***THIS IS SET SOMEWHERE BEFORE CUDDY GOT RACHEL, BUT DOESN'T REALLY SIT WITHIN ANY SERIES - JUST A HAPPY ONE-SHOT!****
As she walked away from yet another confrontation with House, Lisa Cuddy felt her anger at the argument transfer over to the nursing and other hospital staff who now looked at her with knowing smiles and sly glances. Although she was the Dean of Medicine, she hadn't lost touch with the constant stream of gossip which flooded daily through the hospital, and she knew that they all thought that he most decidedly had the upper hand over her.
Every time they locked horns, she came away pissed off and frustrated, and House seemed to just turn on that smile of his and shrug it off. That was what did it - what made her angry and made all the staff gossip she was beaten - the fact that he always pushed her buttons and she couldn't affect him. She shook her thick black curls out of their clip and tried not to slam the door of her office shut as she stormed inside. Cuddy threw herself into her leather chair and closed her eyes. That man really did infuriate her.
She says "Don't test without the parents' permission" he says "They're idiots and I already did". What was she supposed to do? It wasn't like she particularly enjoyed fending off lawsuits, but he must think she did or he'd have some basic human compassion and listen to her once in a while. She snorted at her own thoughts: House and human compassion in the same sentence, she must be tired. She massaged her temples and leant back, letting the leather cushion her back luxuriously and scare away all the built up tension; she'd almost managed it too, when she heard the door to her office open.
Cuddy opened one eye cautiously, hoping against hope that it was just a lost patient or someone here to empty her waste bin, but no. It was House. He limped in, using his cane to shut the doors behind him, and he still wore that smirk of his.
"You look tense," he said with mock concern, coming to lean some of his weight against her expensive desk. "Anything I can do to help?"
Cuddy refused to move. She wasn't going to jump up at his approach, she was going to lean back further into her leather chair, massage her temples, and generally just carry on as if he wasn't there.
"I'm busy." she murmered calmly, and heard House let out a little amused chuckle under his breath. He loved these games. He must get some kind of perverse pleasure out of always getting on her back and pissing her off. The proverbial lightbulb lit up inside her head. Perverse pleasure. She knew how House looked at her, knew that the sexual tension between them was at times palpable, and now she knew how to push his buttons right back.
"Busy?" he was saying now. "Looks like you're just sat on your rather ample ass to me."
Cuddy finally opened her eyes and inclined her head to look at him with indifference, then, like a lazy cat stretching on a summer's day, she moved her whole body, affecting a yawn while she was at it, and placed her leg up on the desk behind him. House was genuinely caught off guard. Cuddy was wearing a knee length black pencil skirt, and for her to get her leg up on the high desk that skirt had to ride up to mid-thigh. She swallowed a laugh of triumph as she saw him actually twist around to give that leg his better attention.
"You were saying?" she prompted, not going for an innocent tone (too suspicious) but something very like it. She once more massaged her temples, trying to convey that she was tired - entirely the truth - and that she wasn't aware of the effect her bared leg was having, or even that her skirt had risen that high. House suddenly flicked his bright blue eyes up to her face and narrowed them. He suspected her of artifice, but she was by now adept at playing these games. She frowned at him and sat up in her chair, thus removing her leg from view, and looked exasperated. "What? Do you just come in here for some quiet time now?"
House wasn't totally convinced, but he was cautious enough not to mention her show of skin in case it really was by accident and thus likely to happen again. He shrugged, picked up an apple from the pile in the bowl on the left of her desk, and slowly made his way out. As he closed the doors, he cocked his head and studied her again. Cuddy gave him a sardonic wave. But as soon as the doors were shut (blinds down) she fairly danced with glee. Such a simple solution! Women of course used their wiles to get ahead every day, but she'd always just dismissed that thought with House because... well, because she really could go too far with him. But now she'd had enough. She was strong-willed and she would put an end to hospital gossip and show them, and House, who was boss.
Three weeks this had been going on. Cuddy had been leaning and bending and sighing and wiggling, and it had taken House a week to figure it out. So why was she still doing it? Because this was a new phase in the game. He knew that she was using her feminine wiles to confuse and distract, and now she knew that he knew, this was just a battle of wills. As soon as she stopped, changed her behaviour or tried a new tactic, he would comment on this. She didn't even want to think about all the insults and one-liners that he'd throw her way, so she continued flirting and inadvertantly showing some thigh or cleavage. It was a tough job, but someone had to do it.
