new chapter, where it's about finding what to expect from House when he's in a sensual, playful mood...

** CHAPTER 38 **

["Stop protesting!" He ordered "My game. My rules. And you better be hungry…"]

Cuddy gasped in surprise but deep inside, she felt undeniably aroused by the commanding tone of his voice. She tilted her head back, looking up at him with yearning eyes and House sustained her gaze, enjoying her sensual lure for a fleeting while. But he still let go of her and decidedly walked toward the kitchen.

Before entering the room, he turned around and looked at her. She had not moved a bit and he motioned her to follow him with his chin, a teasing smile drawing on the corner of his mouth. She waited a few seconds before following after him. As soon as she stepped into the kitchen, he came close to her and grabbed her by the waist, leaning down to kiss her. She threw her arms around his neck and gave herself to him without resistance. His hands were holding her firmly against him. Her body was so frail and petite, wrapped inside his arms, that it gave him the delightful sensation of possessing her completely.

He pressed her tightly against him and, while they were kissing and tasting each other's tongue ravenously, he pushed her against the counter. When the small of her back hit the edge, he promptly seized her by the waist and without parting from their kiss he lifted her off the floor and made her sit down on the counter. She instantly tried to enfold him with her legs, but he stopped her, gently pressing on her thighs to immobilize her. He sensed her immediate frustration by the way she started fidgeting on the counter, trying to regain control over him but he didn't let her.

"I think you're horny enough to start the game now," he said teasingly, seizing her arms and disentangling them from his neck.

Then, he bent over and grabbed a napkin on the counter behind her.

"Cover your eyes with this," he directed. "Rule number one: You can't see anything unless I tell you that you can."

Cuddy let out a quiet laugh and shook her head 'no'.

"You're kidding me, right?" she chortled, but something in the way she immediately squinted quizzically at him betrayed how he'd definitely aroused her curiosity, nonetheless.

"No," he replied, smiling. "You want to undress me? I'm giving you the rule to get what you want… but in a spicy way."

"Which is?"

House put his hands on the counter on either side of her thighs and leaned forward, stopping just an inch away from her face.

"Why do you always need to know everything?" he scolded, blowing warm puffs of air on her skin.

She jutted her chin up and locked eyes with him.

"Because I can't trust you," she answered boldly.

He smiled, turned on by the challenging tone of her voice.

"Neither can I," he grunted, narrowing his eyes.

She moistened her lips and opened her mouth suggestively. He came even closer and slowly sucked her bottom lip. She let him nibble her skin and, suddenly, she bit him and up the ante, thirstily kissing him, claiming his mouth and tongue with feverish passion. Still, she endeavored to keep her hands along her thighs, firmly gripping the edge of the counter to prevent her from touching him.

House's hands were placed flat on the kitchen counter as well and he couldn't – and didn't want to - touch her either so the only physical contact they had was through the kiss they were sharing. But they were devouring each other's face, their tongues fighting to thrust deeper in each other's mouth and, given the stubborn might they were both already putting in that kiss, struggling not to use their hands, it was quite obvious that the game had already started. Unexpectedly, House broke away from their kiss, straightened up and grabbed the napkin, handing it over to her again.

"Put it on," he instructed again with a gruff voice.

Cuddy's breathing was heavy, and she stared at him defiantly for some long seconds until the moment when, without taking her eyes off of him, she finally took the napkin.

"Good," he said as he watched her wrap the cloth tightly around her skull.

When her eyes were covered, he bent over and whispered in her ear, "Don't cheat."

She felt the tip of his finger slowly tracing a stroking line from the shell of her ear to the top of her cleavage. She shivered and tightened her grasp on the counter's edge. She stretched her neck and waited, breathless, for his next caress but his hand was gone and the next sensation she became aware of was the sound of him rummaging in the cupboards and drawers coming from her left. The napkin tied around her head prevented her from seeing anything, but she tried to decipher what he was doing as the weird, clicking sounds everywhere around her irresistibly brought her desire to an almost aching level.

Silence abruptly filled the room and suddenly all she could hear was the sound of her own breathing, short and quick, echoing in the kitchen. She pricked up her ears and after a few seconds, she recognized his limp but couldn't identify where it was coming from.

"House?" she whispered lustfully.

"I'm right here," his hoarse voice answered just in front of her.

She slightly jumped when she could feel his breath on her cheek. She couldn't see his face, but she knew he was enjoying this, and she'd have bet he was smiling.

"Ready to play?" he asked mischievously, and he gently nibbled her pulse point.

