Hey everyone!
I'm back... wow... it's been a long time! I hope you haven't completely forgotten this story... I can tell you I haven't... neither this story, nor you!
here's the new chapter, last day in Boston... where you'll catch a glimpse of House's romanticism (I hope...)
to try and make up for the long wait, this chapter is a rather long one (18 pages)
** CHAPTER 65 **
They had stepped into the shower where the hot water was flowing and caressing their bodies, the feeling incredibly relaxing for them both. The sound of the droplets hitting the ceramic tiles was delightfully soothing. Both softened by the steam that invaded the air, they were facing each other, silent and immobile, staring at each other with a mesmerized gaze.
Cuddy took a step toward him and, as she came closer, she flashed him a mischievous smile, testing his reaction. House raised his eyebrows, amused, and smiled back. His eyes still locked with hers, he grabbed the shower gel and poured some liquid soap inside his hand. She took another step and reached out her hands to touch his chest. He couldn't control the little jolt of pleasure it gave him, and he tilted his head back a little. Cuddy's smile grew wider, and she wiggled along his body, rubbing her belly suggestively against his manhood. House briefly closed his eyes, trying to control his breath, but after a few seconds, he compellingly seized her by the shoulders to make her turn around. She tried to face him again, but he firmly held her still, facing away from him, then he leaned forward and rested his chin on her shoulder.
"Don't get all excited again!" he said throatily inside her ear. "I'm just gonna wash your back."
She tilted her head to the side to meet his eyes
"You're no fun, you know."
"Stop fidgeting!"
He laid his long hands on her body, enveloping the round shape of her shoulders entirely with his palms. Slowly, he began rubbing her gently, drawing slow, languorous, lathering circles on her wet skin. He caressed her shoulder blades, the side of her arms, and slid to her lower back, following the line of her spine, lingering in the small of her back, before washing her curvy hips until he felt her completely relax under his touch.
Cuddy closed her eyes, and tilted her head back, a blissful smile drawn on her lips. He kept stroking her silky skin, leisurely, following the trajectory of his hands on her until his eyes met the perfect roundness of her ass. He cupped her cheeks in his hands and started kneading them more demandingly. Her eyes still closed, and her head resting against his collarbone, Cuddy let out a moan and House couldn't repress a chuckle. Playfully, he smacked a little spank on her butt before pushing her away from him.
"Done!" he exclaimed, holding back his laughter when he saw the look of frustration on her face, as she turned around to face him again.
Cuddy wasn't ready to admit defeat just yet. She stepped dangerously closer and smiled flirtatiously at him.
"And the front? You didn't wash me there," she said with a pout.
House's eyes widened, and he contemplated her offer for a while, peering at the appealing curves of her naked body in front of him. Yet, in spite of his undeniable desire for her in that moment, there was only so much a man with a dead muscle in his thigh could do and having sex in a standing position twice in a row, barely fifteen minutes after their previous wild liberating session against the door, was sadly not one of them.
"That's because you can perfectly do that yourself," he said, putting the shower gel in her hand, and opening the door to step out of the shower.
He grabbed a towel and covered his right thigh with it, rubbing it more energetically than he would have if it were just to dry himself. Cuddy bit her lip, and bowed her head, a look of guilt clouding her face over when she acknowledged the pain that he was undoubtedly feeling right then, knowing that she was the one responsible for it.
"House, your leg—"
Out of instinct, House silenced her with an icy stare. She gaped, feeling berated, and he felt stupid and guilty for involuntarily snapping at her, when being mean to her was the last thing that he wanted in that instant.
"Forget about my leg. I'm fine," he told her his voice softening. He wrapped the towel around his waist and flashed her a playful grin. "Don't you have some girlie ritual to do now, like scrub your curves or something? Because then, you should definitely start with that ginormous ass of yours."
Cuddy's eyes widened, and she opened her mouth to answer something, but House walked out of the bathroom before she could come up with a witty comeback.
