Happy Halloween...a little later than I had planned, but between carving pumpkins and celebrating my birthday, writing got away from me. Sorry! Hope this Chapter makes up for it :) Your reviews were so incredibly encouraging for my last two chapters and I hope I can continue to re-create those moments for you...

"I did not."

"Who has the photographic memory here?"

"The same person that loves to embellish the truth." Cuddy spoke assuredly. "I remember exactly what happened and all I said was that he was an idiot for nearly hitting us both with his car."

"You called him a lot more than an idiot. Almost got me killed defending your honor. Next time pick a fight with a guy that does not look like Mister T's homicidal brother."

"You were very brave." She laughed, as the memories of the particular date in question filtered through her mind.

"That was a fun night though…despite almost being beheaded."

"Yes it was…and I would hope that your 'photographic memory' also recalls me making it up to you...I don't remember you being all that upset with me once we got home."

"You're right. It was totally worth it. Almost as if I planned the whole thing to get you to do naughty things to me later, but that does sound rather calculating..."

"I would have done those things anyway. All you have to do is ask nicely. "

House swallowed a bite of food, practically drooling from her teasingly husky reply. "That's why you're my woman."

"I remember you looking particularly handsome that night."

"I can put on that leather jacket right now if you want. I always knew it got you hot."

"I know. That's why you always wear it."

He looked to her as she wittingly smiled at him, allowing only a sly grin to form on his mouth in response before he reached in the take-out bag and pulled out some bread, dipping it in his pasta sauce before taking a bite.

"Is that the last roll?"

Swallowing hurriedly, he turned to her, "Uh…no," He lied, watching as her lips formed a small pout, his body stirring in response as he pictured kissing that frown right off her mouth.

He stared down to the piece of bread cradled in his hand and placed his carton of pasta on the coffee table before glancing back to her. She was sitting facing him, her back resting against the pillows at the end of the couch, her toes tucked under his thigh to keep her shoeless feet warm as they ate together contentedly.

House knew he could stay that way for hours. Talking with her, watching her every move, making up for all the time he spent without her…when she kept herself painfully out of his reach.

When she was away, it had been the first time in over a decade he was not able to see her face every day, and sitting with her now made him wonder how he even survived the last nine months. Everything about her filled him up; it took losing her to realize how much he truly loved her, that his life was only worth living if he was graced to spend it with her...

House reached for her legs and brought them over his thighs, shifting his body so she was practically sitting on his lap, he held the remainder of the roll silently up to her mouth.

Cuddy felt immediately enflamed as he drew her near to him, taking a bite of the buttery bread from his offered hand; she savored the morsel, watching with glee as his hunger for her flashed boldly in his eyes, the same insane hunger that she felt within herself every new moment she spent with him.

"Thank you." She murmured.

"Anytime…if I knew feeding you would be this erotic, I would have started twenty minutes ago."

"Well…there's always desert." She teased as she tore another piece of bread from his fingers and popped it in her mouth without asking.

"Don't tease me."

"I'm not. I did say I brought over a four course meal, remember…" She gestured slightly with her head for him to check the bag resting on the table, her eyes dancing with delight as he reached inside and pulled out the last white carton.

House opened it up to reveal a large brownie with two small containers resting next to it, "Is that hot fudge?"

"I believe so…and the one next to it should contain a little whipped cream." She answered evocatively, already knowing exactly what he was thinking, and shifted herself so she could place her food on the coffee table before she turned her gaze back to him. "I am a bit full so…maybe we can find another use for this desert." She leaned in and practically whispered in his ear, grazing his neck with her lips before she moved her legs off his thighs and stood up in front of him; her hand stretched out for House to take.

"Meet me in the bedroom." He commanded, rising from the couch, "What's hot fudge if it's not hot."

He reached up and ran his hand teasingly down her chest, hooking his finger in the low neckline of her shirt before he just barely grazed the tops of her voluptuous breasts. "You're clothing is not permitted."

"Neither is yours. " A sexy smile crossed her lips before she turned away from him and retreated down the hall. His eyes fixated on her hips as she walked away, nearly dissolving as he saw her remove her shirt and bra while she moved, littering his hallway with wonderful traces of her.

"Holy-"

"Yeah." House finished for her, his breathing deeply labored. Her body was draped on top of his; her face buried in the crook of his neck. He ran his fingers slowly through her hair, gathering it in his hands so he could see her face.

