Chapter 10 [Later that afternoon—Pine Point Lodge

After checking in at the lodge, the couple headed down to the shore and looked across the frozen lake, scanning its surface for the ice house in question.

She looked through a pair of borrowed binoculars before spotting it. "There it is!" She handed the field glasses over to him. "Off to the left."

He looked and nodded at the structure—essentially a wooden shanty with a metal chimney on floatable wooden piles. "Cool. Just remember, this is best out of three."

"Right," she concurred reluctantly, not wanting to give up her lead from Vermont. "Meantime, I think the snowmobiles are ready. Care to take a run around the trail?"

"Yeah," he agreed, feeling eager to feel the machine and the trail underneath him again.

[That evening

After a fun ride around the lake, a race back across it and a wonderful steak dinner in the lodge's dining room, House sat in the chair by the fireplace in their bedroom, rocking slowly and relaxing in spite of himself. Sure, he was still concerned about Steve and annoyed that the Ducklings were functioning without him. Then he was still pissed about the whole Orchard Cove situation.

But he had to admit that he was still enjoying himself especially since Cuddy had opened up to him…and she was in such a sexy mood. That he definitely liked.

"What's going on?" she asked while coming out in her bathrobe.

"Just thinking about the crap and stuff," he noted while looking into the flames.

"Will you stop already?" she asked, feeling exasperated. "Can't you relax?"

He glanced at her knowingly with a big smirk. "Gotcha."

She shook her head while sitting in the chair next to him. "Have to admit that this is nice."

He snorted. "It cost enough. It should be."

"House, can it. Some things are worth it," she chided him while producing a bag of marshmallows, two large chocolate bars and a little bag of graham crackers. "Compliments of the lodge." She pulled a sheet over to the spot in front of the fireplace.

"S 'mores, huh?" He arched his eyebrow, both impressed and intrigued by her planning skills. "You have everything figured out, don't you?"

"Can't help it. It's all part of those anal administrative skills," she quipped, zinging him. She set up the pieces of a treat on a metal skewer and held it in the fire. "Make one and enjoy."

He struggled with one, trying not to squish the marshmallow too badly. After dealing with her smart aleck cracks about his 'flat' stick, he got it into the fire.

"Took you long enough," she sassed him as they sat down on the carpet and toasted their treats.

"It isn't the most inspiring thing in the world, Cuddy," he retorted nonchalantly.

"Listen to the whiner," she cracked while pulling her melted goo-treat out of the fire. "Now that's what you're supposed to get."

"Whiner? Moi? Yeah right," he countered.

"I'll remember that the next time you complain about your Clinic hours."

He watched his treat before pulling it back out. "See? So there!" He stuck his tongue out at her while waiting for the s 'more to cool.

"Very good, Greg, I wouldn't want you to burn yourself," she zinged him (yet again).

"Join me." She waved one of the skewers at him.

They ate from his skewer enjoying the warm chocolate and marshmallow on the stick's end. After working through the layers of sweetness, their lips met in a passionate kiss.

"Not bad, Greg," she (sort of) complimented while waving the second stick at him. "Want to try again?"

He agreed and they started the munch toward the center again. As with the previous one, their lips met in the middle and pulled them into so much more……

Chapter 11 [Two Days Later—Ice Shack

After all of their careful planning, the couple resumed their previous trip's rut. Every half hour, they took turns going out on their respective snowmobiles to check their traps for a raised flag. In between, they sassed each other, ate reduced fat hot dogs (at her insistence) and played cards to pass the time.

When the sun set on the first day, they were tied at two fish apiece. Each had a pike and a trout which the lodge gladly accepted for their logs.

Still for the second (and final) day on the lake, they both wanted better luck. They did twice as many runs around their traps and hoped to get something.

The fish, it seemed, were smarter than they were.

She glanced at her watch to find that it was coming up on 3:30. House isn't back yet from his run. It would be like him to get something today and leave me skunked! She frowned at the gibing she knew that she'd take in the process. Then she thought of how down they both were back in Orchard Cove and how things had turned around since. Maybe I should concede this as much as it kills me to do it. He is a lot happier and he hasn't been taking the Vicodin as much. She pulled herself up, knowing that she'd have to pull her traps in the next ten minutes so they could get back.

Walking out of the shack, she hopped on her sled and rode around the circuit. For the first four holes, she pulled up empty traps and placed them in the trailer in back of the sled.

Then she saw a raised flag at the next hole. I got one! She raced over toward that point and reeled in a big lake trout. After securing the fish and the trap, she headed for the last hole where she found another tip up and another trout for her line. "Wish I could've had luck like this earlier." She rode the sled back to the shack where House was waiting for her.

"Got another one! That's 2-1 for me, Cuddy!" he crowed.

"Think so, do you?" she asked confidently while showing her latest catches. "Correction, House, that's 3-2. I, at least, am still better than you at fishing!"

He rolled his eyes, wanting the clean sweep. "Terrific. She would have to pull up another one. Dammit!"

"Did you say something, House?" she sassed.

"Cut it out, will ya?" he retorted while dragging their supplies out of the shack. "Get the drinks already."

"Right," she agreed, feeling somewhat redeemed by this victory and how well the weekend as a whole rebounded for them.