Unofficial Portkey Archive

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters you may recognize from the wonderful world of Harry Potter, they all belong to the revered JK Rowling; I just like to play with them a little.

CHAPTER SIX

BUSINESS BEFORE PLEASURE

Ginny awoke alone in their massive bed. She was feeling just a little disenchanted as she swung her feet over the side of the bed. Draco had not kept his promise from the night before, and had obviously already risen for the day. Despite suspecting he would have already left for the office, Ginny summoned Millie.

"Where is Draco?"

"Master did leave for work very early, Mistress."

Ginny sighed heavily with disappointment. "Are the children awake?"

"Yes, Mistress. Master Drake and Miss Angelique has eaten their breakfast and is playing in the playroom."

"Thank you."

"Will Mistress be liking her breakfast now?"

"No, I'll shower first."

"As Mistress wishes."

Ginny closed the bathroom door just as the elderly servant Disapparated from her bedchamber. She sighed heavily as she turned the water on and undressed. A thousand reasons why Draco had broken his promise roamed through her head. The more she tried to reason out why, the more frustrated she became. After his reaction last night about the baby, she'd have thought he'd have been eager to join her in bed, but it seemed, she was wrong.

It was then that the most upsetting of reasons for his absence burrowed into her conscious thoughts: now that she was beginning to show, he wasn't attracted to her. She slapped herself mentally and reminded herself of their shower the evening before. Even though they'd been disturbed by Drake and didn't actually get anywhere, he couldn't have possibly been faking his feelings, could he? Then she remembered how eager he was to take care of Drake. He had insisted that he deal with their son, and in doing so he escaped her.

Ginny shook her head to clear her thoughts. This was getting her nowhere. There had to be a reasonable explanation why he'd not kept his promise and she would simply ask him when he came home tonight. Angry with herself, she finished up in the bathroom quickly and stomped through to her dressing room, promising herself she wouldn't give his inattention another thought until she spoke to him.

After dressing for the day, Ginny purposefully walked to the playroom to collect the children. Breakfast on the patio while she watched the children play was exactly what she needed to take her mind off of things, especially her absent husband.

She paused in the doorway of the playroom. Drake was playing with his Quidditch stadium and Angel was fully involved in a tea party for her dolls.

"Who wants to go outside for a while?"

"Mummy!" Drake flew across the room as fast as his little feet could carry him and wrapped his arms around Ginny's legs. "You're up!"

"Yes, sweetheart."

"Millie said we shouldn't wake you."

"Did she now? Well I'll have a word with her later about that." Ginny gathered Angel to her side. "Did you both have enough breakfast?"

Angel nodded emphatically. "We had pancakes."

"I hope you didn't eat them all! Pancakes sound perfect for breakfast this morning."

Both children looked at their mother with decidedly guilty expressions.

"The house elves can make more," Drake offered.

"Yes, they can, sweetheart," Ginny replied, swallowing the laughter threatening to burst forth. "So are you coming outside? I thought I'd have breakfast on the patio while you two are playing."

Angel took off in the direction of the family parlor and the great outdoors with loud delighted squeals. Drake held firmly to Ginny's hand and walked with her. Once at the table, the little boy held his mother's chair for her, just like he'd seen his father do, and when she was comfortably seated, he summoned Millie.

"Millie!"

"Little Master Drake did want Millie?"

"My mummy wants pancakes for breakfast now."

The elderly servant glanced at Ginny, who nodded almost imperceptibly to confirm the order, before she Disapparated.

Ginny didn't have the heart to reprimand Drake for how he was speaking to Millie. After all he was doing an almost faultless impression of his father, and he was trying to look after her. She'd have a quiet word later, when he wasn't so intent on making sure she was catered for.

Drake hovered close to Ginny until Millie arrived back with her breakfast. The little boy seemed to be almost torn between going to play and clinging to his mother. Ginny wondered if he could sense her tension. She didn't think she was acting any differently around the twins, but Drake had always been perceptive to how she was feeling.

"Would you like some more pancakes, Drake?"

"No thank you, Mummy," Drake answered with perfect manners.

"Do you want to go play?"

Drake looked wistfully towards the lawn where his sister was racing around having fun. "It's all right, I'll stay with you."

"You can play, sweetheart. I'm just going to eat breakfast."

"You don't want me to sit with you?"

"If you really want to, but I know how much you like to play and I'd hate for you to miss out."

Drake thought for a moment. "All right, but if you need me I'll be right over there."

"Okay." Ginny smiled to herself. Her son's concern for her made her heart swell.

While Ginny leisurely ate her breakfast, Drake looked up often to see if she was all right and she'd wave happily at him, hoping it would placate his worried little mind. She pondered what they might do after she'd finished eating and decided very quickly on a walk by the lake to start with. It was a beautiful day, so she was going to try to enjoy it as much as she could.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Ginny wandered through the rose garden slowly, her thoughts drifting to Narcissa's mood the evening before. She'd left the children in Millie's care for the time being. They'd had a lovely walk, or run in the twins' case, by the lake after breakfast and had ended up having an impromptu picnic lunch under one of the large trees by the shore. The children were just about worn out after running around in the fresh air for several hours, so she'd prescribed some quiet play for them for a few hours.

It wasn't long before Ginny spied her mother-in-law sitting in the gazebo having afternoon tea. Narcissa seemed to be lost in thought, so she approached quietly and hoped she wouldn't startle her.

"Narcissa?"

"Ginevra, how lovely to see you."

Ginny sat down opposite her mother-in-law at the tiny table. "Are you feeling better?"

Narcissa's brow creased delicately. "I don't understand. I haven't been unwell."

"You were upset last night, and Draco thought that maybe someone had upset you."

Narcissa's eyes widened just perceivably before she looked away deliberately, casting her gaze into the gardens.

"I don't want to pry or anything," Ginny continued. "I just wanted to make sure you were all right."

"I'm fine," Narcissa responded in a clipped tone.

"Okay, but if you want to talk about it... I'm here," Ginny offered pleasantly.

Narcissa slowly turned back to face her daughter-in-law. She expected to see indifference in the younger woman's eyes, but was surprised when she saw genuine concern. It had been decades since Narcissa had had another woman to talk to openly about anything that might be on her mind. "Everything is fine," she insisted.

"If you say so." Ginny smiled warmly across the table as she poured herself a cup of tea. "I just find it helps when I talk about whatever is bothering me."

"Whom do you usually talk to?"

"My mum, Hermione or Pansy... sometimes all three."

Narcissa's eyes drifted back to look out over the gardens again. "I used to talk to my sister," she whispered.

Ginny silently watched the older woman. She had the feeling that Narcissa wanted to open up to her, but at the same time she didn't want to push her too much lest she clammed up altogether.

"It was a long time ago." Narcissa sighed heavily. "Before she went away."

Unsure as to which of her sisters Narcissa was speaking about, Ginny pondered whether or not she should ask. The specific mention of either could upset Narcissa even further or perhaps make the situation worse.

"She used to help me plot the most heinous of retributions." Narcissa laughed coldly at the memory. "Of course, I rarely followed through on the plans, but I suspect Bella always convinced the person who had dared to upset me not to do it again."

"It must have been nice to have an older sister to protect you like that," Ginny commented wistfully.

Narcissa turned to look at Ginny again. "You are very lucky, you have six older brothers."

"Brothers don't always understand the need for subtly or that I don't need protecting all the time."

"Bella wasn't terribly subtle either, but her methods were effective."

"I can imagine," Ginny uttered before she could stop herself. She cringed mentally when Narcissa's eyes opened just a little wider and hoped that she hadn't alienated the other woman with such a careless comment.

"You've come across Bella before?"

"Yes, before the end of the war."

Narcissa nodded thoughtfully. "She was a merciless warrior."

Ginny bit her tongue to keep her from saying anything derogatory about Bellatrix Lestrange. A lot of things were coming to mind, and not one of them could be considered nice or even constructive in this situation.

"I'm not a fool, Ginevra; I know you don't see her as being anything but brutal, and perhaps even a little insane." Narcissa paused for a moment to take in the surprised look on her daughter-in-law's face. "I know her differently. She's my sister, and I have not only seen her softer side, I've experienced her love. Did you know that she's fiercely protective of her family?"

"No," Ginny muttered.

"Of course not, because you don't see her as caring about anything or anyone."

"My opinion of her doesn't reflect upon you," Ginny said quickly.

"If it did, I doubt very much you would be sitting here now."

"No, I guess not."

Narcissa smiled knowingly. She'd been through this many times. Her sister's past actions haunted her on a daily basis. "Enough about Bellatrix."

"All right." Ginny weighed up her next move carefully before asking, "What about yesterday? Who upset you?"

"It was nothing."

"It must have been something... you were very upset."

"Just a stray comment from a narrow-minded foolish woman who isn't worth my time."

"What did she say?"

"Why do you want to know?"

"I don't really, it's just you might feel better if you spoke about it." Ginny hid the impatience in her tone beautifully. Narcissa was not an easy woman to get to open up. "If you really don't want to talk about it that's fine, I just thought it would help."

Narcissa's gazed wander back out over the gardens.

Ginny moved her chair back from the table and made to leave. "I might-"

"It was Mrs. Nott," Narcissa said abruptly, cutting Ginny off.

"What did she say?" Ginny enquired as she sat back down.

"She'd Owled me, inviting me to a luncheon at the last minute yesterday. Of course I couldn't go, because I had the children."

"Was she upset you couldn't go?"

"More than likely not, but she did make some rather nasty comments when I Flooed her to advise her that I couldn't attend."

"Oh?"

Narcissa sniffed affectedly. "She compared me to a house elf."

Ginny's eyes widened in surprise. She had expected some snide subtle remark to have been made by the other woman, but this was far from subtle and it was down right vicious. "I'm so sorry."

"It's not your fault." Narcissa sniffed again and pressed her hand to her mouth.

'Oh god, she's going to cry,' Ginny's mind screamed. It hadn't occurred to her that Narcissa might spill a tear over this. She silently withdrew her wand and summoned a handkerchief.

"Thank you," Narcissa murmured, accepting the silk handkerchief and dabbing at her eyes.

Ginny waited patiently while Narcissa brought herself under control. She certainly didn't want to say anything that might upset her further or make her cry even more, so she stayed silent for the time being.

"I'm not usually so emotional," Narcissa explained unevenly. "Most especially when it involves foolish comments from vindictive women."

"You have every right to be upset," Ginny assured her. Even though she was new to the whole aristocratic lifestyle, she was certain there could be no worse an insult than to be compared to a servant.

