A/N: Thank you for your patience!

Chapter 38

House got a new patient the week before Christmas. He wasn't thrilled by this turn of events; he had hoped to ease into the holiday season with a lighter than usual workload. Then again, perhaps having a case would make the last week go faster and have the additional bonus of getting him out of clinic duty. Issy had three weeks off at Christmas, so he decided to use some of his vacation time and enjoy his plaything while she could devote herself 24/7 to his desires. He had put in a request for two weeks off and Cuddy immediately granted it. That still left him with eighteen weeks of vacation in the bank, so he figured that he could spare two. His vision for those two weeks included lots of sex, breakfast in bed, bubble baths and any other kind of pampering that he could think of. Aside from the Christmas Day dinner, he had absolutely no plans and didn't want any either.

It took three days to solve the case. While his team was scurrying around, performing tests and checking out the patient's home, House was screwing with their minds by playing 'Secret Santa' and having only his name in the hat. They figured out his scheme within 24 hours and yet everyone except Foreman still got him a gift. He scored a new watch, a second edition Conan Doyle and a vintage LP.

House was having a hard time deciding what to get Issy. Since Wilson had put the nix on the lingerie, he had to figure out something else. It had been a long time since he had bought a present for a woman. Stacy had been good at dropping hints; Issy had not given him the slightest inkling of what she would like. He had to smile; she really had no idea how this whole boyfriend/girlfriend thing worked.

He quietly observed her as she puttered around the kitchen, in the hope that it would give him a gift idea. She liked to cook; would she appreciate a cookbook? She might, but it was too pedestrian. Issy would most likely be thrilled with just about anything that he gave her, but he also wanted it to be a gift that would impress Wilson.

What did she like to do? She drew on the sly, read tattered second-hand mysteries and listened to her favorite rock stars on her little boom box. No matter how many times he told her that she could play his stereo, she often reverted back to using her boom box, especially when she was cooking. She didn't have a lot of CD's; maybe that could be something. He knew her taste in music leaned towards what the music industry referred to as 'classic rock', although she had recently, with his guidance, developed a taste for the blues. Tomorrow, after work, he'd go shopping and figure something out.

House wondered what she was going to get him. Wilson had spilled the beans over lunch one day that she had asked him for ideas, but refused to reveal what he had told her. House cringed at the thought of Issy listening to Wilson's suggestions; he'd end up with two ties this year if she did.

HOUSE MD ++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++

Cuddy strutted into his office on Friday morning. She had one hand behind her back and a smirk on her face.

"Ready for your vacation? Got big plans?"

"Well, I've already got the twins booked for Christmas Eve, but hey, there is always room for one more. Why don't you come over around 9PM? We'll par-tay all night long."

Cuddy rolled her eyes in disgust. "Pig. I suppose your plans revolve around scotch, Vicodin, hookers and Chinese food with Wilson on Christmas Day. Well, here's a little monkey wrench in your plans."

With a flourish, she tossed a large manila envelope onto his desk.

He frowned at it: "It's addressed to you, not to me."

"Yeah, it was addressed to me, to make sure that you got it, since you frequently just toss your mail straight into the trash. Go on; open it. I want to see the look on your face."

He didn't want to give her the satisfaction, but curiosity won out. He opened the large envelope; the only contents were a smaller white envelope with his name on it. Not knowing whether to expect a bonus check or anthrax, he carefully slit that one open.

It was neither, but it was better than he could have imagined. It was two tickets to see Buddy Guy play at the Apollo Theatre in New York City on the Friday after Christmas. He had looked into that show, but the tickets had been sold out for months. These were orchestra seats, fifth row on the aisle. Who had been able to score these excellent tickets and why had they sent them to him?

He unfolded the accompanying letter. It was short and to the point, just the way he liked them.

Dear Dr. House,

I never properly thanked you for saving my life.

I remember that you have a fondness for the blues and hope that you will enjoy this show.

Merry Christmas,

Senator Gary Wright

House chuckled; what do you know? Senator Gary Wright. That case had been almost three years ago. Took the Senator a while to express his appreciation, but these tickets were worth the wait.

Cuddy interrupted his musings: "So, who are you taking to the concert? You and Wilson gonna paint the town red?"

House tisked: "Wilson? No way. His musical tastes lean towards Broadway show tunes."

He gave a faux shudder: "It's a shame that it's only two tickets. One of the twins will be disappointed. How will I decide between them?"

He tapped a finger thoughtfully against his chin: "I suppose I could make it into a contest. The one who gives me the best."

She held up her hand. "Stop right there. I don't wanna know. You figure it out yourself. Merry Christmas, House."

Cuddy turned on her heel and stalked out of his office.

He chuckled at her disgusted reaction; the hooker jokes still worked on her. It was amazing that his relationship with Issy still had not made its way around the PPTH grapevine yet. For once, Wilson was keeping his big mouth shut.

He turned his attention back to the tickets. Issy was going to love this. Under his tutelage, she had begun to enjoy some of his favorite blues artists and Buddy Guy happened to be one of her new faves. The show started at 8PM; it would be a hassle to drive in and out of the city on a Friday night, so why not just spend the night? In fact, why not make a weekend of it? He had two weeks off; why not spend part of it in the city? He turned to his computer and started searching for hotel rooms.

HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD +++ HOUSE MD ++

On the drive home, House debated whether he should tell Issy about the concert now or surprise her with it on Christmas. By the time he pulled into his usual parking spot, he had decided to tell her tonight. He had shopped this week and had gone a bit nuts in the gift-buying department. Since she had a lot to unwrap on Christmas Day, he'd spring this on her tonight.

