Witch Hunt

14

She tasted of chamomile and honey, the sweet jasmine scent of her perfume and something so uniquely... her.

She was a menace, mewling beneath him as he seemed to devour her. He had only meant to kiss her once, simply. Despite his teasing, he had only wanted to test it. Somehow, he found her pulling him closer, desiring his kiss and he could not stop himself. The ardour with which she returned his motions only spurred him on, encouraging his forwardness as he tugged on her lips, slipping his tongue into her mouth and stealing her breath away.

It was with great difficulty that he had managed to tear away from her at all. First, by contenting himself with her throat, then finally by kissing her fingers and leaning away entirely. He could have spent all too many hours placing heated kisses along her slender neck, wasting away the evening in his dungeon chambers. All the while maintaining the excuse of getting to know her better.

He managed to step away from her before she could pull him in again and sat back in his seat. To his satisfaction, her face and chest were flushed, her hair wild as it came undone from its plait, her lips red and swollen from his kisses. "Well, well," he started, taking a sharp breath. "How passionate you are, little witch."

She blushed harder, her hands clasped tightly together. "The same could be said about you." She retorted, trying to regulate her heartbeat. "Despite your claims and ideals regarding our 'simple signature marriage', I should quite like to kiss you again should the opportunity arise."

She held his eyes, watching him carefully as he appeared all too unbothered for her liking. She wanted him as out of sorts as she was.

He held out his hand, beckoning her forward. She stood, sliding her hand into his as he pulled her closer, his hands coming to rest on her hips as she stood between his knees. "Would you now?" He inquired, his fingers flexing against her. Her knees nearly buckled, it took all of her will to stay upright. Luckily, she did not have to much longer, for he sat her on his lap. His arms snaked around her waist, pulling her in so she was flush against him.

Her fingers came up to brush a strand of hair from his forehead, surprised to find it soft as opposed to as greasy as it looked. She cupped his cheek, feeling the beginnings of stubble beneath her fingers, her thumb passing over the bridge of his nose as she explored his face. She took advantage of their proximity to look at him in greater detail. She wanted to trace every line of his face, the sharp plane of his cheekbones and along his hooked nose.

She smiled shyly, realising she was very much invading his space, though he had not said a word against it yet. "I will ask politely, Severus. Though, I will not beg."

He offered her a quiet smile, lifting a hand to play with a wayward curl by her ear. "We shall see, won't we?"

Hermione looked down, her hands falling from his face. He did not sound the slightest bit convinced. He did not believe her.

To be entirely honest, she was not certain she believed herself.

"Do you want me to beg?" She asked.

A sound resembling a growl coming from deep within his chest made her look up with a start. His hand tightened on her waist, the one in her hair coming to grip the back of her neck firmly. "No wife of mine will ever want for anything."

He leaned in to trail hot, open-mouthed kisses along her throat, beneath her jaw. She sighed, leaning back on the hand at the back of her head, letting him access her neck freely. "That isn't what I asked," she breathed, her eyes fluttering shut.

Her thoughts were scattered now. How was she supposed to maintain her point? She could not think straight to save her life.

She gasped sharply as his teeth sunk into her earlobe. He sat her up, kissing the corner of her mouth. "Between my horrible personality and your blatant lack of self-preservation by insisting on being vulnerable, I believe we might get along just fine." He tucked a curl behind her ear. Sensing her dissatisfaction at his response, he caught her chin in his hand, forcing her to meet his eyes. "You will beg for no one but me. Understood?"