"I should know better than to allow someone like her to affect me so deeply."

"Why would she say something so cruel?"

"She was indirectly implying that a nanny should be caring for the twins."

"Do you agree?"

"There are times when the services of a competent nanny are useful, but that doesn't mean I don't enjoy spending time with the children; quite the contrary in fact. I adore being with them."

"Did none of these women raise their own children?"

Narcissa looked pensive for a moment. "No, I don't think so. Everyone had nannies."

"Why doesn't that surprise me?" Ginny muttered.

"It's our world, Ginevra. We have a lot of social obligations, but at the same time, we have to cater for our children's well being, so a live-in nanny is what most choose to provide the children with some stability."

"I disagree. Stability in their lives should come from their family, most especially their parents."

"I don't dispute that, but it is important that the stability continue when family are not around. This is where a nanny becomes necessary. Whenever you're not available, for whatever reason, it will always be the same person caring for the children."

"I'm sorry Mrs. Nott was horrid to you over my decision not to have a nanny, but I won't be changing my mind. I don't want the children raised by a stranger."

"I didn't believe it would change your mind. You're very strong willed, Ginevra, and that is a good thing."

Ginny smiled across the small table. She didn't know if the compliment was genuine or not, but it didn't really matter anyway. She wasn't going to change her mind about whom the care of her children would be entrusted to when she was unable to be with them. "What are you going to do about Mrs. Nott?"

"I have a few options available."

The smile on Narcissa's face could only be described as coldly sadistic. Ginny hoped she never looked at her that way, because whatever Mrs. Nott had coming to her she was sure it wasn't going to be pleasant.

"The most important thing is timing," Narcissa continued.

"You have a plan then?"

"A loose strategy."

A large black owl flew down and landed on the table between the women, distracting them from their conversation. When it offered its leg to Ginny, she deftly untied the message it carried.

"Is it from Draco?" Narcissa asked.

"Umm... Yes," Ginny replied, absently wondering how Narcissa knew.

"I thought so. They have a flock of those owls at the office. They're all the same color, and they're all massively ugly beasts."

"Oh," Ginny murmured as she scanned the message from her husband.

Gin,

I've secured Tuesday and Thursday afternoons away from the office next week, so we'll conduct the second interviews on those days at home. My secretary has sent owls notifying the applicants when they are expected at the house, and I've arranged a lunch meeting with Mr. Maddock tomorrow to discuss Miss Sheehan's suitability. See you tonight.

Draco

"Is everything all right?"

Ginny's eyes ran over her husband's perfect script again and tried not to show her disappointment. "Yes, Draco's made time to see the tutors next week over two afternoons."

"You don't seem pleased."

"It's fine."

"If it's not convenient then you should tell him straight away, so it can be changed."

"It's not a problem. It was my idea to spread the interviews over two afternoons," Ginny said.

"Then something else is wrong," Narcissa stated perceptively.

"No." Ginny tried to smile brilliantly, but even she could feel the falseness in the effort. She sighed heavily and cast her eyes down. "Yes."

"Tell me. Perhaps I can help you fix the problem."

"It's silly really."

"If you're not happy then it's certainly a problem. Now what is this about?"

"I'll sort it out."

"What was it you were telling me about talking about what was bothering me?"

Ginny looked at the smug witch sitting across from her. Her own tactics were being turned around to attack her. "Draco promised he wouldn't work too late last night and... Well I don't remember him coming to bed, then when I woke up this morning, he was already gone for the day, and this note is so impersonal."

"That is a real problem," Narcissa exclaimed. "You're feeling neglected."

"I wouldn't say that. It's just that he always has to be working, even when he takes the afternoon off, he's back at it later that night. We don't seem to be able to string together twenty-four hours in each other's company."

Narcissa nodded understandingly. "Lucius mentioned that they are very busy at the moment, but that is no excuse for neglecting his family."

"Will it stop soon?"

"Draco is like Lucius. Unless you remind him of where home is he'll forget."

"I don't want to turn into some nagging wife who doesn't know how to entertain herself when her husband is working."

"You don't have to, but he must be reminded of what he is missing out on. There are not only your feelings to consider, the children must be missing his presence as well."

"They are," Ginny admitted.

"Well, something must be done to alert him to your feelings."

Ginny didn't like the dangerous twinkle in Narcissa's eyes. She didn't want to think about what Narcissa might say to him, if she got the opportunity. "I'll think of something."

"Sometimes a more corporeal approach is required to gain their attention," Narcissa advised slyly.

Even though Ginny nodded and smiled at Narcissa, she didn't want to think about what the older witch could be implying with such a comment.

"Just let me know when you want me to watch the children."

"I will," Ginny muttered without conviction.

"More tea?" Narcissa offered cheerfully.

"Yes, please," Ginny answered vaguely. She was trying mightily to push the embarrassing images Narcissa's comments had evoked from her mind.

Ginny excused herself after drinking her tea, citing the children as reason to leave. It wasn't often she felt uncomfortable around her mother-in-law now, but the implication of the conversation hadn't sat well with her. Given that Narcissa liked to pretend that her son didn't engage in such activities, it was quite bizarre that the woman be suggesting what Ginny thought she was proposing. Then again, perhaps she was reading far too much into Narcissa's words; her frustration could be twisting things around to mean what she wanted them to mean or rather what she needed them to mean.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

It was becoming increasingly difficult for Ginny to differentiate between the days. They all seemed to be blurring together into one long, lonely existence despite her best efforts to keep busy.

Draco had worked extremely late on Tuesday evening and had again left the house early on Wednesday. Even though Ginny didn't actually see him, she knew he had been home for a few hours at least, because his side of their bed was rumpled.

On Wednesday afternoon she had taken afternoon tea with Narcissa again, but this time she brought the children with her to keep the conversation on a safe level. It was a pleasant afternoon, though Drake might disagree after his grandmother spent much of her time correcting his table manners. Angel was the picture of a perfectly brought up little princess. She mimicked everything Narcissa did and more, receiving praise for her conduct from the society witch. Rather than eat alone again, Ginny asked Narcissa to join them for dinner. She knew Lucius had been working late, though not as late as Draco, so there was no point in the women eating separately.

Thursday she spent a great deal of time with the household books. Narcissa had taken Angel shopping, so she allowed Drake to bring some of his toys up to her private parlor while she worked. Late in the afternoon an owl arrived from Draco, stating that he'd be late again. Ginny sighed heavily and tried not to feel despondent as she returned to her household books. This evening would be the third consecutive night Draco hadn't made it home for dinner.

Ginny told herself sternly that there was no point in dwelling on her disappointment. She couldn't let Draco's absence affect the children or the way she dealt with them. For now, she would carry on as if nothing was amiss, even though she felt as though her heart was breaking.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Draco let himself into the master bedchamber as quietly as he could. He didn't want to disturb Ginny if he could help it. With his shoes in one hand, he tiptoed across the room in the direction of his dressing room.

"You're late."

Draco dropped his shoes and spun to face the direction the sound had come from, illuminating his wand as he did. "Lumos. Ginny, you're still awake!"

"So are you."

"Bad day at the office I'm afraid."

"Day, night, there doesn't seem to be any difference at the moment."

Draco bit back the angry retort boiling on his tongue. He didn't have the energy to get into an argument with her right now, and he knew without doubt that she'd bite hard if he provoked her. "Love, I don't have a choice at the moment. You know I'd rather be home with you and the twins."

"How long is it since you've seen them?"

"Let's not go there, okay? It's killing me being away from you all the time."

"Fine," Ginny responded in a clipped tone.

"I'll just have a quick shower," Draco muttered, entering his dressing room. He decided it was probably better for his health if he ignored her tone.

Draco undressed quickly and threw his robe over his shoulder. When he crossed the bedchamber again, Ginny was sitting up in bed, reading a book. He groaned mentally. It meant that she would want to talk when he got to bed, and he really didn't have the energy to stay awake tonight. Draco could only hope a shower would wake him up a bit, so he could at least pay attention when she was speaking.

After a quick shower, so as not to be awake longer than necessary, Draco prepared for bed. With a few droplets of water still glistening on his chest, he left the bathroom and headed directly for the comfort of his pillow. The hot shower had done little for his exhaustion, except perhaps make him feel warm and ready to curl up in a ball. He slipped between the covers as Ginny marked her page and placed her book on the nightstand beside her. Draco braced himself for whatever it was she had to tell him.

"You do remember we're having dinner at Harry and Hermione's on Saturday, don't you?"

"Yes, dear, I've blocked the evening off in my diary, so I can't work," Draco responded, swallowing a yawn. He was warm and starting to relax into the mattress. His pillow felt divinely soft as it cradled his overworked head. Now he just had to get through what his wife wanted and he could go to sleep.

"Good, the twins are looking forward to it and it would be a shame to cancel."

"We won't have to cancel."

"I've missed you," Ginny whispered.

"I've-" Draco's eyes shot open as he felt Ginny's hand wander down to his satin boxers. He cleared his throat and tried again. "I've missed you too, love."

"How much have you missed me?"

"More than you know," he mumbled as he pulled her gently onto his chest. He hoped it would unseat her hand, but disappointingly it gave her easier access to his groin.

Ginny sighed happily as her fingers traced the outline of his flaccid manhood. "This is nice. Just you and me cuddling together."

"Mmm..." Draco was struggling to keep his eyes open. Even her purposeful ministrations around his boxers weren't helping to push away the desire to sleep.

"Draco?"

"Mmm?"

"You aren't going to sleep on me, are you?"

"No, love," Draco uttered sleepily.

"Good," Ginny replied nefariously.

He could feel her massaging through the satin. The sensation was quite pleasant, but it wasn't doing anything to arouse him. Sleep was claiming him faster than he could fight and before long he drifted off.

"Draco?"

Her husband's deep, even breathing filled the bedchamber. Ginny lifted her head from his chest and looked at his face. Sure enough his eyes were closed and he was most definitely asleep. The urge to shove him was tempting, so very tempting, but she did refrain. However, a loud huff of frustration did escape as she moved over to her side of the bed. After fluffing her pillows up vigorously, Ginny picked up her book again and tried to read. Was it really too much to ask for some attention from her husband?

Sometime in the wee hours of the morning Ginny finally fell asleep with her book still resting on her lap. She hadn't so much as turned a page since she'd picked it up. Her mind had been consumed with why Draco seemed to be ignoring her. He'd been so attentive before she moved into the manor, but she'd noticed his consideration waning ever since. Unbidden thoughts of the worst kind plagued her dreams as her subconscious took over trying to puzzle out her husband's behavior.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

It was with no surprise that Ginny awoke on Friday morning alone and feeling somewhat stiff from the position she'd fell asleep sometime in the early hours of the morning. She was disgruntled, and more than a little frustrated. It wasn't that she didn't understand how hard Draco was working at the moment, and that the long hours were taking their toll on him, but if she didn't get some meaningful attention soon she was going to explode.