Back in the bedroom, he picked up his boxers and jeans among the scattered clothes on the floor and put them on. He searched for his bottle of Vicodin and quickly swallowed dry one pill. He sighed with relief when he saw the snug king size bed that sat imposingly in the middle of the room, like a gripping invitation to relaxation. He limped toward the edge and literally let himself fall onto the mattress. Arms stretched to the side, he stared at the ceiling for a while. The sound of the water coming from the bathroom told him that Cuddy was still under the shower. He smiled and plunged his hand into the back pocket of his jeans to fish his cell phone out, then he dialed a number and brought the receiver up to his ear.
"Dr. Foreman, Department of Diagnostics."
"Don't write your name on the door just yet, I'm not gone for good-"
"House?"
"Aww, I'm touched you can still recognize my voice. I was worried you'd have completely erased me from your memory, like the most ungrateful of my offspring."
A short silence ensued, during which House could almost picture Foreman's upset smirk at the other end of the line.
"How are you?" Foreman asked.
"I'm fine. I took some days off- had stuff to do-"
"Wilson says you'll be back tomorrow-"
"Of course, Wilson says! And here I thought I needed to give you a call to tell you that myself… how naive of me!"
"Well, I asked him. Decisions needed to be made and-"
"So, you couldn't wait any longer to quench your thirst for power, could you? Who knows, with a little luck, I could have been dead?"
At that moment, Cuddy entered the room, wearing a bathrobe, and scraping her wet hair with a towel. Her head slightly tilted to the side, she looked at House with a fond smile.
"Is it Wils-" she started asking.
House vigorously shook his head 'no' and put his index finger on his lips to shush her. Intrigued, Cuddy walked toward the bed and sat down on the edge of the mattress.
"Apparently, Cuddy will be back tomorrow as well," Foreman said, deadpan.
House exhaled slowly and stared intensely at Cuddy, who sent him a quizzical look, tainted with worry. He narrowed his eyes and seemed to weigh up his options for a split second, then he cleared his throat, and looked away.
"Did Wilson say that, too? Oh, and by the way, good job diagnosing Whipple Disease," he said, letting Foreman know that he, too, had been fed information while he was gone.
Truth is, House was proud – and somewhat grateful – to have had Foreman to rely on to make the right diagnosis, at a time when he was incapable of focusing his brain on anyone else but Cuddy.
"The weight loss and the anemia, combined with the lymphadenopathy; that was not an easy call," he said earnestly.
"Well, low protein level was consistent with Whipple, once we double-checked his blood," Foreman said a bit smugly.
"Yeah."
House sighed loudly into the receiver, to let Foreman know that he had unilaterally decided they'd reached the end of their conversation.
"Well, I have to go," Foreman said conveniently.
"Right. Don't kill anyone until I'm back."
"Yeah. Bye."
House hung up and rolled to his side to put the cell phone on the nightstand. Cuddy followed the trajectory of his hand with her eyes and when House rolled on his back again, she shot him an inquiring gaze, dying for an update.
"Foreman?" she said.
House nodded and reached out his hand to touch her shoulder. She instantly shifted on the mattress to sit closer to him. Tentatively, he slid his fingertips under the bathrobe and started caressing her collarbone. She tilted her head to the side, her chin touching the back of his hand and she studied him, as he was silently staring up at her.
"What?" she finally asked, a little suspiciously.
"I think he knows-"
"Knows what?"
"Knows well, you know, that you and I do the horizontal mambo. I mean, not the one we just did, obviously, which was more of a vertical one-"
Cuddy shrugged and she lowered herself down to lay beside him. House moved back to make room for her next to him and he turned to the side to face her, his hand still caressing her shoulder. She sighed voluptuously and smiled at him, her steel grey eyes planted in his gaze.
"Foreman's always been intuitive-"
"Yeah, that or Wilson's gossiping gene went crazy, and he told everyone."
"What?!" Cuddy's mouth dropped open in astonishment. "You mean your whole team knows?"
