Thanks once more for such great reviews! I think you can see where this is going but I'll hopefully add in a few twists to keep you all on tenderhooks! Please keep comments coming and any suggestions or even things you hate and i'll try to include things. This is much your story as mine as your reading it! :)
Hope you enjoy part 3! What lengths will this Max go to? Is Rachel safe? So many questions and so many answers :)
A knock on her door pulled Cuddy back into reality and realised she had once again been pulled in by House's games and they were now making out in her office. Something she said she would always separate, work and personal life.
Wilson walked in after announcing his presence.
"Seriously guys, I'm happy for you honestly, but I don't want to see that!"
House turned around and smiled.
"You're just jealous you're not getting any!"
"I'm married!" Wilson replied obviously as he put Rachel down.
"Exactly!"
Rachel ran over to her mum and climbed up onto her lap.
"When can we go home?" She asked.
"Soon honey." Cuddy replied.
It was the summer holidays and Cuddy hated getting a sitter for Rachel now that she was older. She never really caused havoc around the hospital and was very mature for her age. She just liked to wonder and learn new things.
"I thought you liked it here?" Cuddy asked.
"I do, I just..."
Rachel thought to herself. She had been scared by Max but didn't want to worry her mother, she was young but she knew how much responsibility and stress Cuddy already had to deal with.
"I just do. I'm hungry that's all."
Cuddy dived into her bag by her desk and pulled out an apple.
Rachel stared at the fruit for a second before turning to House and rolling her eyes.
"When I said I was hungry mother, I didn't mean I wanted fruit. It was a hint for sweets." She placed the apple on the desk, folded her arms and pouted.
Cuddy laughed. "Well at least you're honest I guess."
Rachel hoped off her lap. "House gives me sweets." She whispered purposely loud.
House and Wilson had just begun discussing House's new patient when he heard what Rachel said.
"Hey!" He said. "Do you not know what don't tell your mother means?"
Cuddy just glared at House causing Rachel to laugh!
"Control your child woman!" He pointed at Cuddy and turned to leave with Wilson in tow.
"I've tried, believe me, but he's just uncontrollable."
He had noticed the reference to himself rather than Rachel and turned to Wilson.
"See what she did, she said he, referring to me acting like a child. Funny!" He said sarcastically and continued to leave with Wilson shaking his head but amused all the same.
The two men continued to chat as they walked out of the clinic. However before they reached the door, House suddenly felt himself falling and smacked hard on the floor. He immediately felt embarrassed more than anything. He spun around to see a man sitting on a patient chair stand up.
"Oh my, I'm so sorry!" Max said grinning the entire time.
House now felt anger bubble through him, that was no accident that's for sure. He bolted up easily with the adrenaline pumping through him but Wilson put a hand across his chest to stop him from pouncing.
"You must be Dr. House." Max extended a hand but House refused it. "Dr. Cuddy has told me great things about you. Others have told me, well let's say, not so great."
"You are you?" Wilson asked confused by this man and at the second meeting of him this day.
"Max Richmond. All round wealthy son of a bitch." He laughed evilly almost, at his unamusing joke however very precise description. "I donate to this hospital."
"Oh well how very fucking generous of you." House's raised voice and use of language caught the attention of some of the nurses.
"I don't care for you language sir."
"I don't care for your appropriately placed leg either."
"I thought we cleared that up as an accident."
"You did. I on the other hand think you're a slimy rich arsehole who flashes his cash to feel up the Dean of this hospital. Oh and I think the trip was on purpose. Sorry, went slightly off topic there."
Max was beyond angered now but knew better than to attack a Doctor in front of a room full of witnesses.
"Well, it was obviously an accident so let's leave it there." He said, echoing Wilson's previous words. This didn't go unnoticed by Wilson and Max smiled at him as he turned around and walked off.
"What did he mean by that?" asked House noticing the sub text of the sentence.
"I caught him talking to Rachel. She was obviously spooked by the man. She had stumped his toe with the cane apparently and I said that exact same sentence to him."
