Here it is, the final chapter of this little story. My apologies that it's taken so long to get it finished! I hope that you all enjoy it, and as always, I appreciate hearing from you about what you liked and disliked.

Chapter 3

It took another fifteen minutes for the coals to get hot enough, and during that time, Cameron prepared everything and had it ready to go as soon as House shouted through the open window.

"You bellowed?" she replied, while pushing the door open with her hip.

Her hands held one plate with neatly formed hamburgers and three hotdogs, and one with pre-split rolls. House smirked at her and reached out for the meat-filled plate.

"So I guess you weren't goofing off in there," he commented.

"No," she answered back with a matching sarcastic tone in her voice.

Neither of them thought it odd that after such a tense conversation, and weeks apart, they were back to gently sniping at one another and exchanging playful looks. Cameron had sometimes referred to their relationship as dysfunctional, but at its heart, it was apparently also exceedingly comfortable.

Cameron hoisted herself up to sit on the porch railing, with her feet swinging lightly, ankles crossed.

"If you fall off and crack your skull open, I'm not rescuing you," House deadpanned. "I'm off-duty."

"I'll keep that in mind. Would you at least call 911?"

"I could probably do that."

Her light laugh floated in the warm air and House's mouth quirked up at the corners.

"Glad I came over?" Her words were risky, and she knew it, but her expression was neutral as she concentrated on House's strong fingers and bare arms.

House deftly turned nudged one of the hotdogs nearer to the coals and breathed in the pleasant scent which was wafting from the barbeque. He might have been pretending deafness, but was actually thinking about his response. He was glad that she had come, but the question made him flash back to their first angst-ridden date, uncomfortable tie, tasteful corsage and all. They were definitely the same people, but they had moved past a lot of their self-imposed roadblocks. Being truthful about feelings was one that House hadn't quite conquered.

"You brought food. That's always welcome," he said as he flipped one of the burgers.

Cameron nodded. It was about what she had expected him to say. She hopped off the railing and moved towards the door, but House stopped her with a gruff question.

"Where d'you think you're going?"

From the look on his face, it seemed like he thought she was going to leave completely, and from the tone in his voice, it was something he didn't her to do. As always, he gave more away with a lifted eyebrow than he ever did with words.

Her voice was soft and a tender smile brushed across her lips. "Just inside to get the lettuce and tomato ready," she told him.

House made an approving sound in his throat and his mouth twitched into an expression of studied indifference.

"Ah. Right. Yeah. Do that. These will be done in a few minutes."

He saw her smile widen and was a little irritated with himself for misreading the situation, but he couldn't deny the slight feeling of relief that passed through him.

Half an hour later and the two of them were eating and chatting in the living room while watching a baseball game on television. Steve had been released from his cage and was scurrying along the back of the sofa, silently begging for bits of potato chips and morsels of bread. He was much more likely to get them from Cameron, but House gave up a surprisingly large amount as well, for a man who claimed that the rat was going to get fat from all the scraps.

It was still early when they finished, just two o'clock, and they relaxed while the sports announcers spoon-fed them the play-by-plays and a steady breeze rustled the curtains and spun around them. The game was in the sixth inning when House suddenly flipped off the television and turned towards Cameron. She was looking at him with her eyebrows furrowed together in question.

"Bored," he told her. "We both know who's going to win."

"Well, probably."

"I can think of a better way to spend the afternoon."

His playfully lecherous gaze left nothing to the imagination.

"Do you really…"

He lowered his voice and interrupted her. "Don't finish that sentence. I think I know what I'm ready for."

He then put his words into actions as he grabbed her around the shoulders, tugged her closer and kissed her. It wasn't rough or demanding, but it was very thorough and when he pulled back, Cameron wished that he hadn't.

"Bedroom?" she asked, any and all doubts erased.

With his cane, he pushed himself to his feet, but then he dropped it to the floor and pulled Cameron up. He faltered slightly when her slim form made contact with his, and her hand pressed against his waist steadied him without being obvious. Their eyes met for an intense moment before he bent his head and crushed his lips to hers again. When the kiss ended, they somehow made it to the bedroom without falling over.

For close to an hour, House had wanted to push the thin strap of Cameron's sundress down off her shoulder, and he finally got his chance. They stood facing each other in the middle of the bedroom, breath heavy from kissing, and eyes fixed on one another and his hands were already resting on her waist, so it was a small adjustment to move one to her slender shoulder and delicately brush the strap away with the rough pad of his thumb.

Cameron's eyelids fluttered and she placed her hands on his chest, short fingernails tracing the pattern on his t-shirt. She stepped closer until her chest was flush against his, and tilted her head upwards. Her hot, humid breath tickled his ear.

"I'm glad I came over," she whispered, unafraid to voice those words even if he couldn't.