"Cuddy-" He rolled his eyes and shot her a 'don't be intentionally dense' look. "Seriously, did you really plan to keep our relationship secret forever?"
"I don't know," she said, pouting, "I didn't exactly plan anything. It's just that it was convenient not to have to deal with that for as long as it lasted-"
"So that means you're ok with it now?"
"I don't know. Maybe. As long as it only involves your team, and you make sure they don't cross the line, by starting stupid bets or making inappropriate comments-"
House faked a grimace and looked at her with puppy eyes.
"What?"
"From what I hear, it's probably too late already for the stupid bets," he said, trying not to smile.
"You mean, Chase?"
House nodded and stared at her with an empathetic smile, hoping to make her understand what she obviously naively pretended not to see: They'd been together for several months now and, even though neither of them had officially announced it, the entire hospital still knew about it all the same. And had known about it for a long time now: his team, Chase, so Cameron too, obviously, and consequently the entire E.R, the nurses… everyone! It was useless to deny it.
They've kept that private for as long as they possibly could. Even House – which was remarkably unexpected of him – had never rubbed it as a fact in anyone's face. But people were not stupid. And they weren't blind either. He couldn't decide if he really liked it, but he couldn't lie to himself, either: In a way, there was that selfish, carefree part in him which was quite proud of the idea that he and Cuddy being a couple was that obvious to people. It added to the sense of alpha male pride he couldn't help feeling when he was looking at her.
Cuddy studied his face and sighed.
"I guess it was quite inevitable," she said, finally acknowledging the truth.
House smiled reassuringly at her and wrapped his arms around her.
"Come here," he cooed.
She let him guide her inside his arms without resistance and he rolled her on her back, pulling her gently beside him. He propped himself on one elbow and sheltered her petite frame underneath his bare chest. Then, he slid his hand between the loosened edges of her bathrobe and caressed her breasts with the softest touch of his hand, barely brushing her skin with his fingertips. She heaved a voluptuous sigh and snuggled up closer against him.
He looked down at her with a fond gaze, the sight of her delicate silhouette, unwound and perfectly still, giving him a profound sensation of soothing plenitude. His fingers were still nonchalantly caressing her breasts and, suddenly, the painful realization hit him.
He could have lost her.
She was there, lying down beside him, quiet and abandoned to his caresses, and it felt like something almost immutable. But reality was something else entirely: Everything was fragile, and nothing could ever be taken for granted.
Unconsciously, his hand stretched out on her chest, and he covered her right breast with his palm. Then he started pressing on its surface delicately, moving his fingertips around its roundness, fondling, and exploring more thoroughly than a simple caress would have. He couldn't help it. In that instant, there was nothing that could have stopped his compelling need to touch her like he was. Cuddy didn't say a thing, and silently let him move his hand on her to search for the proof that she knew he was looking for, and that she, somehow, wanted him to find, too. After a long while, she grabbed House's hand and moved it away from her breast, slowly shifting to the side to face him.
"So?" she whispered evenly. "Are you done double-checking Bill's exam?"
"Me, what?! I'm just stroking the twins, gently," he exclaimed extravagantly. "Are you saying you don't like me stroking you?"
Her smile widened and she cupped his cheek in her hand.
"That's not what I'm saying," she said, caressing his stubble tenderly. "But maybe now that's you've stroked me thoroughly enough to make sure everything's fine with my boobs, we can get dressed and go to my parents?"
She started propping herself on her elbow to get up. House rolled his eyes theatrically and pushed her back onto the mattress.
"Oh, no. We're not going anywhere right now. You need to sleep first."
"But I'm not tired!" she protested.
"Your eyes keep blinking, your eyelids are half-closed already, and you've repressed at least three yawns while I was fondling you, just now!" he contradicted. "Fifty bucks say if you slide under the sheets, you'll have dozed off before I finish tying my laces."
