Hermione/Draco- Still Frame: Chapter 3: Of Questions and Attraction (4/?)
Title: Still Frame: Chapter 3: Of Questions and Attraction
Author: butterflys_fics/blacksouledbutterfly
Rating: R
Word Count: 3,078
Summary: My name is Hermione Granger, and I am a private investigator. My cases were simple, but Draco Malfoy changed all that.
Warnings: Mentions of death, talk of sex.
Notes: In order to understand this, reading the earlier parts is a good idea. The chapter index can be found here.
Image by jetaway @ TDA
I spent several hours after I left pondering what Malfoy could have possibly meant by me having to pay him for the information I asked him to offer up. Of course I knew he hadn’t meant actual payment. He had plenty of money- after all he was paying me more than my normal fee- but he wasn’t joking when he expected payment, I was sure of that. But what could he possibly have expected as payment? Surely nothing that I was willing to give. That wasn’t even a question, more of a fact. Nothing that he could offer up to me as information was worth giving him anything he wanted.
All my worrying had kept me up most of the night and had worried Levi. Who was Levi? That’s right, I hadn’t mentioned him yet. Late in my Hogwarts experience I had begun to date Ron. Though Ron and I were rather fond of each other and it seemed logical to be with someone you cared about as much as we cared about each other, we quickly realized that our relationship wasn’t meant to last- much to the dismay of Molly who naturally assumed I’d become one of her daughter in-laws one day.
It was only a month after Ron and I had decided- mutually- that we shouldn’t be together anymore that I met Levi. We had bumped into each other, quite literally, in Diagon Alley. Levi had gone to a very small wizarding school that I had never actually heard of until he mentioned it. His parents had wanted him to have more individual attention than he would have gotten at a bigger school like Hogwarts and had chosen this one for him to attend.
Levi was two years my senior and instantly I found him to be sweet and smart. There was something soothing about his smile, something that made me smile despite myself at times. He was charismatic and there was never a time I had to explain what I was talking about. It was a new and enjoyable feeling. But I wouldn’t say I instantly was drawn to him as more than a friend. It took time for me to develop actual feelings for him. But we had spent a lot of time talking, getting to know how the other one thought and felt. It was comforting to have him listen to me and to be able to listen in return without being frustrated with the words spilling out of his mouth.
It took him three months to convince me to go on a date with him and I had naturally been reluctant, even after accepting that invitation, to make it anymore than a one time thing. I had decided to focus on more prudent things in my life than dating at the time, but Levi was so charismatic that one date turned into two, then into three and pretty soon I found myself in a relationship once more.
At first both Ron and Harry had been rather protective of me, not liking the idea of someone suddenly coming into my life. Perhaps Ron hadn’t expected me to move on as quickly as I had, or maybe they were both just trying to look out for my best interests. Either way they had insisted on meeting Levi and like the nosey prats they both were they all but interrogated him, questioning what his intentions towards me were as though they had taken on the job of being my father and protecting me. Though their caring that much about me was rather sweet it was also rather annoying. I loved them both dearly, but at that moment I wanted to strangle them to get them to leave the poor guy alone.
In the end they had conceded that he was a nice guy and even seemed to be a good match for me and they were more than willing to accept him in my life. I wouldn’t have broken up with Levi based on them not exactly being too fond of him, of course. But it made my life a lot easier to know that they accepted him and I wouldn’t have to worry about them hexing each other to oblivion and back. That was certainly a load off of my mind and it made my relationship go more smoothly- which in turn allowed me more time to focus on my job and not worry about having to visit any of them in St. Mungo’s. Thank Merlin for small favors, right?
So, as I was saying, my being up all night had worried Levi. I tried to assure him, more than once, that I was perfectly fine and I was just completely focused on the case. “I promise, as soon as this is all over everything will be back to normal.”
“You should probably just drop the case, Hermione.” It was a logical suggestion, but he knew it wasn’t that simple for me to do. “If it keeps you up then it may not be the best idea.”