The day progressed slowly for her, and too often she found herself daydreaming about spending time alone with her missing husband. There had to be some way to keep him awake, so she could have her wicked way with him or at least long enough for her to take the edge off of her frustration.

As the hours ticked away, a plan began to formulate in her head. The moment he got home, she'd drag him up to their chambers and then they could sit down to a pleasant meal or he could sleep if he needed to. It was perfect. Narcissa wouldn't mind keeping an eye on the twins for a few hours, and if she wasn't available there was always Millie, who was proving to be very competent in childcare.

With a workable strategy now in her mind, and the children off shopping with Narcissa, Ginny decided to spend the afternoon getting ready for her husband's return from the office. A long soak in a bubble bath with a good book was first on her list. She had just relaxed in the water when a Malfoy Holdings' Owl perched itself on the edge of the tub. Excitement bubbled inside of her as she reached for the note attached to the bird's leg. She hoped it was Draco telling her he'd be home early.

Gin,

Have a business dinner tonight. Don't wait up; it'll probably be a late one.

Draco

Her heart sunk as she screwed up the parchment in her hand. She felt like screaming at the injustice of being left alone so often. It wasn't fair. Most newlyweds couldn't get enough of each other, and here she was feeling abandoned. They were still considered newlyweds, weren't they?

Self-doubt began to creep into her veins again, and all the resolve she'd found only that morning evaporated. Perhaps she had some sort of fairy tale view of how married life should be? What if this was what it was really like - alone all the time with only the children and servants for company, day in day out?

A single tear escaped from under her lids.

Ginny sat upright suddenly, causing water to slosh out of the tub and onto the marble floor. This wallowing in self-pity wasn't doing her any good, and she wasn't about to let herself slide down into its dark depths. Draco was working to provide for them. She ignored the small voice at the back of her mind that was screaming about the fact that he didn't have to work to provide for them. He loved her deeply, of that she was positive, and he was not having an affair.

An affair? Now that was a new thought. Maybe he was having an affair? Perhaps the other woman was his secretary. Ginny shook her head vigorously to clear the horrid image that had appeared there. His secretary was old enough to be his mother and looked old enough to be his grandmother. Draco didn't go for that type of woman anyhow. If he was going to have an affair it would be with a woman similar to those he used to date before they were married: impossibly beautiful and incredibly shallow. Did he miss those women? Had he returned to that life of debauchery?

She scolded herself harshly. There was absolutely no evidence that her husband was doing anything more than working some extraordinary hours at the moment. His level of exhaustion last night was proof of that at least. Unless he'd worn himself out in other way, her mind whispered. With an angry growl at herself, Ginny snatched up her book from the side of the bath. Determined to distract herself, she ripped open the trashy romance novel that had caused her very proper mother-in-law to raise her eyebrows questioningly when she spied the cover. I will not think about it again, she thought resolutely.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Draco Apparated into foyer of his home. It had been a long night full of far more Firewhisky than he should have had to consume to get a handshake from the man he'd been trying to persuade into doing business with him. Still at least he'd made it home without Splinching himself. Now all he had to do was negotiate the staircase, something that would be far easier if it would stop moving, and fall into bed.

After making several grabs at the handrail, Draco finally found purchase and began to pull himself up the stairs. He was quite impressed with himself when he reached the first floor landing, having only miss-stepped a few times, and been brought to his knees twice. Once over praising himself, Draco deliberately turned in the direction he had to walk, pointed his course out to himself with an upraised arm and staggered off down the corridor.

The journey down the long corridor was punctuated with several collisions with the walls and a few objects d'art, which he somehow caught before they could hit the floor. When he reached his bedchamber doors, Draco reached forward and turned the knob; unfortunately, he was leaning on the door at the time and went sprawling into the room with an undignified yelp. All his strength seemed to have vanished, so he stayed where he was for the time being. Through his blurry vision, he sensed there was something different about the sitting room, but he couldn't quite put his finger on it at this juncture. Perhaps if remembered in the morning, he'd ask Ginny if she'd changed anything.

"Draco?"

"Father!"

"What are you doing in there?"

"I fell over." Draco laughed loudly at his own folly.

"And just where were you headed when you fell over?"

"Bed!"

"Is that a fact?" Lucius regarded his obviously drunk son for a moment or two before pointing out what he felt was apparent. "You do realize this is no longer your bedchamber, don't you?"

The befuddled look on Draco's face conveyed his confusion without any words needing to be slurred.

"Draco, you're in the northern wing - my wing. You live in the southern wing."

"Bloody buggering hell," Draco cursed half-heartedly. "Now I've got to walk all the way back."

"I think I'll escort you... just to make certain you make it without waking our ancestors," Lucius stated sardonically.

"No need! I can do it!" Draco rolled onto his front and attempted to raise himself off the ground, only to slump to the floor after a few seconds of supporting his weight on his hands.

"Perhaps when you're sober enough," Lucius muttered under his breath.

"Lucius, is everything all right?"

"Yes, Narcissa, it's just Draco."

"What is he doing here?"

"I rather think he lost his way."

"Lost his way?"

"He's quite inebriated, dearest. Just go back to bed. I'll make sure he gets to his own wing."

"Oh dear," Narcissa exclaimed as she peered over her husbands shoulder. "This is not going to help matters."

Draco looked up at Narcissa with a goofy grin on his face. "Hello, Mother!"

"Oh, Draco, how could you?"

"What?"

"Look at your condition!"

"I've just had a couple of drinks."

"A couple too many!" Narcissa pinned him with a disgusted look. "You ought to be ashamed of yourself."

"Narcissa, I think you'd be better to save your tirade until the morning, when he'll remember what you've said," Lucius interrupted. He simply wanted to deliver his son to his own wing and climb back into his own comfortable bed before the sun rose. "Go back to bed and I'll be there soon."

"Very well," Narcissa snapped, turning on her heel and stalking angrily away from the men.

Lucius waited until his wife had disappeared from sight, before turning his attention back to his intoxicated son. "Come along, Draco."

Despite Draco's loud declarations that he could get up under his own steam, Lucius helped him to his feet. It was a struggle, and at one stage both men almost tumbled to the floor, but they made it in the end. Even though they were quite a distance from slumbering family members Lucius continually reminded Draco to keep his voice down. Draco had taken it upon himself to recount the entire evening to his father while they made way to the southern wing.

"Here you are," Lucius announced quietly when they reached Draco's suite doors. "I suggest you take your shoes off before entering the bedchamber."

"I'll do that," Draco proclaimed, sliding down the wall and trying to yank his shoes from his feet without bothering to untie the laces.

Lucius rolled his eyes at his son and hoped Ginevra was a sound sleeper or at least in a forgiving mood. "I'll see you in the morning."

"Nighty night, Father."

"Just go to bed, Draco," Lucius muttered intolerantly as he turned away. The urge to berate him for coming home in that condition was burning the tip of his tongue, but he refrained. There was no point expending the energy when Ginevra would more than likely give him a tongue-lashing he won't so readily forget.

With the help of the doorframe, Draco hauled himself to his feet again and opened the door to the sitting room. After closing it behind him, he tiptoed across the room and let himself into the bedchamber. His effort to sneak in silently was thwarted when he staggered while he was trying to close the door and it slammed shut. "Fuck," he cursed in a half whisper.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Even though she'd subtly checked with Lucius about Draco's business dinner, Ginny had tossed and turned all night, unable to get comfortable and fall asleep. It was getting more and more difficult to do when he was absent from the house, especially when her mind wandered off in directions it was better avoiding. She reassured herself that although it was late - very late - Draco was doing what he had to do to secure this wizard's business, and she tried not to think about what that might involve.

A disturbance in the corridor alerted her to the presence of someone. She sat up in the darkness and waited, listening carefully. It wasn't long before she recognized Lucius' voice, and she presumed the other had to be Draco-a very drunk Draco by the sounds.

She kept her silence as he opened the door, slammed it shut, cursed and then told himself to hush. He was beyond drunk; he was practically legless. As he rounded the bed, Ginny opened her mouth to say something, but snapped it shut again when she felt him kick the solid wooden leg.

"Fuck!" Draco reached down to nurse his injured toes, only to overbalance and fall onto the bed. "Bloody hell."

"Nice to know you remember where you live," Ginny said coldly.

"Gin, you're awake!"

"Yes. I'm surprised anyone can sleep through the racket you're making."

"Sorry, love. I had to have a few with this bloke."

"Really?"

"Yeah, but it worked! I got the business."

"Good for you," Ginny muttered derisively.

Draco grinned lopsidedly at his wife, in what he thought was a charming manner, and crawled up the bed towards her. "Are you angry with me?"

"Oh for goodness sakes, Draco," Ginny said, waving her hand in front of her face to rid herself of the putrid odor of stale alcohol that he was breathing over her.

"What?" Draco slurred innocently.

"Go away," Ginny ground out. "You smell awful."

"But, love-"

"Draco!"

The warning in her voice would have been clear to anyone in the general vicinity, but Draco was oblivious to the danger he was in and kept advancing on his wife.

With her stomach now beginning to roll from the vile stench of her husband's breath, Ginny placed her hands on his chest and pushed him sideways. She fully expected him to roll onto his back away from her, but Draco did not possess the power to stop himself, and he rolled off the bed, landing hard on the floor.

"Oh God! Draco, are you all right?" Ginny leaned over the side of the bed and peered worriedly at her husband.

"Yeah... yeah. How did I get down here?"

Ginny rolled her eyes and groaned loudly. He was far worse than even she had suspected. "Can you get up?"

"Yep, on my way!"

Ginny watched her husband struggle to lift his body off the floor. If she weren't so angry with him at the moment, she would have found his efforts highly amusing.

Before any of that simmering amusement could surface, Ginny huffed angrily at him and sat back. "I'm going to sleep. Don't wake me when you eventually get up here."

"Gin?"

"What, Draco?"

"I think I need some help."

"I can't lift you, so you'll have to work it out for yourself." Ginny sank back onto her pillows with a smug smile tugging at her lips. She listened as Draco tried for a few more minutes before he seemingly gave up and slumped onto the floor with a muffled curse.

A few minutes later a large hand appeared on the bed and began feeling around purposefully. Ginny watched his efforts with barely concealed amusement. She could almost see the excitement in his movements when he obviously thought he'd found what he was looking for.