Walking the talk, House got up and leaned down to collect his sneakers. Cuddy watched him sit on an armchair near the bed and put them on.
"Where are you going?" she inquired, a bit anxiously, sitting up on the bed.
"As much as I'd love to keep it, I've only rented the bike for today, so I need to bring it back," he explained, slipping a tee-shirt on.
"I want to go with you."
He came close to the bed and leaned down to cup her cheek inside his hand.
"No, you don't. You want to sleep. Now, get in the bed. I'll be back in less than an hour."
"I'm not tired," she grumbled again, pouting sulkily.
She still docilely complied and eased herself under the sheets.
"You've been under a lot of stress lately, which means you probably only slept halfway through your nights and spent the other half, staring anxiously at the ceiling with your eyes wide open. I know you. So, stop being stubborn, and get some sleep."
"I feel fine," she said, making herself comfortable under the warm bedding.
"Of course, you do! That's because of the amazing sex you just had. But that was only phase one, and now you need to get some sleep."
"What are you talking about? Sex is only a phase now?" she said, repressing a chuckle.
"Shut up! I'm the doctor, remember? I'm prescribing the treatment-"
"I'm a doctor too, you know."
"No, you're only filling forms and signing checks. You're not entitled to have medical opinions."
Cuddy let out a quiet laugh, and tucked the sheet under her chin.
"Sure. Wait until we're back in Princeton, and we'll see whose medical opinions get to have the last word!"
House made no comment but, as he brushed her cheek with the back of his hand, he gazed intensely at her with a proud look on his face. Cuddy held his hand back and laid a gentle kiss in the hollow of his wrist. Then, she sighed and turned to the side, closing her eyes, and finally surrendering to the delicious warmth of the bed.
# # # # #
In the hotel lobby, House limped past the reception desk and the young woman that had checked them in earlier smiled at him.
"Everything's fine with your room, Mr. Smith?" she asked.
"Totally! The room meets our needs exactly. And it did as soon as we stepped inside," he said with a devilish smile.
"Will you be having dinner in our restaurant tonight? I can make the reservation for you now if you want."
House walked toward the desk and glanced at his watch: 4.15pm. A faint smile formed on the corner of his lips, and he leaned over the counter.
"No, thanks. We'll be having dinner outside but… there's still something you can do."
"Yes sir, what is it?"
"I'd like you to set up a little something to eat now."
"Certainly sir, what would you like to eat?"
"Not for me. For-"
"Your wife?"
"Yeah, my wife," he muttered, making a mental note to himself to remember to make her pay for that ridiculous outburst.
"Unless you have a very specific request, we can serve something in your room in ten minutes."
His thoughts instantly brought him back there, where he pictured Cuddy, probably already asleep, despite her stubborn reluctance to admit that she was tired and needed to rest.
"No. My, err, wife is asleep right now. And I need to take care of a few things so I rather it waits until I'm back. Shouldn't take me more than forty-five minutes."
"Of course. Do you want us to get everything set for five o'clock, then?"
"Yes, five is good. Thank you."
"You can have a look at our menu to help you choose something in particular, if you like."
House smiled again and shook his head.
"No, I already know what I want to order."
# # # # #
A little before five, a taxi dropped House in front of the hotel entrance. He'd brought the bike back to the rental agency near the bay, and he was back early enough to return to their room before the moment when he'd predicted Cuddy would awaken from her nap. Feeling impatient, he limped decidedly to the counter, where the young woman picked up the phone, as soon as she spotted him. When he arrived at the desk, she was done talking, and she hung up, greeting him with a smile.
"Your order will be ready in a minute."
A short while later, a floor waiter entered the lobby, pushing a trolley in front of him. House approached and scanned the content of the tray. He smiled when he saw that they'd found the little extra item he'd specifically requested them to add.
"Perfect," he said.
They both headed to the elevator, then into the corridors toward room 729, where House stopped and turned around to face the waiter. He fished some money out of his pocket and tipped him a few bucks.