I had put my tea cup down on the table, pulling my robe more tightly around me. “I can assure you, Levi. Everything is perfectly fine. And besides, I made a promise by taking this case. It isn’t in my nature to let my clients down.”
“Even ones like him?”
“Yes, even ones like him.” Oh yes, Levi had heard enough about Malfoy that even without meeting him there was an instant dislike for him. I couldn’t really blame him considering what Malfoy had put myself and my friends through during our school years, but a client is a client. Despite how I may feel about them they all deserved for me to work to the best of my abilities. Then again, I wasn’t exactly sure how I felt about Malfoy anymore. It was becoming far too confusing for my taste.
Levi sighed but nodded slightly, mostly in defeat. “Alright. Just don’t get too close, yeah? We don’t want anything bad to happen to you, do we?”
“What could possibly happen?”
“We’re talking about several girls dying, Hermione. I doubt that whoever killed them would want you looking too much into this. They might do anything they can to stop you from finding out the truth.”
“I promise I’ll be careful. I’ll come out of this in one piece.”
I had every intention of keeping that promise, of course. I mean, sure, something could always go wrong, but I was going to be as careful as I could. So, once I had assured him I was going to try my hardest to be as careful and safe as I possibly could I finished my morning routine and made my way to my office.
It was around noon that I got an owl from Kingsley. It was surprising to say the least that he would owl me at my office, but it was an intriguing thing nonetheless. The note was short and simple:
Another girl dead. Meet me at the Ministry. Tell no one of this. - Kingsley
Another girl dead. Maybe Levi being worried wasn’t such an unrealistic thing. After all the body count kept rising. And now the question that came to mind was whether or not Malfoy knew this girl as well. And if he did know her, how well did he know her? Was she another one of his seemingly long list of lovers? Or was she just someone he knew casually like the last girl I asked him about was?
I met Kingsley at the Ministry like he had requested and he led me off to one of the empty offices. I didn’t even have to ask why he did that- he could get into serious trouble for giving me this kind of information. He was risking a lot to help me and I was eternally grateful. Without the help of people with access to such information this investigation would get nowhere fast.
He handed me a folder containing pictures of this new crime scene. This one, Allison Starr, had died in the exact same manner as the other girls. And like them she was extremely beautiful even with the shadow of death hanging over them. She as young, early twenties I would have guessed. How sad to see someone, once again, die so brutally at such a young age. By the end of this case I was sure that the eyes of these women would haunt me for the rest of my life. “Did she by any chance know Draco Malfoy?”
“We can’t be certain,” he told me, but his voice revealed that he in fact believed Malfoy was connected to this girl, too. “We’re still looking into it. Do you think he’s guilty?”
“I don’t know.” And at this point I didn’t. I was extremely aware of the fact that he could have committed these crimes, may have committed these crimes, but I wasn’t ready to say with absolute certainty that I believed he had. There were too many questions I needed answered before I made that assumption. “My job isn’t to prove him innocent, you know. I’m just supposed to find the truth.”
“Please do be careful. And remember to watch your back. I don’t want to see pictures of you like this.”
He was the second person to remind me to be careful that day. Sound advice, especially with a new body. “I will. I promise.”
Once he had made sure that no one would see me leaving with a copy of the new report he made his way back over to his office, leaving me staring into dead blue eyes. It felt like she was watching me, begging for me to find out the truth. I wasn’t sure I was ready for that yet. But I knew that the one thing I needed to do was to find out whether or not Malfoy knew this girl and if so how well.
I appariated directly into the library at Malfoy’s home to find him relaxing in one of the oversized leather chairs, a cup of tea half way to his mouth. He may have smirked, I wasn’t sure, but his eyes were amused. “Just can’t stay away, can you?”
“I’m here for the case, Malfoy.”
“Of course. Did you think I meant you would come to see me for any other reason?” Bloody prat.
I didn’t waste any time. I pulled out the picture of Allison alive and smiling and held it out to him. “Did you know this girl?”
