Very Desirable by WeasleyForMe

It had begun unexpectedly. Now, a few months later, Charlie is back, and Hermione is determined to pick up where they left off.

Thanks to Lara Zed for beta reading!

Hermione smoothed down her dress with her free hand and crossed the garden pathway into the orchard behind the Burrow. The sky was glowing deep orange and purple as the sun dipped below the horizon. It was a beautiful summer's night, the perfect time to celebrate Harry's engagement to Ginny.

The orchard was decorated with the most romantic fairy lights hanging in all of the trees, and the twins had grown multi-coloured rose bushes around the refreshment tables. The scene nearly took her breath away.

"Hermione!" called Ginny, running over to wrap her friend in a hug. "I'm so happy you're here. Everyone is going to be so excited to see you."

Hermione smiled against her friend's hair. "Congratulations. This is for you and Harry," she said, handing Ginny a large, wrapped gift. "It's a set of cooking cauldrons."

Ginny laughed and took the box. "Well, now you've ruined the surprise, but thank you so much."

Hermione caught Harry's eye and in an instant, he pulled her into a tight hug. "I've missed you. I haven't seen you in weeks," he told her. She was suddenly greeted by most of the Weasley family and what seemed like half of England's wizarding society. There was, however, one person who was not there to greet her, and that was the one person she had most wanted to see today.

"Hey, Hermione," Fred and George greeted her in unison with matching grins.

"You're looking quite fit," Fred told her as he spun her around in a circle.

George caught her and waltzed her across the patio. "Have I ever told you that you look stunning in blue?" he asked, winking at her as he released her.

"I believe you told me last month I would look better wearing nothing at all."

She smirked before heading onward, searching out her target. But first she was welcomed by Ron, who had been talking with Bill, Fleur and their slew of children.

"Hermione!" exclaimed Percy. He kissed her on the cheek before moving on to find his sister. Then Molly hugged her and handed Hermione a platter of food, asking her to set it on the table for dinner.

Just as she set the food down, she was graced by the sight she had been longing to see for months. Charlie appeared in the doorway, looking at her with such hunger in his eyes, she let out a small whimper at the sight of him. Her hand shook, and she tucked it behind her back so nobody would see. He looked like perfection, like pure sex on legs. Hermione's heart pounded, and her mouth went dry.

When he vanished from the doorway, she immediately thought back to the last time she had seen him. It had been at Ron's birthday party at a pub in London, and she had been wearing the same dress she wore tonight. It was the first time she had thought about Charlie as anything other than her friend's older brother. She had seen him as an extremely attractive, eligible older man.

Charlie had told her, "You look a little too grown up in that dress. You'd better be ready to deal with the consequences." He had taken a moment to appreciate the midnight blue dress that clung to her curves and ended halfway down her thighs. Then, after a few pints between them, she had pulled him into the coatroom for the best snog of her life.

But tonight, she felt like a small child, unsure of her plans and provisions. Perhaps it had been unwise to wear the same strapless blue dress. Maybe she shouldn't have spent so much time longing for him. What if he hadn't thought of her once since that night in March?

"Dinner is ready!" Arthur called merrily, setting down a large tray of roast beef. Hermione was jolted out of her memories and pushed down into a chair between Fred and George.

They each wrapped an arm around the back of her chair as the rest of the partygoers filled the remaining seats.

"We were thinking," said Fred, sitting to her right.

"Perhaps you'd like to like skip dinner and come home with us now," George finished, in the chair to her left.

"The two of you would never forego dinner, and you're both married," she reminded them.

"Ohh…" Fred said jokingly, as if barely able to remember his wedding the previous year.

"Right…" George added as Alicia sat down on his other side and rolled her eyes at him.

Hermione shook her head and laughed before turning to face the chair opposite her, and she was startled to find that Charlie had taken that seat. Her breath caught in her throat as she searched her extensive brain for something intelligible to say; she assumed he would be heading back to Romania at the end of the weekend, and she only had this one chance to make him want her again.

With a smug smile, Charlie said, "That's a very nice dress, Hermione."

Her eyes went wide before she blinked a few times. "Thanks," she managed to mutter, still unable to think of anything else to say. Their eye contact was broken as Fred elbowed her in the arm, trying to hand her a bowl of potatoes.

She fell into the rhythm of passing food around the table, stealing glances at Charlie all the while. He looked good, even better than Hermione remembered. Her memories had only gotten her so far when it came to recalling the exact shade of his green eyes and the way his smirk danced across his lips. He looked even more fit than he had before; working outdoors was doing amazing things for his body.

"So, Hermione, how are things at St. Mungo's these days?" Charlie asked casually, enjoying the way she was looking at him.

"Oh, you know, it's been quite busy. Healer training is pretty fascinating though," she managed to say without stumbling over her words. She took a sip of her wine and was startled when something came into contact with her knees. Nearly choking on her drink, she glanced under the narrow picnic table and saw that Charlie had situated his knees so that her right leg was nestled between both of his.