Draco's hand closed around a large portion of their comforter and he tried to pull it off the bed. As soon as the blanket began to move Ginny gave it a hard tug back towards her and slapped his hand.

"The floor's hard... want my pillow," Draco slurred.

"Well you're not stealing my comforter," Ginny snapped.

From her position, she could hear Draco muttering to himself about bloody women and soft comfy beds, as his hand continued its blind search. In danger of laughing aloud, she turned her face into her pillow. There were a few more attempts at usurping the comforter before Draco's hand finally fell on his own pillow. The triumphant grunt that rose from the floor had Ginny in a fit of silent giggles.

Not long after, following several loud grunts and groans in his attempt to get comfortable, Draco started snoring. Ginny sighed with irritation and tried to block out the god-awful noise. A task that seemed impossible, given the way the windowpanes appeared to be rattling each time her husband drew breath. Again she was left tossing and turning in the early hours of the morning, trying to get comfortable and relax enough to fall asleep.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

"Daddy! Daddy!"

Draco groaned weakly and rolled over, pulling his pillow over his head. The high pitch squeals of his daughter were creating havoc in his thumping brain and making him feel a little more than nauseous.

"Daddy, why are you down there?"

Not having the energy to engage in a conversation, Draco pretended he was sleeping. He prayed to the deities that she'd just wander away and allow him to pull himself together in his own time.

"Daddy!"

The bolt of pain that shot through his body as his daughter shoved his shoulder was all consuming. Draco had to bite his lip to keep from screaming out. It seemed that every fiber of his being had been tortured mercilessly sometime between him falling asleep and this rude awakening.

"Daddy!"

Before she could touch him again, Draco pulled the pillow off of his head. "Enough, Angel."

"There you are! Are you getting up now?" Angel exclaimed loudly, not paying attention to the fact that her father had just growled at her.

"Where's Mummy?"

"Downstairs."

"Why don't you go down and see her?"

"She told me to come up and see you."

Draco groaned out loud. Given that she'd already begun to torture him, he had a feeling he wasn't going to be terribly welcome in his wife's company today. Not that he could remember exactly what had happened the night before, or rather early this morning, but waking up on the floor was not a good sign.

"Are you getting up now, Daddy?"

"Yeah, yeah, I'm coming." Draco lifted himself a small way off the floor and immediately regretted the making the effort as his stomach lurched in protest. He tried to take a deep breath, but a distasteful belch that seemed to have come all the way from his toes forced the fresh oxygen he so desperately craved out. Acid filled the back of his throat. It burned painfully and he paled noticeably.

Angel bent over and stared her ill father in the eye. "Daddy, are you all right? You look funny."

"Fine," Draco grunted, trying not to open his mouth too far lest he lose the contents of his stomach, whatever they might have been.

Angel frowned and tilted her head slightly, as if to improve the view of her father's face. The little strawberry blonde witch shook her head thoughtfully. "You look really sick."

"I'm fine, sweetheart. Just a little tired." Draco tried to smile, but it turned into a painful grimace as he forced himself to sit up. He had to get Angel to leave now, before he lost his battle with his rebellious stomach. "Angel, why don't you go and see what Mummy's doing?"

"She's drinking tea with Grandmother."

"Angel, sweetheart, I need a few minutes to myself." Draco prayed to whoever might be listening that his precocious little girl would head for the door. Each time he opened his mouth, he was one step closer to purging his system and he definitely didn't want to do that in front of her. Plus there was the issue of making it to the bathroom on time.

"Why?"

"I need-" Draco swallowed the bile that rose in his throat. "-to use the bathroom."

"That's okay." Angel sat herself on the edge of the bed. "I can wait."

"Angel, just-" Draco clamped his mouth shut as his stomach lurched violently. Whether his daughter was here or not, he was going to have to make a dash for the lavatory and pray that he made it there on time.

"Daddy, are you sick?"

Draco was already scrambling towards the bathroom on his hands and knees. If he had the presence of mind to get to his feet properly, he could have expedited his journey, but he wasn't thinking clearly. When he reached the doorway to Ginny's side of the bathroom, he felt like cheering and probably would have if he dared open his mouth. He hauled himself to his feet using the doorframe and leaned against it breathing hard. There were only a few more meters to cover and he'd be safe.

"Daddy?"

Draco jumped at the demanding little voice right behind him. He had no idea his daughter had followed him across the room. "Angel, just-"

"Daddy?"

He clamped his hand across his mouth and lurched for the toilet, but it was too far away. Angel's exclamation of disgust followed by the sound of her feet beating a hasty retreat mingled with the sound of his stomach contents splattering on the black marble floor. The notion that he'd have to make amends later vaguely drifted through his mind as he retched onto the floor. He was stuck where he was a few feet inside the bathroom, momentarily paralyzed with the force his body was purging itself with. At some stage he slithered back to the floor, and simply waited for his body to finish eradicating the stale alcohol from the evening before.

Draco had no idea just how long he'd been slumped on the floor when he heard voices coming closer. He groaned aloud when his mother's concerned voice could be heard above all else. She did not need to see him in this condition, and if he were capable, he'd have done something to change his circumstances, but as it were he was completely unable to even think of what to do let alone act upon an idea.

"Draco! Oh my goodness! What is wrong with you?"

With foolish abandon, Draco glanced up at the doorway. His mother was staring at him with concern in her blue eyes, but her face was a mask of disgust. Ginny, on the other hand, was peering over Narcissa's shoulder at the mess her side of the bathroom was with complete and utter repugnance. He knew he deserved the look she was giving him and a lot more, of which he was certain she would delight in serving him, but he hoped that she would at least wait until he could defend himself.

"Are you ill?" Narcissa pressed on in a concerned tone. "I'll summon a servant to have this mess cleaned up immediately."

"He's not ill, Narcissa," Ginny responded coolly. "He's hung-over."

"Of course, he did come home very inebriated last night."

"I know."

"Oh dear, did he wake you?"

"I'm surprised he didn't wake the children with all the noise he was making."

"Draco! You should be thoroughly ashamed of yourself!"

If he'd had the energy, Draco would have rolled his eyes, so it was probably a good thing that it would have taken far more effort than he could consider making at this stage, since it would have caused him more trouble than he could handle right now. His mother had a habit of stating the obvious, though perhaps not always accurately. He felt sorry for himself, not ashamed.

Rather than continue receiving malevolent looks from the doorway, Draco cast his gaze elsewhere. Both women continued to discuss how terrible he was between themselves as if he weren't sitting on the floor, in a disgusting puddle of god knows what, right in front of them. Without warning, he heard their footsteps begin to retreat. A glance at the doorway confirmed that he was alone again. It was then that it dawned upon him that his mother hadn't summoned a servant. He was alone with no assistance and no one was on the way to help either.

Draco drew a careful breath in and willed himself not to vomit. He had a feeling Millie would be busy with the twins and wouldn't come if he summoned her, so he quickly summoned his father's personal house elf. The stench of the bathroom was starting to get to him and needless to say it was doing nothing to help his volatile stomach.

"Master did summon Ippy?"

"Clean up," Draco muttered.

"As Master wishes."

Within seconds the bathroom was clean again, and Draco dismissed the servant rudely. He did not need more witnesses to his dilemma than necessary and could only imagine the gossip that would be flying between the house elves once Ippy reported the condition their Master was in this morning.

Though all evidence of his unsettled stomach had been eliminated, Draco could still smell a pungent odor. He had to do something about it before his body decided to rebel again. A shower was the first thing he needed, but just the thought of standing up sent fear through his body. He was certain he wouldn't be able to support his own weight. Still on the floor, Draco stripped off as best he could and crawled into his wife's shower stall.

When the water hit his face it was almost a cause for celebration, or would have been had he possessed the strength. As it was, Draco sat on the tiles, slumped against the wall and let the water flow over him. In time, he stood himself up slowly and allowed the heat to ease his aching muscles. Before he left the privacy of the stall, he swore abstinence to the tiles. There was no way he was going to put himself in this position again, if he could help it. The short journey between the bathroom and his dressing room seemed to take forever, and when he finally arrived he had to sit down to gather himself. The towel, he'd slung around his hips slid to the floor as he dropped onto the stool. He glanced at it disinterestedly and decided it could stay where it was for the time being. His entire body was shaking so severely that he couldn't have picked it up if he wanted to. He'd just sit a while; wait for his body to calm down, and then he'd dress for the day and go down to face his wife.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

"Oh, for Merlin's sake, Draco!"

Startled, Draco jumped at the sudden noise. He looked around in a panic. It didn't take him long to ascertain that he was in his dressing room, stark naked, and Ginny was standing over him looking none too happy. He closed his eyes for a moment to collect his thoughts. He must have nodded off when he sat down; it was the only explanation. Upon cracking his eyelids open again, he saw that his wife hadn't moved and she still looked furious. This was not going to be a very comfortable day.

"I came up here to check on you, because I was worried when you didn't come down for so long," Ginny hissed in a low voice.

Draco swallowed hard and straightened himself up on the stool. He knew without being told that no matter what excuse he might have, it wouldn't appease her.

"Are you coming downstairs?" Ginny looked at him pointedly. "Your children would like to see you at some point."

"Yes, I'll just get dressed and I'll come down."

"Good." Ginny turned to leave, giving him one last scathing glance.

"Gin, could you order me some breakfast? I think I should try to eat something."

"Fine," Ginny answered over her shoulder.

Draco cradled his head in his hands and wondered briefly if he had clandestine suicidal tendencies. It was the only way he could possibly explain his foolishness. He glanced up at his wardrobe and tried to will his clothes to leap out and onto his body, saving him the effort of rising from his position. Needless to say, after five minutes, all his effort produced was an increase in the throbbing inside his head.

Unable to delay the inevitable any longer, Draco rose unsteadily and got dressed for the day. His stomach was still cramping uncomfortably when he started his journey downstairs and he hoped that some breakfast might help rather than hinder his recovery. Even before he reached the family parlor, he could hear his family and seriously considered casting a temporary deafening charm on himself, but thought the better of it. He was in enough trouble with Ginny without appearing to be ignoring her.

"Daddy!"

Draco tried mightily not to cringe as the sound of his beloved children's voices pierced his brain excruciatingly.

A small smile played around Ginny's lips as she watched her husband. "Your breakfast is here, Draco."

"Are you feeling better, Daddy?" Angel asked.

"Angel said you were sick everywhere," Drake said incredulously.

"I feel a bit better, kids. Why don't you go and play?" Draco responded tightly as he sat down.