She lifted her body up off of him slightly; her core pulsated beyond belief as she looked into his eyes. "I'm pretty sure we spilled some chocolate syrup on these sheets." She leaned in and kissed him, lingering in the feel of his lips pressed with hers, a feeling that she would never grow tired of.

"Well then I guess our bodies will smell like cocoa tonight. The blankets will be like a Willy Wonka sex cocoon."

"I'll take that as your way of suggesting we stay right here for the rest of the evening." Her eyebrows raised knowingly as she pushed herself off his body, finding his shirt crumpled next to her side, she reached to put it on.

House propped himself up by his arms, watching her body disappear behind the fabric as she buttoned up his shirt. "If you already know my plans, where may I ask are you going?"

"To the bathroom. I promise to return to our chocolate haven very soon." She smiled at him as she brought her lips back to his, her hand grabbed the back of his head, kissing him intensely one last time before she got up completely. "Maybe you can get us some water." She spoke as she disappeared to the bathroom.

House reached for his boxers and threw them on, getting out of bed he carefully made his way over to retrieve his robe, putting it on as he went to down the dark hallway.

Opening up his refrigerator he pulled out two bottles of water and set them on the counter, then unlatched the cabinet and brought down the ibuprofen. Quickly popping three in his mouth before placing it back where it came from. A dull headache had been torturing him off and on all afternoon, and he couldn't take the irritation anymore, especially when he had a whole night ahead of him spent with her wrapped around his body…

She was just exiting the bathroom as he walked back into the room. "Thank you."

He handed her a bottle. "You're welcome. Need to keep you hydrated for the evening's main event."

"That wasn't it ten minutes ago?"

"Opening act." He spoke lowly, as they both crossed to the bed and sat back down. House leaned his back against the pillows, his legs stretched in front of him, as she sat facing him with her legs crossed on top of the comforter.

"Well it's going to be a tough one to beat." Her arms stretched above her head, her body still hummed languidly from their last encounter. "Might need an intermission though, unless we want to break each other."

"That's why I brought this." House pulled out a deck of cards he had grabbed on his way back from the kitchen.

Her face brightened, "What's your game?"

"Hold Em…the chips are under your side of the bed." He replied, staring at her magnificently bare thighs as she climbed out of bed and vanished from sight for a moment before returning with a silver case of poker chips.

"Look what I found." She pulled out a torn white piece of paper from inside the case, "An 'I owe you' from the last time we played. Looks like someone never paid up." She waved it a little with a grin on her face.

"How do you know it's not your 'I owe you' to me? Cause the promise to perform oral sex can go either way."

"Because this paper says the debt owed is…One peaceful week at work. Where House will do as told, without sneaking, cheating, or pranking his boss into bending to his annoyingly persistent will."

"I paid that debt."

"You did not." Cuddy retorted; dividing up the chips as House shuffled.

"Fine double or nothing…but you have to offer up something if I win." House dealt them each two cards face down.

"And what does you wicked brain think that should be?"

"Hmmm…so many things come to mind." They both threw chips in the middle at the same time to ante up before House turned up three cards in between them. "How about three work place sexual rendezvous, and I get to cash in at anytime. I sure do miss throwing you on top of your desk."

She studied him and his devilish expression, "Fine…but nothing on top of any desk unless we happened to both be stuck late at work…and not in Wilson's office again. He'll never forgive us." She put two chips in the middle. "I bet ten."

"Call." He flipped another card up.

"Check."

"Chickening out already I see…you always waiver on the second bet."

"Not always"

"I'll check too."

"Chicken."

The last card was turned up causing Cuddy to have an Inside Straight. "I'll bet…fifteen."

House carefully examined her for tells of her famous stone cold bluffs. "Got the Straight huh?"

"Hmmm…I don't know…what's a Straight again?"

"I'm out."

She gathered her small winnings and shuffled the deck. Her fingers going through the motions as her mind wandered fondly to her memories from when they were together before. They never had a problem talking like this, their playful banter and years of a sexually charged friendship only became more wonderfully heightened as they transitioned to become a couple. It was intimately familiar, and something she had missed so incredibly much. "You bet first." She gestured.

"Twenty."

"Wow…keep betting that high and this game will be done very soon. I would hate for you to have to start repaying two weeks' worth of consecutive model behavior first thing in the morning." They continued to bet and play as the talked. "I'm sure you would much rather reinitiate me back to work tomorrow with one of your dastardly schemes."

"Who says I'm coming to work tomorrow?"

"Funny."

"Besides I'm not going to lose." He laid down his hand showing a Full House, confidently smirking at her.

