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"How do you know for sure?"

House popped up around a corner, causing Cuddy to jump. She stopped in her tracks and clutched the charts she was carrying closer to her chest. She glared at House.

"You scared me."

"Do a prenatal paternity test," House told her and walked alongside her as she headed for her office.

Cuddy glanced at him. "You've got to be kidding me."

"We can go get one done now." House had to quicken his pace to keep up with her as she tried to lose him.

"First of all, it's expensive." Cuddy pulled open the door to her outer office. "And second of all, I'm not endangering this baby-"

"You won't be endangering the baby." House opened her office door for her. "There is a noninvasive prenatal paternity test. It's new and it's not quite established yet, but it won't endanger the baby. You'd just have to give some blood and-"

"No," Cuddy finally cut him off and dropped the charts on her desk.

House didn't feel like arguing about it anymore. He'd try again later. "So, our buddy Andy thinks it's his? What would he say if I mentioned to him one particular night in your office after a certain fight where you were convinced you and Andy were over?"

Cuddy leaned against her desk, her eyes on him. "It doesn't matter if the baby is his or not. I was still doing fertility treatments, I was still doing artificial-"

"Doesn't Andy want to know if it's his?" House raised his eyebrows as he crossed to her. "Or does he just have a thing for banging pregnant chicks?"

"You should be in the Clinic," Cuddy told him, frowning at his comment.

House pointed a finger. "You're avoiding."

"And you're on probation," Cuddy returned and then narrowed her eyes. "Get in the Clinic."

"You know, Cuddy, I thought I cleared my name," House said, twirling his cane under his palm. "She would have been just as likely to have a cerebral aneurysm even without the surgery. That's what killed her. I don't know why I'm being punished when we did everything we could to save her on the table."

"You know why you're 'being punished,' House," Cuddy replied, giving him a look.

"It was a lapse of judgement." House shrugged. "Everyone does it. Even you."

"Yes," Cuddy gave a slight nod, "but we can't afford to when it comes to other people's lives."

"Our buddy Andy wants to be the father, then?" House changed topics just to mess with her and break through the tough exterior she was putting on. "What will he do when we find out it's mine?"

"House, stop it," Cuddy planted her hands on her hips. "Even if it is yours, what does that matter? You don't want a baby and you don't want to have anything to do with me, so just-"

"What are you talking about?" House's eyebrows drew together as he stared at her.

"Right," Cuddy replied in annoyance. "I forgot. You only want what you can't have. I'm only the least bit attractive when I'm seeing someone else. You don't want a baby, House, so don't pretend you do."

"Andy wants a baby though?" House asked, wanting to know the truth about what Andrew thought in the baby matter. "Even if it's not his?"

"He knew from the start that I wanted a baby," Cuddy offered as an answer.

"We should go on Maury." House again changed the subject to mess with her. "A 'who's my baby's daddy' episode. You'll look like a whore. How many sperm donors did you use?"

"One." She shot him a look as she moved around her desk.

"Wow." House widened his eyes and nodded. "That makes three possible fathers. That is pretty slutt-"

"Get in the damn Clinic, House!" Cuddy sat down in her chair and suddenly the anger vanished from her face.

House frowned, becoming concerned as Cuddy quickly became pale. "What is it?"

"I think I..." Cuddy stood back up and carefully made her way around her desk. "I need to..."

House moved into her way, placing a hand on her arm. "What happened?"

"Get in the Clinic." Cuddy looked past him.

"Cuddy." House kept his grasp on her arm.

She brought her eyes back over to him. "I sat down and I... I think I'm bleeding."

"Have you been having cramps?" House asked her, his eyebrows drawn.

"I don't..." Cuddy shook her head slightly. "I've been nauseous all day... I don't think so..."

"Sit down," House told her. "I'll get a wheelchair."

"No, House." Cuddy came back to her senses. "I can walk. I need to see my doctor."

House paused a moment. "How bad is it?"

"I don't know." Cuddy felt tears burning her eyes. "I need to go to a bathroom."