Ginny placed a plate with a domed silver cover in front of him. "I hope the warming charm has held."

"It'll be fine," Draco muttered as he lifted the cover. His eyes almost left their sockets and his stomach rolled violently when he saw the food Ginny had ordered him. "What is this?"

"Breakfast."

"Ginny, I can't-"

"It's the best thing for you, considering your condition."

"But-"

"Eat, you'll feel better."

Draco could have sworn the smile on his wife's face had a hint of the devil in it. He poked at the greasy bacon, sausages and eggs with his fork. If he got through any of this, it would be a miracle. However, he was going to try just to spite Ginny and he was determined to hold it all down.

A few mouthfuls into the large plate of grease Ginny had served him, Draco thought the better of continuing to punish himself and laid his cutlery on the plate. It really wasn't worth making himself sick again just to prove a point to her.

"Eat up, Draco."

"I've had enough."

"You need to put food in so you'll feel better."

"Not that sort of food."

"Don't be silly. It's a good old-fashioned breakfast."

Draco pushed the plate away expressively. "I'll have something else later."

Ginny shook her head at him. At least he'd had a couple of mouthfuls, but not nearly enough to replace the energy he'd expended this morning.

"Draco?"

"Father," Draco responded with a sigh. If his father were here, then his mother wouldn't be far away.

"You said last night that you'd secured the contract."

"I did. He played hard to get to start with, but I wore him down."

"Where is the paperwork?"

"I sent it back to the office immediately."

"You're sure?"

"Yes, I did that before the evening grew a little hazy."

"Hazy?" Ginny looked at her husband skeptically.

Draco wasn't foolish enough to refute her indirect suggestion that hazy was an understatement, and he had the good sense to look sheepish.

"Well, don't you think you ought to finalize the contract?" Lucius suggested.

The pleading look he sent his father was ignored with an amused smirk. Lucius had to know just how much trouble he was in with the women in the family, and yet he seemed to be trying to make the situation worse. Draco knew he would have to make a trip to the office today, and he didn't have to be told Ginny wouldn't be happy about it, but there was nothing he could do unless his father was willing to finalize the contract. "I was thinking you might want to put the finishing touches on the paperwork."

"Not likely. I have plans with your mother today."

"It wouldn't take long," Draco insisted.

"If it won't take long then you should get it done, so you can spend the rest of the day with Ginevra and the children."

Ginny had listened intently to the conversation. Her ire growing as she realized Draco would be running off to the office again. "You're going to the office?"

"It seems I have no choice."

"You could do whatever it is on Monday."

"I can't. The contracts need to be finalized and signed today, Ginny," Draco said with a slightly pleading tone. He knew she was angry and had every right to be, but he didn't have the strength to deal with her temper right now.

"Why?"

If he'd had the energy, he would have smirked as he witnessed his father beating a hasty retreat. "It's the way we do business. We've always done it this way. The contracts need to be signed within twenty-four hours of reaching agreement."

"I don't believe this. It's Saturday for Merlin's sake! Is it too much to ask that you spend an hour with your family?"

"Ginny, I will be back in an hour or so and we can spend the rest of the day together. It really won't take long. All I have to do is amend the contracts to the terms we agreed upon and owl them over to the other side. Once they're signed and delivered back to the office I can come home. They'd be waiting for the contracts, so I really don't have a choice in the matter."

"Fine," Ginny snapped.

"Look, why don't you come with me? Keep me company while I'm waiting for them to return the paperwork?"

"What about the twins?"

"Millie-" Draco stopped when he saw the expression on her face. It was one thing for the house elf to watch the children when one of them was in the house, but quite another when there was no one else home.

"Just go, and don't take too long," Ginny told him irritably.

"I'll be back before you know it, I promise," Draco whispered as he placed a kiss on her forehead.

Draco stopped to kiss the twins and admonish them to behave for their mother before leaving the patio. He would have much rather spent the day relaxing with Ginny, but this had to be done. Just to add insult to injury, what little he'd eaten wasn't sitting comfortably in his stomach. When he reached the foyer Draco ordered Millie to bring his traveling cloak immediately.

"Draco, where are you going?" Narcissa asked as she descended the staircase.

"I have to go to the office, Mother."

"Whatever for?"

"There's some paperwork to finish from last night's meeting."

"Your wife and children miss you."

"I'm aware of that, Mother. I miss them as well, but I need to get this finished. It won't take long, and then I intend on spending the remainder of the day in their company."

"Very well." Narcissa narrowed her eyes a little. "Your behavior last night and this morning-"

"I apologise for my condition both last night and this morning. I did overindulge, and I am regretting it terribly. Now if you'll excuse me, I have to get to the office so I can get home as quickly as possible." Draco threw his cloak around his shoulders and Disapparated, feeling quite relieved that he hadn't let his mother get her little telling off out of her system.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

The offices of Malfoy Holdings were eerily quiet on the weekends, but Draco didn't mind. He made his way quickly to his office and set about making the changes to the documents; thankful for the notes he'd taken as they'd held their discussions the evening before. Once he was happy with the contracts, he summoned one of their best owls and attached the documents. Now there was little to do but wait for their return. There was work he could do, but he didn't want to get involved in something and have to leave it half done to go home, so it was better that he didn't start anything.

He wandered over to the couch, mostly to remove the temptation of working he felt at his desk, and sat down on the soft leather. Within minutes he was reclined comfortably, flicking through the weekend edition of the Daily Prophet. Draco tried to concentrate on the print in front of his eyes, but it was growing more difficult as the minutes passed-everything was getting fuzzy. The thought that he should probably get up and move around entered his head, and he was still pondering that thought when his eyes slipped closed.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Ginny tapped her foot impatiently and checked the clock for the umpteenth time. If Draco didn't hurry they were going to be late for dinner at Harry and Hermione's. She was already irate, because once again he'd broken a promise. His "one hour" of work had turned into the full day, and he hadn't answered any of the Floo calls she made. If he didn't arrive in the next half an hour she'd have to go alone or cancel.

"Mummy, are we going to Uncle Harry's now?"

"Soon, honey. We're just waiting for Daddy." Ginny tried to smile pleasantly at the twins. They were eager to spend some time with their godparents as well as their father. It just wasn't fair that Draco kept doing this to them.

"He was meant to be home ages ago," Drake grumbled.

"I'm sure he wanted to be, darling, but something must have come up."

"He's always at work," Drake muttered unhappily.

"Well, he's very busy at the moment," Ginny replied, trying not to let her own disgruntled feelings show in her tone.

"Can't we go without him?"

"We will if he's not here soon." Ginny forced another smile. "Why don't we move to the foyer, so we're all ready to go when he gets here?"

The twins slowly wandered to the foyer of the grand house with Ginny trailing behind. She desperately hoped Draco would arrive by the time they got there, so they could leave. It was hard enough keeping the children occupied at the best of times, let alone when they were bored silly. Millie greeted them with their cloaks the minute they stepped into the entrance.

"Mistress will be leaving now?"

"No, we'll wait a little longer for Draco, but the children can put their cloaks on so they're ready."

After helping the twins with their traveling cloaks, Ginny sat them down on the staircase to wait. She was too agitated to remain still, so she took to pacing the marble floor. The click of her heels echoed rhythmically through the chamber; the sound added to her frustration, as with every step she was reminded of why she was waiting. She would allow him another ten minutes then she would leave with or without him.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Draco's eyes fluttered open. It took him a few moments to get his bearings, but once the appointments of his office came into focus he remembered he'd come here to take care of the final contracts. He lifted himself off the couch slowly, rubbing his face as he stood up. The last thing he remembered was thinking that he should get up and move around before he fell asleep. Still half asleep, he wandered into his private bathroom and splashed water on his face. As soon as the contracts arrived he'd head off home, but until then he'd keep moving. He didn't want to nod off again, even for a few minutes.

When he felt refreshed, he walked back into his office. Just a few meters from his desk he noticed his owl perched on the corner with some documents attached to its leg. Draco frowned. Had the bird been here when he went to the bathroom? He quickly untied the documents and sent the bird back to the owlery. It was the signed contract, so he was free to go home.

He picked his cloak up from where he'd draped it over a chair and threw it around his shoulders. As he turned to leave his heart leapt into his throat. The clock on his desk caught his attention. It couldn't possibly be that time. He'd only nodded off for a few minutes, surely. With his heart thundering, Draco plucked his timepiece from his breast pocket and cursed loudly when it confirmed the time. It was almost six o'clock in the evening. He had promised he'd be home hours ago. Ginny was going to be furious with him and he couldn't blame her.

As much as he would have liked to delay his imminent death, he thought the better of it and Disapparated right away. There was some hope that she'd listen to reason. After all she knew how tired he was, and it wasn't as if he'd meant to fall asleep.

Draco Apparated into the foyer of his home, almost landing on his pacing wife.

"Gin, I'm so sorry, love. I-"

"I don't want to hear it, Draco," Ginny snarled. "We're ready to go to dinner, are you?"

"I umm-" Draco looked down at his sleep rumpled clothes and then at his wife's angry face. While going to dinner like this didn't sit comfortably with him, he didn't think suggesting a change of clothes would be the smartest thing he could do at the moment. "Yeah, it's only Potter's... I'll go as I am."

Ginny looked his attire up and down disapprovingly. "Fine," she snapped.

"Let's go then," Draco suggested. "Drake, come here mate, you can travel with me."

Drake looked to his mother for confirmation before moving from the step. When he was safely in his father's arms and his mother was preoccupied with Angel, the little boy smirked at his father. "You're in trouble."

"I know," Draco whispered harshly. He really didn't need to be reminded by a five-year-old.

"Lots and lots of trouble." Drake emphasized his words with a grave nod.

"Yes, thank you, son," Draco hissed. He was about to ask Ginny if she was ready when he heard her distinctive pop as she Disapparated with Angel. "Hold on, Drake."

"Yes, Daddy," Drake uttered, tightening his hold around his father's neck.

Ginny and Angel were waiting on the front porch of the Potters' modest home when Draco Apparated onto the lawn. If her expression was anything to go by, this evening wasn't going to be pleasant. He could only hope that their hosts didn't pick up on any obvious problems. The last thing he needed was her family thinking there was a problem between them.

Draco placed Drake on his feet and walked to the front door. He thought about trying to smooth things over before they announced their arrival, but one look at her expression changed his mind quickly. The thought of having an almighty row on Potter's front porch was not appealing. If he survived the night, they would talk when they returned to the manor.

"Draco, Ginny, come in," Harry gushed happily.

"Harry, thank you for the invitation," Draco intoned politely as he shook the other man's hand.

