for my first time out was his only thought.







He unfastened his trousers and stood slowly, shoving them along with his boxers down and stepping out of them. He climbed over her, clasping her waist to help her slide along the bed so that her head rested on the pillows.







“Lift your hips.” He said softly, pulling her gown over her hips and down her legs. He pressed against the insides of her thighs, parting her so he could settle between her legs.









“Where did you learn to do that?” She asked, her eyes glassy as though she were drunk.









“A book….listening to guys brag in the dorms….never wanted to try it before you.” He said, brushing her lips with his. “Did you like it?”







Hermione gave a soft, incredulous laugh as she looked up at him. He looked smug, proud of himself.







“You know I did.” She said, wrapping her arms around his waist and opening her legs wider. She felt the tip of his erection nudging her slick opening and her hips jerked slightly.







“Are you….I mean…..do you want me to stop?” He asked, trying hard to still the involuntary jerking of his hips as he pushed slightly inside her. She hissed softly and pressed her hips up, taking him a little further into her.







“Don’t stop.” She whispered. Her hands pulled at his waist, encouraging his possession of her. He lowered his head.







“I love you.” He whispered before closing his lips over hers and thrusting into her at the same time. He groaned, long and loud as he sunk into her heat. He rested his forehead against hers and held himself still inside her, if he moved at all he would lose it and it would be over. He had waited too long, wanted too long to be inside her to have it end before it began.







“I love you too.” She whispered, shifting her hips slightly as she tried to get accustomed to him inside her.







“Damn, love, be still, please.” He groaned. She opened her eyes and their gazes met, just like the first time. He felt the power swell between them and began to move slowly within her. She was so tight, so hot and so slick, he never dreamed a woman could feel so right, so good.







“More, Draco….” She lifted her legs and locked her ankles over his bum. Her hands pulled at his shoulders and he briefly wondered if she was trying to meld them into one body as she clutched at him. He increased the pace, thrusting into her steadily as she arched beneath him.







“Gods….Hermione….you took the …..fuck….potion right?” He asked, his movements becoming faster and more erratic.







“Yes! Don’t stop….more, please, more!” She was primed from her first orgasm; her body sensitized and easily pushed up to the brink once more.









“Good…..because I’m going to come.” He whispered harshly, groaning as she tightened around him in response to his heated words. Every thrust was punctuated by a soft grunt from Draco, Hermione’s sighs and sweet moans the perfect accompaniment.







“Yes, Draco, yes!” She whispered, her body tightening around him, pulsing and drawing on him until he shouted his own release, spilling inside her again and again, feeling as though his soul were being pulled from the head of his cock as he did so.









“God, I love you.” He breathed, kissing her gently. “I love you. I love you.” He said. Hermione sighed, her legs loosening and slipping from around him. She kept her arms wrapped tight around him though, refusing to let him go.







“I love you.” She said, wincing and groaning slightly as he withdrew from her and rolled to his side. Hermione shifted onto her side to face him, smiling softly.







“So good, love. So good.” He said, unable to form the words to describe what he felt having her again.







“Mmmm.” She sighed, closing her eyes and snuggling into the pillow. Draco shifted, rolling over to retrieve his trousers from the floor. He dug in his pocket, his fingers running over the barrette briefly before closing around the velvet box and withdrawing it. He rolled back to face her and opened the box, setting it on the pillow between them.





“Hermione.” He whispered her name and she opened her eyes slowly, gasping when she saw the ring nestled among emerald velvet, the round diamond twinkling in the moonlight. It was encased in an elaborately carved silver band and looked to be an heirloom piece. “Marry me.” He whispered.







Tears began to roll from her eyes and she smiled, laughing softly as she reached out and brushed her fingers over his lips.









“Alright, Draco. Yes, I’ll marry you.” She said. He sighed, his body relaxing visibly as a smile lit his handsome face. He removed the ring from the box and slid it onto her finger, kissing it tenderly before tucking it against his heart.









“You will never regret it; I will spend my whole life making you happy.” He said.







“You already do, Draco, you already do.”