Chapter 25

It was the morning of Christmas Eve and Cameron had gotten up early to finish the preparations for the party that evening. The team discharged their patient a couple days earlier and didn't have another case. They had worked in the clinic and Cameron was able to work a double yesterday to get all of Christmas Eve off. Though she was tired, she figured that it would be best to get up early and finish food prep so that it would be easier for Jenn, Von and her to get the food ready for six that night. She also had plans with Brian for lunch that day. A few days earlier had been the six month anniversary of their first official date and Brian had wanted to take her out. Unfortunately he and Cameron both had to work longer hours and couldn't go out. So they made sure that they made some alone time for them before the party. Cameron was looking forward to it.

Gary was off with some of the guys that Brian had introduced him to and would be back by four so Cameron had some peace and quiet to work. She finished up at ten and then decided to lay done for a nap. She had set her alarm for an hour but must have slept through it because she woke up to Brian, who she had given a key to a couple months ago, gently waking her up.

"Sweets wake up. It's past noon."

"Hmmm?" Cameron said groggily. Brian laughed softly to himself and said, "Would you like me to order in lunch and you can rest some more while it gets here?"

"Oh no, I'm fine. Just let me get my bearings here."

"Maybe I can help with that." Brian leaned down and gave her a soft lingering kiss. She wrapped her arms around his neck and played with the hair on the back of his neck. When they pulled away from each other, she said, "That's a great way to wake up."

"Definitely."

"As much as I'd like to stay here like this, my stomach is grumbling. Let's go eat."

"Yes ma'am."

Cameron got up and went to fix her bed head and then they left for lunch. They had decided to go to the bar where they had first met. The place had a grill and the burgers were the best in the area. Cameron and Brian ate their lunch and discussed the party that night.

"So who RSVP'd?"

"Almost everyone. Von invited a few people besides who you and Gary did. I invited the usual from work and everyone was invited to bring a date. It looks like there will be 30 people."

"Not bad. The guys from work who are coming are looking forward to it. They think you're hot and can't wait to see you again." Cameron laughed out loud.

"Oh you boys."

"Hey, men Allie, we're manly men."

"Yeah well manly man, you have some mustard on your face. Let me get that."

She reached out with her napkin and wiped it off and as she was pulling her hand away, Brian took it in his own and looked into her eyes.

"Come here." He leaned in for a kiss. When they pulled away he asked, "So want to play some pool? We have some time."

"Oh, sure." She grabbed her glass to finish off her water and didn't notice that Brian nodded to the barkeep. They stood up and Brian took her hand and led her over to the vacant pool table. He let go of her hand and got sticks for the both of them. As he handed one to Cameron he said, "You can break."

"Okay." She positioned herself and then pulled back the stick and hit the cue ball. To her surprise, it shattered.

"What the…"

"Wow, Allie, when you break you break."

"Oh haha" she said dryly before adding, "I've never seen that happen before. I have no idea how that could happen."

"Yeah, it is strange." Brian said with a small smile on his lips.

"Well, I might as well clean it up." Cameron reached out and started to clean up the mess. She stopped short when she saw something shining in the middle of the broken pieces.

"What is that?" Cameron said brushing some of the pieces away. She then looked up in surprise at Brian. He chuckled and reached out and picked the item out of the pieces and then turning to her, held out the diamond ring.

"Allison, you put a sparkle in my eyes that shines brighter then the one in this ring. These past six months have been the best ones of my life. I was hoping that you would do me the honor of being my wife." Cameron stood in silence just staring at him for a moment before a smiled spread across her face. She then threw her arms around his neck and said "Yes!" Brian laughed again in joy and wrapped his arms around her waist and they shared a deep long kiss before he let her go and put the ring on her finger. She stood looking at it with a smile on her face.

"It's beautiful."

"It doesn't hold a candle to you Sweets."

"You know just the right things to say!"

"I mean it all. So want to get out of here?"

"Most definitely."

Brian went to take care of the lunch bill and to thank Anthony, the barkeep for his help with the pool proposal. They then went back to her place and spent the next hour celebrating.

--

It was five and Cameron opened the door and let her two best friends in. They couldn't help but notice that she was glowing.

"What's with you?" Jenn asked.

"Just happy."

"Yeah, but you're positively glowing. We've seen you happy like this but not since you married David." They saw the look in her eyes and both women said, "Oh my god. Are you two..?" Cameron shook her head yes and then they all squealed and hugged each other. when they pulled away they heard Gary say in a stage whisper from the living room,
"Well Brian, I guess she told them." They all started to laugh and walked into the living room. Jenn and Vonny took turns congratulating Brian and hugging him. The women then went to the kitchen to get all of the food ready. By the time that the clock struck six, the food was out and the first guests were at the door. Cameron told her brother to just leave the door open and that she'd close it once everyone was there. Cameron made her rounds greeting everyone and meeting the guests that Von, Gary and Brian had invited. She was talking to one of Vonny's co-workers when she noticed Chase walk in. He looked through the crowd and finally spotted her. He not only had a present with him but one of the new interns that Cameron had seen around the hospital the past couple weeks. Cameron smiled at Chase and excused herself from the conversation she was having. She walked up to Chase and his date and greeted them.

"Hi Robert. Nice of you to come."

"I wouldn't have missed it. Allison, this is Rachel."

"Hi Rachel, nice to meet you." They shook hands and then Chase held out the gift.

"This is for you."

"Oh thank you. I have one for you under the tree. You can get it anytime."

"Thanks."

"Well, food and drinks are over there. Help yourselves. I have to go and do the hostess thing. I'll talk with you both some more soon." They nodded and made their way to get a drink. Cameron smiled and then turned when she heard a voice behind her.

"Hi Cam. Looks like you've got quite a party here."