She walked into his office now with a shift in her hips and just enough lip gloss to make him look at her lips. House looked up from his desk and the tiniest little smile flickered onto his face.
"I should get a budgie," he said, cocking his head to one side and pushing his chair back to he had room to stretch out his legs. "Warn me when something toxic's coming this way."
Cuddy rolled her eyes and walked closer to the desk. "You're supposed to be at a conference." she accused, hands on hips, and was gratified when he did indeed fixate on her lips. She pushed her tongue out to give them the slightest lick, and House grinned.
"Did you honestly think I would go?" he asked with eyebrows raised. "What more do I have to learn? I'm practically God." As if to belie his words, a slight tick in his cheek told Cuddy that his leg was protesting and she watched as he began to reshuffle and rub his calf. She had booked his tickets; she had told colleagues in the hospital hosting the conference that she would get House there, and now once again he was making a fool of her. Cuddy made a sudden decision and came round to perch on the desk in front of him, crossing her legs and giving him a shot of creamy white skin.
"There's still two days left," she told him, putting on her business voice despite her position. "I want you on the next flight out."
"You should have left that sentence at 'I want you'." House countered, eyes drinking in her long shapely legs and her pert breasts now directly in his eyeline. He had genuine trouble bringing his gaze back up to her face, and when he did he saw the slightest of smiles. He really loved this game. "I think I'll pass, anyway. I get the feeling I'll have more fun if I stay round here."
House's blue eyes glinted with sensuality, and Cuddy had to fight back a blush. She had anticipated this stage in the game - when House started fighting back and turning on the charm, but she hadn't realised that so little would affect her. She had her legs practically in his lap and he didn't have the hint of a flush; she didn't think he was capable of blushing.
"I get the feeling you'll still have a job if you go to the conference." she smiled, voice dripping with honey, and House chuckled, leaning back in his chair and looking her up and down with agonising slowness. Cuddy stayed perfectly still, refusing to squirm under his gaze, and stood up right in front of him, so their bodies were inches apart. To her joy, House jumped to his feet and took a little step back. Point to Cuddy.
"I have your plane tickets in my office, I'm sure you'll be by to pick them up." She brushed down her skirt and turned to walk out without a backwards glance. Well, that was her intention, but at the door she just couldn't resist another look at House's surprised face. He knew she had the upper hand and she could see how much it bugged him. He followed her to the door and she breezed away, making sure it shut before he could follow her out. This felt good.
8pm and Cuddy was finally finished for the day. Of course, House hadn't come by her office for the plane tickets, but she hadn't really had time to worry about it. She had been run off her feet, and 8 was actually quite an early finish for her considering how much she had to do, but she was just too tired to carry on. She had her laptop in her bag, some files and folders, and she would finish off at home with a glass of wine and her shoes off. She walked out into the carpark and began fishing around in her bag for her keys, when suddenly she ran smack into someone's chest.
Cuddy bounced off and threw up her arms into a defensive position so she could fend off what she assumed would be a mugging. Instead there was House, hands in the air and a shrug ready. Cuddy made a frustrated sound, gave him a push, and without another word began again looking for her car keys. She heard House walking after her and finally whirled around when she reached her car and gave him an exasperated look.
"What?" she demanded, slinging her laptop bag and her handbag into the passenger seat and pushing her hands through her hair.
"I need a ride." House said in an offended tone of voice. "No need to shoot me just because you weren't looking where you were going."
Cuddy closed her eyes and counted to ten. "Why do you need a ride?" she asked, ignoring the comment about her walking into him.
"Technical difficulties with my motorcycle." he said calmly, and Cuddy narrowed her eyes. He sounded entirely too resigned to the fact his beloved motorbike wasn't working. She glanced around him out to the disabled parking zone and saw his bike standing there alone.
"Get a cab." she instructed him, walking around to the driver's side of her car and resolutely getting in. Almost at the same time, House opened the passenger side, threw her bags into the backseat, and quickly sat down.
"No money for a cab." he countered, spreading his hands out in the universal gesture for 'See? Nothing!'. Cuddy gripped the wheel and cursed. She should have known that this game was going to get out of hand. He couldn't win the seduction stakes so now he had just decided to torture her and waste her time. She was tired, she was hungry, and now she had to drive out of her way entirely to drop him at home. It was low, even for House. Saying nothing more so as to not give him the satisfaction, Cuddy put the key in the ignition and backed out of the hospital carpark.