"Nice hand…to bad I have Four Twos." She turned her cards around in her fingers, showing her Pocket Twos with a sly smile.

"Cheater." House shook his head.

"Uh-huh…you keep telling yourself that."

"I will. You keep bending over in my shirt like…what you're doing right now…and Patty and Selma distract me with their blinding high beams." He gestured, causing her to follow his line of sight momentarily; her eyes looking back to him with a silent sense of accomplishment. "A dastardly scheme if I ever saw one. I can't read your poker face if I'm mesmerized by your cleavage."

She picked up her newly dealt cards and placed two chips in the pile. "Well…I learned my evil scheming from the master himself."

"Damn overachiever."

She laughed deeply, "I raise twenty."

"Really? See now you're just messing with me. Either that or you must have some satanic pixie card magic with you tonight." He threw his chips in and a raise, with a challenge on his face.

Cuddy knew he saw directly through her stone cold bluff this time and shook her head defeated, placing her cards face down in front of her lap. "Just take it."

He smirked and raked in his winnings while she shuffled and dealt once more. "Looks like I'm on my way to being a charmingly handsome pain in your ass employee in the morning…or whenever I come in next."

"Games not over yet. I still might have two weeks of pure bliss in my future." She teased.

"So while we're on the subject…you want to tell me the real reason why you came back to work a week earlier than you originally planned."

His question caused her to hesitate a moment, "I...already told you. Rachel has this weird obsession with school…since France…I know she's missing the friends she made and-"

"That's not a reason. You still could have taken some more time for yourself…you seemed convinced that was what you needed when you came to my office a few days ago."

"I changed my mind." She flipped up her cards, "I have Two Pair."

"You're evading my question. God I have rubbed off on you." He showed his cards, revealing he bested her once more and grabbed his chips.

"What do you want to know?"

"I think I already know what you're feeling…just thought it might help…if you talked about it."

She held his eyes and let out a tired sigh, "I just…as soon as I started to think about the idea of returning to work…I realized that…I don't want to come back." She practically whispered.

"And so you thought diving back in would alleviate your anxiety."

"Something like that…when I was away…being in that ER, working with children…it made me feel like I was making a difference again."

"You will always make a difference."

"Thank you." His gentle sincerity instantly calmed her.

"But…you don't have to be the Dean of Medicine."

"I…don't know what I want yet."

"Yeah." He dealt a new game and flipped up three cards, "Well…until you decide, I will personally make sure that every day you spend at work will be filled with something adventurous…you know…to hold your interest."

"So chivalrous of you." She smirked and looked to her cards as House checked his bet. "I will bet ten."

"Oh here we go again." He matched it, flipping up the fourth card. "I'll Check…but wait let me guess, you're betting ten. "

"Fifteen." Her chips tossed colorfully into the growing pile.

House didn't even flinch as he tossed in his chips. "Somebody have Pocket Aces?" He squinted his eyes.

She arched her brow, silently smirking over to him, "Just deal the last card."

"Yes mistress." He turned over an Ace and stared at it for a moment, "Check." Their eyes glued to one another as they both watched for tells.

"All in."

His head tilted, "You sure you want to do that. I think I have more chips than you."

"In or out?" She replied sweetly, trying to keep her face free of any revealing expression he might be watching for.

"I'll call."

Cuddy smiled and turned over her hand, showing two Aces just as he had predicted, "Full House, Aces over Kings."

"Ouch…would suck if I beat that Full House of yours with…my very own Four of a Kind." He gingerly placed his two Kings in front of him, showing four of them in a row.

"You bastard." She laughed and tossed her cards into the chip mound in the middle.

"So glad I won that…didn't think I could make it through two weeks of exhaustive niceties without imploding." He leaned over the mass of chips and cards and found her hand, pulling her across the bed with him as she molded her body along his side. "At least your debt is something we can both enjoy." He spoke as he grabbed her thigh and pulled it higher across his body cupping her ass as she began to run her fingers across his bare skin.

She parted his robe further and toyed with the tiny hairs on his chest, her hands disappearing under the terrycloth. "I will wait patiently for you to come collect your prize." She mumbled, smiling against him.

House tightened his hold on her and pulled her up slightly so her face met his, "I think we need to get a little more practice in first."

"I don't know…we're already pretty good at it." She murmured enticingly close to him, placing her index finger on his bottom lip, she ran it over the smooth skin for a moment before she replaced her finger with her mouth.