He set down his teacup and took the photo, brushing his fingers slowly against mine as he did so. It was intentional- of that I was sure. He just loved to get on my nerves, to see how far he would push me before I would snap.
His eyes danced over the picture, drinking in her features before he held it back out to me. “I’m afraid I don’t. Is she dead as well?”
“Brilliant deduction.”
He shrugged, a delicate and predatory looking gesture. “Considering you said you were here about the case. It was a logical assumption.”
“Somehow I didn’t see you as the logical type.”
“On the contrary. I can be quite logical when the occasion calls for it. After all, I saw them zeroing in on me for these crimes and decided to hire the best investigator out there to find out the truth. That, most people would say, is a logical act.”
He had just complimented me. I was sure I had somehow managed to find myself in a parallel universe. No, it wasn’t possible he complimented me. He was just messing with my head. “Hire someone else to double check my findings, did you?”
“Of course not. I trust you to find the truth, whatever it may be. Don’t think me a fool, Granger. I know you’d love nothing more than to be able to tell those imbeciles at the Ministry that I’m guilty of these crimes and see me locked away in Azkaban. But I know you: if you find out I’m innocent, no matter how much you may dislike me, there’s no way you’d let them send me to prison. You have far too many morals, Granger. It would go against the very fiber of who you are to allow that to happen.”
I hated that he was right. If he didn’t commit these crimes I sure as hell wasn’t about to let an innocent man be put away. I had seen what Azkaban did to people when I had met Sirius. I wasn’t willing to let Malfoy go through the same thing if he didn’t kill those girls.
But did I want him to be guilty? Surprisingly I didn’t. The idea that I was working for a killer was one that made my flesh crawl. My spine felt cold at the idea. No, I wanted him to be innocent. I just wasn’t sure he was. “Can I ask you something?”
“You can ask. Depending on the question you might even get an answer.”
“I just don’t get it.”
“Not a question, Granger.”
“I know that, you bloody prat.” I sat in the chair across from him, legs crossed and folder in my lap. “How is it that you manage to get all of these girls to want to sleep with you?”
“Isn’t it obvious? I’m devastatingly charming.”
“I would like a serious answer, Malfoy.”
“I’m being quite serious. I have the ability to be rather charming when I put my mind to it. You just haven’t had the pleasure of seeing that side of me.”
I couldn’t help it. I snorted. Not very ladylike, I know, but I just couldn’t picture Malfoy charming anyone into his bed. Not anyone with half a functioning brain at least.
He leaned forward slightly, resting his arms on his legs. “Some people can just make others want to be with them, Granger. No use being insulted by the fact, or disgusted by it. Some people just have a certain charm to them. Something built into them that attracts others. It isn’t something most people can learn or practice, you know. And furthermore, as you well know, women have a habit of talking.”
“So?”
“Oh, come now. Can you honestly tell me that you never listened to other girls talk about who they shagged and if they were good or not?”
I would not blush. No way was I giving him the satisfaction. “Of course I’ve heard others talk about it.”
“Well, there you have it. If one girl, just one, claims a guy is an amazing shag there will always be other girls who want to see if she’s right. Not every girl wants romance and relationships, Granger. Some just want a nice fuck and a mind blowing orgasm.”
Sweet Merlin, I was blushing. Damn it, I must have looked like a complete prude. “I know some people just want sex and nothing more, Malfoy. I’m not dim, despite what you might think.”
“Then why so red?”
“I’m just not usually around people who would put it so crudely.”
“Come now, Granger. I can be far more crude. Want me to give you specific details of what I do to them? How I make them pant and moan and scream out? I could, if you’d like. For your case file, of course.”
“Do it and I’ll hex you, I swear.”
Now he was definitely smirking. “Tell me, Granger: have you ever had a good shag just for the sake of shagging? If not it may do you some good. Release is a good thing.”
“My sex life is none of your business, Malfoy.”
“That’s a no then.”
“That wasn’t an answer at all!”
