A/N: Sorry for the delay in responding to your wonderful reviews and in posting. No excuses. Hopefully this chapter will make up for it!

Chapter 8

Julia didn't know what to do with herself. She never took time to do 'nothing'. The only time that was hers, was the few minutes she sat by the ocean in the morning with her coffee and in the evening before she went to bed.

During the day, she was always running around the island, helping people or working in the bar so that Tom could take it easy. Taking time for herself was not a part of her day.

She went to the beach and sat by the ocean for a bit, but she liked it in the early morning or at night better than midday. She walked along the beach, but that wasn't fun either.

She thought she could go back to her cabin and take a nap, but she wasn't tired. She wandered around for as long as she could, then she ended up back in the bar.

House was sitting on his stool, behind the bar when she sat down.

"I told you to go goof off."

"I am goofing off. I'm a customer. I want a drink."

He smiled. "What would you like?"

"I don't know. I haven't had a drink in years."

"Seriously?"

She nodded. "Hmmm, what should it be? Something tropical and fun. I know! A pina colada!"

"Oh, god, could you pick anything girlier?"

"Well, I'm a girl."

He rolled his eyes, but turned around and found the pina colada mix that Tom kept for the tourists. He didn't get a lot of tourists in his bar, so it wasn't often used. Still, it was there. House put the mix, some pineapple juice and rum into a blender and mixed it up for her, then poured it into a tall glass. He added a straw and a cherry on a toothpick and put it in front of her.

She smiled, lifted the glass and said, "Cheers." Then she took a sip. "Mmm, very nice."

She ended up spending the afternoon sitting there with several pina coladas. House made sure she had something to eat as well. If she hadn't been drinking for years, she would not only get very drunk, she'd also probably get really sick. And then she'd be sure that she was being punished for slacking off from helping everyone.

So he kept the food coming and every other drink had no rum. He also made sure she drank a bottle of water in between the drinks. The best way to avoid a hangover was to keep hydrated with water in between the drinks,

He wasn't doing this out of the kindness of his heart. He knew that if she was relaxed and feeling good, there was a chance he would get lucky. But if she was sick, that wouldn't happen. And if she was drunk, well, he didn't want her that way. She'd just resent him in the morning if they did anything that way.

When Tom returned, House thought about taking Julia home immediately, but then he had a better idea. It wasn't one of the nights that he usually played piano, but Tom didn't care if he added others. He sat down at the piano and began playing softly.

Julia smiled, then moved to sit at the table right next to him. After doing a few light jazz songs, he began to play and sing:

Some day when I'm awfully low and the world is cold

I will feel a glow just thinking of you

And the way you look tonight.

He looked at her as he sang and saw she was smiling. She also had a bottle of water in front of her.

Good, he thought, she wasn't drunk.

He finished the song, played one or two more, then rose to the smatters of applause from the bar. He went to Julia and said, "Come on, let's get out of here."

She nodded and they headed back to their cabins.

But when they got there, she walked to the beach instead of the cabin. He hobbled after her, even though walking on the sand wasn't easy for him. She sat down on the beach and he dropped down beside him.

"I love the ocean at night. During the day, it's gorgeous, but at night, there is so much passion and mystery."

He nodded, but his eyes were on her, not the ocean.

She turned to him. "Thank you for giving me this day."

He shrugged. "I didn't give you anything. I just told you it was okay to take it."

"Same thing really. But that doesn't mean I can goof off again. Tomorrow, it's back to my work."

"It's not your work. No one is paying you to help all these people. No one is even asking you to. You just decided that they need you."

She swallowed before speaking. "It's important to be needed. I was needed for a long time, then suddenly, I wasn't."

"When your daughter died. Yeah, I get that, but—"

"Not just that. There's a lot more to me than just a grieving mother."

"What else? Tell me."

She shook her head. "Not now. We're not ready to reveal our secrets at this moment. Just understand that what I do helps to keep me sane. You do understand the need for sanity?"

"Personally I've always found it a strange concept, but I know some people need it."

She smiled at him and rose, then held a hand out to help him up. On some level he knew he should be embarrassed or disgusted that a woman had to help him stand up. But with Julia, there was none of that. She didn't pity him, she just accepted him.

They walked back to her cabin and she said, "I really need to go to bed."

"Okay." He said, turning towards his own cabin. But she reached out and touched his arm.

"Come with me?"

He looked at her face, not sure what she was offering, but deciding it was better to go with it anyway. "Okay."

She reached for his hand and he followed her into the cabin and into her bedroom. She went into the bathroom, while he sat on the edge of the bed and removed his shoes and socks, then pulled off his jeans. He sat there in his t-shirt and his boxers with the sheet covering his leg when he heard her come out of the bathroom.

She walked around to where he was sitting and when she came into view, he saw that she was stark naked. He was speechless, but she wasn't expecting him to talk. She leaned down and kissed him, then knelt in front of him and pulled his t-shirt up and over his head. She reached for his boxers, but he stopped her.

"Are you sure?" he asked her.

"Yes." She said simply. He nodded, then pulled the boxers off himself, still keeping his leg covered. She could tell he was self-conscious about it, so she just pulled the sheet aside and lightly caressed both of his thighs while she kissed him fully on the mouth.

"It's nothing I care about, Greg." She whispered. "Don't make a big deal about it. There are more important things to deal with tonight."

He put his arms around her and pulled her close to him, kissing her back with relish.

Then he stopped again. "I don't have any protection with me."

"Doesn't matter. I had my tubes tied after Megan was born and I haven't been with anyone for a long time. I'm clean."

"I'm clean too."

She shrugged. "It doesn't matter. I just want you."

Moments later, they were lying on the bed. He tried to take it easy, since it had been a long time for her, but he was so full of desire that it was hard to hold back. She didn't seem to mind, as she built as quickly as he did and they released together.

Afterwards, they lay there with her head against his shoulder and his arm around her.

"How are you feeling?" he asked her.

"Good." She said. "That was nice. It's been even longer than my last drink."

"Seriously? Why?"

"My husband left after Megan died. There hasn't been anyone since then."

"Wait, your husband left you after your daughter killed herself?"

"Yes."

"What a jerk."

She chuckled. "He wasn't, not really. It was just too much for him."

"For you too, I'd guess."

"True, but you do what you have to do."

He nodded. "So was this just a one time thing, based on the pina coladas or can we…?"

"We can. It's not a one night thing. This was fun. No reason why we can't continue. However, I have to tell you, I am still married. We've never divorced. Does that bother you?"

"Why in the world should it bother me if it doesn't bother you?"

"Well, it doesn't bother me at all. Good night, Greg." She said as she snuggled in and closed her eyes.

"Good night, Julia."