She lavished him with delicate kisses, her tongue softly tasting his lips, forcing a shudder through House's whole body as she continued to kiss him like no other women had ever come close to recreating. His hand went back to her ass squeezing her against his aching need, flipping her around so he was laying on top of her, their kiss breaking apart as they caught their breath…only needing a moment before their lips entangled once more.

House's hands ran up her thigh as she pressed it against his side, reaching in between their bodies he deftly unbuttoned his shirt she wore sexily beneath him. The final button unclasped he pushed himself up on his elbow and parted the shirt, revealing her painfully beautiful breasts. Immediately his fingers roamed over her, eliciting a tantalizing moan as his hands brushed her chest, trailing lower…teasing every sensitive spot on her body before his lips descended upon her satin skin.

He ran his tongue across her stomach, loving the fact that she was already free of underwear; slinking down her body further until he made contact with his most favorite spot; her back arched immediately, biting her bottom lip, feebly trying to keep herself from screaming with desire. She reached for him, not wanting to wait a second longer to feel him inside her. Pulling his head back up to her face, she instantly got her wish as he descended upon her.

The tie on his robe was undone by her nimble hands as he slowly linked with her. Endowing her with kisses, swallowing her moans, trapping her lips in his, nibbling her mouth as their bodies began to move in perfect rhythm…

He found her hands and brought them over her head with his own. Pressing them against the mattress. Their eyes opened to each other, locking in as the waves began to rock their writhing bodies…no longer censoring their moans they were swallowed up with each other once more…

His robe was loosely hanging from her body, her head leaned upon his shoulder as they sat upright against the headboard. In the bed they hadn't left in hours. The television softly glowed in the dim bedroom as Fred Astaire danced across the screen in front of them. House reached for her hand resting on her lap and laced his fingers in hers. "Actually…that was my first time."

"You're kidding?" She lifted her head to meet his eyes. "I thought you had been there before."

"Nope…that was officially my first time to the land of cigarettes and superiority complexes. Unless you count having sex with French hookers as having enjoyed what the country has to offer."

"I can't believe it…and you didn't get to see a single thing."

"I got to see all that I came for."

"You mean two horribly pale vomiting girls and the inside of an emergency room."

"Yep. Felt like home. I'm just glad you had better aim with your vomit than Rachel did. I saw what came out of you…I was surprised your head didn't pop off into the toilet."

"Shut-up. " She squeezed his hand in hers playfully and leaned her head back upon his shoulder, inching closer along his side, gazing back to the movie. "You were still the one trying to kiss me all weekend…even though I looked absolutely horrible."

"Well you're always kissable."

Her head lifted up once more, her eyes longingly looked to him. A smile flitted across her lips before she leaned into him, kissing him tenderly.

"Even when you look like a zombie." He finished as she pulled away from his lips. He grinned before kissing her one more time, wickedly swallowing any retort she could come up with.

She rolled her eyes, pretending to be perturbed, but couldn't help entangling her body more with his at the same time, placing her leg over his good one, as they both continued to watch the movie.

"So…did you ever visit Mont St Michele?" House mumbled after some time. His eyes not leaving the screen.

"What?" She looked over to him.

"Mont St Michele…You were in Normandy. I assumed you planned that so you could finally get a chance to see it…I know it's a dream of yours." He glanced back over to her.

"It is…but…one that remains unfulfilled."

"Oh."

"When we settled in the cottage…even though I originally planned to visit…I knew immediately I would never go. That dream somehow only made sense…if you were with me. I didn't want to go without you."

"I would have come you know…"

"I know…but I was a little mad at you." she turned her head and nuzzled his neck with her nose, touching her lips to his skin.

"Yeah." His eyes closed to her caress.

"We can still go…" She whispered against him before she leaned away to meet his questioning eyes, "I'm not saying right now…but…I'm not ready to let go of that dream…"

"When we were together before you always made it seem like taking a trip was never a possibility."

"I know…but not anymore. I've straightened out my priorities."

The emotion hit him powerfully, her simple words causing such grief to enter his heart that his eyes instantly shifted away from her, back to the television. Making plans in the future felt unbelievably heavy…not knowing if he could even promise something like that to her was more than he could bear. Suddenly it felt like he was being suffocated, but he could already feel her watching him, and he knew he had to say something. "I'm sure you don't want to leave Rachel for that long…"

"Uh…she'll be fine. " She paused, waiting for him to acknowledge what he was feeling, instead of guarding himself the way she knew he was now…but he remained still and silent, their hands remained intertwined on Cuddy's lap. "What's wrong?"