Cuddy jumped again at the sensation, and unconsciously reached out her hands to cup his face. He covered them with his palms and removed them from his cheeks, sliding them in his neck, and down, where he conspicuously rubbed them on his chest, guiding the caress down to his belly and when her hands reached his belt, he pushed them away and placed them both flat atop her lap, patting them gently.

"Rule number two: You don't touch me."

She gaped and arched her back, coming closer to the edge of the counter.

"But-" she protested, clearly frustrated and clutching her thighs with her hands, "how am I supposed to undress you?"

"And rule number three: You don't talk," he added, undeniably enjoying every second of his game. "If you talk or touch me during the game then I will be the one taking one of your clothes off. But if you keep your hands for yourself and stay put, you'll get to undress me and I'll be all yours."

"You mean, you're not all mine… yet?" she simpered, her tone deliberately arousing.

A short silent followed her question and Cuddy felt her heart sink in her chest, an irrational angst pervading her because of his sudden silence.

"House?" she called anxiously.

She started to picture all sorts of upset reactions her question might have triggered in him, panicking for no reason when, in truth, if she'd seen him and the genuine, fond smile he had on his lips she would have known for sure there was no doubt about the answer.

"I think I'll choose a shoe first," was his answer and she felt him grab her feet and slowly take one of her shoes off.

The sound of her high heel falling on the tiles sent a slight shiver down her spine and she understood in hindsight that there was no awkwardness at all in his previous silence.

"What? But you didn't say that the game had already started," she protested, feeling cheated.

She heard him chuckle and he seized her other feet. He teasingly stroked her ankle, conspicuously brushing the hem of the shoe with his fingertips and all of her muscles contracted, while she tried to contain the growing feeling of excitement that started to take control of her body. House surely noticed it because he suddenly peeled off her shoe and threw it on the floor next to the other one.

"That's not fair," she said, pouting her disapprobation but fighting the broad smile of delight that was irrepressibly forming on her lips in that instant.

"You really can't keep your mouth shut, can you?" he whispered in her ear, titillating her earlobe with the tip of his tongue.

She let out a yearning moan and her hands jerked up instinctively on her thighs, but she clenched her fists and put them back on her lap.

"And moans count too!" he mocked playfully. "But I'm nice so I'm willing to throw this one in for free!"

Despite wearing a blindfold, she closed her eyes, mentally cursing herself for giving him such obvious proof of her undeniable desire for him. She loved challenges and she particularly loved the ones she had to take up against him. But she certainly wasn't going to surrender without resistance and give him the pleasure to get an easy victory on that one. She straightened herself up and inhaled slowly, slightly raising her chin in front of her, whereat she knew he was standing.

"Are you ready now?" he asked.

She opened her mouth to answer but controlled herself just in time not to fall in his sweet trap and set her lips, nodding her approval.

"Yes," he said, gloating, "that's how proud my woman is!" And he placed his hands on her waist, making her feel his presence even more vividly within that simple, possessive touch.

She wiggled on the counter and strongly bit the inside of her cheek so that he couldn't see how much she was struggling to remain still. Because Cuddy was indeed too proud to let House win now as he surely knew he had total power over her in that very moment. She was ready to put up a good fight. She stretched her neck and waited for him to kiss her, but he let go of her waist and she sensed him slightly move away from her. She heard the sound of dishes or glasses and she quivered when he made his way back between her legs.

"Open your mouth," he instructed.

Her first reaction was to shake her head 'no' and she heard him repress a quiet laugh.

"C'mon," he insisted. "You gotta trust me."

She closed her eyes again under the cloth and smiled. She realized that no matter how long the game would last or how long she would pretend to resist, eventually, she knew she would cave and surrender to him, unconditionally.

Because now that he'd given her his key, it meant that they had made it. They really were together now. She felt deliciously ready to accept that idea. She was seated on his kitchen's counter, blindfolded, but she'd never seen so clearly before: She was all his. She opened her mouth and stretched her neck in his direction.

Just before it entered her mouth, it was its delightful, appetizing scent that first filled her nostrils. House placed it against her lips and slowly pushed it inside her mouth. She tilted her head back and planted her teeth in the sweet, juicy flesh. The taste of liquid sugar coated her tongue, and she clenched her jaw to repress the moan of pleasure that threatened to burst out from the depth of her throat. She controlled her breathing instead, inhaling and exhaling slowly.

"Like strawberries?" he asked.

She nodded and smiled, feeling proud of herself to have passed that first test brilliantly. She placed her hands flat on both sides of the counter and docilely waited for the next step. She was enjoying the game, now. She wanted to keep playing that game. She sucked in a sharp breath when she sensed the smell of another fruit and shivered in anticipation when he slowly brushed the pulp of her lips with it. She opened her mouth, but he took the fruit away just as she was about to bite in it.