“You changed the subject to avoid answering. That’s an answer in and of itself, don’t you know. When you don’t want to have someone know the answer to a question you avoid it at all costs.”
“Just drop the subject, Malfoy.”
“Oh, but I do so enjoy watching you squirm.”
“I’m not squirming.”
“Oh, but you are.” He stood them, fluid and graceful and made his way towards me. My instinct was to get up and run, to bolt from that house as fast as my legs could take my but I couldn’t seem to make myself move.
He leaned down so his face was close to mine, his breath warm on my face, his hands resting on the arms of the chairs. I was effectively trapped. “I already knew the answer to the question, Granger. I know you far better than you think.”
“You don’t know me at all, Malfoy.”
“I know your heart is beating rather fast right now.”
“Annoyance.”
“Hardly. That’s curiosity. You’re wondering if I’m right, wondering what made them keep coming back for meaningless sex. You’re wondering if I’m as good as I claim.”
“Bullshit.”
“Ooh, such foul language from such a pristine woman.”
“I’m not pristine.”
“You’re right. You’re not. My mistake.”
Then, as if I hadn’t even seen him move, he pressed his lips against mine. His mouth was firm and warm and insistent, moving over mine with great skill. Of course my instinct was to shove him away but I was so surprised I gasped. And he took that moment to deepen the kiss, his tongue sliding into my mouth and brushing up against mine. And before I knew it I found myself kissing him back. It was wrong for so many reasons- including having a boyfriend and him possibly being a murderer- but I could bring myself to stop. It must have been a spell of some kind because I just kept kissing him back, moving my lips in synch with his and enjoying every second of it all while secretly hating myself for doing this. It was such a conflicting moment.
And then as quickly as his mouth was on mine it left, but he remained close enough to breath against my face, his lips brushing against mine as he spoke. “Come back if you ever want to know what they had, Granger. I’d be happy to oblige to a round of rolling in the sack with you.”
As soon as he backed away I ran out of the room, my heart beating a mile a minute. But it was only annoyance. That’s all it was, I assured myself.
I was not, I repeat not attracted to Draco Malfoy. Not a chance.
Author: butterflys_fics/blacksouledbutterfly
Rating: R
Word Count: 3,078
Summary: My name is Hermione Granger, and I am a private investigator. My cases were simple, but Draco Malfoy changed all that.
Warnings: Mentions of death, talk of sex.
Notes: In order to understand this, reading the earlier parts is a good idea. The chapter index can be found here.
Image by jetaway @ TDA
I spent several hours after I left pondering what Malfoy could have possibly meant by me having to pay him for the information I asked him to offer up. Of course I knew he hadn’t meant actual payment. He had plenty of money- after all he was paying me more than my normal fee- but he wasn’t joking when he expected payment, I was sure of that. But what could he possibly have expected as payment? Surely nothing that I was willing to give. That wasn’t even a question, more of a fact. Nothing that he could offer up to me as information was worth giving him anything he wanted.
All my worrying had kept me up most of the night and had worried Levi. Who was Levi? That’s right, I hadn’t mentioned him yet. Late in my Hogwarts experience I had begun to date Ron. Though Ron and I were rather fond of each other and it seemed logical to be with someone you cared about as much as we cared about each other, we quickly realized that our relationship wasn’t meant to last- much to the dismay of Molly who naturally assumed I’d become one of her daughter in-laws one day.
It was only a month after Ron and I had decided- mutually- that we shouldn’t be together anymore that I met Levi. We had bumped into each other, quite literally, in Diagon Alley. Levi had gone to a very small wizarding school that I had never actually heard of until he mentioned it. His parents had wanted him to have more individual attention than he would have gotten at a bigger school like Hogwarts and had chosen this one for him to attend.
Levi was two years my senior and instantly I found him to be sweet and smart. There was something soothing about his smile, something that made me smile despite myself at times. He was charismatic and there was never a time I had to explain what I was talking about. It was a new and enjoyable feeling. But I wouldn’t say I instantly was drawn to him as more than a friend. It took time for me to develop actual feelings for him. But we had spent a lot of time talking, getting to know how the other one thought and felt. It was comforting to have him listen to me and to be able to listen in return without being frustrated with the words spilling out of his mouth.