His thumb worried over the top of her hand, his touch remained gentle. "Nothing…it sounds good someday." He spoke quickly and got up from his side of the bed, "I'm actually hungry again…you?"

"I'm okay." She replied softly, sensing his need to flee the conversation, knowing without a doubt the pain he was feeling…she felt it too.

He nodded with a small smile before he left; her eyes followed his movements as her heart ached to go after him. No part of her intended to make him sad tonight, but with a giant elephant in the room…that neither of them had the courage to brooch, it seemed inevitable that the hurt would surface…and they would finally need to talk.

She heard a rustling in the kitchen, the light that House flipped on filtered into the bedroom. She switched off the television and got out of bed, going over to his drawers where she knew his t-shirts were, she found her old favorite and put in on. Covering her bottom half with a pair of oversized pajama pants she made her way quietly down the hallway and retrieved her purse from the family room where she had left it hours before.

As she turned back around, her eyes couldn't help but glance his way. She remained hidden in the shadows as she observed his face. His body hunched over a bit as he stared at a baking tray, holding a small frozen pizza sitting in front of him on the counter. His hands moved to a white bottle, opening it and pouring out pills in his hand. She felt her heartbeat gutturally react before she comprehended the pills were not vicodin, her breathing hitched momentarily as she moved to make herself known to him…

"Your leg?" His eyes moved to her before she even spoke.

He finished swallowing, "Yeah."

She sighed deeply and came even closer to him, their bodies separated only by the counter island in the center of his kitchen. "Why are you lying?"

"I'm not."

"I can always tell when your leg is bothering you...you have a headache." It wasn't a question.

House looked down to the counter and placed the cap back on the medicine bottle, "Everyone gets headaches." He finished softly, the air heavy between them as they stayed locked in silence.

"We can't avoid talking about this..." she found her voice, already cracking with emotion, "You have a tumor House…it's not just going to disappear because you ignore it...or we pretend it doesn't exist."

"That's very astute of you." He mumbled, fighting the overwhelming urge to flee immediately, eyes dodging her beseeching blue orbs…

"How long have your headaches been back?"

"It's just a headache. It started earlier today. Don't make it into something dire-"

"But it is dire…the longer you wait..." Her voice weakened with each word, "I can't lose you." She finished emotionally, her eyes willing him to understand.

"You think I want that?" His hand came down upon the counter, steadying him as his leg began pulsating in response. He watched the anguish take hold of her face until it was all he could see, "But no matter what I do there's going to be a possibility of—"

"Don't. I can't stand to hear another defeatist attitude. First Wilson, now you—"

"It's a realistic attitude—"

"-No it's fear." She wanted to go to him, but kept the counter between them, trying with all of her might to put his needs in front of her own impulses. "You don't need to hide that from me—"

"Of course it's fear!" His words dripped with emotion. "I just got you back. The one attribute in my life that has ever made me happy...and now we're standing here arguing about a surgery that will more than likely leave me with months of rehabilitation—"

"I will be with you through all of it."

"Yeah and what kind of wonderful experience that will be for you. Helping your already crippled boyfriend cut his food and learn how to speak properly again? Dealing with my mood swings, my anger, my frustrations…my fears. Sounds like a perfect way to smoother our relationship all over again."

"Thats what this is about? You think you will lose me no matter what you decide? It won't happen—"

"You can't promise me that."

"Actually I can. Because that is the only thing I have power over. I'm here House…right now, tomorrow for as long as the future allows us. That I can say with absolute certainty. I'm not going anywhere…and as far as I believe in my heart…you're not going anywhere either." Sheer conviction covered her voice, her body finally moving to him, coming around the cold tile counter to stand in front of him.

"I could lose my memory…wake up without any knowledge of you. My motor functions, my speech, my…brain. What happens if I can't get my abilities back, lose my medical license…I can't live like that. You know I can't live like that…"

"I know." A tear fell down her face, their eyes meeting, fighting through the pain. Neither one reaching for the other. "I wish I could tell you that none of this matters…that the possibility of that happening," She swallowed the rest of her sentence and reached out for his hand, taking a hold of his fingers resting by his side. "You know there is only one choice here." She whispered; her fingers delicately caressed his.

His body shuddered inwardly; he could feel the pain begin to pool in his eyes. "A month."

She looked up to him, leaning close so their bodies were almost touching, "What?"

"I just want a month…with you. If something happens to me…I want…a little more time to be happy." His confession was extremely hard to speak, but he hadn't the strength to hold his feelings back, not caring how exposed he felt with her anymore.