The apartment smelled of vanilla, sugar and butter. House took a deep breath and smiled; there would be fresh-baked cookies later. He glanced at the tree and noticed that there were two wrapped gifts under it now. Three stockings hung on the mantle and House chuckled every time that he looked at the Hanukkah stocking. Wilson was going to get a kick out of that.

For the first time in years, House found himself looking forward to the holiday. He didn't even mind Issy's cheesy Christmas CD that she was singing along to while she baked; Dean Martin was currently crooning 'Let it Snow'. All the songs on this particular CD were secular, so it wasn't so bad. House put his things away, limped quietly into the kitchen and found Issy sliding a pan of circular goodies into the oven. He waited until she closed the oven door before speaking.

"Smells good in here."

Issy let out a little squeak. "Oh, I didn't hear you come in. Let me turn this off."

She started for the boom box but House grabbed her and pulled her into his arms.

"S'alright. I can handle ol' Dino singing."

He nuzzled her cheek and sang softly in her ear: "Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow."

Issy giggled: "Isn't it great? Vacation is finally here. What are you going to do with all this time off?"

He squeezed her ass with one hand, while the other tangled in her hair. "We are getting naked and staying naked until we run out of food and have to go out again. Or maybe we'll just call for delivery and toss on robes long enough to pay the guy."

"We have enough food to last us until Christmas, but you know we'll have to get dressed then, cuz Wilson is coming over."

"Bah, humbug. We'll make him a plate and set it in the hall. He'll be fine."

Issy lightly caressed his cheek. "We can get dressed for just one day. I don't want him to eat in the hall all by himself."

House grumbled: "OK, OK. Fine. We'll get dressed for Christmas, but only while Wilson's here."

Issy pouted: "Won't it be kinda chilly running around naked all week?"

House kissed her pouty lips. "I'll light a fire, plus I have other ways to keep you warm."

She gave him a sultry smile: "I know you do."

He brushed his lips against hers. Her mouth was soft and her lips parted for his tongue. The kiss was so warm and tender that House felt a stirring in his pants. He sighed into her mouth and pressed her against the length of his body. Her arms were tightly wrapped around him. She felt so good that he never wanted to let go. For a brief moment, he let himself believe that what they had was real. Then his cursed leg started to ache and he remembered why a hot young thing like her would not choose to be with a crippled old man like him without money changing hands.

He shook off those uncomfortable feelings and said: "I've got something to show you. C'mere."

House grabbed her hand and led her over to the couch. After they were seated, he said: "Close your eyes."

She quickly complied and he pulled the tickets out of his pocket.

Holding them up in front of her face, he said: "You can look now."

Her eyes popped open and she squinted at the small print on the two rectangular stubs that he held in front of her face. Suddenly her eyes grew wide and she squealed: "Buddy Guy? Buddy Guy! Oomigod! I can't believe that you got tickets to see him!"

House grinned at her enthusiasm. "And you know the best part? They were free. A former patient sent them to me to thank me for saving his life."

"Wow! That is so cool."

Her face fell a little. "So I guess, hmm, you and Wilson are gonna go see the show."

House let out a snort. "Wilson? Why would I take him? His idea of great music is Broadway show tunes. I was planning on taking this hot chick who's into the blues, that is, if she'll go with me."

Issy squealed louder than before. "Yes! Of course, I want to go. You're really gonna take me?"

Chuckling with amusement at her reaction, House said: "Yes, of course, I'm going to take my girlfriend to the concert."

"Oh, Greg. I've never been to a concert before. Oh, this is so cool. Thank you!"

She threw her arms around his neck and gave him a big hug. He chuckled and hugged her back. Issy planted a couple of enthusiastic kisses across his face. He pulled her onto his good leg and buried his face in the warmth of her neck. If going to her first concert got her this excited, wait until she saw where they would be staying. He decided to spring that surprise on her when they reached their destination.

"I got us a hotel too. Thought as long as we were going to the city, we may as well stay for a couple of days and have some fun. Anything special you want to do while we're there?"

Issy thought for a moment and then asked: "Can we go see the tree in Rockefeller Center?"

"Sure, why not? Anything else?"

She shrugged: "Anything you want to do is fine with me."

"Didn't you say that you wanted to go see the dry cleaner guy?"

Issy's mouth fell open. She couldn't believe that he remembered her saying that. "Well, yeah, but we don't have to on this trip. I can always go see him another time, you know, after I graduate from school."

"Well, we'll be there so we can go if you want. I thought we could go to FAO Schwartz and check out the new toys. And there're a couple of vintage record shops in the Village that I want to hit. You wanna go see the mummies at the Met?"

She gave him a shy smile. "Yeah, maybe."

"It will be fun. I want to take you to this French bistro that I like and we'll have dinner at Ben Benson's steak house one night."

"It all sounds so wonderful. I can't wait. When are we going to leave?"

"The concert's Friday night. We will head to the city on Thursday and stay until Sunday evening. Monday's New Year Eve and I'd prefer not to get into all the ball-dropping hoopla. Hope that's OK."

"Oh, that's fine with me. This sounds fantastic. I can't wait."

Just then the timer went off. Issy exclaimed: "Oh, that's the cookies. Let me get them out of the oven."

She planted three quick kisses on his face and then hurried to the kitchen. "Oh, hey, when did you want the 'naked weekend' to start?"

He waggled his eyebrows at her. "As soon as you get those cookies out of the oven, babe."