Chapter 2

A/N: Many thanks to my beta, Soul Bound (any remaining shortcomings are mine, of course).

Disclaimer: Disclaiming ownership of anything that rightfully belongs to someone else.

Hermione closed her book and went to the dining room, which was still empty. She told herself not to be nervous; after all, she was a Gryffindor, wasn't she? She was not very skilled at the subtleties of flirtation, so she would play her own game: unsubtle honesty. Then she heard footsteps in the hallway. The door opened and Lucius Malfoy came in.

'Good evening, Miss Granger,' he said, looking much more like his former self again. 'I have to thank you for your excellent schedule for this afternoon. I feel much better now.' He smiled at her.

Hermione smiled back at him. 'I'm very happy to hear it, Mr. Malfoy,' she said. 'But please, call me Hermione. We'll need to work closely the next few weeks.'

Lucius nodded. 'Very well, Hermione,' he said. 'But in that case I think you should call me Lucius. You're a grown woman now, not a child anymore.' He cast an approving look at her figure.

Hermione averted her eyes for a moment, a rush of excitement in the pit of her stomach. She wished she knew if this was just his normal charmer's routine or if he really admired her looks. Maybe, just maybe the course of things would run smoother than she had expected.

Lucius interrupted her thoughts. 'Please sit down, Hermione,' he said. He pulled back her chair, and she sat down, looking up into his eyes, smiling provocatively. Well, she was a Gryffindor, wasn't she?

Lucius smiled back at her. Well, well, the little witch wasn't being shy about it. He found that after his restful afternoon, he did indeed care again that this young and appealing woman was interested in him; in Azkaban, there were few pleasures of the flesh of any kind. He took the time to properly observe her. Large, dark eyes, soft skin, beautiful, dark-brown hair, small but firm breasts, nice curves in the right places, and a clinging dress that showed her nipples all too clearly. After a year of celibacy, this was certainly a very alluring sight, and he suddenly felt aroused. He lightly touched her shoulder before he went to sit down himself.

Hermione could not take her eyes off him. She had seen his appreciating look. This feathery touch already made her shiver all over. How would his embrace make her feel?

During dinner, they made small talk, mainly about the food, the Manor, the gardens, and the furniture. He explained something of its history. But underneath, the tension grew. He touched her hand and her arm every now and then, and halfway through dinner she felt his leg pressing against hers very lightly. She returned the pressure and was rewarded by another smile, and he casually laid his hand upon hers and left it there for a while, taking it away only when a house-elf came in to change the plates.

When the meal was over, Hermione felt that her cheeks were glowing from the wine and from anticipation. Butterflies were swirling in her stomach, and she had trouble breathing evenly. She was very excited and very wet from just sitting next to him, seeing him smile at her and feeling his light touches. She wanted him. She wanted all of him.

Lucius rose from his chair. 'Would you like some coffee or tea, Hermione?' he asked. 'We can have it in my study; there's a nice fireplace there.' He reached out to stroke her cheek with the back of his hand. He said nothing about her flush, but just smiled and offered her his arm. She took it, and she swallowed when she felt the warmth of his body so close.

Hermione knew very well what his study looked like. After all, she'd spent hours there working. She knew there was a fireplace with a large sofa in front of it that was comfortable enough to lie down on with pillows and a nice soft rug. Again she shivered in anticipation.

'You're not cold, I hope?' he said. 'In the study we'll be warm – I promise you.' He gave her a meaningful smile.

He opened the door and let her enter first. The coffee and tea were already there on a small table, but Hermione did not look at that. She looked at Lucius, who had closed the door and now leaned against it, arms folded, watching her with an expression on his face that she could not read. She decided to cut the social frippery and go straight for her aim.

'You know what I want, Lucius,' she said.

He did not move.

'Are you quite sure about what you want, Hermione?' he asked, arms still folded.

She looked at him, her eyes glittering with feverish desire.

'Yes, Lucius, I'm quite sure,' she said, her voice catching a bit. 'For months I have thought of you... of all the things I wanted you to do to me... I don't care if you hate Mudbloods... I want you now, and tomorrow you may forget about me if you wish...'

He still did not move, but she saw her own arousal reflected in his eyes. She stepped forward until she was very close to him.

'You want me, too, Lucius,' she said huskily. 'After all, I'm the first woman you've met after a full year in prison... and I'm a very willing woman, too...'

The next moment, he crushed her in his arms, his hands all over her body, touching her breasts, his mouth on her neck, kissing and licking her. She felt her knees going weak.

'Your last chance to change your mind, Hermione,' he whispered. 'Your last chance to run away from this prisoner... this dangerous Death Eater...'

'Kiss me, Lucius,' she whispered back, pressing her body against his, moving against his erection. 'I want you... I'm all wet for you... I want you to fuck me... hard and fast...'

He reached between her legs with his hand. 'Oh, I can feel it,' he said, breathing heavily. 'You are a very ready little witch, aren't you? You really, really want me, and you want me now, don't you...?'

He began to kiss her passionately, his hand inside her pants, rubbing her, touching her clitoris. She moved against his hand, pressing herself against him, making soft little cries, calling out when he inserted a finger into her.

'Stop, Lucius. Don't... I'm almost coming... I don't want to, not yet... not like this... I want to come with you deep inside me...'

He lifted her up in his arms and carried her to the sofa. He put her down, and with one flick of his wand, he removed their clothes; she took his hand and pulled him down on top of her, spreading her legs widely. 'Please, Lucius,' she moaned. 'Come into me... as deep as you can...'

He thrust into her as far as he could, and she gasped at how completely he filled her up. He began to move inside her while she pulled up her legs to make herself as accessible to him as possible. She grabbed his bottom and tried to pull him still deeper inside her.