His crooked smirk turned into laughter, and he had to hide behind a glass of wine. Her reaction to him was just too priceless. Unlike the night at Ron's party in March, tonight he swore he'd take the upper hand. Previously, she'd had the element of surprise on her side; who knew little Hermione Granger had become such a completely sexy bird? In fact, she looked so good that he had wanted to make another trip back home for the past few months in the hopes of seeing her again sooner.

He watched as she struggled to regain her composure, and then his plan started to come to fruition. Hermione wrapped her ankles around his right leg. "And how are things in Romania? The dragons being good to you?" she asked with a smile as she took a bite of dinner.

Charlie willingly accepted her attentions as he told everyone at their end of the table a story about a rather nasty Hungarian Horntail in the camp where he worked. It took all of his willpower to keep his composure as Hermione slid her shoes off and ran her toes along the flesh just above the hem of his jeans. She grinned at him and kept asking questions along with the others.

"Weren't you scared when the Horntail got loose?" she asked, biting her lip and rubbing his leg with her foot.

"I'm not afraid of a challenge," he replied letting his gaze fall lower past her neck and back up to her face. She was smiling at him, and he knew he would have to get her alone.

Molly walked out of the kitchen door carrying a large cake covered in candles, and everyone at the table stood and announced their congratulations to the happy couple. Hermione watched as Harry and Ginny cut into their cake and started to pass pieces around.

As Hermione passed a plate to Fred, she felt the warmth of a hand brush her hair to the side and run down length of her neck to the top of her dress. She let the unpreventable shiver travel through her body before she heard Charlie's voice, just barely a whisper, next to her ear. "Could I interest you in something different for dessert?"

She sucked in a breath and spun to face him, but Charlie was already disappearing into the darkness of the apple orchard. Hermione glanced around her; Minerva and Kingsley were laughing loudly, and the twins were starting a round of toasts and singing. She knew nobody would miss her.

As quickly as she could, she tiptoed through the grass toward the line of trees and into the shadows they provided. Her eyes slowly adjusted to the darkness, and she looked around for Charlie.

"So, you wanted a different dessert after all?" he asked, stepping out from behind a tree, his lips decorated with a lopsided smile. She felt like she had been hit by a bludger. Charlie's lean waist was accentuated by the cut of his shirt, which was pulled taut across his broad chest. He walked toward her in the near darkness like she was his prey, but she had no desire to run.

"I've been thinking about you," she blurted out before she could manage to stop herself.

A grin spread across his features. "I had hoped as much," he told her running his hands up her arms, past her shoulders and into her messy curls.

Hermione squealed in delight as his lips met hers, gently at first as his fingers wrapped themselves around her waist. Charlie ran his rough hands along the smooth satin of the dress she always wore in the fantasies he had about her. Her body was warm and inviting, and he was craving more contact. He pushed her up against an apple tree and deepened their kiss.

Hermione parted her lips to the feel of his tongue as it slid along her bottom lip seeking entrance. She wrapped her fingers around his arms, thrilled by his muscular body. Her tummy swooped as he nibbled on her lips. Charlie swept his tongue against hers, and enjoyed the way she melted against him. They were pressed tightly together as their kisses grew impossibly deep.

Charlie released her lips. "I've been thinking about you since March," he whispered against her neck as his lips found the sensitive spot just below her ear. The thought of her had been on the edge of his mind far too long, and he couldn't pay attention at work. He had hoped that after this visit, he would be able to get her out of his thoughts, but now he knew that wouldn't be the case. He would keep wanting more and more.

Hermione let out a moan as his teeth grazed her earlobe. "I've been thinking about you since March, too. Rather indecent things, really," she confessed before grasping him by the collar and pulling his lips back to her own. Charlie braced himself with one hand on the tree trunk next to her head as she kissed him roughly. Their lips slid across each other's in a most desperate fashion, and although they could hear laughter coming from the others nearby, they couldn't stop.

"Come home with me," gasped Hermione, as Charlie ran his hand down her neck, over her chest and along her hip, worshipping the woman before him with his kisses.

He pulled his lips away from hers and watched the rise and fall of her chest with each breath. She licked her lips nervously awaiting a response. "I'm staying with Percy for the weekend," he replied, knowing there was no way he'd be able to go to Hermione's flat without his brother noticing his absence.

She chewed her lower lip then whispered, "Haven't you been thinking about more than just snogging me?" she asked breathlessly.

Charlie's only response was to claim her mouth once more in a searing kiss and pull her against the front of his trousers causing her to gasp. "Of course I have."

"Don't make me ask again," Hermione breathed, and Charlie made up his mind.

Charlie *sigh* He's just lovely, isn't he? This will mostly likely be two parts. Please leave a review and let me know what you think!