"Thanks. I'll take it from here," he said, sliding the electronic key into the lock.
The waiter nodded and discreetly slipped away, leaving House alone at the door. He entered the room, heedful not to make too much noise and pulling the trolley with him. He left it in the entry, and took his coat off, then headed to the bedroom.
His timing was perfect. The sound of the door lock had stirred Cuddy out of her slumber, and he found her stretching out like a lazy cat in the bed. He walked toward her side and sat down on the mattress next to her waist. She blinked a few times to adjust to the light and smiled fondly when she registered his presence beside her.
"You were right: You absolutely didn't need to sleep!" House said, with a teasing edge to his voice.
She sat up and playfully smacked him on the side of his arm.
"Shut up! I've barely slept more than a few minutes-"
He chuckled and traced a line on her cheek with his fingertip.
"Yeah, sure, a few minutes, just like these pillow marks testify!"
"Ok, fine, you got me: I slept the entire time! But you're the one who said I should. So, stop gloating like someone who's always right!"
"Well, you just said it: I'm always right!" he teased again.
The bathrobe she'd kept on to sleep was all creased and half-open, and the way she was sitting in the bed was revealing the curves of her breasts. House sucked in a sharp breath and grabbed the sides of the robe, drawing them shut to cover her.
"Don't you think now is time to get dressed to go to your parents'?" he said.
Cuddy pouted and wriggled under the sheet, but she didn't get out of bed.
"What?" he asked, flashing her a victorious smile, as he already knew what her answer would be.
"You think my parents would hate me if I ate something before we go?" she asked, looking down sheepishly.
"You, bad, bad girl!" he said, frowning disapprovingly. "Your parents invited us for dinner. That'd be very impolite to eat now-"
"But not an entire meal," she said, her tone wheedling. "Just a little something. Come on, it's only five o'clock! Plus, it's entirely your fault: You dragged me on your bike for a chilly ride around town, then we had that acrobatic… amazing sex, and then you forced me to sleep. You made me burn all my calories. No wonder I'm hungry now!"
She waited in silence, studying his reaction, but as he was remaining perfectly impassible, she leaned toward the nightstand and grabbed the phone. House swiftly snatched the receiver out of her hand and put it back, staring at her with a beaming face.
Cuddy was familiar enough with that smile to know that it meant he most certainly had something up his sleeve. So, the only thing left for her to do was to wait to find out what it was. She didn't move when he got off the bed and she even smiled when she saw him leave the room. When he reappeared a few seconds later, pushing a trolley toward the bed, her smile grew wider.
"Not an entire meal?" House said, bringing the trolley next to her. "Hmm, let's see, something like… Lime tea, fresh fruits salad, and a bagel with blueberry jam?"
Cuddy inspected the content of the tray that he'd revealed for her and looked up at him, completely won over by that unexpected surprise.
"When did you order this?" she asked with wonderment, as he sat next to her on the bed again.
"I didn't. I pinched it from a guy who was rolling it in the corridor. Knocked him out with my cane-"
She let out a quiet laugh and stared at him in awe.
"How did you know?"
"Because you're right: I made you burn all your calories. That, plus the fact that you're basically always hungry when you wake up."
He was studying her and taking pleasure in every second of her amazed enjoyment. She looked at the tray again, and her eyes widened in surprise.
"Aww, House," she simpered.
"Seriously?" he said, faking to be appalled. "You're falling for the luxury hotels' cheap tricks now?"
She took the flower inside her slender hand and brought it under her nose to fill her nostrils with its enthralling perfume, looking him in the eyes with a tender smile, over the velvety petals.
"So, you're saying, the fact that there's a purple rose on this tray, which happens to be my favorite is only pure coincidence?" she asked, ingenuously.
"How would I know? I told you I stole it from a guy on my way here," he answered, smiling.
She put the flower down and turned to the side to face him. She held out her hands and cradled his jaw, caressing his stubble tenderly. When she came closer to his face, ready to taste his lips, it took him a strong dose of will power to resist, but he seized her hands and pushed her away gently.
