Hermione let out a squeal as a hand covered her mouth and a strong pair of arms pulled her into one of the many rooms at the Burrow.
When the door closed behind them, she had only enough time to turn around and see Charlie standing there before he had her pinned up against the door, his lips claiming her own.
He kissed her passionately, his tongue already pushing against her lips, demanding access to her mouth. The pressure only increased when her hands slid up over his broad chest and she wrapped her arms around his neck. Her hold on him tightened as he began gently biting and sucking at her lips, skillfully coaxing a moan from her.
Their teeth clashed as she kissed him back fervently. His hands snaked under her sweater, the feeling of his rough skin sending waves of pleasure down her spine and to her center.
Kissing Charlie was always like this. Familiar, yet new and exciting. It didn't matter if it was a quick peck or slow and sensual. She could feel it through her entire body and it always left her craving more of him.
Only when they began to run out of air did she pull away, panting heavily as Charlie placed open mouthed kisses down the column of her neck. His tongue swirled on her hot skin when he reached the sensitive spot where her neck met her shoulder, and her breath hitched when he sucked gently, marking her skin.
"Charlie," she moaned, her nails digging in as she gripped his shoulders, which only made him suck harder.
"Yes, love?" He paused his ministrations just long enough to get the question out, the low timbre of his voice sent another shiver down her spine and the feeling of his breath against her neck nearly broke her resolve.
"We…we have to stop," Hermione breathed, gasping as his fingertips grazed the underside of her breast. “Someone will come looking.”
He sighed and placed a final kiss to her neck before retracting his hand and straightening her Weasley sweater.
"You're right. I just…I’ve wanted to do that all day. Not being able to kiss you has been driving me mad, particularly when you’ve been under the mistletoe no less than three times today," he said, taking a step back before allowing his eyes to roam over her body. She never felt more attractive than she did when Charlie looked at her, even when she was only dressed in her Weasley sweater and a pair of denims. She crossed her arms, intentionally pushing her breasts up, and watched in amusement as his eyes darkened before he finally looked back up at her face. "It’s even harder to control myself when you look as beautiful as you do now.”
“Believe me, you’re not the only one having difficulty controlling yourself,” she said, forcing herself to maintain the distance between them. “I don’t know what it is about you in that sweater, but all I’ve been able to think about all day is getting you back to my flat.”
Charlie arched an eyebrow at her as she smirked in response. He dropped his head, letting out a groan. “You’re going to be the death of me woman,” he mumbled before looking back up at her with an almost worried look on his face. “Why are we hiding this again?"
"Because if we tell everyone, they'll be planning our wedding faster than you can say 'dragon.' And we wanted time to see if this would work before trying to handle the pressure that comes with being in an official relationship," she answered, sure that she sounded as though she was quoting the answer from a textbook. It had been a topic of frequent discussion between them, so the answer was always fresh in her mind.
He nodded and crossed his arms over his chest before speaking. "Do you have any thoughts on the subject? Whether we should tell them or not?"
Hermione let her head lay back against the door as she contemplated his question. After sharing a heated kiss on New Year’s, they both quickly agreed keeping it a secret was for the best, allowing them the chance to see if their relationship would be something worth pursuing. They were both concerned about interference - something that had become commonplace when any of Molly's children entered into a new relationship - and they wanted to have the time and opportunity to figure things out on their own.
Now, almost a full year later, they still couldn't get enough of each other and their relationship was going better than any of Hermione’s ever had. She let her mind drift over some of their happier memories from the past year: ice skating on a lake at the Reserve; their trip to Greece where they spent an entire day at the beach; Charlie introducing her to the newest hatchlings; even the simple nights they spent together reading. It made her heart ache at the thought of those moments ending, which she realized was a pretty good indication of what she wanted.
More importantly though, she was tired of hiding him - them. It was Christmas Day, and more than anything, she wanted the entire world to know how she felt about him, but she decided she should start with his family.
"If you're ready," she started, pushing herself off of the door and reaching forward to take his hand, "then I am too. We can tell them as soon as you're willing-"
Charlie cut her off as he tightened his hold on her hand and quickly pulled her behind him before practically dragging her out of the room and down the stairs.
"Charlie!" She exclaimed softly as she hurried down the stairs with him. "What's the matter?"
"Oi!" Charlie called as they entered the living room, stopping in the doorway where the sprig of mistletoe hung. Everyone was gathered near the tree, waiting to open presents, and the room went completely silent. He waited until all eyes were on them before he made his move.
He turned toward Hermione, the most dazzling smile she had ever seen lighting up his face and released her hand only to reach up and reverently cup her face. Time moved slowly as he leaned down, closing the space between them before finally capturing her lips with his. Unlike the kiss they shared upstairs only moments ago, this one was slow and sweet, and it felt to her as though he was trying to express all of his love for her through this one kiss. She was nearly brought to tears by the care and gentleness he showed and she swore she could feel his love surrounding them. Hermione returned his kiss with all she had, putting as much emotion into it as she could, her heart swelling.
"I love you, Hermione," he whispered when they finally broke apart, resting his forehead against hers.
"I love you too, Charlie."
A cough pulled them from their little bubble and they turned back to their family and friends just in time to see Molly hold out her hand. Several people dug in their pockets before dropping galleons in her hand.
They watched on, dumbstruck by the lack of reaction from everyone, minus a few grumbles from those handing their money over to the Weasley matriarch. Finally, Molly turned to look at them.
"Was that all, dears? It's time to open presents now," she informed them with a knowing smile before taking a sip of her eggnog.
Hermione and Charlie glanced at each other in surprise. It was all rather anticlimactic, their lack of reaction. For almost a year the thought of telling everyone hung over the couple as a dark, inevitable cloud. Now that it was out and no one had even batted an eye, they hardly knew what to do with themselves. Even so, Hermione figured it was easily one of the best problems to have.
Charlie's lips quirked into a grin and Hermione couldn't help but return his smile with one of her own. He motioned towards the group with his head and she shrugged lightly.
"I love you," he said again, taking her hand in his and bringing it to his lips.
"And I love you," she answered with a smile. "Ready to open presents?"
"No." He placed his hands on her hips and pulled her closer. "I don't need any more gifts. I already have everything I could ever want."
“Happy Christmas, Charlie,” she said softly, wrapping her arms around his neck.
“Indeed it is,” he replied before he leaned down, once again capturing Hermione's lips with his own.