'Oh, Hermione,' he whispered, panting, 'you're so wet... so eager... so open to me... I must have you...' He thrust faster and harder, a little roughly even, but from the sounds she made and from the way she squirmed under him, he knew that she liked it, that she loved it, that she wanted him to go on.

After a short while, his low moans mingling with her high cries, they came, almost together, in the most violent orgasm each of them had ever known, Hermione nearly losing consciousness while Lucius poured himself out into her womb.

Still breathing heavily, they lay in each other's arms, perspiration covering their bodies, still united, tired and satisfied. Lucius lifted his head to kiss Hermione's ear.

'That felt very good, my dear,' he said. 'Again, you knew exactly what I needed.'

She held him closer. 'I have my orders from the Ministry,' she said mischievously. 'I'm supposed to administer to your needs, and I'm known for my thoroughness in research and my perfectionism in performing all my duties.'

'Well, I have no complaints so far,' he said with a quick kiss on her lips. He pulled the rug over them, and they lay there for a while, each wrapped up in their own thoughts.

Hermione mused on how this had been much better than she had even dared to imagine – the passion, the naked want, the animal lust... She felt another shiver along her spine. This was what she had wanted all the time. Everyone always thought that she was nothing but a prude, only interested in books, but she wasn't. She was very interested in sex as well – especially the kind she was now having with this very masculine, amazingly sexy man. Harry was sweet, he was her mate, and she loved him dearly, but he just had no idea.

Lucius wondered how he could have missed this girl's hot-blooded temperament before. He had never really looked at her, but today her vibes had been tingling in the air, and he had reacted to them in a very primitive way. He wanted more of it, much more. He wondered if she would be interested in alternating the necessary administrative sessions with erotic interludes such as this during the time she would have to spend here to hand his business back to him. Would she be interested in not just staying at the Manor during those months, but in sharing his bed, too?

He found that the very thought made him grow harder. He was still inside her, for he had not really become soft after their encounter. It seemed that his body was trying to make up for a year of involuntary chastity. He pulled back a little and then pushed into her. She responded immediately, pressing herself firmly against him.

'Again?' he whispered, nibbling at her ear.

'Oh, yes,' she breathed back, raising her hips, delighted to find him as eager as herself.

This time he moved inside her just as hard, just as deep, but a little slower and rather longer. He held back his own orgasm until she had had hers, then abandoned himself to his own pleasure while she urged him on, moving with him. Afterwards they relocated to his bedroom and fell asleep without any more talking, Hermione tired of the day's tension and its passionate culmination, Lucius exhausted from the day's unusual emotions and exertions on top of his release from Azkaban.

During the night, while she was lying with her back against him, his arms around her, she woke up to feel his hands on her body, stroking her hips, her waist and her breasts. She felt his lips on her neck and his erection pressing against her. She returned the pressure, lifting up one leg and guiding one of his hands to make him feel that she, too, was ready again. She turned her head and immediately felt his lips on hers, kissing her deeply and passionately. He pulled her on top of him, and again they made love slowly, but very intensely. Afterwards she fell asleep lying on top of him, his arms around her.

***

Next morning she woke up in his arms.

'Good morning, Miss Granger,' he said softly into her ear, his hands stroking her back.

She smiled against his shoulder. 'Hermione,' she corrected him.

'Hermione,' he repeated. He passed his hand through her hair. 'Tell me, what exactly is your job description from the Ministry with regard to me, Hermione? I cannot rid myself of the impression that you have added a few touches of your own... literally, I mean...'

'I have,' she said, still hiding her face against his shoulder. 'I have added a few rather intimate touches... I've wanted you for my lover for quite some time now... Don't be afraid, I'm not talking commitment or love or anything like that, not for now and not for the future; I just want us to have sex a few more times like we did last night... It was so good...'

He thought of that for a few moments. 'I am glad to hear you say that, Hermione,' he finally answered. 'You know I never had much to offer in the way of affection; it's not in my nature. And I'm certainly not in a condition for any obligations at all right now. But I would appreciate it if you could help me with getting my life back together, and I have to admit that the extras you are offering me are very tempting in my present circumstances. I would like you to stay here during your assignment to me and to continue this... Would you be interested in spending every night like we did last night – and maybe part of our days, too?' He pressed himself closely against her, and she felt that he was again as hard as she was wet. 'Could you live with that?'

Hermione turned onto her back, pulling him with her and cradling him between her legs. 'Oh, yes, I could, Lucius,' she replied. 'I was hoping you would ask me that... I'll need to keep a close eye on your recovery, you know, mental as well as physical; that is in my job description, and I mean to make absolutely sure that you're doing well in both departments...'

She felt him slide into her, tantalizingly slowly. 'You're doing very well there already...' she whispered. 'But I'll have to be really sure that you can keep it up before I can tell the Ministry that my task here is completed...'

***

Later that day, after they had finally managed to get out of bed and have a shower (and more sex while they were at it) and breakfast together, Hermione borrowed an owl from Lucius to send a message to her husband.

'It appears that my present assignment is even more demanding than I expected,' she wrote. 'It will require my full-time attention, so I intend to stay here until it's finished – another three months, perhaps. And possibly a few short meetings after that. But you're due for another Quidditch Tournament and an Auror conference soon, so you will not miss me too much, I hope. And don't worry about my working too hard – I'm staying at a nice place with every comfort I could wish for, and you know that I like a challenge. You can reach me by owl. I hope you'll be having a great time too. Love, Hermione.'

She smiled to herself when she saw the bird taking off with her note. Well, Harry played Quidditch for relaxation – she could have her sportive diversion, too.

FINIS