"Good to see you, Harry," Ginny said, giving Harry a brief hug.

Ever alert Harry noted there was something amiss right away. Even the twins were subdued. "Drake, Angel, are you two going to say hello?"

The twins threw themselves into their godfather's open arms the moment their parents were out of sight. When they had been thoroughly hugged, Harry ushered them into the house.

Harry could hear Hermione chatting away to their guests in the kitchen. He was surprised to hear Ginny responding in monosyllables.

Hermione abandoned the odd conversation in favor of greeting the twins the moment they came into sight.

"Draco, would you like a mead?" Harry offered.

"No, thank you."

"Butterbeer?"

Draco shot his wife a cursory glance. If she disapproved, she was hiding it well. The question was would his life be in danger if he had a drink? "Do you have Pumpkin Juice?"

"Err-yeah." Harry frowned slightly. There was definitely something going on, and given the tension in the air, it wasn't pleasant. "What's going on?"

"Nothing," Draco responded quickly.

"Could have fooled me," Harry muttered. "You're both acting like someone's died."

"Not yet," Ginny quipped derisively.

Harry looked to Draco for an explanation, but his only reward was to witness the blond pale significantly. Not foolish enough to press the issue, Harry quickly changed the subject. "Why don't I get us some drinks and we can take them outside?"

"You boys go ahead and I'll bring the drinks out," Hermione insisted.

Harry threw his wife a grateful look and herded Draco out the back door.

"What happened?" Harry asked casually when they were seated at the outdoor table.

"What makes you think anything has happened?"

The urge to roll his eyes childishly at the blond wizard sitting opposite him was strong. Either Draco thought they were stupid or he was in denial. Harry pinned Draco with a knowing look that seemed to make the man uncharacteristically fidgety. "Let's examine the evidence. You could cut the air with a knife when you and Ginny are in the same room. She's glaring at you so viciously I'm surprised you haven't turned to stone. The twins are not only unusually quiet; they're watching the two of you like hawks, as if they're expecting something to happen. And let's not forget that not so subtle promise of death."

"It's none of your business," Draco snarled irritably.

"No, it's not, but Ginny is like a sister to me, and she's unhappy so I make it my business."

Draco cursed under his breath and fixed the Auror across the table with a cold glare.

"Look, Malfoy, I know you aren't used to sharing, but wouldn't you rather be talking to me than six red-headed older brothers?" Harry knew it was a dirty way to get Draco to talk, but he had a feeling the man was floundering with whatever this problem was.

Draco considered his position for a few moments and decided to give the nosy bastard a brief outline of why Ginny was upset just to shut him up. "I've been working late a bit, and last night I overindulged at a business dinner. Needless to say, she wasn't pleased and I had to go to the office today to finish the paperwork from last night's business meeting."

"I'm a bit confused. Apart from having a few drinks last night, you don't seem to have done much else but work."

"Yeah, well, I did screw up today."

"How?"

"She wasn't happy when I left and I promised I'd be home in an hour."

"You were obviously longer."

"A lot longer. I fell asleep at the office."

"How late were you then?"

"I was gone for almost eight hours."

"You're lucky you're still breathing."

"I'm beginning to think she's just keeping me alive merely for her own amusement."

"That's entirely possible," Harry agreed. "She does have a spiteful streak in her."

"Anyway, now you know."

"The question is what are you going to do to make her smile again?"

Draco expelled a large breath and ran his hands through his hair. "I don't know. I tried to explain, but she cut me off."

"It's probably better to let her cool down a bit."

"I don't think she's going to listen to me no matter how calm she is."

"Well then, you have to do something to get her attention. What do you have planned for tomorrow?"

"Nothing at the moment."

"Maybe you should spend the day together-just the two of you."

"Then she'll tell me I'm not spending any time with the twins, and I'll be in trouble for that."

"I think it's time for you to face facts." Harry smirked across the table. "You can't win. No matter what you do you're a dead man."

"Thank you, Potter."

Harry's emerald eyes danced with merriment behind his spectacles. "You're very welcome."

Draco's lip curled in a half-hearted snarl. It wasn't bad enough that he'd just confided in Potter, now the man was laughing at him. What irked him most was the fact that Potter was right. He was dead no matter what he did or how he handled the situation.

"All you have to do is find a balance. Make sure you spend time as a family and with Ginny alone."

"I know what I have to do," Draco snapped. "I just have to find a way to make it happen."

Harry held his hands up as if in surrender. "I was only trying to help."

"You call that help?"

"You didn't even want to tell me what the problem was."

"You didn't ask!"

"Yes, I did," Harry responded calmly.

"You were just being nosy," Draco sniped.

Harry cursed under his breath. There were times when he really just felt like hexing Draco into the next century. "What will it take for you to believe that people actually care?"

"Why would you?"

"I can think of three very good reasons: Ginny, Drake and Angel."

"Well-I-"

"Look, we care about them and in turn it means we care about-" Harry paused and pulled a face. "-you."

Draco stared at the man across the table. He was seriously considering placing a Floo call to St. Mungo's - one of their patients was sure to be missing.

"Don't think it doesn't kill me to admit that, and I'd appreciate it if you didn't-"

"I won't," Draco agreed quickly. There was no way he was going to tell anyone about Potter's admission, no way in hell.

"Good," Harry uttered. "Look, what you have to do is come up with a strategy for balancing everything. Ginny isn't an unreasonable woman, but she is pregnant at the moment, and she's probably not feeling all that comfortable at the house yet."

"When did you become an expert?"

"I'm not, but I figure two heads are better than one when it comes to figuring out the more complicated sex."

"I don't believe this," Draco mumbled as he shook his head.

"If you want to ask someone more experienced I'm sure Bill or Charlie wouldn't mind lending an ear. Of course, if you're after expert help then your father-in-law would be the man you'd want to speak with."

"No, I don't want them to know."

"I didn't think so. The problem is, if you don't sort it out soon they'll all know, because the fact that you two have a problem is pretty obvious."

"You don't think I realize this?"

"I never implied you didn't. I merely stated the fact."

"You're enjoying this, aren't you, Potter?"

"Believe it or not, I'm not enjoying it at all. I know I should be, everything tells me I should be, but I'm not. You're both miserable, and that's bothering me for some bizarre reason."

Draco stared across the table with an incredulous expression on his face. "You're losing your mind."

"Don't remind me," Harry muttered. "So what are you going to do?"

Draco took a long drink of pumpkin juice and more than half wished it was something stronger. "I'm going to spend tomorrow with them."

"Good."

The men smoothly changed their topic of conversation as the women stepped outside. It wasn't until Ginny sat next to Harry that Draco realized the women must have had a similar conversation. A conversation that had obviously upset his wife given she was now a little pale and her eyes were red, as if she'd been crying. He desperately wanted to reach out to her, but given her mood before they left the manor he decided not to risk rejection or worse - an embarrassing scene.

Throughout the evening, the Potters kept the conversation flowing with an inordinate amount of small talk. Harry was eventually able to get the twins to liven up and that helped the night along tremendously until the children began to tire. The tension between Draco and Ginny didn't lessen even a little. They hardly spoke directly to each other at all, despite Draco's best efforts to portray a normal facade.

Ginny's stubborn attitude was bothering Draco greatly. He had been brought up to present a certain persona in public, despite what his personal feelings were at the time. If he didn't think he'd be signing his own death warrant he'd be tempted to explain to his wife that no matter what their personal problems might be they were expected to present an appropriate public face when necessary. Of course, commonsense prevailed, and his thoughts went unvoiced. Perhaps when she wasn't so angry with him, and he was bored with sleeping in his own bed, he'd have a quiet word about his expectations when they were away from home.

Near the end of the evening, Hermione cornered Draco in the bathroom. He knew it was a mistake to leave the company of his wife to visit the lavatory after the looks the brown-haired witch had be sending him when no one else appeared to be watching.

"Draco," Hermione started sternly.

Draco sighed heavily and turned towards the door, still drying his hands on a guest towel. "Yes, Hermione."

"Ginny isn't very happy at the moment."

"Really? I hadn't noticed," Draco quipped dryly.

"This is serious. She was in tears earlier."

"I know. I'm not blind."

"What are you going to do about it?"

"I'm going to make tomorrow all about her and the twins."

"One day isn't going to fix this."

"It won't just be one day. I've been working on a certain contract, and today I received the signed paperwork, so I won't be working quite so late now," Draco explained evenly. He was at a loss as to why he was finding it necessary to justify himself to this woman.

"So she can expect you home for dinner from now on?"

"Yes," Draco growled, his patience wearing thin. "Do you all think I like working ungodly hours? It drives me just as insane being away from her and the kids."

"If that's the case then you need to make the effort to get home and spend some quality time with them."

"Potter might be able to leave work whenever he wants, but I can't. I have my own business and its success depends on me being there, doing the hard work."

"I thought your father was the owner."

"He's starting to hand over to me, which means I have to follow certain deals through from start to finish without any assistance from him. I have to do whatever is necessary to secure the business we're chasing, and if that means working twenty-four hours a day for a few weeks then so be it."

"Did you explain this to Ginny?"

"She knows we've been busy."

"Draco, she knows you've not made it home for dinner. She doesn't know what you've been doing, not really."

"What are you on about, woman?"

"It's silly, but you have to remember that she's hormonal at the moment. Foolish thoughts pop into her head and begin to breed."

"What sort of thoughts?"

"Things like you're not attracted to her anymore."

"Rubbish."

"Or you're having an affair."

Draco's mind stopped working momentarily. How could Ginny even think something like that? "What?"

"I told you they were silly thoughts, but they're what she's been dealing with all week."

"Does she really think-"

"No, I'm sure she doesn't." Hermione shook her head strongly. "The point is she doesn't understand why you're working such hours. It's not like you need the Galleons."

"Has it ever occurred to you, or anyone else, that we're financially secure because we do work hard? If we don't continue then there won't be anything left for the future-for our children or grandchildren."

"I'm sure that's an understatement," Hermione responded sharply. "Ginny needs your attention now, not in a year or two when you have time-now."

"Thank you for your opinion, Hermione, but I'm certain I can handle my wife and my marriage without your input," Draco snarled. His patience was hanging on by just a thread, and to avoid a scene or telling the witch in front of him what he really thought of her, he needed to put an end to the situation.

Hermione snorted with laughter. "If you think you're going to handle Ginny your marriage is already in big trouble."

"Do not twist my words," Draco said in a low voice. "You know exactly what I meant."

"Do I?"

