Ulterior Motive

"Of course. You could never be single all your life. You're too beautiful for that." His eyes glinted, sparkling in the low light. Hermione smiled.

"Such flattery."

"No. It's not flattery. It's the truth."

"Draco."

"So. Back on topic. You won't be Miss Granger forever? So who are you planning on being in the future?"

"I don't know. It depends who asks me." She grinned cheekily. Draco smirked, leaning in to brush his lips against hers, causing Hermione to shiver and ache for more. She protested, a quiet noise, before she reached up to crash her lips against his, a low growl in his throat as she tugged his hair, a quiet moan swallowed by the searing kiss as he requested entrance, his tongue swiping across hers. Draco pulled back first, out of oxygen in his lungs.

"Am I the only contender?" Draco smirked.

"At the moment." She smiled.

"Good." His eyes were twinkling as he leaned in for another kiss.

***

Hermione held her hand over her mouth and giggled as Draco, who had come over early that morning, raised an eyebrow.

"What is it?"

"Pans just sent me a note, and she said that if you didn't 'make it up to me' that she'd use you for target practice, and that you'd done what she'd told you to do."

"Really." Draco's tone was wry.

"Yes." Hermione grinned, scrawling a reply on the back of it, and sending it off on the owl, who had waited patiently on the windowsill, hooting as it flew off.

"Anyways, what did you drop by here for?"

"I can't drop by to see my girlfriend, just to say hi?"

"Well not necessarily, but I'd imagine you'd have an ulterior motive."

"You know me too well." Draco grinned, before it turned sheepish.

"I- I was wondering if you wanted to move in with me?"

Hermione beamed, a spark of light in Draco's world- something he hoped he could be able to put on her beautiful face forever.

"Of course! But what will I do with this one?"

"I was thinking... Because an apartment is relatively small... If you wanted to maybe turn this apartment into a personal library?"

Her eyes lit up and she threw her arms around him, smashing her lips against his, causing a small sound of surprise to escape his lips. He tangled one hand in her hair, the other sliding down to her waist and pulling her closer, sending tingles up and down her spine, and she mewled a small noise of protest as his lips strayed from hers to go to her pulse point, coaxing a breathy hitch in her throat before he moved back to her lips.

She pulled back, eyes sparkling. "I'd love nothing more. It's marvellous idea."

"When do you want to move?"

"Now would be a great time." Hermione's smile is mischievous.

"Already?"

"It's not like I have anything else to do." She shrugged, and Draco made a sound of agreement.

"Alright, then."

Hermione ducked out from under his grasp, and conjured a myriad of cardboard boxes that would hopefully fit all her possessions.

"Thank Godric for magic." Hermione smirked- a smirk that made Draco's heart skip, a classic Slytherin smirk that looked like she owned it- before she packed up her mugs, plates, bowls and utensils with a single swoosh of her wand.

Soon enough, her books in one box, her clothes in another, trinkets in a third, her kitchen things in a last one, and they'd already agreed that they'd make more trips with some of her furniture.

"Ready?"

"Well, it's not like I'm leaving this apartment, am I?

"I suppose not." Draco took her arm and they Disapparated.

***

Hermione smiled as Draco left the room, blushing a little. She opened the separate closet that they had just made in Draco's room, obliterating the wall between the guest bedroom and the master to make for more closet space, a larger bathroom, and a small sitting area with two of Hermione's chairs.

She pulled open a drawer, drawing it open smoothly, and pulled out a pair of black shorts and a tank top- the same that she'd worn the first time she'd stayed here. Sliding beneath the silky black covers, she calls Draco- telling him that he can come back in (even though she had no objections in the first place of him staying, she would have just gone into the washroom).

"Hey." She rolled over, a quiet smile on her face as Draco slid in next to her, shirtless and in a pair of black pyjama pants.

"Hi." Hermione replied happily, snuggling right up to his chest, wrapping herself in his body heat.

No more words were exchanged that night as sleep tumbled down, and Hermione would wake up, a blossoming feeling in her heart, covers everywhere and a strong arm slung around her hip, a muscular chest pressing into her back, and the thought in her mind that

***

Hermione sipped on a thermos of tea as she perused the furniture store, looking for a nice, affordable bookshelf that she could buy many times over to turn the apartment she'd gotten from Astoria to her own personal library. She favoured a particular white one- and had told Draco as much- but it was expensive, and she couldn't afford to buy enough to ring the walls of the apartment. Sighing, she called out a 'thanks' and stepped out of the store, only to realize that Draco wasn't with her.

The door swung open and Draco stepped out from behind it. Hermione raised an eyebrow at his slightly smug and self-satisfied expression, but he shook his head and Hermione sighed, letting it go.

"Dinner?"

"Yes, please. I'm starved."

"Well. I may have booked reservations for tonight, just because."

"Really?"

"Yes, so we're stopping at home so that we can drop off your tea thermos and then get to the restaurant."

"Hey! If we're going to a restaurant, I want to change, too."

"But you're beautiful whatever you wear." He tucked a stray curl behind her ear, smiling at the familiar brown riot of curls and the turtleneck sweater she was drowning in.

"Hmm... it's still a restaurant. And knowing you, you booked a very fancy restaurant that I can't pay you back for. And I want to be presentable."

"Oh, alright." Draco exaggerated an eye roll- which resulted in him being shoved by Hermione- before she laughed, took his hand, and Disapparated.

***

Hermione's hair framed her face, the black lacy dress exposing her shoulders and falling to her knees. Draco smiled as they walked through the door, greeted by Theo's familiar face.

"Theo!"

"Hey Hermione. Hi, you nutter." Draco nudged Theo, sending him a warning glare as Hermione grinned and gave him a seal of approval.

"So how's it going with this guy?"

"It's pretty good." Hermione nodded.

"Really? Finally, Dray knows how to impress a lady. But of course he would when it's you, because mmhmph hmph hmmph." The last three words were muffled because Draco had taken a nearby napkin and shoved it into Theo's face, the former not wanting the latter to reveal what he had been about to say.

"Theo. Please."

"Mhmph, mphm hmphm!"

"What?"

Theo wriggled the napkin off of his face, finally free. "I said, get this bloody thing off my face!"

"Ah. Alright."

"I won't say anything, okay, if ."

"Okay-" He was interrupted by a noise.

"Hey, Mister Malfoy!"

"Who's the pretty lady you came with?"

The chorus of voices was too familiar to the trio- the noise of the press. Hermione turned immediately, not wanting to be seen and recognized, and Draco whispered to Theo. "Hey, we gotta go. Cover for us?" The expression on the latter's face shifted in a minute. "Of course. I understand. Enjoy the evening." He winked roguishly at Hermione, who smiled back before Draco grabbed her and the duo Apparated away.

***