Both men turned back to look where Max had just left and a shiver went down their spines.
Max had no intention of going anywhere. He wanted to see Cuddy. He'd had a crush on her for years, ever since college and now after tracking her down and spending years trying to butter her up but donating millions to her hospital, he wasn't going to let some cripple take her from him.
He'd hated House back then. He hated how he was smug and arrogant yet always got the girl. Max was your classic geek. He knew that, and resented how dumb guys always got the girl. But what really wound him up was how House wasn't dumb. He was god dam near genius! This angered him to the point of insanity.
He'd slowly watched their relationship develop over the last year. He hadn't really done much about his crush until he saw the pair of them getting closer, so that's what made him begin to hang around a bit too much. He thought it was romantic in some way, others knew it was just plain creepy.
Cuddy arrived home with Rachel just after six. She left the office a little earlier that night as she could not stand Rachel whining anymore. She'll never know whether introducing House to her was the best thing, she could see herself having two House's on her hands and she wasn't sure if she or the world in fact, could take that.
Rachel still had her cast on, much to Cuddy's annoyance and she'd told her they'd have to go into the hospital earlier for her to have it removed- hence Rachel's current mood.
"I don't understand." Rachel said taking off her coat and placing it on the hook by the door. "How is this cast affecting anyone except myself? And I don't see it as a problem so why should you? I'm not being rude but it makes no sense."
Cuddy smiled, although it was evident House had been an influence on her little girl, she was glad she spoke her mind, and that was a trait she had too. She also added how she was not being rude, something of course House would never say. She was still Cuddy's little girl.
"What's funny?" Rachel asked her.
"You are sweetie."
Cuddy walked off into the kitchen with a bemused Rachel behind her. Rachel began to limp after her, crutch still in hand.
"But I didn't say anything remotely funny... Ooo we making pancakes?" She asked after seeing the ingredients out on the work surface. This caused another laugh from Cuddy at the sudden change of discussion all because of food.
A badly played C chord awoke House from his slumber. He looked up from his desk.
"Put Lisa down."
"You call your guitar Lisa?" Wilson asked.
"Yer, named after the best shag I've ever had."
Wilson put down the guitar with a look of disgust on his face as if it was something far dirtier.
"You do know that's too much information."
"Yes. What I don't know is why you were attempting a chord on Lisa?"
"I knew it'd get your attention, instead of me calling your name several times while you pretend to be asleep."
"Well it worked."
"Exactly. Do you know it's gone eleven?"
"Hence, why I was asleep."
"I thought you were going to Cuddy's. You said you were going to talk to Rachel about Max. Seriously, I think something else happened that I missed when I saw them two talking." Wilson said concerned as he sat opposite him.
"Yer I know." House rubbed his face, he was exhausted. "Patient took a sudden turn for the worse. I'll talk to her tomorrow."
"Why don't you go home? Or to Cuddy's. You can't do anymore for him at the moment."
House leant back. He knew this but didn't need Wilson reconfirming it. He was missing something in his current case and it was beginning to build on extra stress which didn't help the pain in his leg. The intentional trip from Max didn't help either. He rubbed it as another dose of pain shot through it.
"Seriously, go home." Wilson said noticing his pain and got up from his seat. Wilson had a long night ahead of him as a patient of his was going to die very soon, and him having no family he agreed to stay with him till the end. Last thing he needed was House hassling him. This wasn't why he wanted House to go home, but it was a small factor.
And if House was true to himself, lying next to Cuddy was much better than lying on his awkward chair trying to sleep.
House nodded to Wilson. As Wilson left, House began to grab his things together and headed to the parking lot.
As he approached his motorcycle he began to text Cuddy. He smiled to himself at the rudeness of the text but the jist of it was that he was coming over to hers. As he sat on his bike he hit the send button and placed the phone back in his jacket pocket. As he lifted his helmet to place on his head a hand fell suddenly on his shoulder causing him to whip round quickly.
Next thing he remembered was a pain shooting through his cheek and he was suddenly on the floor. One more blow to the stomach and one more to his head... he was out.