Second Chances

Disclaimer: I don\'t own any of it.


True to his word, Draco did indeed owl Hermione the next day. She awoke in the morning to a tapping at the window. Blinking at the sunlight streaming through the curtains, she reluctantly pulled herself from the soft, warm haven of her bed and shuffled over to the window, opening it for the waiting eagle owl. She blinked twice and did a double take. The eagle owl was followed by a smaller, nondescript looking owl carrying a long slim box. She took the elegant scroll from the leg of the first owl and and box from the second, giving them both treats, expecting them to fly off. Instead, the two owls watched her expectantly. She shrugged and turned towards her package and scroll. She unfurled the sheet of parchment carefully, trying to ignore the shivers of anticipation running along her spine as she saw the neat penmanship within.

Hermione,

I hope that you enjoyed our meeting yesterday as much as I did. I would be honored to have the pleasure of your company once more this evening. You may select the location or I could introduce you to one of my favorite restaurants. Please send a response with my owls; I will patiently await your response..

Draco


She grabbed a quill from her desk, snorting at the idea of Draco Malfoy waiting patiently for anything, much less a response from her. Scrawling out a reply to the effect that she would be happy to dine with him at one of his favorite restaurants, she tied the parchment to owl’s leg and turned to the package. She lifted the lid off of the box and was astonished to find a striking stargazer lily spread across the delicate tissue.

Hermione Granger had never been one to expect romantic gestures such as these. Ron had been sweet, but never seemed to place a great deal of importance on the details of romance. She had never complained because it hadn’t bothered her. She hadn’t dated many other men, and no one had ever put much effort into the “courting” process. She supposed that this wasn’t the age of romance, and you couldn’t miss something that you’d never known to begin with.

But now she had to admit that it was nice to wake up to flattering notes and beautiful flowers. It was nice to have someone walk her home and look at her with the kind of intensity that Draco had in his eyes. One of her many worries was that he would have some sort of… expectation for her. He seemed to her to have had a great deal of experience with women, and she guessed that he didn’t have to work too hard to get that experience with them. She could certainly see where a man like Draco could make women shed their inhibitions. His clean, purely masculine scent and strong arms alone were enough to weaken her knees. She had very little experience with the opposite sex, consisting of a few clumsy snogging sessions with Ron before they called it quits and a couple kisses from more casual dates, none of which had ever elicited the same response Draco’s had yesterday.

Despite his open apology and explanation, there was still something very intimidating about Draco. She guessed that he would never lose that aspect of his personality- the cool and calculating determination that had been wrought from the temper of his youth. If she were honest with herself, that was part of what made him so very attractive to her. She sat on the sofa, hugging her knees to her chest and wondering what tonight’s date with Draco would bring.

* * * * *

Hermione was frantically rushing to get ready before Draco arrived. He’d owled back and said he’d pick her up at 7:30. It was 7:15 and her hair was in wet ringlets as she stood in her bathrobe applying touches of makeup. She glared at her reflection, muttering a drying charm for her hair and attempting to tame the resulting curls. She gave up for the moment and headed for the closet. She stared woefully into the rows of dresses and robes, suffering the feeling that she always got when she wanted to take pains with her appearance. Suddenly the clothes that were so flattering and so beautiful the day before seemed tatty, frumpy, or whorish. She eventually settled on a simple black dress in a silky material. Pinning her curls up into a loose knot, she decided that she looked passable just as a knock came from the door.

She scurried into the living room and pulled the door open for Draco, who looked at her with an unreadable expression before entering the room. She scurried off to collect her shoes and bag, leaving him staring after her. Draco thought that her appearance far exceeded passable, taking in her bare shoulders and profile left exposed by her upswept curls. Her figure was slender but shapely beneath the black dress, and he couldn’t imagine anyone looking lovelier, as he told her when she re-entered the room.

“You look stunning,” he told her, still taking in the picture before him.

Her cheeks flushed at his compliment, feeling the heat of his gaze on her as he spoke. “Thank you.” She lifted her chin to meet his eyes, “And you as well.\"

\"No surprise there though,\" he replied smugly, his expression morphing into a more familiar smirk.

She rolled her eyes. \"Shall we go?”

She took his extended arm and they exited the apartment.

* * * * *

Dinner had been wonderful and Draco had once again proved to be excellent company. They sat talking over coffee and desert, surrounded by the greenery and fairy lights of one of Draco’s favorite restaurants in the wizarding section of London. She’d asked all about his businesses, finding the operations of Malfoy Enterprises fascinating and finding herself impressed by his knowledge of such a variety of industries.

