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Chapter 21

This should absolve you of the pathological guilt that will be creeping in about now, even though you know I planted the file for you to read. (At least I hope you've figured that out, or you're not the woman I think you are.)

The note was attached to a release form: standard protocol to receive a copy of a medical file. His signature was at the bottom.

Cuddy grinned. He really was covering all the bases. As she detached the envelope that was clipped to the back of the form and removed the enclosed document, she wondered what other surprises House had in store. To be honest, the clues and gifts he'd already provided had charmed her more than any romantic gift she'd ever received.

Certificate of Annulment.

Her eyes widened as she read the words. He'd done it. His marriage was declared "void ab initio" through a declaration of nullity. It was the final barrier, the one thing keeping her from moving forward with their reconciliation.

She flipped the page to find another hand written note, the last in the file.

Why aren't we together?

Cuddy laughed and reached for the phone. Why, indeed?

"Mom," she spoke into the receiver. "I need your help."

She could see him as she walked down the hall of his apartment. He was sitting on the bathroom floor leaning against the bathtub. His right leg was stretched out in front of him, the left one bent at the knee, as he stared down at his hand.

It was déjà vu, and not of the pleasing kind.

He looked up as she stopped in the doorway and released a groan.

"It's not what you think," he said, immediately defensive.

She leaned against the door frame and crossed her arms in front of her.

"You're not on the bathroom floor again?"

"I'm not on the verge of a relapse," he said. "I was expecting you."

"Clearly."

"I was," he insisted. "I was washing up and dropped something on the floor."

She stepped into the room and stood across from where he was seated.

"It seems every important moment in our relationship happens in the bathroom."

"Is this an important moment?"

"I hope so."

"Then you should be groveling or something."

"Groveling," she choked back a laugh. "For what?"

He shook his head in feigned disappointment. "I bared my heart and soul and all I get is lip."

She took the hand he stretched out toward her and pulled him up.

"I'm not giving you lip," she said. "Yet."

He sighed as he looked down at her, standing so close she could feel his breath on her skin. "Are you going to make us have an annoying heart-to-heart first?"

"Nope," she said, and grabbed his belt, pulling him into her. "We're going to have sex first."

He stared at her in stunned surprise.

"Seriously?"

He barely registered her breathy chuckle before she kissed him.

It was just a light brushing of her lips on his, a bare whisper. But then he leaned into her, his body pushing her into the wall as he demanded more.

His tongue was insistent and yet immensely gentle as he traced the recesses of her mouth, tasting her in thorough, leisurely licks. He possessed the perfect balance of tenderness and aggression to feed her desire, and though is hands remained at his sides, his body seemed to surround her with in a force field of heat and hunger.

Cuddy reached out to take his hand, but his fist was clenched and unyielding, holding something tight in the palm. She pulled away from his embrace and frowned up at him. Surely not…It couldn't be…

The slight twitch of a grin at the corner of his mouth removed her fears. She tapped a finger on his knuckles, silently demanding he open his hand.

He didn't hesitate. His expectant blue eyes held her captive as he tentatively opened his hand for her.

She looked down and her breath caught.

A ring.

When he took it between the fingers of his right hand and held it out to her, she could see it was custom made. It looked to be titanium with three stones looping around what could only be a tiny house. There were three different stones, each a different color.

A family ring.

It only took a second for her to process the birthstones: hers, his and…Rachel's.

Their family.

"If you wear this," he said. "You'll be forever branded as mine."

She looked up at him then, her eyes bright and smiling, her grin amused and flirtatious.

"I've been branded yours for a very long time."

He smiled almost shyly as he slid the ring on her finger.

"It fits."

Her hand reached up to cup his chin and her fingers ran along the scruff of his beard.

"I need you," she whispered.

House saw something in her expression, a sense of awe and reverence, a respect and longing that went far beyond the love they'd shared. He swallowed hard, his Adam's apple moving heavily along his throat; Cuddy followed the movement with her eyes, unconsciously biting her lip in response.