It took him three months to convince me to go on a date with him and I had naturally been reluctant, even after accepting that invitation, to make it anymore than a one time thing. I had decided to focus on more prudent things in my life than dating at the time, but Levi was so charismatic that one date turned into two, then into three and pretty soon I found myself in a relationship once more.
At first both Ron and Harry had been rather protective of me, not liking the idea of someone suddenly coming into my life. Perhaps Ron hadn’t expected me to move on as quickly as I had, or maybe they were both just trying to look out for my best interests. Either way they had insisted on meeting Levi and like the nosey prats they both were they all but interrogated him, questioning what his intentions towards me were as though they had taken on the job of being my father and protecting me. Though their caring that much about me was rather sweet it was also rather annoying. I loved them both dearly, but at that moment I wanted to strangle them to get them to leave the poor guy alone.
In the end they had conceded that he was a nice guy and even seemed to be a good match for me and they were more than willing to accept him in my life. I wouldn’t have broken up with Levi based on them not exactly being too fond of him, of course. But it made my life a lot easier to know that they accepted him and I wouldn’t have to worry about them hexing each other to oblivion and back. That was certainly a load off of my mind and it made my relationship go more smoothly- which in turn allowed me more time to focus on my job and not worry about having to visit any of them in St. Mungo’s. Thank Merlin for small favors, right?
So, as I was saying, my being up all night had worried Levi. I tried to assure him, more than once, that I was perfectly fine and I was just completely focused on the case. “I promise, as soon as this is all over everything will be back to normal.”
“You should probably just drop the case, Hermione.” It was a logical suggestion, but he knew it wasn’t that simple for me to do. “If it keeps you up then it may not be the best idea.”
I had put my tea cup down on the table, pulling my robe more tightly around me. “I can assure you, Levi. Everything is perfectly fine. And besides, I made a promise by taking this case. It isn’t in my nature to let my clients down.”
“Even ones like him?”
“Yes, even ones like him.” Oh yes, Levi had heard enough about Malfoy that even without meeting him there was an instant dislike for him. I couldn’t really blame him considering what Malfoy had put myself and my friends through during our school years, but a client is a client. Despite how I may feel about them they all deserved for me to work to the best of my abilities. Then again, I wasn’t exactly sure how I felt about Malfoy anymore. It was becoming far too confusing for my taste.
Levi sighed but nodded slightly, mostly in defeat. “Alright. Just don’t get too close, yeah? We don’t want anything bad to happen to you, do we?”
“What could possibly happen?”
“We’re talking about several girls dying, Hermione. I doubt that whoever killed them would want you looking too much into this. They might do anything they can to stop you from finding out the truth.”
“I promise I’ll be careful. I’ll come out of this in one piece.”
I had every intention of keeping that promise, of course. I mean, sure, something could always go wrong, but I was going to be as careful as I could. So, once I had assured him I was going to try my hardest to be as careful and safe as I possibly could I finished my morning routine and made my way to my office.
It was around noon that I got an owl from Kingsley. It was surprising to say the least that he would owl me at my office, but it was an intriguing thing nonetheless. The note was short and simple:
Another girl dead. Meet me at the Ministry. Tell no one of this. - Kingsley
Another girl dead. Maybe Levi being worried wasn’t such an unrealistic thing. After all the body count kept rising. And now the question that came to mind was whether or not Malfoy knew this girl as well. And if he did know her, how well did he know her? Was she another one of his seemingly long list of lovers? Or was she just someone he knew casually like the last girl I asked him about was?
I met Kingsley at the Ministry like he had requested and he led me off to one of the empty offices. I didn’t even have to ask why he did that- he could get into serious trouble for giving me this kind of information. He was risking a lot to help me and I was eternally grateful. Without the help of people with access to such information this investigation would get nowhere fast.