Draco gave Hermione a contemptuous look and slipped past her. His patience was spent and his temper was rising, so it was better to remove himself from the situation as quickly as possible. If he could make it back to the sitting room before she collared him again, he'd be safe.

As Draco entered the sitting room, he noticed that Angel was almost asleep on her godfather's lap and Drake, who was sitting on the floor before the unlit hearth, looked as though he was struggling to keep his eyes open. It was the perfect excuse to bring the night to a close and escape the unwanted advice coming from Hermione.

"I think we should call it a night before the children fall asleep, Ginny," Draco said gently.

"Fine," Ginny responded impassively, getting to her feet.

Harry stood up with Angel in his arms. "When you're ready to go I'll pass her straight to you, Draco."

"Thanks," Draco replied with a tight smile.

After Draco had assisted Ginny into her traveling cloak, much to her displeasure, he thanked Harry and Hermione for their hospitality, and took Angel from her godfather. He watched as Ginny hugged her friends and thanked them for the evening. Words were passed between the three that Draco couldn't hear, but he could imagine what was being said. Not that he was that bothered, because he was determined to put everything to rights tomorrow. It would have been nice to start tonight, but given Ginny's mood it was probably safer to make a fresh start tomorrow.

When Harry had convinced a very sleepy Drake to get to his feet, so he could go home, the family moved to the front porch. Final goodbyes and light kisses for the twins were exchanged before the family Disapparated.

As soon as they got home, Draco offered to tuck the twins into bed, so Ginny could relax. She bid both the children goodnight without responding to him and headed for their chambers. Draco took charge of the children, and in no time they were in their pajamas, drifting off to sleep in their own beds. Though it didn't take him all that long to sort the twins out, Ginny appeared to be already asleep when he entered their bedchamber. He prepared for bed quietly and slipped between the covers. The urge to reach out to his wife was great, but he knew she would reject any physical contact until he'd made amends. Sleep was a long time coming for the blond wizard, but he made good use of the time by making some loose plans for the following day. He was going to do everything in his power to win the affection of his wife back, starting first thing tomorrow morning.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

The moment Draco walked into the office on Monday morning, he instructed his secretary to send an obscenely large bouquet of roses to his wife. He couldn't believe he'd fallen asleep the night before. To make matters worse, he'd had to leave before she woke up this morning and he knew she wasn't going to be pleased when she discovered his absence. Guilt didn't sit very well with him, especially when he was feeling exhausted, and he was desperate to erase the horrid feeling.

To be honest, he was surprised he'd made it as far as he had through yesterday without collapsing from exhaustion. He also wasn't shocked that one night's sleep hadn't erased the fatigue he was plagued with. It was going to take him a while to get himself back to normal. Longer than it would have taken him before he was married, because he knew he had to dedicate some time to his family, which is what he tried to do the day before.

Despite not having caught up on his lost sleep from the week before, he started his Sunday morning with a very early horse ride through the forest surrounding the estate with the twins before breakfast. After a family breakfast, Draco had taken the twins flying while Ginny relaxed with a good book, and then they'd taken a leisurely walk through the grounds until they came upon the place where he'd earlier arranged the servants to deliver a picnic lunch with all the trimmings. Once their midday feast had digested enough, the family went swimming in the lake, spending what remained of the daylight hours playing on the shores or in the water.

When the sun had finally began to dip low in the sky, they returned to the house. Drake and Angel had been so tired they'd very nearly fallen asleep over their dinner, and had subsequently been bathed and tucked into bed extra early. At the time Draco was a little disappointed because he'd wanted to spend a nice evening with his family doing normal family things - Wizards Chess or the like. His disappointment had quickly been pushed aside when he realized he'd be able to have a romantic dinner with his beautiful wife. After taking their meal on the balcony of their suite, Draco showered quickly, stating he had one more surprise for Ginny that he needed to arrange while she took a leisurely bath.

Draco ordered the servants to bring up a bottle of faux champagne and some strawberries with dipping chocolate for their enjoyment. When he could fiddle with the presentation of the 'champagne' and fruit no more, Draco sunk onto the bed for what he thought was just a few minutes while he waited for his wife to finish bathing. The day had been perfect. Ginny had forgiven him sometime during their walk through the gardens. Her hand had imperceptibly tightened its grip on his, and he just knew he was forgiven. Still he hadn't abandoned his plans then. This day was entirely about making her happy, and besides he was having a fantastic time, despite being so tired he was struggling to keep his eyes open at times. All he had to do now was wait for her to finish her bath, so he would spoil her just a little more, before making love to her for as long as he could, and falling asleep with her body draped across his comfortingly.

The next thing he knew it was morning.

He heaved a heavy, irritated sigh and snatched a file from his in tray. The desire to just stay at home today was strong, but he had to do the right thing and come into the office. All he could do was hope that he would be able to get away at a decent hour, so he could make up for the one thing he'd wanted to do, but didn't get to yesterday, and that in the mean time the flowers would soothe any hurt she was feeling.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Ginny strode down the corridor towards Draco's office like she owned the place. The employees who recognized her greeted her politely, but she ignored them for the most part. Upon reaching her husband's office, Ginny cleared her throat meaningfully as she walked into his reception area.

Draco's secretary's head snapped up. "Mrs. Malfoy, we weren't expecting you today."

"Is my husband in his office?"

"Yes he is, Mrs. Malfoy."

"Does he have any appointments this afternoon?"

"Just one, with Mr. Malfoy Senior."

"What time?"

"It's due to start in half an hour."

Ginny thought for a moment. She had hoped Draco wouldn't have anything scheduled for the afternoon, because it would have made it easier. "Reschedule it for much later in the afternoon."

"I can't do that, Mrs. Malfoy."

"Yes you can, and if Lucius asks, tell him I demanded the change," Ginny responded haughtily, giving the woman her best impression of Narcissa.

"I-err-"

Ginny cut her off before she could once again tell her that her request wasn't possible. "We're not to be disturbed under any circumstances. Is that understood?"

"Yes, Mrs. Malfoy."

"Good."

Ginny turned away from the baffled secretary and let herself into her husband's office. The poor woman was probably going to have nightmares for the next month due to her, but Ginny didn't care.

Draco's eyes drifted upwards in the direction of the door. He'd left specific instructions with his secretary about being disturbed before the meeting with his father. His expression went from coldly annoyed to surprise the instant he saw his wife slipping into the room.

"Ginny, what are you doing here?"

"I came to see you."

"Did you get the flowers?"

"Mmm..."

Draco observed his wife carefully. There was something different about her. "Did you like them?"

"They were all right, but not exactly what I wanted from you."

Draco placed his quill on his desk and smirked. There was something going on that he wasn't aware of, but was sure she would tell him about in time. "Not what you wanted? It would help if you'd tell me what you wanted."

"Are you saying you have no idea?"

"You're not exactly making yourself clear, love."

Ginny perched herself on the corner of Draco's large desk and sent him a smoldering look. "Why did you send me flowers, Draco?"

"I-err-well, I promised you- something last night, and I inadvertently fell asleep. I just wanted to let you know I was thinking about you this morning."

"That was very sweet of you, but-"

Draco frowned at his wife. He knew the flowers he'd sent her had cost him a small fortune. "But what?"

"Well, they don't exactly make me feel loved."

"Wh-I-" Draco's mind was struggling to comprehend exactly what his wife was implying. The fact that he was sitting in his office at work, with his secretary just outside the door, wasn't helping matters. He watched his wife unfold and then refold her legs. She had lovely legs, they were so pretty to look at, and they felt amazing when they were wrapped around him. He slapped himself mentally, before his ever-raging male libido could take over his mind as well as his being and deliberately moved his eyes up her body. A mistake of grand proportions, in his opinion, for when he reached her chest it seemed to be moving up and down far more than was necessary for normal respiration. With his eyes fixated on Ginny's heaving breasts, Draco's mind began to wander in a direction not appropriate for their location.

Ginny leaned over, affording her distracted husband a mind-befuddling peek down her blouse. She placed a single finger under his chin and lifted his head until their gazes locked. "Do you see something you like?"

Draco's mouth went dry. His wife was seducing him at work. The next thing that entered his mind was a harsh reminder that he had a meeting in less than half an hour with his father. Somehow, he didn't think Lucius would be terribly forgiving if he skived off for reasons that weren't exactly life or death related.

"Ginny." Draco forced himself to take her hands in his and focus on what he had to say. "I have a meeting with my father very soon."

"I rescheduled your meeting."

"You what?"

"It was only with Lucius."

Draco rested his forehead on their joined hands and sighed. "It wasn't just with Father. The meeting was with the owner of the company, Ginny. My boss."

"It's not like he's going to fire you for rescheduling one meeting."

"Well that depends on what I'm rescheduling for."

"Draco, he's not going to sack you no matter what you do."

"No, I won't lose my job, but he will air his displeasure."

"Whose displeasure would you rather feel?"

Though her tone was distinctly sultry, Draco felt certain there was a genuine threat, or worse a promise, in her last statement. He raised an inquiring eyebrow at her. There was only one right answer in this situation and he knew it, however morally corrupt it might be.

"I've been very patient while you've been busy with work, but my thumbs are getting sore."

Draco frowned deeply. His brothers-in-law had warned him that pregnant women didn't always make sense, and he knew it was probably a mistake to ask the question, but he couldn't help himself. "Why are your thumbs sore?"

"After a week of twiddling them while you're downstairs in your study working or here at the office until Merlin only knows what hour they're sore."

Draco tried hard to hide the smirk threatening to tug at his lips. Now was not the time to show his amusement. He knew he'd neglected his wife's needs over the past week or so, but it couldn't be helped. It wasn't as if he hadn't tried to make up for it either, but yesterday had been so exhausting he doubted if falling asleep was the correct term for what he'd done last night - it was more like passing out. He lifted her hands to his mouth and gently kissed each of her thumbs.

"Better?"

"No."

"What would make you feel better?" Draco realized his monumental error in tactics the moment he saw his wife's nefarious expression. He should have just kept his mouth shut; it was far safer in situations like this.

Ginny extracted her hands from Draco's and slid off the desk. She pushed gently on his shoulders, so that he sat back in his large chair, and then straddled his legs. "I need something so that I stop twiddling my thumbs."

"This really isn't appropriate behavior for the office," Draco protested half-heartedly. "My secretary could walk in."

"She won't," Ginny assured him.

"You can't be certain."

"Yes, I can." Ginny smirked.