"Okay." House kept his hand on her arm and began towards the door. "Don't panic. If you're not having cramps, that's a good sign."

"I don't want to lose this baby," Cuddy said quietly, more of a prayer than a statement.

"You won't," House assured her. "We'll go to the locker room. Come on."

House led the way, making sure everyone got out of his way. Cuddy followed after him, head down and hands clasped together to keep them from shaking. House stopped in front of a single use handicapped bathroom.

"This is closer." He nodded toward the bathroom.

"It's handicapped," Cuddy replied.

House frowned. "Who cares? You're the Dean of Medicine."

House gave her a gentle shove inside and closed the door. He leaned against the wall and waited. It was several minutes before the toilet flushed, which left a sinking feeling in House's stomach. The sink turned off and a moment later, Cuddy opened the door and stepped out.

"Well?" House took a step away from the wall.

"There wasn't much bleeding," Cuddy told him. "It was just a small gush. Stained my underwear."

"You want to get looked at?" House looked in the direction of the emergency room.

Cuddy shook her head. "I'm going to call my doctor first."

"All right," House began back towards Cuddy's office.

"And you need to stay in the Clinic," Cuddy said as she walked alongside of him.

"I should keep you company." He gave her a side glance.

"I'm calling Andrew after I call the doctor," Cuddy replied. "He'll come in."

"Right." House's sarcasm shone through. "I forgot it was his baby."

Cuddy sighed. "House, don't-"

"I'll see you later."

House moved around the nurse's station and toward the stack of charts for patients needed to be seen. Cuddy kept her eyes on him a moment before turning and heading for her office.

House didn't bother knocking as he shoved Wilson's office door open. It swung quickly and thudded against the wall. Wilson looked up at him and frowned.

"Thanks."

House stepped into the office. "Where's Cuddy?"

"She went home early," Wilson answered and then caught the nearly hidden look of concern on House's face. "She's okay. She told me about the bleeding. They checked her out, the baby's heartbeat was there. Everything is fine."

"TMI, Wilson." House frowned, making sure all signs of concern were gone. "I didn't ask you for a novella."

"Sorry," Wilson replied sarcastically. "I thought you were worried or something."

"About Cuddy?" House raised his eyebrows. "Please."

"She say it's your kid?" Wilson asked, his curiosity getting the best of him.

"Yep," House answered curtly.

"Really?" Wilson's eyes widened. "House, that's-"

"She didn't," House stopped him short. "She told me it's not mine. I don't believe her, though."

Wilson shrugged, slightly annoyed that House had played him. "Maybe it's not yours."

House stepped further into the room. "Then, why did she hide it?"

Wilson sat back in his chair. "In case she misc-"

"Yeah." House gave a nod of agreement. "And that's a logical reason."

"But, you think there's more?" Wilson raised an eyebrow.

"I think she thinks it's mine," House told him.

Wilson let the chair fall back to its rightful position. "When will you find out?"

"Not until after the baby's born, I guess," House answered. "Maybe she'll just miscarry."

"House!" Wilson exclaimed, not believing the words from his friend's mouth.

"What?" House frowned. "She doesn't want to have my baby."

"But, you do," Wilson accused.

"Want to have her baby?" House acted confused.

"Want her to have your baby," Wilson clarified, ignoring the new game House was playing.

House held back an uncomfortable laugh and shook his head. It took him a moment before he was able to speak. "No. Why? Do you want her to have yours?"

"I'm her sperm donor," Wilson said, a seriousness in his tone.

A look of horror crossed over House's face, but it didn't last very long as Wilson suddenly burst into laughter. House frowned and glared at him. He raised a pointed finger at a still laughing Wilson.

"That wasn't funny," House told him. "Payback's a bitch, Wilson. Just remember that."

House turned and hurried out of Wilson's office, slamming the door for dramatic effect. He smirked slightly as he heard Wilson still laughing from behind the door. House headed for his own office, glad for the little bit of humor to take the pressure off his current situation.

