"In a way, you're right. The cologne is very rare as it's made from Veela tears. It's designed to show you what you most desire. But there's a downside to the attraction because of its key ingredient," he explained, leaning back and climbing to his feet to stand over her, feeling the throbbing ache in his groin as he did so. She'd spy his obvious erection any moment now… Backing towards the bed, he held her shimmering, dark gaze as he took a seat once more upon the edge of the firm mattress. "It also shows your greatest hope, which for many people will never be fulfilled and so will only lead them to despair. In your case, you saw red rose petals everywhere. It means you want romantic love, but you believe such a thing is impossible coming from someone like me."
"I…I don't-"
"You do. You don't trust me…which is why the fire was dying and why everything was hidden in the dark, under black sheets and the cover of night."
She crossed her arms, getting her back up once again now that they were on familiar ground. "How can I trust you?" she asked, defensively. "After everything you've said and done?"
"Isn't that what this game is designed to teach us all?" he countered. "It forces us to wonder if it's possible for rivals to see each other as anything else."
"And if it can't?"
"Well, if you go into it with that attitude…" They stared at each other in silence, considering what had been revealed over the last ten minutes and which now lay like an uncomfortable weight between them.
Personally, Draco was feeling positive about the revelation. So she didn't trust him; it wasn't as if he hadn't already known that much. That some part of her desired him, though, had been the great mystery upon which his entire scheme tonight had hinged. Now he knew that she did, and that meant he could take this seduction forward.
She wanted him!
That bizarre, inexplicable knot in his chest—the one that had always been there, ever since the day they'd met; the one that had contained both his burning hatred and his desperate desire for this witch before him—tightened at the thought that she wanted him to make love to her. …Alright, so what she felt for him was a
repressed longing, so much so that even she hadn't been aware of it until now. Still, it was there. If she'd been repulsed by him physically, there wouldn't have been a chance for them, but this…this he could work with. All he had to do was play that angle, use physical intimacy as a way to earn her trust, and perhaps that would be the key to getting her to open her heart to him as well.
Challenge accepted.
Granger cleared her throat behind a hand. "Regardless, I'm done with my list, which means your turn is over."
"So it is." He tossed her an antagonistic grin. "Your turn, beautiful."
She cleared her throat again, and her cheeks pinked. Whatever it was she had received as a gift, obviously she wasn't comfortable with it.
"Don't go yellow on me now, princess," he teased, knowing the insult would get her back up. "What's the card say?"
She turned a venomous look at him, then brought her card up and read it aloud. When she was done, she threw it down on the floor in disgust. Draco nearly jumped up and crowed his good luck on the spot. He was going to give her a massage.
This was going to be stunning!
He toed-off his shoes and motioned for her to come up onto the bed, patting the spot next to him.
Hermione's eyes strayed to his pants, and he knew she'd finally spied his very happy erection, which he'd been sporting since the whole sniffing him thing. She gave a wary shake of her head. "No. Absolutely no. I'm not lying down next to you on that bed."
"I didn't ask you to lie down. I indicated I wanted you to come and sit next to me," he told her. "I can't give you a proper shoulder massage in that chair, as it's against the wall. And anyway, this is supposed to be your reward for answering the question, so you know I won't harm you. In fact, I'll be forced to make it good for you."
She harrumphed, and then gave in to his logic with a regal sniff that put her nose in the air, making it clear she was not acceding to his wishes so much as to the requirements of the game. Then, with as much dignity as she could muster, Granger stood and made her way over to the bed, sitting on the end furthest from him.
Apparently, she wasn't going to make any concession an easy thing tonight, reward or not…and required or not. He crawled over to her position and crowded in against her back, positioning them so his legs were spread wide to either side of her body. She hissed and jerked away when their bodies touched and his stiffy pressed up against her spine.
"Anything the matter?" he asked, knowing full well what had offended her. Sometimes, tweaking her nose was worth the verbal beating. "I haven't actually put my hands on you yet."
"Your hands aren't the problem," she growled at him over her shoulder. "Keep that thing away from me."
Clucking his tongue at her again got her back up. "Can I help it if just being this close to you affects me?"
"Well, try harder for it not to affect you," she insisted.
He laughed. Oh, sometimes Granger was hilarious without intending to be!
"I'll do my best, but I'm a healthy, young man of eighteen," he informed her in a droll tone. "You might as well be asking Eros not to want Psyche."
She crossed her arms and huffed in disbelief. "You only turned eighteen a few days ago," she pointed out, "and as for Eros…you're a far cry from being the god of eroticism and seduction."
"So, you didn't fantasize about us entwined in black satin sheets, surrounded by silver moonlight, then?"
She had nothing to say to that.
"Come on, Granger, by now you must be aware that the game won't let me harm you. It won't even let us lie." When it was clear she still didn't believe him, he decided to try a different tact: appealing to vanity. "You can't honestly expect me not to be attracted to you. You're singularly stunning, and not just because of the dress."
She slanted a wary look his way. "Put a pillow between us and I'll consider it."
With a sigh, he reached behind him on the bed and pulled one of the smaller pillows forward. "Will this do?"
Inspecting it before giving it the nod of approval, she turned back around. "Alright then, get to it. And don't use a heavy hand."
Grumbling under his breath that he'd love to spank her with a heavy hand instead, he moved back into position behind her, pillow tucked firmly between his crotch and her spine. It was a tad awkward, but he worked with it.
As his hands worked her bare shoulders, he grunted.
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