Hermione found that it was easier than she expected to forget their shared past. Rather than finding it difficult to let go of, she was feeling a bit guilty for getting past it so easily. It was easy to forget the cruel boy when she could stare across the table at the handsome and powerful man who seemed intent on winning her affections, and she wasn’t sure that it would be wise to let go of those memories yet.

As they left the restaurant, Hermione couldn’t help but feel disappointed that the evening was drawing to a close. She considered the possibility of inviting him for a drink but wasn’t sure she was ready for what he might read into the invitation. It turned out the he made the decision for her.

“If you’re interested, I’d be happy to show around the Manor’s gardens now,” He offered, remembering her expression of delight and curiosity about the lily, then noticing her hesitation. “Just a walk- I promise the invitation is innocent.”

Hermione’s expression cleared and she looked a bit sheepish that he had so accurately read her thoughts. “I’d like that.” With that she tightened her grasp on his arm and they apparated away.

* * * * *

As they toured the gardens Hermione appeared thunderstruck by the beauty of it all. She had never seen so many rare and beautiful flowers in one place before. Draco told her that this was the enchantment- to provide seasonable growing environments for every breed: specifically what each plant needed. The sat on a bench in the courtyard covered with orchids and she leaned back into his arms, basking in his warmth and strength as she took in the fragrant orchids of all varieties and colors.

Draco wrapped his arms around her and silently watched as she reverently took in the blooms. He moved closer, inhaling deeply and smiling at the fresh, sweet scent. She turned and tilted her head up to him at the motion and he quickly schooled his features into a mask of indifference, but not before she caught a glimpse of the blissful expression that had been upon his face.

Pleased with the idea, she pulled him down for to gently brush her lips across his cheek and smiled shyly as she met his intense grey gaze. He brought one hand to the bare shoulders that had captivated him all evening and gently caressed the soft skin from one shoulder, then across her back to the other, reveling in the smoothness and the shivers he felt go through her at the touch.

“Draco,” she began, dismayed at the breathy timbre of her voice. “I’m not sure…”

The hand immediately stopped its gentle caresses and she mourned the loss of contact. “Are we moving too quickly? I’m sorry, I’ll take you home now,” he continued making apologies and his body language stiffened.

“No, it’s nothing like that,” she interrupted quickly, “I just don’t want to surprise you with anything down the line and think it’s only fair that you know right now that I have… certain limits, so if you want to change your plans…” She met his eyes again and saw confusion there, so she continued. “I’m sure that you aren’t used to women turning you down, but I’m not ready, so I thought you should know that it isn’t going to happen tonight. Sex, that is; we definitely aren’t going to have sex. So if you want to take me home now…”

At this point, Draco’s jaw had fallen open. As the young witch had become increasingly blunt while struggling for words, he was torn between exasperation and amusement with her. It was endearing to watch the extremely intelligent and composed Hermione Granger stumble over words but he was surprised, to say the least, at her assumption that he was expecting intimacy immediately. Finally composing his thoughts, he spoke.

“I had no expectations for the evening other than the pleasure of your company. I have no intentions of cutting the evening short because we won’t be intimate. Could we, erm, talk about something else now, perhaps?” He finished with a little smile.

As he watched her reaction to his words, noting the delicate blush and averted eyes, he marvelled at her innocence. It would certainly explain the fear she seemed to harbor about his expectations, as well as the pretty blushes and uncertainty of how to broach the topic. The thought of being her first, of being the one to introduce her to the sensual world, of her willingly in his bed, blushing and gasping, sent a renewed frisson of lust through his body. Realizing that such thoughts were hardly appropriate given the conversation at hand, he attempted to banish the thoughts from his mind.

“I didn’t mean that I wanted you to stop.” Her words broke his reverie and he looked down to see her deep brown eyes gazing up at him, uncertain.

He arched an eyebrow at her, a playful expression on his face. “Oh? Were you enjoying it then?”

She didn’t answer, but took his hand in her smaller one and guided it back to her shoulders. Once his fingers began trailing lightly over her skin once more, she pulled his face down to hers again and this time placed a light kiss on his lips. She felt him relax into her touch once more and parted her lips against his, giving him silent permission to deepen the kiss. Listening to his words had made her feel silly for worrying about his expectations for the evening. Additionally, hearing his reference to the bedroom sent shivers down her spine, reminding her that she too would be looking forward to that time. And now, feeling him nibble softly on her lower lip and sweep into her mouth, she was beginning to regret her decision to wait at all.