"Why don't you try to satisfy your hunger with real food first?" he said.
Cuddy beamed and focused on the food on the tray, grabbing the bagel, and picking a strawberry in the bowl of fruit salad. She ate ravenously, heaving long sighs of pleasure, as she bit into the sweet, juicy flesh of each fruit and drank hot sips of her tea. The tray was half empty when she finally seemed to decide she'd had enough. She wiped her mouth with the napkin, and before House could see it coming, she jumped on top of him, making him topple backward on the mattress. He welcomed her in his arms and reveled in the sight of her half naked body straddling him. She leaned down and thirstily claimed his mouth, thrusting her tongue between his teeth and teasing him with light strokes, while nipping at his bottom lip.
She moaned inside his mouth and tugged at his shirt, sliding her hands underneath the cloth to stroke his belly. She began sensually rubbing her crutch on his groin and he promptly grabbed her by the wrists to make her stop.
"What's with that sudden excitement of yours?" he exclaimed, rolling his eyes. "Are you on something?"
"No," she said. "It's just you and your irresistible sex appeal that invigorates me. Possibly the tea, and the bagel, and the fruit salad too." She giggled kittenishly. "I'm ready to burn a few more calories now-"
House shook his head and made her roll to the side.
"Not a chance! You've exhausted me enough already for the day. I'm not twenty anymore, you little nympho!" he said, with a slight edge of self-consciousness in his tone.
Despite his efforts to sound casual and teasing, she caught it and immediately slithered back in his arms, squeezing him tight and burying her face in his chest.
"I know," she said, inhaling deeply and filling her nostrils with his masculine scent.
He smelled of leather, citrus and cedarwood, mixed with ocean spray for having ridden his bike by the bay most part of the afternoon. She straightened up and met his inquiring gaze.
"But I don't care. I don't want you to be twenty," she confessed with gravity. "I'm happy it's happened now."
House narrowed his eyes at her as her face kept coming closer. She stopped only few inches from his mouth and smiled.
"I wouldn't want to swap you for a younger version of yourself," she added. "Because all I want is the old, cranky, broken one I have now…"
"Yeah, you're saying that because you're full, rested, and far from work-"
"No, I'm saying that, because I mean it," she said, her tone resolute.
He took her face inside his hands and gently brought it close to his.
"Ok," he said, locking eyes with her.
Silence filled the room for a fleeting while, while he kept staring at her with a gripping gaze. She felt drawn to his lips but when she leaned closer, he quickly sat up and got out of the bed.
"Now go get dressed. Unless you forgot to tell me about that Jewish naked family nights tradition at the Cuddys."
She tutted loudly and whooshed into the bathroom, shutting the door behind her.
"Hey, I'm all for doing naked stuff you know, just not in the family circle. And I'm not ready to strip in front of your folks just yet!" House shouted out to her.
She popped her head out of the bathroom door, pointing a hairbrush at him with a warning frown.
"Just so we're clear, you will never be ready to strip in front of my parents!"
# # # # #
Dinner had been pleasant enough for House to enjoy most of it. Dana's homemade meals were delicious. All in all, the discussions they had were more interesting than boring. House had to admit it: Cuddy's parents turned out to be really nice and funny folks. Maybe it was because all the weariness of the past week had finally gotten at him, and he was lacking that extra energy he'd have normally used to tease and provoke. Or maybe it was because when he looked at her, smiling so genuinely, when he felt the occasional caress of her hand on his thigh under the table, or when he heard the sound of her spontaneous laughter, he could almost forget to be sarcastic.
Time had come to say goodbye, though. After dinner, Cuddy, who had finished packing her stuff, went up to her room to pick up her suitcase, while House called the cab company to ask for a taxi. Benjamin was upstairs to help his daughter and House was waiting in the lobby, with Dana at his side. A heavy silence settled between them, and it felt somewhat awkward, but it was mostly due to the fact that none of them truly knew how to express how they felt about the past two days. Finally, Dana cleared her throat and came closer to House.