He handed me a folder containing pictures of this new crime scene. This one, Allison Starr, had died in the exact same manner as the other girls. And like them she was extremely beautiful even with the shadow of death hanging over them. She as young, early twenties I would have guessed. How sad to see someone, once again, die so brutally at such a young age. By the end of this case I was sure that the eyes of these women would haunt me for the rest of my life. “Did she by any chance know Draco Malfoy?”
“We can’t be certain,” he told me, but his voice revealed that he in fact believed Malfoy was connected to this girl, too. “We’re still looking into it. Do you think he’s guilty?”
“I don’t know.” And at this point I didn’t. I was extremely aware of the fact that he could have committed these crimes, may have committed these crimes, but I wasn’t ready to say with absolute certainty that I believed he had. There were too many questions I needed answered before I made that assumption. “My job isn’t to prove him innocent, you know. I’m just supposed to find the truth.”
“Please do be careful. And remember to watch your back. I don’t want to see pictures of you like this.”
He was the second person to remind me to be careful that day. Sound advice, especially with a new body. “I will. I promise.”
Once he had made sure that no one would see me leaving with a copy of the new report he made his way back over to his office, leaving me staring into dead blue eyes. It felt like she was watching me, begging for me to find out the truth. I wasn’t sure I was ready for that yet. But I knew that the one thing I needed to do was to find out whether or not Malfoy knew this girl and if so how well.
I appariated directly into the library at Malfoy’s home to find him relaxing in one of the oversized leather chairs, a cup of tea half way to his mouth. He may have smirked, I wasn’t sure, but his eyes were amused. “Just can’t stay away, can you?”
“I’m here for the case, Malfoy.”
“Of course. Did you think I meant you would come to see me for any other reason?” Bloody prat.
I didn’t waste any time. I pulled out the picture of Allison alive and smiling and held it out to him. “Did you know this girl?”
He set down his teacup and took the photo, brushing his fingers slowly against mine as he did so. It was intentional- of that I was sure. He just loved to get on my nerves, to see how far he would push me before I would snap.
His eyes danced over the picture, drinking in her features before he held it back out to me. “I’m afraid I don’t. Is she dead as well?”
“Brilliant deduction.”
He shrugged, a delicate and predatory looking gesture. “Considering you said you were here about the case. It was a logical assumption.”
“Somehow I didn’t see you as the logical type.”
“On the contrary. I can be quite logical when the occasion calls for it. After all, I saw them zeroing in on me for these crimes and decided to hire the best investigator out there to find out the truth. That, most people would say, is a logical act.”
He had just complimented me. I was sure I had somehow managed to find myself in a parallel universe. No, it wasn’t possible he complimented me. He was just messing with my head. “Hire someone else to double check my findings, did you?”
“Of course not. I trust you to find the truth, whatever it may be. Don’t think me a fool, Granger. I know you’d love nothing more than to be able to tell those imbeciles at the Ministry that I’m guilty of these crimes and see me locked away in Azkaban. But I know you: if you find out I’m innocent, no matter how much you may dislike me, there’s no way you’d let them send me to prison. You have far too many morals, Granger. It would go against the very fiber of who you are to allow that to happen.”
I hated that he was right. If he didn’t commit these crimes I sure as hell wasn’t about to let an innocent man be put away. I had seen what Azkaban did to people when I had met Sirius. I wasn’t willing to let Malfoy go through the same thing if he didn’t kill those girls.
But did I want him to be guilty? Surprisingly I didn’t. The idea that I was working for a killer was one that made my flesh crawl. My spine felt cold at the idea. No, I wanted him to be innocent. I just wasn’t sure he was. “Can I ask you something?”
“You can ask. Depending on the question you might even get an answer.”
“I just don’t get it.”
“Not a question, Granger.”
“I know that, you bloody prat.” I sat in the chair across from him, legs crossed and folder in my lap. “How is it that you manage to get all of these girls to want to sleep with you?”