"Tssk, tssk! Didn't you learn to share?" he teased her. "This one's for me."

Cuddy bit her bottom lip and it required her another moment of concentration to hold back a groan of frustration, but she did it. She clutched the edge of the counter instead, so strongly, it turned her knuckles white. She couldn't see it and, anyway, she didn't care. She loved the game now. She sat up straight, serenely. She didn't know what would come next and there was no way for her to find out: She was learning to lose herself completely. He was teaching her how to lose herself completely and give up her need to control everything, and it felt good.

She felt his hands on her face, next. He caressed her cheek gently, stroking her cheekbone with the tip of his thumb. She wanted to cradle his face inside her palms. But she kept her hands still. House was really putting her resistance to the test, but she really wanted to resist. He removed his hand and again she had to wait, suffering the delightful delay. Finally, she felt the tickling sensation of his stubble against her face. She arched her back and took a deep breath, but she kept silent. And she didn't move.

"You're brave," he murmured against her skin. "Here, taste this. Goes with the strawberries."

He parted her lips gently with one finger and she felt the taste of whipped cream on her tongue. He pushed his finger between her teeth, and she closed her mouth sucking the cream and his finger voluptuously. She heard him sigh voluptuously and he let out a throaty moan that made her feel like she somehow still had some power over him. She couldn't see him, and she couldn't touch him but she still knew how to arouse him. And nothing in the game was forbidding her to do so.

"More?" he asked.

She nodded and he fed her with another creamy finger. She sucked it and after he slid it out of her mouth, he slowly licked the corner of her lips with his tongue.

"You've got cream all over," he explained.

She puffed and smiled as he cupped her face and gently pulled her into him. She didn't let go of her grip on the counter, but she leaned to him, ready to taste his lips again. To her surprise she felt the pulp of a strawberry instead. One he was holding between his teeth to feed her. She bit in the fruit, and he did the same cutting it in half, kissing her at the same time, mixing the pulp of the fruit inside their mouths with their entangled tongues. His hands moved from her face to her neck, and he sensually stroked her skin, sliding under the hem of her shirt and enveloping her shoulders with his large hands. His soft and long hands.

It felt so good that, this time, the longing moan slipped out of her throat uncontrollably and she sighed inside his mouth, completely loosening herself in the lust of the moment, forgetting about the game's rules.

"You moaned," House noted, his lips still against her.

He seized her shirt, ready to undo the first button.

"I don't care," she said hoarsely.

"You talked," he added laughing and he started unbuttoning her shirt.

Screw the game! she thought. Right then, what she wished was that he'd just rip it off her. Because she forcefully wanted him now. She let go of the counter and wrapped her arms around his neck. Finally. The sensation was so electrifying, she moaned a second time and enclosed him inside her legs.

"Maybe I've changed my mind," she said a little short of breath, parting from their kiss. "Maybe I have a new strategy."

"Which is?"

"Hah! Who needs to know everything now?" she mocked.

She was still blindfolded but she could tell he was smiling.

"I figured," she went on, "maybe if you see me completely naked then I won't even have to ask you to get undressed."

"Hmm, cunning plan," he groaned his approval, burying his face in her neck. "I knew there was more to this zesty body than just an earthly frame designed to turn me on."

He slowly untied the napkin and she winced when the light hit her face. She narrowed her eyes to adjust to the sensation and in her blurred vision, she saw him beam in front of her. She wrapped her legs tighter around his waist and interlaced her fingers at the nape of his neck, clinging to him. He seized her ass cheeks and brought her to the edge of the counter, nestling his hips between her opened legs. She felt his erection press against her inner thigh and sighed lustfully.

"What if we continued the game in your bedroom?" she suggested, nibbling the line of his jaw.

"Yeah," he acquiesced as he gently helped her hop off of the counter, welcoming her in his arms when her feet hit the ground.

He took both her hands in his and started to walk out, tugging her with him. But she pulled on his arms and freed one of her hands, promptly turning around and grabbing the napkin on the top on the counter. She faced him again and waved the cloth mischievously in front of him.

"My turn to use this, now… because I know games, too."

She let go of his hand and walked past him with a dancing step, hurrying toward the bedroom and sensing his determined limp behind her catching up with her.

A/N

thank you so much to everyone who reads and reviews this story, and to all of you who added me in their list of favorites. And a friendly hello to everyone who comes here and reads and remains silent... I wish I knew you but as House says (quoting the famous philosopher...) "you can't always get what you want"

oh and, welcome to new readers!

be happy! ~ maya