"Thank you for tonight," she said in a low voice.
"Don't thank me. I've done nothing," House mumbled, feeling uncomfortable.
"You let us enjoy the presence of our daughter a little longer by suggesting this dinner, so you've done a lot."
House remained silent and stared at Dana, conveying everything he could not say with words through his gaze. Dana smiled and slightly nodded as if to acknowledge his silent message.
"Please, take good care of Lisa, will you?"
"No, I won't," House spontaneously answered in a grunt.
Dana Cuddy's eyes widened in surprise, and she stared at him, looking dumbfounded.
"Your daughter's already taking care of herself," he clarified in a throaty voice. "But as long as she'll let me, I'll make sure that she's doing it right, if that's what you mean."
Dana's features softened and she peered at him fondly.
"You're one man of a kind, you know, Dr. House."
"My name's Greg," House said, averting his gaze.
"Well, Greg, I know you'll do what's right, and I know my daughter enough to say that she is happy with you."
House turned to the side to look at her again.
"I don't know if she's happy-" he started, a roguish smile curling his lips upward.
Anticipating his joke, Dana raised her eyebrows and waited for the punchline.
"-But you heard her: She sure is voicing some feelings!"
Dana smiled and put her hand on House's arm, squeezing it gently. Taken off guard by that simple, but fond gesture, House gulped and lowered his eyes, uneasy. Sounds of footsteps coming down the stairs interrupted the awkward moment and Cuddy's voice echoed in the hallway. Dana removed her hand from House's arm and took a step back, just as Cuddy joined them.
"Dad's following with the suitcase," she said, a little short of breath. "So, I guess we're ready to go."
She glanced at House, and he silently nodded his approval. Behind them, the sound of the suitcase being rolled on the floor resonated in the hallway and Benjamin appeared with a smile on his face.
"Mom, thank you," Cuddy said, feeling suddenly overwhelmed.
Before her voice started to choke with emotions, she gave her mother a hug. Dana squeezed her tight and rubbed her back tenderly. Farewells were clearly not House's forte, so he discreetly sneaked outside, and stood on the front steps, looking up at the starless sky.
"Dark night, uh?" Benjamin's voice said behind him.
House didn't answer but he turned his collar up and nodded.
"So, tomorrow, you'll go back to your hospital daily routine?"
"Yeah. Although, I'm not sure if routine is the right word to describe how it feels to work with your daughter."
"She's one tough gal, isn't she?" Benjamin said proudly.
House tipped his head to the side and briefly locked eyes with him, silently acquiescing with a nod. At the same time, the cab parked in front of the house and the driver stepped out of the car to go open the trunk. Lisa's father turned to face House and held out his hand to him.
"Well, it's been a pleasure meeting you. Too bad you don't like my Bourbon-"
"Not the right week for Bourbon," House answered, shaking Benjamin's hand. "Nothing to do with yours, though, I swear."
"Another time maybe-"
The two women, who'd probably heard the cab from inside the house, joined them outside, offering House a perfectly timed way-out of that uneasy moment, giving him an excuse not to answer anything to Cuddy's father.
First time, last time, next time? All those concepts were far too blurry for him to consider them right now, as the only thing he truly wanted was to be back home, in a familiar environment, to do something he was good at. Yes, he had to admit it: The last couple days in Boston weren't as awful as he'd thought they'd be but socializing with his woman's parents was not something he'd planned on doing forever. As the cabdriver was putting the suitcase in the trunk and before the tears that he saw threatening to fall on everyone's eye rim started to flow, he grabbed Cuddy by the waist and pushed her toward the car.
"Let's go," he said, with a soft but firm voice.
# # # # #
"I think my parents like you."
In the semi-darkness of their hotel room, barely lit by the pale shade of a faint moonlight, they were both lying naked in bed, snuggled up in each other's arms, and enjoying the warm touch of their entwined bodies.
