Chapter 23. We've Got Tonight

House and Cameron remained in Room 8 a while longer, but soon another urge spurred House to push himself up. "I have it on good authority that there's a dish of chicken and dumplings waiting for you back in Room 12."

Cameron grinned. "I can take a hint. Never let me get between you and food!" she said.

They were both laughing as they left the room.

"We should probably stop and get blood samples from Kelly, Vivian and Harry," Cameron said, stopping in front of Room 9.

"I suppose," House said. He followed her into the room and quickly collected a sample from Kelly without exchanging too many words with her and her husband. They noticed that Linda had already visited them with dinner.

Seeing and smelling what was left in their Styrofoam containers pushed House to move rapidly to the next room for samples from Vivian and Harry before he returned to Room 12 for his own food. Cameron tagged along, still basking in the afterglow.

Linda looked up as they entered. "It's still hot," she said, indicating two white boxes exuding delicious aromas. "A portion of each for each of you."

"Thanks, Linda!" Cameron said, removing the slicker and settling in a chair at the table with her food.

House did the same and soon their mouths were too busy for them to speak.

Linda held off on the question she was dying to ask until they'd practically scraped the bottom of their containers. "So where'd you two get off to?" she finally asked. "You weren't with any of the patients when I brought them their meals."

House and Cameron exchanged a look that probably didn't fool anyone, and he said, "Oh, we had some things to talk over."

"Sure you did!" a skeptical Pete said. "See, I told you, Linnie."

"What did he tell you?" House asked Linda. He knew Cameron's cheeks had reddened without looking at her. She'd gone off to culture the samples so no one could see her face.

"That you two were makin' whoopee," Pete answered for Linda. He was chuckling, pleased with his own deductive powers.

"Don't mind Pete," Linda said. "And it's none of our business what the two of you were doin'."

"You really think an old guy like me could score with a hot young chick like Cameron?" House asked.

"You're not so old," Pete said. "Not as old as me," he added, still chuckling.

House knew Cameron was uncomfortable with the discussion, so he changed the subject. "We need to culture the rest of the samples, and then, I think, we're done for the night."

"You spendin' the night here?" Pete asked House.

"Where else would I spend it?" he asked, but regretted it immediately.

"Oh, I don't know," Pete said, implying that he had a good idea. "Seems there must be some empty rooms..."

"Pete!" House and Linda said simultaneously.

Cameron just pressed her lips together.

"Now, Pete," Linda said. "You shouldn't be sayin' such things! You're embarrassin' Doc Cameron!"

"Sorry, Doc," Pete said apologetically. "I was just funnin'."

"I...I'd better get back to Evelyn," Cameron said, anxious to make an escape.

"Yeah, that reminds me," Linda said. "How'd Harry end up in her room? Last I heard he'd given up chasin' her the last time she snubbed him."

House was happy the conversation had switched to someone else. "Seems that she finally caught him," he said with a laugh.

"No, he was chasin' her," Linda repeated.

"Yeah. It's a classic. A man chases a woman until she catches him," he explained.

"Weren't there a song like that once?" Pete asked.

Neither of the women had heard of it, but House confirmed that there was. "At least one." He turned to Cameron. "You going to send Harry back to 8?"

She wasn't sure what to say. Yes, it was what she intended to do, but she also would have liked to spend more time there with House first. "I guess so."

House seemed to be deep in thought. "Maybe I'd better go back with you, get him settled."

"If he'll leave Vivian now that she caught him," Linda said.

"I guess that's for them to decide," House said. He turned to Cameron. "Ready?"

She stared at him, uncertain about what he intended. Did he really mean to leave her with Vivian for the night and come back to this room with Pete? I guess I'll find out soon, she thought.

They walked along the building once more, but when they reached the door to Room 10, House turned to her and asked, "Now what?"

"I was wondering the same thing," she said, then took one more chance. "There's still over twelve hours until you'll be leaving, right? Riding off into the sunset, to the great unknown."

"Actually I was planning on driving south, not west," he corrected. He studied her face in the twilight. The rain had slackened considerably and the sky wasn't as gray as before. "It's strange. There've been times in the past when I thought there was a connection between us." He hesitated, then went on. "I always thought it was an illusion or maybe wishful thinking. The past couple of days proved it wasn't."

"It's there. It always has been," she said. "I...look, I understand why you have to leave. There's something else you need, something besides me."

He looked down. She was right, of course.

"House, thank you," she said.

"I didn't do anything," he protested.

"You figured out what was wrong with these patients, helped me treat them." She took a deep breath and as she let it out, she said, "You fulfilled all of my most erotic fantasies."

He tried to laugh. "Then you must not have the kind of fantasies I do."

Cameron smirked. "You keep telling me I'm half your age. Maybe when I've reached your advanced years I will. But I've fantasized about being with you for so long! And now..." She took a deep breath. "I'm sure you've never thought about me that way."

"You'd be surprised," he replied, thinking especially about where his mind had gone when he was shot. But she was right. Even then, in his delusions, he never touched her himself. He'd manipulated a robot to do that. What stopped me? he wondered now. His fingers brushed her cheek like the robot's had. What stopped me?