"Yay!" House cheered, clapping his hands like an over-excited three year old, and Cuddy swallowed a smile. He was an idiot, but he did know how to make her laugh.
They pulled up outside his house not too long after, and Cuddy looked over at him with an expectant look. "There, good deed done for the day, now get out." she smiled, and House put a hand to his throat in mock horror at her rudeness.
"Now, don't take offence," House said, evidently talking to himself. "She's just mad because she's middle aged and alone." Cuddy's mouth dropped open and she actually laughed. He was an absolute idiot, he really was. She un-did her seatbelt and turned in her seat to face House, who obligingly turned his body to look at her. They stared at each other, both with tiny smiles tugging at their lips.
"Do I look middle aged?" she asked quietly, placing a hand across her waist and touching the top of her thigh. House suddenly stilled, looking over her body in the dim light with an expression of extreme concentration. He'd literally drifted off in his head, and Cuddy looked at him with a look of total satisfaction. Men, whether geniuses or not, were simple creatures at heart. "I'll take that drooling silence as 'Why no, you look 21.'" she whispered, and he snapped back to the present.
"Or I was entranced by your wrinkles." House countered, but his blue eyes shone with lust. Cuddy felt a ripple of excitement shudder up her spine and she subconsciously leaned towards him. "Do you want to come in?" he asked, swallowing thickly and inclining his head to indicate his apartment, and Cuddy felt like she had been drugged. All her usual self containment vanished and she was lost in his gaze. She nodded slowly and watched as House suddenly grinned.
"Tough." he smirked and hopped out of the car. Cuddy blinked. She'd been played. That bastard had just totally played her. She swore fiercely as the passenger door slammed shut and after giving her steering wheel a beating she jumped out of the car, following House to the door and managing to just about slip in before he closed the front door.
"Technically you're now an intruder in my home - should I be calling the police?" House quipped, hooking his cane on a ledge over the entrance and shrugging off his jacket. He raised an eyebrow in Cuddy's direction and was suddenly apprehensive. She didn't look like she wanted to play anymore.
"Game over." Cuddy stated before moving swiftly forwards and kissing House with a furious abandon.
He only paused for half a second before grabbing her around her tiny waist and running one hand up her back and into her hair. Cuddy moved back just enough to get her hands into his shirt and tore it off before leaning in and kissing his neck, biting and nipping while he squeezed her ass and moaned. She sank her teeth into the dip just over his collarbone and that's when he realised - this wasn't game over, this was just the final phase. She was dominating. Time to fight back.
House shifted his weight onto his good leg and grabbed a handful of Cuddy's luscious black curls before pulling her head back and pushing her up against the wall. He kissed her passionately and ran his hands up from her thighs up to her breasts. He pulled open her blouse and leant down to kiss her chest, feeling them heave against him as Cuddy trailed her nails down his bare back. Cuddy groaned in pleasure and allowed him a few minutes in her cleavage before she gripped his shoulders and pushed him over to the sofa.
He fell backwards with Cuddy on top of him and she bit his nipples as he kicked off his shoes and wriggled out of his socks. Cuddy straddled his waist and sat up to unhook her bra. She looked down at him, hair ruffled and panting, and wished she could take a picture of how in her thrall he was now. Saying that, she wasn't exactly an uninterested observer. She threw off her bra and allowed him to sit up and lick her nipples with luxurious slowness. She ran her hands through his hair and felt his hands searching for the zip on her skirt.
She stood up abruptly and made sure she had House's full attention before beginning a slow wiggle out of her skirt. House sat up straight and gulped at the sight before him. Cuddy now only wore lacy black panties and - to his intense delight - suspenders, stockings, and high heeled shoes. "Oh my God." he gulped, and Cuddy winked before walking off towards the bedroom. She heard House jump to his feet and follow her as fast as he could while also, if the rustle of fabric was any indication, stepping out of his jeans.
She sat on the edge of the bed, crossing her long legs and leaning back on her hands so her chest was displayed to its full potential, and prepared to amaze House. He appeared in the doorway just in his underwear and they both looked over the others' body in appreciation and a little bit of disbelief that this was actually happening. Both had fantasised about this moment, and now that it was real it was a bit much to take in. House was apparently less in a cerebral state of mind as he was the first to break the deadlock.
