A/N: Ok here's my final chapter for this story. It took a little longer to write than I hoped but thanks to everyone who read and reviewed. Oh and since I forgot the disclaimer in the beginning here it is: I don't own House or any of the characters. Enjoy and please, please review!
Chapter 3
Stepping through the glass doors and into the crisp night air, Wilson inhaled deeply, feeling the cool air fill his lungs. Scanning the parking lot, he quickly spotted Cuddy walking towards her car and quickened his pace to catch up.
"Lisa," he called out once he was close and came to stand next to her by the door of the car.
Cuddy turned around to face him, "Hey. I saw that House managed to track you down and interrogate you," she commented jokingly.
"Yea, I was so close. Missed it by that much," he replied holding his thumb and index finger slightly apart.
"At least we were able to avoid his harassment for a week. So where to for dinner?" she asked, changing the subject.
"Well, there's this little place a couple of miles from here that shouldn't be too crowded on a Friday night. I thought we could just grab something there." he suggested, a little nervous that he chose a place Cuddy would end up hating.
"Sounds good. I'll just follow you in my car then?" Cuddy inquired, thinking it would be more efficient to each drive their respective cars then for James to have to bring her back to the hospital afterwards to retrieve hers.
"Yeah, that's fine. I'm parked a few rows down" he replied while gesturing with his left hand towards the other end of the lot. Wilson walked briskly along the rows of cars until he reached his and climbed in. After brining the engine to life, he backed out of the space and drove back in the direction of Cuddy's car. Once Lisa saw James's car pass in her rear view mirror, she pulled out and followed the oncologist to dinner.
Upon reaching their destination, they both were able to find relatively close parking spaces and met up outside the door. During his drive over to the restaurant, Wilson had contemplated how he should act with Cuddy. The two doctors had been friends for years but Wilson didn't know if he should be more forward since they'd gone out a few times already or hold back so she didn't feel pressured. Coming to a decision, Wilson bravely reached down and gently took Cuddy's hand in his own, silently praying she wouldn't jerk away or worse, slap him. Instead, to Wilson's surprise, Lisa looked up at him and smiled while gently squeezing his hand. James smiled shyly back at her as he grabbed the long brass door handle and pulled it open, stepping back to allow Lisa to pass through. He then followed her into the dimly lit restaurant where they were immediately greeted by a hostess.
"Two please," Wilson said courteously before they followed the young girl through the restaurant. The place had a cozy, relaxed atmosphere, holding roughly fifteen or so small tables, each complete with tiny lit candles as a centerpiece. Wilson was satisfied with his choice of dining locations when he noticed that the place was indeed quiet and only held a few other couples in addition to themselves. He had wanted to find somewhere with a quiet atmosphere for his date with Lisa and knew that most restaurants would be packed on a Friday night.
The couple was led to a small table for two that was also located next to a broad glass window that provided a serene view of the sidewalk and street outside. Thanking the hostess, Wilson stepped around Cuddy in order to seat her. He knew it was a little clichéd but also knew that Lisa appreciated small romantic gestures and was immediately rewarded with a small smile from his dining companion and a quiet thank you. James took his own seat just as a waiter approached their table and took down their orders for two glasses of wine.
As their waiter retreated to fill their drink orders, Wilson glanced out the window and noticed that a light snow had begun to fall. Shifting his eyes back to Lisa he heard her say, "This place is great, James."
"Well I figured you'd probably prefer some place quiet after having spent the day in a loud, busy hospital."
"It's perfect, thank you," she replied sincerely.
Their waiter soon returned with two glasses of wine and a pitcher of water to fill the empty glasses in front of them. The couple placed their order and the waiter once again left them alone. Throughout their meal, Cuddy and Wilson talked comfortably about anything and everything, though carefully avoided any topic relating to work.
Once dinner was finished, they once again headed outside where Wilson, being the gentleman that he was, walked Cuddy to her car. Oh great, he thought here comes the awkward "should I kiss her?" part. Normally, being the ladies man that he was, James had no trouble with that. This situation, however, was entirely different; this was Cuddy. He would either make the right decision or screw up completely. Once Lisa reached the door of her car, she quickly turned back around to face James. She had enjoyed their dinner immensely and didn't want their date to end so soon.
"You know I was thinking," she began impulsively, "it's early, do you maybe want to come back to my place for coffee or a drink or something?" The rational part of her brain was screaming at her for inviting him back to her house. That part, however, was quickly squashed by the half that wanted a relationship with James and was hoping that he'd say yes.
"Uh, yeah sure, that'd be great," he replied, somewhat shocked that she invited him back to her house. "I guess I'll follow you this time."
"Ok," she answered shyly. James gently squeezed her hand before releasing it and heading back to his car.
Ten minutes later, James pulled along the sidewalk and parked his car behind Lisa's before climbing out and following her up the stairs to the door of her apartment. Cuddy unlocked the door and stepped inside where she took off her jacket, placing it on one of the brass hooks on the wall.
"Just make yourself at home," she said to James as he shrugged off his own jacket and hung it next to hers. "You want a beer or a cup of coffee?"
"Coffee would be great, thanks" he replied warmly. James had decided on his drive over to stay away from the alcohol so he could think rationally. If anything was going to happen, it wasn't going to be a result of too much to drink. As Cuddy retreated into her kitchen, Wilson paced through her living room, taking notice of all the pictures and items she had in her in apartment. After a few minutes, Lisa emerged with two steaming mugs and walked over to hand him his coffee.
"Two creams and a sugar, right?"
"Yep," he replied with a smile and took a sip, "it's perfect, thanks."