He wrapped his arms around her back and hugged her tightly, one hand going up to tangle in her hair before directing her mouth back to his. He felt for the zipper at the back of her dress with his other hand, and slowly pulled it down, warm fingertips tracing over every inch of newly exposed skin. He had forgotten how soft her skin was. He had forgotten how warm it was and how sweet she smelled.

They didn't fall into bed; it was more of a carefully choreographed routine, with Cameron easing House's shirt over his head, and then House sitting on the bed to remove his pants while Cameron nudged the other strap off her shoulder and let her dress fall to the floor in a soft rustle of cotton. She then crawled onto the bed with him, and she would have spent an hour just remapping his body and teasing him, but he would have none of it. His denial had been self-imposed but that didn't make it any less real, and he didn't want to wait to have her bare breast cupped in his hand, or his fingers exploring even more sensitive spots.

With practiced ease, he released the clasp of her bra and wasted no time reclaiming old territory. She giggled when he tickled her stomach, and then raised her hips so that he could remove the last of her clothes. He was quick to strip off the rest of his own before easing himself between her legs. He supported himself mainly on well-muscled arms, but the decreased pain in his leg was noticeable, and he was grateful for it, even if it wasn't complete.

Cameron could feel the difference in how House was holding himself, and she smiled up at him and wrapped her arms around his neck, happy for him.

"Waiting for something?" she asked, cheekily.

House shook his head. "No," he replied, and it was the last intelligible word either of them spoke for quite some time.

Afterwards, sleep drifted over them, while the sun still shone on through the windows, and their bodies lay barely separated, hands loosely intertwined. It was hours before Cameron blinked into the evening light and took stock of what time it was and where she was. She turned to House and he had his eyes open, blue depths reflecting more tenderness than she could ever remember seeing there.

"Ready for fireworks?" she asked, tugging the sheet around her chest.

"I think we already had some," he quipped, and tugged the sheet back down.

"I'd almost forgotten how funny you are," she said, with a sarcastic grin on her face.

"That's why you love me," he said, without even realizing the words he'd used.

Cameron heard them though, and without missing a beat, she replied, "Partly."

House recognized, then, that they had drifted into serious territory, and he had two choices. Retreat or advance.

"I'm glad you came over," he told her.

It was more of an admission than she'd expected.

"Fireworks?" she said after a brief moment where she memorized the surprisingly caring look on his face.

"Right," he said, snapping back to himself. "Hurry up and we'll take the bike."

There was a brief rush of movement, with clothing being thrown back and forth, and a few curse words from House as his leg throbbed in pain and reminded him that still wasn't whole. Cameron called to him at that moment and tossed his pill bottle to him from the opposite side of the bed. He looked at her just for a second before popping off the cap and swallowing one down.

It wasn't long before they were seated on House's motorcycle, and speeding along the otherwise quiet streets of Princeton. It was still very hot out, but the wind rushing by cooled them despite the fact that Cameron was nestled snug against House's back. She'd forgotten how much she enjoyed that.

Traffic got worse as they approached the town fields where the fireworks were going to be set off, and the motorcycle gave them a definite advantage. They dodged in and out, between cars and pedestrians, and found a spot not far from the field. House had his cane snapped to the side of the bike. He hadn't really been out in public since his surgery. That fact hadn't occurred to him when he'd agreed to go to the fireworks display. In the hospital, he'd had drugged-up dreams of walking unassisted and waking up to find himself still disabled had brought a sense of humiliation that he hadn't had before. He'd been crippled due to someone else's decision, but he was still crippled despite his own. There was a difference. Now, standing beside his bike, with Cameron right next to him, any sense of shame or indignity was gone.

They made their way through the crowd, with House subtly poking and prodding people with his cane. There were at least a couple of advantages to having the thing, mainly that it inspired people to get out of his way. They had just arrived at what Cameron declared the 'perfect spot', when the first test rocket shot into the air with a burst of color. Cameron sat down on the soft grass and House eased himself down next to her, and a minute later, the display began in earnest.

Cameron couldn't remember the last time she'd made an effort to see a Fourth of July fireworks display. She thought it had probably been back in college. She looked over at House as a silver, sparkling chrysanthemum rocket bathed the area in a pale light. He was grinning like a twelve-year-old and seeing that made her grin as well. The sulfur from the gunpowder, the heated air, the colorful lights, and the feel of the grass beneath her palms, merged to make a beautiful summer memory in her mind. The presence of House beside her, made it perfect.

The show was half-way over, and a fantastic display of red, blue and silver rockets was just drifting away, when House leaned over to Cameron. His scruff brushed along her jaw line as his lips moved to her ear.

"Next year, I think Steve will be old enough to come," he told her.

She smiled and moved her hand until it was just brushing his on the grass.

"Definitely."