"Oh hi Foreman. Nice of you to make it."

"Thank you. Merry Christmas." He held out a small package to her.

"Oh, thank you. I have a gift for you. It's under the tree."

"Thanks. I'll get it later. Now tell me, what's this glow you have about you?" Cameron smiled bigger and then held up her hand. Foreman saw the ring and raised an eyebrow.

"Oh wow, Cameron. Congrats."

"Thank you." They chatted a few more minutes before Foreman excused himself to get a drink. Cameron mingled amongst the guests some more and caught Brian's eye. They smiled and he held his glass up to her. She smiled back and started to make her way to him when movement at the door caught her eye. She looked over and saw Wilson and House standing there, looking around. Wilson smiled at her and House just kept looking off to the side. She waved back and approached them.

"Hi Wilson, House. Thank you for coming."

"Thank you for the invite." Wilson said, handing her a tin. "These are some cookies that I made for you."

"Oh thank you."

"Here" House said in a monotone, handing her a bottle of scotch.

"Ummm. Thanks House."

"Cameron you look great by the way." Wilson said looking at her dress. She was wearing a dark red, off the shoulder, short cocktail dress. She had matching stilettos that had ribbons that wove around her calves. She also had her hair up in a French twist.

"Oh thank you. You look great too."

"Well, while you ladies discuss clothes, I'm getting a drink." House said before limping off. Wilson and Cameron rolled their eyes and watched him go. Then Wilson said, "You do look radiant."

"Thank you. Well, I better go and see if there needs to be a refill on anything. I'll talk you again soon." Wilson nodded and then made his way in to talk to some of the other guests. Cameron then shut the door, figuring that it was 6:45 and everyone was there. She brought the tin of cookies and the scotch to the refreshment tables. House was putting food on his plate and looked at her as she grabbed on of the platters that was almost empty. He jerked back when he looked at her left hand. He stared at her for a moment and his face set into a hard look. Cameron didn't notice because Brian had walked up beside her. He kissed her neck and she turned and smiled at him.

"Here let me help with that."

"Thank you." House saw the sparkle in her eyes and looked at the ring on her left finger. He watched as Brian and Cameron walked off into the kitchen. He stood for a moment before dropping his plate onto the table and limping toward the door. Gary saw him and called out, "Hey Greg, where you going?" as he approached him.

"I just remembered that I hired a hooker for tonight. Better get back to me place."

"Oh come on. Stay. We can play cards with some of the guys and make it interesting."

House's jaw was set as he looked toward the kitchen. Then he shrugged and said, "Whatever. Might as well make some money tonight." Gary then led him over to some of the guys and they all started to discuss gambling. House didn't talk much but watched at Brian and Cameron came out of the kitchen and brought more food to the table. As they walked hand in hand to where some of the guests were talking by the tree, he saw them stand under some mistletoe. One of the women in the group pointed to it and said something. Cameron laughed and then kissed Brian. House looked away and excused himself from the guys. He walked over to the bar that was set up and got a scotch. He drank that down before getting another and returning back to where Gary was. They then set up a small game of cards.

The night progressed and everyone was having a great time. There was music and dancing. Cameron even set up karaoke at one point and had some holiday themed games. As ten o'clock rolled around everyone started to leave. The staff of PPTH and Cameron's brother, two friends and Brian remained. They chatted for a little bit and then Cameron went to the tree. She grabbed the gifts that she had for her co-workers and turned to hand them out to find House standing behind her. She looked at him in surprise. Before she could say anything, her brother spoke up.

"Hey, you two are under the mistletoe. Way to go House!" Everyone laughed lightly and Cameron blushed. Jenn spoke up then. "Come on you two. It's tradition. Pucker up." Cameron just stared at House and he looked right back at her. He shrugged and said, "Chicken?" She rolled her eyes at him and then he bent down and they kissed a soft kiss. As he was pulling back he whispered in her ear, "Not as dramatic as the last kiss, but still nice." Cameron blushed and then turned abruptly away. She handed out the gifts and said good night to her co-workers. She and her friends, brother and Brian then all set to cleaning up the debris from the party. They all worked together and finished within a half hour. As Cameron stood at the door saying good bye to her friends, Jenn and Vonny told her again congratulations. Jenn then looked back into the apartment, making sure that Brian and Gary weren't in hearing distance. She saw them sitting on the couch watching TV.

"Cameron, I know you don't want to hear this but I think that you should know. Von and I noticed that House was watching you a lot tonight. And we both agree that he seemed to have made sure that you were both under the mistletoe. We thought that you should know so that you can be careful."

"Oh, I don't think that he did that on purpous. It was just a coincidence. He's never felt anything for me other than in a boss and employee way. Anyway, I have Brian." Cameron sounded convincing to her friends but deep down she did wonder about how House had acted that night and what he had whispered to her. She shook the thoughts away and hugged her friend's good bye, saying that she'd see them tomorrow. She then turned and went to sit next to Brian in the living room. White Christmas was on and they watched that before heading off to bed. Cameron and Brian settled down into her bed and he leaned over to kiss her.

"I think the party was good. That boss of yours isn't that bad by the way. I thought so at first but when we were all playing cards and those games you set up, he was pretty good. I may not want to be his best friend, but I'd take him as a poker buddy. It's a good thing that I had already gotten that ring for you or I might not have been able to after tonight. He's a bit ruthless when he gambles."

"Mmmmhmm."

"Well enough of him. You have fun?"

"Yeah, it was a great night."

"You seem a little preoccupied."

"Just thinking about you. And how much I love you."

"I love you too Allison."

"And I was thinking how much I want to ravish you right now."

"Hey, you're pretty ravishing yourself." Brian said pulling her to him and kissing her.