"That was a little baby scare, wasn't it?"

Andrew stopped in his tracks, his briefcase hitting his leg and a slight frown crossing over his face. He eyed House up suspiciously and began to walk towards him, passing the room on the right he had been planning on entering.

"Greg," Andrew awkwardly greeted. "What are you doing here?"

"Came to see you," House answered. "Man to man."

Andrew looked around suspiciously, but then brought his eyes back to House. "All right. But, I have to be in the courtroom in five minutes." Andrew paused a moment. "Did you come here about Lisa? She's doing well. A little worried, but the doctor said that'll only put more stress on the baby that way. She said she should stay off her feet for a couple of days and monitor the bleeding."

"Sometimes bleeding happens during pregnancy," House said, accompanying it with a shrug. "It's probably nothing."

Andrew nodded and gave a roll of his eyes. "Try telling her that."

"Okay." House turned quickly and began to head toward the two large wooden doors he had entered through.

"Wait." Andrew held out a hand, stopping him. "Did you want to talk about anything specific?"

"Actually..." House turned back to Andrew. "I was wondering... since Lisa is such a good friend of mine and I wouldn't want her to raise this baby all alone, are you planning on stepping up to the plate?"

"Yeah, Lisa and I talked about it." Andrew gave a nod.

"Even if that baby isn't yours?" House asked.

Andrew frowned. "What do you mean?"

"Because of the sperm donor," House clarified.

"Oh, right." Andrew nodded again. "Yeah. I mean, we'll see what happens. She's only going on her eleventh week. It's still pretty early."

"And you'd be comfortable raising a baby that isn't yours?" House raised his eyebrows. "Pretending you're the father?"

"Well, I was considering adoption and the same principle applies there," Andrew told him.

"And if you and Lisa break up?" House pressed on with his questions. "If it's a sperm donor baby, technically you'll have no ties to Lisa or that baby."

"But, maybe the baby is mine." Andrew gave a shrug. "And maybe Lisa and I will stay together."

House leaned in closer to Andrew, eyeing him up. "A bond of holy matrimony?"

"Maybe," Andrew answered quickly. "Listen, Greg, I have to go. If you still want to talk, you can stop by my office at eleven. I'm taking a half day, but I should have a bit of time before I go."

"Sure." House nodded.

Andrew gave him a small smile and disappeared inside the courtroom. House frowned and rolled his eyes. He wasn't going to Andrew's office later. However, he hoped it would make Andrew wait a little longer because right now, he was going to Cuddy's.

"Had a chat with your BF," House greeted as he stood on her front porch.

"Could you go away?" Cuddy asked him, her hand clutching onto the doorknob, preparing to close the door.

"You shouldn't be on your feet," House told her.

Cuddy glared. "Your incessant bell ringing drove me to it."

"Come on." House gave her a short nod and pushed his way inside her home.

House shut the door behind himself as Cuddy, in her long pajama bottoms and tee shirt, took a step back, shivering slightly from the fall breeze. Taking her by the elbow, House led her into the living room where the television was on.

"You said you talked with Andrew?" Cuddy asked him as she returned to the mess of blankets and pillows on the couch. "Are you trying to drive me crazy, House?"

"You're already there, Cuddy," House replied and seated himself in her armchair.

"And you're here today and not at work because...?" Cuddy trailed off and placed the television on mute with the remote control.

"You're not at work either," House pointed out.

"I'm suppose to stay off my feet," Cuddy replied, a trace of bitterness in her voice.

"Me, too." House twirled his cane between his fingers for a few moments before looking up at Cuddy, who had been waiting for him to say something more. "Has the bleeding stopped?"

Cuddy shrugged. "There's a bit of spotting. Dr. Harber said everything looks fine, but she wanted me to take it easy since I've had miscarriages before. Stress," she meant him, "doesn't help."

"Stress?" House repeated. "I just came to chat. Did you know our buddy Andy heroically stated he would raise whatever pops out of your uterus even if it has no relation to him?"