Draco's eyes widened. He shuddered to think what his secretary thought was going on in here. Then again, given his wife's persistent attitude, she'd probably be guessing the truth. Draco decided then that all he could do was hope that none of this made it to the office gossips, because it didn't seem as though Ginny was going to give him a choice. She was going to have her wicked way with him, whether he liked it or not. Given enough time Draco would freely admit that he decidedly liked the idea, but at the moment, he was feeling a little torn.

Ginny leaned forward and brushed her lips over Draco's softly. She withdrew slowly and caught his eyes with hers.

"Should we Apparate home?" Draco whispered huskily.

"No, I feel like being naughty," Ginny purred.

Draco didn't know whether to thank the deities or to curse them. How many men had their wives show up at work like this? More to the point, who was he to knock back the offer?

A wicked smirk crept across his features. If this was what she wanted, then he was certainly not going to disappoint her, but there was only one way to do it in the office during business hours: fast and hard. His hands ran up her sides and tangled them in her rich hair before claiming her mouth passionately. It seemed all Ginny had been waiting for was his acquiescence to step up proceedings. He could feel her nimble fingers tugging somewhat impatiently at the buttons on his shirt. Somewhere in the back of his mind he begged whoever might be listening that none of the buttons saw fit to pop off, because he was certain he didn't have another clean shirt in the office and those domestic charms had always baffled him. The thought was banished when he drifted down the milky column of her neck. It tasted so sweet that the idea that he could happily spend the rest of his existence nibbling on her creamy skin wasn't beyond comprehension.

The more he licked and sucked at her pulse point, the faster her blood pumped. Ginny could feel her previously damp knickers growing sodden with desire. She ground her hips against his growing erection intently, trying to find just a little relief. It wasn't enough, and the burning need for attention was overriding everything else in her mind. She wanted-needed to feel his hands on her. It was to the point where she would have described the feeling of want as a physical pain. Without finesse, she reached up and grabbed one of his hands, directing it between her legs.

Her knickers were just about dripping wet; knickers that had been rubbing against his trousers. Draco prayed she'd not left an embarrassing wet spot on the front of his pants. The position she'd put his hand in was becoming increasingly uncomfortable, to the point where pain was beginning to spark whenever she ground against him. Despite her growl of disappointment, Draco slid his hand around her leg and under her backside. When his other hand was positioned on the opposite cheek of her derriere he lifted her off his lap and deposited her on his desk, standing as he guided her onto the hard wood surface. She settled back on the desk with an almost feral grin on her face, her legs wrapping around his hips preventing him from drawing away. He may have succeeded in placing his naughty wife in the prone position, but Draco was not fool enough to believe that gave him control of this little escapade - Ginny was firmly in charge and wasn't going to relinquish her control any time soon.

Ginny licked her lips lasciviously and peered at her husband through her eyelashes while he attended to the buttons on her shirt. He looked good enough to devour. The muscles of his chest were teasing her, rising and falling just a little more than usual, as if they were begging to be licked. She allowed her gaze to wander to his pants. They were tented deliciously. Her legs tightened around his waist and she lifted herself to a sitting position. She had to release him and that was all there was to it. Her hands went directly to his belt and started unbuckling the now annoying thing.

Satisfied with the view he was getting of his wife's breasts, Draco moved onto removing her knickers while she struggled with his belt buckle. He knew once his erection was released, he would want to be satisfied immediately and he didn't want any barriers in the way. With care, he pushed her skirt up high on her hips and slipped his fingers into the sides of her knickers. With a little encouragement Ginny lifted each side of her bottom, making the process a little easier. When he'd pulled them as far as he could, he gently removed her legs from his hips and continued sliding the flimsy fabric all the way down until they were off. Draco grinned nefariously at her while twirling her white knickers on one finger. Then, with a feral growl, Draco sent the knickers flying over Ginny's head and he attacked her neck again, drifting lower to her satin covered breasts from time to time.

Ginny's hands immediately resumed their mission of releasing his cock from its restraints. His fingers were doing deliciously wicked things between her legs, making it difficult to concentrate on her task. She bit her lip to distract her mind from the sensations Draco was evoking and keep her thoughts on trying to get his pants off.

"God you're so wet, love," Draco growled throatily into her ear.

"Take me now," Ginny whispered, unable to find the strength to vocalize any louder.

Within seconds, Draco had pushed aside her hands and released his pants, allowing them to simply drop to his knees. He positioned himself at her entrance, but paused to listen to her whimper her desire. Only when he thought her patience was truly beginning to fray did he enter her with a single thrust. She was so wet and warm he almost came right then and there. Determined to at least satisfy his wife, Draco consciously paused for a moment to collect his thoughts and tamp down his desire to simply allow his release to take him over.

The feel of him filling her was glorious. She knew she'd missed the feeling, but she had no idea how much until now. His strokes were anything but gentle; however, she found she didn't care. All that mattered was that she walked out here thoroughly fucked, so that she might be able to concentrate on something other than how frustrated she was feeling. It didn't take long before her climax began to build in earnest. While she'd have liked this feeling to go on forever, she needed completion and she was going to get it.

Need overrode finesse when Draco began to move. His desire to relieve the pressure within his body was growing with each and every stroke. Before long, he could feel the familiar tightening in his groin that signaled imminent release. He knew from the way Ginny was writhing beneath him that she wasn't far away from bliss either. The notion that he should allow her to come first passed briefly through his mind and was dismissed with his next thrust. There was no way he could control himself to that degree after such a period of abstinence. A week may not have been long to some, but to him it felt like a lifetime. Without fanfare, he untangled Ginny's legs from around his hips and lifted them over his shoulders, never once losing his rhythm.

When he hit her sweetest spot, she thought she'd explode right then, but he withdrew too quickly. About to protest the injustice of being teased so terribly, Ginny was silenced when Draco again hit that point that was guaranteed to make the stars and moon come together in one almighty rush.

"Again... faster..." Ginny managed to gasp out.

More than happy to oblige, Draco complied without argument or question. With every thrust, the volume of his grunts rose. He was trying to contain himself just a little, so he could be certain Ginny would join him in euphoria, but it was fast becoming impossible.

"Oh. My. God. Keep-keep-going. Don't stop... don't stop... I-oh god, yes!" As she gasped out her approval her muscles began to twitch and tighten around him. Her hand slammed onto the desk, sending papers and other items flying in all directions.

Draco groaned throatily. This was the best feeling in the world-his wife desperately trying to milk him of everything he had and then some. It had only taken a couple of her spasms to send him to the point of no return. He emptied himself in her with a series of carnal grunts, denoting in some primal way his satisfaction. The rhythmic rocking of his hips continued until he felt Ginny start to relax around his member. When he finally stilled, he didn't withdraw, preferring to remain sheathed in her warmth for just a while longer.

As Ginny lay there trying to catch her breath, she became conscious of all that she was laying on. There was something that felt rather like a quill digging painfully into her backside, and her head was resting on something lumpy, she hoped it wasn't an inkwell. She struggled to sit up and make herself more comfortable. Draco had that distinctly sated look on his face, which told her categorically he was ready for a nap. Despite his initial protests, she'd hear nothing but positive things from this little escapade.

Draco gathered his wife in his arms and placed a lingering kiss on her head. "That was-"

"Just enough to take the edge off," Ginny finished for him smugly. She gently pushed him away from her, slid from the desk and pulled her skirt down. There was no way she was going to fawn over him now; that would come tonight, when he made the effort to come home at a decent hour, and not before. "Don't work late tonight."

Draco was struck speechless as Ginny sauntered to his office door, buttoning her blouse as she went. Where were his little words of love? She'd not even uttered a simple 'I love you'. All he got was a view of her backside swaying delightfully on its way to the door. Just before she opened the door, she shook her hair out, so it didn't look so mussed and gave him a decidedly saucy smile. It was around then that his senses returned to him. Though it wasn't anything that his wife did, her presence was still befuddling his mind. It was the very real sound of his father's angry voice railing at his secretary when the door opened. He hurriedly pulled his trousers up, fastening them quickly at his waist and was still straightening his shirt when Lucius burst into his office.

"What is the meaning of rescheduling our meeting?"

"That wasn't me, Father. Ginevra took it upon herself to rearrange my schedule. She needed-err- an hour or so of my time," Draco responded evenly. "I apologize for any inconvenience the deferment may have caused you."

Lucius strolled further into the office. He was neither blind nor stupid. Over the years, he'd lost count of how many times he'd interrupted his son while he had some tart from the secretarial pool bent over his desk, but that was before Ginevra had taken up residence in his heart. Lucius had noticed the expression on his daughter-in-law's face as she left the office, and the smug smile she'd given him as they passed each other was extraordinary to say the least. The woman looked as though she was the cat, who not only caught the canary, but was lucky enough to have it served with the cream as well. With that in mind, he scanned the office as he entered; searching for evidence of what he suspected had been happening while he had been barred from entering the room. A smirk tugged at his mouth when he spied exactly what he was looking for hanging carelessly off of the arm of one of the visitors' chairs. "What did Ginevra need you for that was so urgent?"

"Just some personal business," Draco answered vaguely as he realized he'd inadvertently buttoned his shirt wrong.

Lucius stared pointedly at the virginal white lace knickers that obviously once resided under his daughter-in-law's skirt. "Indeed."

"Father!" Draco strode around his desk and snatched the flimsy lace garment from its position, stuffing it into his pocket. "I'll thank you not to-"

"Not to what?" Lucius questioned audaciously.

"Father." The warning in Draco's tone was unmistakable. The last thing he wanted to do was get into a discussion about his sex life with his father at work.

Lucius waved off the unspoken threat. "I suggest you re-button your shirt before the staff catches a glimpse of you, and you might zip your fly up as well. It might pay to advertise when you are single, but you are a married man now."

Draco could feel heat creeping up his neck and into his face. To have his father make such comments was simply humiliating. Still there was no point arguing with Lucius. It was obvious that he'd guessed what business Ginny had at the office. He also knew he had to make himself presentable before anyone saw him in this state of undress.

"Now that you're dressed appropriately, we can have that conference."

Without meeting his father's gaze, Draco strode around his desk and sat down. The last thing he felt like doing now was concentrating on business, but it seemed he had little choice. He rested his arms on his desk and immediately withdrew upon feeling something wet seep through the fabric on his arm. So as not to create a scene, which he had no doubt his father would find amusing, Draco casually placed a clean piece of parchment over the offending area of the desk - he'd have to clean that up when he had some privacy. While he was waiting for Lucius to get comfortable, he promised himself he'd be heading home just as soon as he could for a little more of what his wife had silently promised him on her way out.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

AUTHOR'S NOTE

Thanks to Rainpuddle13 for her amazing beta skills and plot discussions.

Thank you to everyone who took the time to review!

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