“Isn’t it obvious? I’m devastatingly charming.”
“I would like a serious answer, Malfoy.”
“I’m being quite serious. I have the ability to be rather charming when I put my mind to it. You just haven’t had the pleasure of seeing that side of me.”
I couldn’t help it. I snorted. Not very ladylike, I know, but I just couldn’t picture Malfoy charming anyone into his bed. Not anyone with half a functioning brain at least.
He leaned forward slightly, resting his arms on his legs. “Some people can just make others want to be with them, Granger. No use being insulted by the fact, or disgusted by it. Some people just have a certain charm to them. Something built into them that attracts others. It isn’t something most people can learn or practice, you know. And furthermore, as you well know, women have a habit of talking.”
“So?”
“Oh, come now. Can you honestly tell me that you never listened to other girls talk about who they shagged and if they were good or not?”
I would not blush. No way was I giving him the satisfaction. “Of course I’ve heard others talk about it.”
“Well, there you have it. If one girl, just one, claims a guy is an amazing shag there will always be other girls who want to see if she’s right. Not every girl wants romance and relationships, Granger. Some just want a nice fuck and a mind blowing orgasm.”
Sweet Merlin, I was blushing. Damn it, I must have looked like a complete prude. “I know some people just want sex and nothing more, Malfoy. I’m not dim, despite what you might think.”
“Then why so red?”
“I’m just not usually around people who would put it so crudely.”
“Come now, Granger. I can be far more crude. Want me to give you specific details of what I do to them? How I make them pant and moan and scream out? I could, if you’d like. For your case file, of course.”
“Do it and I’ll hex you, I swear.”
Now he was definitely smirking. “Tell me, Granger: have you ever had a good shag just for the sake of shagging? If not it may do you some good. Release is a good thing.”
“My sex life is none of your business, Malfoy.”
“That’s a no then.”
“That wasn’t an answer at all!”
“You changed the subject to avoid answering. That’s an answer in and of itself, don’t you know. When you don’t want to have someone know the answer to a question you avoid it at all costs.”
“Just drop the subject, Malfoy.”
“Oh, but I do so enjoy watching you squirm.”
“I’m not squirming.”
“Oh, but you are.” He stood them, fluid and graceful and made his way towards me. My instinct was to get up and run, to bolt from that house as fast as my legs could take my but I couldn’t seem to make myself move.
He leaned down so his face was close to mine, his breath warm on my face, his hands resting on the arms of the chairs. I was effectively trapped. “I already knew the answer to the question, Granger. I know you far better than you think.”
“You don’t know me at all, Malfoy.”
“I know your heart is beating rather fast right now.”
“Annoyance.”
“Hardly. That’s curiosity. You’re wondering if I’m right, wondering what made them keep coming back for meaningless sex. You’re wondering if I’m as good as I claim.”
“Bullshit.”
“Ooh, such foul language from such a pristine woman.”
“I’m not pristine.”
“You’re right. You’re not. My mistake.”
Then, as if I hadn’t even seen him move, he pressed his lips against mine. His mouth was firm and warm and insistent, moving over mine with great skill. Of course my instinct was to shove him away but I was so surprised I gasped. And he took that moment to deepen the kiss, his tongue sliding into my mouth and brushing up against mine. And before I knew it I found myself kissing him back. It was wrong for so many reasons- including having a boyfriend and him possibly being a murderer- but I could bring myself to stop. It must have been a spell of some kind because I just kept kissing him back, moving my lips in synch with his and enjoying every second of it all while secretly hating myself for doing this. It was such a conflicting moment.
And then as quickly as his mouth was on mine it left, but he remained close enough to breath against my face, his lips brushing against mine as he spoke. “Come back if you ever want to know what they had, Granger. I’d be happy to oblige to a round of rolling in the sack with you.”
As soon as he backed away I ran out of the room, my heart beating a mile a minute. But it was only annoyance. That’s all it was, I assured myself.
I was not, I repeat not attracted to Draco Malfoy. Not a chance.