Cuddy stared at him. "And?"

"And that's strange," House concluded. "No guy volunteers to raise a baby that's not his. Usually they try to pin it on someone else."

Cuddy frowned at him. "That's just you." She sucked in a breath. "Andrew and I are both older, we both want kids. We may not want to get married right now, we may not be in love with each other, but we care about each other and we're both willing to raise this child together."

"Even if it's not his?" House raised his eyebrows doubtfully. "Andy wants to raise someone else's baby? That makes no sense. Even for our buddy Andy."

"Some people actually want children, House." Cuddy avoided directly answering his questions. "And the relationship I have with Andrew is working out well for the both of us. We enjoy spending time together and if marriage seems right, then that's the next step we'll take."

"So..." House had his eyes on the floor for a moment before raising them and locking them with Cuddy's. "You want to marry him?"

"Maybe," Cuddy answered simply, trying not to give too much of herself away.

"You hardly know him." House stood to his feet and moved toward the couch. "Seven months, Cuddy? And that mini break up about, oh, I don't know, almost eleven weeks ago?"

Cuddy shot him a look, but it quickly dissolved. "I've feel like I've known him for years. We've become very close even if it has been only seven months."

House shook his head and began to walk away from her. "This baby is messing with your head."

"Why do you care, House?" Cuddy demanded. "Why do you care about Andrew and the fact that he wants to raise a baby that may not be his?"

House quickly faced her. "Because it could be mine."

"Yeah, but Andrew would be a hell of a better father than you," the words shot from Cuddy's mouth before she could even think about holding them back.

House held her gaze and Cuddy held his, even though her face was becoming quickly flushed. A slight nod started and House's mouth formed into a small smirk.

"You're right," he said, but Cuddy couldn't find words to respond. Or apologize. House cleared his throat and went on, "So, if it is mine, you'll just tell him it was the donor's? After all, you didn't tell him about our one night."

"I," Cuddy brought herself back into the conversation, "don't know. And about that night, I'm trying to forget it. I don't need him trying to forget it, too."

"Better he's left in the dark?" House raised an eyebrow. "Better to have a relationship built on lies?"

Cuddy frowned. "It's not built on lies-"

"It will be if that baby is mine," House cut her off sharply.

"Stop saying that," Cuddy's voice rose in volume.

House didn't let up. "And what happens if I want to be the father if the baby is mine?"

"Yeah right, House." Cuddy narrowed her eyes at him. "I see how it works. If the baby is yours, you want dibs just because Andrew already said he'll raise a baby no matter who the father is. But, if the baby isn't yours, that'll be even better because you can brag about how that baby had a chance of being yours, and you'll tell everyone about our arrangement and the 'if only's' that go along with it."

"You have me pegged, Cuddy," House said, tired and annoyed.

"Please, go to work." Cuddy was just as tired as he. "Or home. I don't care, just get out of my living room."

"I have a right to know if that baby is mine." It was his last resort, especially since he knew he had to get out of there soon. "I have a right to know if I have a kid that's living in this world."

Cuddy raised her eyebrows at him. "Then, you better make phone calls to all the other women you've been with because, hell, if they had your baby, they probably wouldn't have told you."

"Hilarious, Cuddy." House shook his head. "Forget it."

House turned away from her and headed for the doorway, which caused Cuddy to frown.

"Are you serious, House?" Cuddy kept her eyes on him, trying to determine the answer for herself.

"No."

House's tone indicated otherwise, but he didn't bother stopping, and crossed through the doorway. Cuddy stood to her feet and hurried after him.

"House."

Her voice made him stop at her front door. He faced her.

"Get back on the couch," House commanded.

"No," Cuddy replied. "Tell me the truth. Were you being serious? Do you really care if this baby is yours?"

"Of course not," House told her. "I just want to make sure the kid doesn't have a relationship with any of my other bastard children. Now, get off your feet."

House let himself out, leaving a frowning Cuddy standing in the hallway. She let out a slight sigh and made her way back into the living room.