James followed Lisa to her couch where they sat and talked, drinking their coffee and enjoying the others presence. Once both mugs were empty, Wilson stood up, declaring, "Well, I guess I better…"
Before Wilson could finish his sentence, Lisa stood up and blocked his path. "James," she addressed him quietly. They stood face to face and with each passing moment, the two moved closer and closer together until their faces were mere inches apart. "James," she whispered again before he placed his left hand on the side of her face and swiftly brought her lips up to meet his.
The kiss was tentative at first, but soon became more passionate as Lisa opened her mouth to allow his probing tongue entrance. James hands had found their way to her waist and he pulled her closer as her arms came to wrap around his neck and run through his thick hair. Their kisses became more and more frantic as Lisa reached to undo his tie and pull it over his head while guiding him backwards through her apartment towards her bedroom. The white t-shirt he'd been wearing soon followed his tie as he kicked the bedroom door closed. As Lisa undid the last button on his white dress shirt and pushed it off his shoulders, she felt the back of her legs collide with the edge of the bed and fell back onto it. James soon followed, climbing on top of her as her hands began to roam over his chest and back. He dipped his head to begin his assault on her neck before moving his mouth back up to capture hers in another heated kiss.
Later the next morning, James awoke to rays of sun streaming through the window and landing on his face. He slowly ran a hand over his face and blinked several times before his eyes finally adjusted to the bright light. Looking down, a small smile adorned his face when he saw Lisa's head lying on his chest and brought his hand to slowly run through her curly, black hair.
After what had happened last night, James was absolutely convinced that he wanted to pursue this relationship. Sure, he'd been married three times previously but he had never felt the way he did last night or right now for that matter. He had never felt more safe or more at home than he did at that moment, holding Lisa securely in his arms. He wasn't quite sure how she would feel looking back on the previous night, but was hoping that she wanted this relationship as much as he did.
James was broken from his thoughts when he felt movement from the warm body lying beside him. Stirring from her sleep, Lisa opened her eyes, lifting her head to look up into the deep, chocolate brown eyes of the man beside her.
"Hey," she whispered, a smile on her face.
"Hey," he replied back simply, before lowering his mouth over hers and kissing her softly.
As they broke apart, Lisa heard her stomach rumbling and glanced at the bright red numbers on clock that sat on the table beside her bed. 10:33, wow, I haven't slept this late in a long time, she thought. Not that she was complaining, spending a Saturday in bed with James Wilson was a very appealing notion; one she had no intention of passing up.
As Lisa was lost in thought, James chuckled slightly at the sound of her stomach before asking, "Hungry?"
Meeting his eyes, she replied, "Starving, but I definitely need a shower first."
"Ok," he said, rising in bed, brining Lisa with him. "You go hop in the shower and I will make breakfast."
"James, you do know this is my house right?" she inquired, wondering if he'd be able to find everything in her kitchen. Dr. Cuddy was very organized when it came to the hospital and her office but her kitchen was set up in a unique way.
"Hey, I lived with House for a few weeks remember? If I can find stuff in his house to make a decent meal with, your kitchen should be a walk in the park," he retorted in a playful tone.
"Well, I can't argue with that logic." She kissed James quickly on the lips again before climbing out of bed and heading for the bathroom.
After Lisa had entered the bathroom, James also climbed out of bed and retrieved his boxers and white t-shirt off the floor before heading out into Lisa's kitchen. Fifteen minutes later, Lisa emerged from her bedroom dressed in a tank top and flannel pajama pants, and was greeted by a savory aroma coming from the kitchen.
Padding across the hardwood floor to where James stood in front of the range, she rested her hand at the base of his neck, gently playing with the short hairs there. "Smells good," she commented as he turned his head to meet her gaze. Lisa also couldn't help but notice how cute he looked with his hair still messed up from sleeping.
"Famous James Wilson french toast. You're gona love it, I promise," he replied and planted a quick kiss on her lips before turning to finish cooking. Lisa smiled as she watched him move around her kitchen. He looked so at home and she was ecstatic at the feeling she received from just a kiss from him. Once breakfast was ready, the couple sat at the round table in Lisa's kitchen and ate in silence. Afterwards, Wilson quickly stood up and began to clear away the dishes. It was at this moment that Lisa decided to finally approach the topic of their relationship. She had to know, one way or the other, whether what happened was a one time thing, or possibly something more. "James," she began slowly, "We need to…"
But before she could finish her statement, James began to respond, "Look Lisa, I don't know about you but I don't regret what happened last night." He knew she was a little surprised that he had jumped in like that but she sat silently and waited for him to continue. He did continue but averted his gaze to floor, which was suddenly extremely interesting, as he said, "To be honest, you've been on my mind for a while now and I know my history with women isn't great but I'm willing to give this a try," he gestured between them with his hand, now moving his gaze back to meet hers. "I'm willing to give us a try, if you are."
Lisa was speechless after James's words and did the only thing she could think of to express her willingness to pursue a relationship with this man. Standing up from the chair, she crossed the kitchen floor and came to stand in front of James, a small smile playing across her face. Reaching up to wrap her arms around his neck she brought her lips up to meet his in a sweet, tender kiss that expressed her feelings better than any words ever could. Pulling back to look up into his eyes she said softly, "I'm willing to give it a try."
James's only response was to pull her back into his embrace and kiss her passionately, running his hand up and down her back while lacing the other in her soft hair. He then slowly guided her back into the bedroom and onto the bed, where the couple spent the rest of their Saturday exploring their new and promising relationship.