He stepped over to her and raised an eyebrow at where Cuddy's eyeline was now aimed at. She felt like she was holding her breath as she looked straight ahead and saw the proof of just how turned on he was. She reached out and tucked her fingers into the top of his underwear and was just teasing it down when she realised who was in the position of power now. She stopped in her tracks and used her grasp to pull him down on to the bed with her. She immediately stood up and shimmied out of her panties. she touched the clasp of her stockings but House grabbed her hand and shook his head.
He pulled her towards him and began planting feather light kisses from her bellybutton heading south. She yelped in what she would later think of as a most unsexy manner when his tongue snaked over her clit and felt her legs shaking. Not allowing him to move his head away, she successfully shuffled him back on the bed a bit and sank to her knees over his face. His tongue began to probe deeper and Cuddy's hips bucked at the sensation. House grabbed hold of her shanks to keep her still and within minutes she was moaning her way through a powerful orgasm.
Almost as soon as she had finished riding the waves she felt House push her to one side and on to her back. He pulled off his underwear and entered her with a shudder of pleasure. They both gave a little grunt as he pushed himself in up to the hilt and then he began a brutally slow pace, leaning down on one elbow to kiss her bruised lips. Cuddy grabbed handfulls of his hair and found herself approaching another orgasm after ten minutes and a quickening of pace. She pulled House's head up from where it was nestled giving some serious attention to her breasts and looked into his blazing blue eyes as she came again. House's thrusts became spasmodic and she knew that her it would be over sooner than either of them wanted to if it continued to be this intense.
She pushed on House's shoulder and successfully got him on his back before lowering herself back onto him slowly and by degrees. His fingers dug painfully into her thighs and Cuddy grinned. If she was any more in control of him she'd be cracking a whip. She blinked. She'd bet he had a whip somewhere in here. She shook her head and decided that would be a game for another day and brought herself back to the moment. House was bucking his hips as he tried to force the pace, but Cuddy stayed perfectly still, swallowing any yelps or moans she was desperate to utter. Finally House laughed, and put his hands behind his head, for all the world looking as though he was relaxing on a beach.
"Now stay still." Cuddy tried for a commanding tone but it came out a breathy whisper, although it appeared to be just as effective as she felt his penis twitch heavily inside her. She began moving her hips slowly back and forwards, keeping to a rocking movement and watching House's face as he bit his lip and failed at his attempt of nonchalance. He really couldn't help moving, though, and soon they were rocking together, both now groaning and whimpering, and Cuddy decided to say balls to dragging it out - if House came now, she was damn sure she could get him hard again for round two soon enough.
She threw back her head, now bobbing up and down and picking up the pace until it was near furious. House shucked himself up against the bedhead into a sitting position and once again began an assault on her breasts, and Cuddy leaned back further before reaching out to keep her balance by leaning her hands on his thighs. She immediately felt him freeze and realised she was touching the place where his thigh muscle should be on his bad leg. Cuddy resolutely refused to move it. She picked her head up and stared at House, still bouncing up and down, and bit her lip as she felt a third orgasm approach. She wanted him to relax before she came, but she didn't know if she'd be able to hold off.
House gazed at her and watched a flush spread out of her chest and up her neck and knew that she was close to coming. He shook his head as if to rid himself of thoughts about his leg and Cuddy's hot hand resting on what he considered a more private place than the part that was about to get extremely happy, and leant forwards to kiss her. Cuddy felt him relax and almost as soon as he moved his hips she came with a shout. House wasn't far behind, and they stayed locked in position as they both panted and tried to regain their sense of equilibrium.
They had finally slept after another few hours of pleasure, and it was Cuddy who woke first in the morning. She turned her head to look at House's face as he slept and was amused to see that he looked almost innocent. She extricated herself from out under his arm and tip toed across to the bathroom where she had a brisk shower, all the while unable to take the smile off her face. As she washed, Cuddy tried to decide how to play it now that they had finally had sex. Did she continue the game, or did she start acting like a real adult around House, difficult as that may be?
"Christ, your ass really does get bigger every day." House's voice came through to her just before he stepped into the shower with her, and Cuddy grinned. They'd never stop this power play, and she was pretty sure she didn't have a problem with that.
"Scrub my back." she commanded, handing him a sponge without even giving him a glance. House chuckled and pressed up against her slippery body.
"You may have won the battle," he purred "But you won't win the war."
Cuddy leaned back against his toned body and smiled. She didn't care so much anymore, she just liked to play.