"Of course! All parents love me. That's coz I'm super loveable!"
Cuddy let out a quiet laugh and nuzzled House's neck, breathing in deeply against his skin.
"Though, I thought we would never leave! Seriously, how many times do you guys have to repeat your hugging goodbye ritual before you're allowed to go for real!?"
"We don't see each other often. It's a natural reaction to hold on to something when you don't know when's the next time you'll be able to see them again."
"Not often is enough good a rhythm for me!" House said, half-seriously, half-jokingly.
"They're my parents. You realize we're going to see them once in a while, right?" Cuddy said, resting her hand on his belly and stroking him absentmindedly with her fingertips.
"Or I can really piss you off again next time you'll need to have a pretext to come visit them!"
Cuddy's hand froze on his belly, and she tipped her head up, searching for his gaze in the obscurity of the room. A long silence filled the space, until finally, she took a sharp breath and found her way against him again, sliding her feet between his calves. He put his hand on the small of her back and maintained her close to him.
"It's been a good day," she whispered, with her head rested in the hollow of his armpit.
House quietly hummed his approval.
"Are you falling asleep?" she asked, with a bit of disappointment in her voice.
He tightened his embrace and inhaled deeply through his nose, breathing in the light scent of her shampoo in her hair. Then, without a warning, he swiftly seized her by the hips and slid her underneath his large frame. With one knee, he spread her legs open and nestled against her lower belly. Instantly feeling the erection building up in his groin, he nose-dived in her neck and enticingly nipped at her flesh along her jugular.
"What are you doing?" Cuddy said, giggling.
"Like you need me to spell it out for you!" he answered, stroking her left thigh up and down its length.
"I thought you said you'd be completely washed out and useless for the rest of the day," she teased.
"Yes, but that was before your mother's delicious dishes reinvigorated me! And, possibly you, too, and your sexy naked body, which you've been naughtily rubbing against mine since we've entered in that bed!"
"Me? No, I have not!" she exclaimed mischievously.
House possessively slipped his hand under her ass and made her cant her hips. He positioned himself between her folds and, in one slow but steady thrust, he pushed himself inside her wet core, causing Cuddy to gasp. She threw her head back onto the pillow and he leaned down to her face, resting his forehead against her forehead.
"Yes, you have," he whispered huskily, as she wrapped her legs around the back of his thighs.
The tidal movements of his hips begun then, slowly, until gradually, it elicited sighs of pleasure from her lips, that soon turned into pleading moans, and House thought he could never grow tired of that bewitching sound.
A/N
Feels so good to be back... and by that, I mean to write again, and be here, to share it... I've been wanting to do that for ages now, never really finding time to sit and do it, though, which is terribly frustrating, especially when I've been having lots of new ideas, both for this story and even a new one... :-) ... yep! probably a short one, so stay tuned, who knows? maybe, I might find time at some point to start writing it!...
anyway, I really want to thank you, for being so keen and supportive, despite my silence! so, thank you to every one of you who keeps adding me to their list of favorites, even after so much time! that's an incredibly rewarding feeling... you're a wonderful bunch of people and I love to write for you!...
let me say that at this point, I have written the outlines of what could possibly be the next 10 or 15 chapters of this story)... I'm cooking up something for you and I hope you'll keep reading and stay with me for what's coming next!
also, I have to warn you, although we're not there yet, I'm going to have a terribly busy spring... something I already kinda hate, but I don't have a choice and I must deal with it... I've business trips and really important matters scheduled up until mid-July! 0_0! consequently, my free time will be shortened, but I'm planning to make the best out of it and I hope I'll be able to turn these raw outlines into chapters at a good pace, so that it won't discourage you too much to wait for the rest of the story... anyway, I promise you, I'll do my best!
so, thank you for your faith! and please... continue to fuel me and my muse with your comments.
carpe diem! ~ maya