House groaned and grasped her waist, pulling her swiftly to him. She could feel the beat of his heart, evidence of both his nervous response and quickened desire. She could feel his breath along her jaw and below her ear as he nuzzled into her; it sent a jolt of electricity from neck to core. It only took that touch to set her on fire. By the time his lips met hers, she felt as if she could eat him alive. He was achingly hot and hard; her skin was damp and sensitive. Her body demanded attention and she had no intention of denying it.

House was vaguely aware of movement as she pulled him with her into the bedroom. Emotions coursed through him in powerful waves, a mix of tenderness and passion, of fear and need. He'd only been so overcome once before, when she'd come to him after the crane collapse, when she'd first said she loved him. But this was different. Where there was calm determination, there now was trust and confidence. She was bold and fearless, and shining with a love for him that was simply breathtaking.

He felt the mattress at the bend of his knees as she gently shoved him back onto the bed. House sat mesmerized as her fingers moved to the top button of her blouse.

"We're really not going to talk first?" His voice was both astounded and eager. His eyes glistened with the anticipation of a boy given the chance to see a woman naked for the first time, but his jaw clenched with the determination of a man practicing great self-control.

Cuddy paused. "Did you want to?"

"I don't know."

And he didn't. He felt lost and confused. They had so much to talk about, so much they should work through and determine. But her blouse was undone. And she was wearing a red bra. And this was sex…with Cuddy.

House slid his hands up her thighs to her hips and pulled her into the space between his legs. Cuddy tossed the blouse aside and grinned at him when he noticed the envelope at her cleavage.

"For me?"

She nodded and bit on her lip again. Didn't she know what that did to him? Maybe she did and she was intentionally driving him insane.

"Is this a game?" he said. "Should I remove it with my teeth?"

"You can take it however you want."

House had the feeling she was talking about more than the envelope. His erection must have agreed because it was pressing painfully against his zipper now.

He reached for the envelope, slowly removing it from the band of her bra. He took the opportunity to slide his fingers along the slope of her breast and across her nipple. Her breath quickened.

"This won't take long?" he asked for reassurance as he opened the envelope.

"That depends on you."

He quickly looked down at the contents.

"It's all kind of primitive, but I didn't have as much time to plan," she said, suddenly feeling nervous.

He wasn't concerned with style; he was more interested in content. He looked over the pages copied from her calendar where a recurring meeting was highlighted: "Nolan" was the notation.

House frowned. "You're going to see Nolan?"

"You're not the only one screwed up," she explained.

He appeared satisfied with that answer.

The next few pages were vouchers, much like the ones he had given her.

"Get out of chores free," he read. "Clean-freak Cuddy won't like that."

He flipped to the next. "Take the day off and play," he read. "Dean-of-Medicine Cuddy will hate when I use this one."

"Say what's really bothering you…oooh, dangerous."

She grinned, enjoying his teasing as he ran through the pages. He continued to offer commentaries on each voucher, but she knew he understood the deeper meaning behind the notes. With each remark he was accepting her apology and her commitment to be a better partner.

"Sex," he read. "I need a voucher for sex? Just one?"

"Of course not," she laughed, and yanked the page from his hand. "I just wanted an excuse to say 'any sex with you is good sex'."

His eyes widened in horror. "Are you objectifying me?"

"Is that a problem?"

"Not at all," he said. "I know it's all just a front to hide your deep, abiding love for me."

"And it meets a need in you."

"But only when you do it."

"Obviously."

He read the next voucher.

"Forgiveness," he looked up at her, his expression serious. "Should I use this now?"

"No need," she said. "You're in good standing."

He nodded and read the next receipt.

"Your choice…I get to choose my gift?" His eyes were wide with exaggerated enthusiasm.

"Dangerous, I know," she said. "But I trust you."

She yanked the pages from his hand and tossed them onto the side table.

"You can read the rest later," she said. "This is more important."

She handed him a card she pulled from the back pocket of her jeans.

As he read it, his expression changed from playful to concerned.

"A lawyer?"

"It's the lawyer I used to adopt Rachel," she said.

His expression was blank as his eyes searched hers. She couldn't guess what he thinking, but she could clearly see he was desperately trying to read her.

"I'm not expecting or demanding anything," she quickly explained. "Whatever you want is okay with me. There's no pressure to this at all, but I wanted you to know…there's no other man I'd rather be her father."