Dedicated | Draco Malfoy

Chapter 17

Draco got angry all over again when he read the letter his mother sent him the following morning. She asked - no, demanded - that he'd come over for dinner that evening.

The audacity of this woman! If she wanted to make things up to him she could at least ask nicely.

A part of him wanted to shred the letter into tiny pieces, but he didn't. He had to face his mother sooner or later, even though all he wanted right now was to ignore her and pretend she didn't exist.

He could use some help though. And Hannah had said that he could always come over if he needed her. His heart skipped a beat just thinking of how sweet she had been yesterday and how good it had felt to sleep with her in his arms.

Maybe it was too soon to think things like this, but Hannah felt like home. This feeling was a new experience to Draco. Malfoy Manor was a house, but it had never felt like a home. If he had to endure his mother and the house again he wanted his safe haven right there with him.

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Draco rang the bell at Hannah's house, but there came no response. He rang a second time.

When Hannah still didn't answer the door, he ran his hands through his hair. Where could she be at this time of day? Did she have an appointment? He really needed to catch her before this evening.

Then he remembered the address he had sent his first letter to Hannah to: her fan mail address. Maybe she was at her publisher's office.

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The offices of Inked Palace Publishing were buzzing with activity. Witches and wizards walked through the hallways holding printed manuscripts under their arms. Some of them had quills tucked neatly behind their ears.

Draco stood near the front door with no idea where to go.

"Can I help you?" someone asked him.

Before him stood a spindly-looking witch with long brown hair.

"Is Hannah Abbott in the office?" he asked.

The witch pursed her lips. "If you have fan mail or gifts you can drop them off at the main desk. If you want an interview you will have to make an appointment," she said sternly.

"Oh no no, I am not a journalist or a fan," he said quickly. Although, strictly seen he was Hannah's biggest fan. "I'm..." He hesitated slightly. "I'm her boyfriend."

The witch crossed her arms. "Yeah sure," she said like people used this excuse all the time.

"It's true!" Draco said. "We haven't been dating long but -"

"Are you looking for Hannah Abbott?" a wizard with glasses who just passed by asked. He reminded Draco of Potter.

"Yes."

"She's doing this huge interview in London. I'll give you the address of the venue."

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Draco was lucky that there were still tickets available at the cash register when he arrived only a few minutes before the event started. How had he not known that Hannah was doing this huge interview today? Why didn't she tell him? He wanted to support her career and if he could he would attend every event she had to do.

Again, he was amazed by how popular Hannah was. The venue had more than five hundred seats and was almost sold out. Sadly, he had to buy a seat near the back.

He settled down and waited for the interview to begin.

"Oh my god," a witch in the row before him giggled excitedly, "I can't believe we're seeing her for real today! I have been looking forward to this moment for months!"