Dinner was a quiet and surprisingly relaxing affair despite their smart dress. Wine was drunk, pasta eaten and ice cream shared. Gentle smiles and flirtatious glances permeated the chatter.

They moved to the couch afterwards and let dinner settle. The lights of the room were shut off the only light was that of the glowing candles around the room. Soft lilting tones of Norah Jones filtered around them. They sat together, House in the corner stretched out with his ankles resting on a pillow on the coffee table Cameron curled against him with her feet beside her. Wine glasses in hand they sat in gentle conversation and quiet lulls where they'd bask in being with each other, indulge in the odd soft kiss and breathe in the music and sweet atmosphere.

House's free hand found its way to her exposed neck and shoulder, his fingertips dancing over her skin, tracing it out slowly and deliberately. The touch made Cameron shiver wondrously against him every so often.

He knew that those shivers meant she was aroused by him. It stunned him how much a simple innocent touch could turn her on, not only that was his reactions to her shivers and the feel of her silky skin on his fingers. He was half-cocked already, which was some feat given the half bottle of wine he'd consumed thus far.

Cameron was in heaven, her head resting on House's shoulder and his hand doing something amazing to her skin as they spoke of nothing of importance and silences that were anything but uncomfortable.

"I don't know about you but this wine is making me kinda sleepy." House announced.

"Oh." She replied slightly disappointed. "Oh okay." She said not moving from him.

"Allie that was my attempt at subtlety, now if you need me to say lets go down the hall strip and get our freak on I can do that instead." He said with a grin, his fingers still playing havoc with her senses.

"Oh." She said in almost the same tone.

"Allie what's wrong?"

"I… I just… I've wanted you for so long." She said slightly sadly her hand lying on his broken thigh.

"Trust me, Maximus and I will live up to your expectations." He said grinning and kissing her temple gently.

"That's not the problem… I'm worried that I… that I won't…"

"Won't what?" he said with a frown.

She shivered and moaned gently as his fingers found a particularly sensitive spot. "That I won't please you." She mumbled, her cheeks flushing with both embarrassment and arousal.

"I've never gotten an erection just from touching someone's neck before. I'm one lick away from blowing my wad here. So believe me when I say you do more than please me just by being here in my arms." He said seriously. "I love you. Allison Cameron I love you so god damned much. You're stunning, sexy, intelligent and utterly amazing. I'm still in shock that you even want to be with me. So don't ever, EVER think that you don't please me. If truth be told I've been thinking of you to please myself for a while now." He said with a grin on his lips.

"See!" she said jumping up from him, setting her wine down quickly. House did the same, setting his glass down on the side table. "You've thought about it too! You know what you want from me, want me to do and I don't know if I can do it or even know what it is!"

House moved his feet so she could pace happily.

"Jez Allie what do you think of me? Like I'm some sort of sex maniac?" He asked.

She glanced at him but continued pacing. "Well you're older than me… and you're a man."

"Five." He said soundly.

"What?"

"Five. I've slept with five women okay?" he said honestly.

She stopped in front of him. "Really?"

"Yup. I was a jock in school… but a geeky jock with this personality without a disability for chicks to coo over or a bike to take them for a good ride. I didn't fit in anyone's pigeon hole or definition of boyfriend material. I kept myself to me and my friends. I was a virgin until I was 21." He said nonchalantly.

"Oh." She said in something close to that disappointed tone he'd heard before.

"Oh?"

"Yeah."

House cleared his throat gently snapping her back to reality. "So, what about you?

"Um… well… six."

He smirked gently. "You minx."

She laughed slightly nervously.

House sat up and rested his hands on her hips drawing her slowly over his lap, her dress sliding up slightly. "Do you want to know what I want? What I really want."

"What?" She murmured her arms sliding around him.

"I want a lover." He kissed her lips softly. "A partner. An equal. Someone to love one day and fuck the next. I want everything and anything as long as it's with you." His eyes blazed a passionate fire as the locked with hers.

She smiled with her eyes almost tearing with happiness. "I love you."

"I love you too." He replied and kissed her gently. "So… I try this again. I don't know about you but that wine made me tired." He said with a smirk.

She laughed gently and hugged him tightly, her body sinking deeper against him feeling his erection.

"Me too. I think we should go to bed."

He grinned. "Fantastic idea."