“Will you stop me before it’s too much?” He had paused and was now watching her with concerned eyes. She nodded, breathless, and pulled him to her once again. He pulled her into his lap, wrapping both arms around her and trailing light kisses down the smooth column of her neck. He lifted one hand to her shoulder again, fiddling with the thin strap of her dress and he placed open-mouthed kisses across her collarbone. As he gently slid the strap off her shoulder and continued his path of kisses, she felt the lightheadedness return along with an increasing ache in her core. She shifted to place a knee on either side of his lap, straddling him with her black skirt encasing their lower bodies. Quickly redirecting his mouth to her own, she tentatively explored the hot, wet cavern of his mouth with her tongue, shivering at the feeling of his own tongue stroking against hers, encouraging her explorations. It was only when she finally broke the kiss that she realized she had been grinding herself against him for some time. Her flush of arousal heightened as she realized exactly what she had been grinding against, the hard length pressed insistently exactly where she wanted it most.

Draco suppressed a moan as she moved against him. He let her take control, not wanting to do anything to pressure her, but allowing her to direct things. He was sure he must be harder than diamond, feeling the stirrings of an erection the moment she kissed him and reaching almost painful levels of arousal as he felt the heat from her center moving over him. He looked up to meet her eyes, noting that they were now wild, boring into his with an astonishing intensity.

Hermione knew she should stop. Especially after the tirade about not having sex, she knew it was simply not mannerly to be humping him in the middle of a garden with abandon. She knew that she should stop but could do nothing except rub herself against his hard flesh, moving desperately to ease the ache. She felt her breathing growing erratic, coming in little gasps as she moved closer and closer. She felt Draco’s breath on her neck, whispering words of encouragement.

“Gods you’re beautiful Hermione. I can feel the heat from you and your knickers must be soaking.” He paused as she moaned at his words. “It feels amazing- you make me harder than I ever thought was possible. Don’t hold back anything, let go and use me the way your body wants to.” She was holding him tightly, her grip painful on his arms, as he leaned in to whisper again. “Come for me sweetheart.”

And she did- everything he said. She realized that she was gasping for air, moaning loudly as the tension snapped and she shuddered in his arms. He held her tightly, awed by the beautiful creature coming apart before him. He rubbed soothing circles across her back, waiting for her breathing to even out.

As she gradually became aware of her surroundings and realized what she had just done, she pressed her burning face against his firm chest and felt the vibration of his gentle laughter.

\"You\'re blushing and hiding?\" he sounded amused. \"I\'m the one that just got used as a bloody rubbing post.\"

The heat in her face flared and she screwed her eyes shut, wishing fervently to disappear, as she struggled for a response, dismayed to hear him laughing harder.

\"Hey,\" he began, more softly. \"I was just teasing. I liked it. Quite a bit actually.\"

She nodded silently and settled back into his arms, feeling reassured but a bit bashful. They remained peacefully entangled for several minutes before taking note of the late hour and straightening themselves up for the journey back to Hermione’s flat. She thanked him for a lovely evening and floated into the flat after he pressed a kiss to her hand murmured his goodbye.

She relived the events of the evening, from his compliment when he arrived to the session in the garden, realizing that it was in fact, quite a perfect evening. It wasn’t until later that she realized that she had left him hard and wanting. She clapped a hand over her forehead in distress and fell back onto her bed in giggles.

Miles away, Draco was taking care of his problem. It certainly had not escaped his notice at the time that he had not achieved release, but he had felt it best to avoid drawing her attention to it. It was becoming increasingly clear that much of this was new for Hermione and he dearly wanted to avoid overwhelming her. It was best to save his own needs for another night with her. Besides, the events of the evening had provided more than enough material to relive during his self-gratifiication.

As he lay atop the silky sheets, stroking himself with one hand and fisting the sheets with the other, his mind was filled with images of Hermione straddling him, rubbing against him, arching her back and throwing her head back in pleasure. It was only a small stretch of the imagination to banish their clothes and picture himself buried within the tight heat he could feel above him. He could feel the moisture seeping through her knickers earlier and now imagined the same wetness and heat encasing his cock as she rode him with abandon.

Groaning, he gave a few final stokes and spilled his seed across himself. As he lay panting, he realized that Hermione Granger was turning out to be more perfect than he had hoped in many unexpected and delightful ways.