"Then…you'll have the surgery?"

"Yes." He admitted quietly.

Her hand tightened its hold on his as she let out a rattled breath she had been holding onto since the beginning of their conversation. "But if your headaches get worse—"

"I'm only asking for a month…I'll schedule it...but I don't want to talk about it anymore." His fingers unraveled from hers, moving to grab hold of the pizza still laying uncooked in front of him, "This will only take twenty minutes…I'll be in when it's done." He looked to her before he turned to the oven, hoping that she would understand his need for a moment to himself.

"Okay." Her face fell a bit before she composed her features and left him alone…

Leaning back against the pillows she closed her eyes, trying to meditate on House's request. Was it something she could even accomplish…to allow herself to forget for the time being, to give him the happiness he craved just as much as she did. It was a wonderful ideal, but one she knew would be a struggle. Her baser instincts were always prone to worry, but she would have to fight against…put it away…and not take any moment for granted until then…ultimately his idea sounded like an incredible thought…

The sound of piano keys gently pressed, began to descend into the bedroom around her; ringing in her senses. Her head turned towards it, staring at the corridor of his hallway as she immersed herself in what he was saying through music. A very somber melody…another amazing ability that he possessed that took her breath away. The way he could create a story from his heart that he almost never could express in words. He continued playing for what felt like some time…and she listened…

Only the smell of the pizza wafting towards her brought her off the bed. Her legs carrying her down the hall and into the kitchen, passing by his line of sight briefly to pull the pizza from the oven. She set it down and came back into the shadows of the living room, leaning against the doorframe dividing the rooms. His fingers halted, but his eyes remained trained to his hands for a moment longer…and then he looked back to her.

"You still need some time alone…or can we maybe start that happiness thing right now?" Her voice was soft, caring...

His eyes began to twinkle, a small smile tugged the corner of his mouth; his head gestured for her to sit next to him…

And so she did…

Sitting down close to his side; a smile on her lips as she began to focus only on being with him.

The keys were pressed softly once more, her eyes averted down in front of her as she was transfixed by his fluidity. It poured effortlessly out of him. His song was so intensely beautiful it almost felt as if his love for her was being narrated through the black and ivory keys.

Her hand was placed on his thigh; she nuzzled her chin upon his shoulder as he finished his serenade.

He leaned into her touch and closed his eyes contentedly as her breath tickled his neck. He could feel her lips press against his skin, chills rising in his body as her touch overpowered any other sense but want.

Cuddy shifted, moving herself to stand in front of him against the piano, her body nestled between his legs as he gazed up at her. Without a moment's pause she grabbed the hem of his t-shirt and pulled it over his head, her hand immediately connecting with the skin on his chest as she brought her lips against his.

They kissed tenderly, washing away their fears…House grabbed a hold of her oversized t-shirt and lifted it to reveal her sinewy stomach, breaking from their loving kiss to bury his face in her skin, his breath fluttered over her belly-button, causing her to jump when he reached a particularly ticklish spot.

He smiled mischievously up to her. The squirmy reaction he caused as a result was exactly what he was hoping for.

"You did that on purpose."

"Yes I did." House pulled her bare stomach back to his lips, murmuring against her skin, "You make the sexiest noises when I touch that spot…I couldn't resist." He finished speaking, brushing the spot once more with his mouth, before bringing her t-shirt all the way over her head this time and tossing it aside, exposing her perfect skin, his lips going to her breasts instantly as his hands worked to remove the bottom half of her clothes.

She pulled away slightly with a satisfied smile on her lips, "On the piano bench huh?" Her low voice inquired with amusement.

His eyebrows arched, "Yep." She faintly heard him murmur, and then his hands were on her waist, guiding her back to him, clasping her against him as she shifted her legs to sit on his lap. Her arousal already burgeoning out of control as she brought herself down on him, her hips rocked slowly…seductively teasing, her hands wrapped tightly around the swell of his shoulders…losing herself so completely in the moment…

His eyes blinked…carefully opening as the sun began to make its presence known across his bedroom. The left side of his body warmer than his right, her skin soothingly heated his own wherever their bodies were touching. She lay on her back, the crook of her neck nestled on his forearm; her head tilted towards his face as she continued to sleep beside him.

House shifted his head, just barely, and found the time on the alarm clock, instantly perturbed as he noticed a ringing would sound only five minutes later. He wanted to stay exactly where he was. Looking intimately into her beautiful sleeping face, feel her fingers splayed atop his thigh, the curve of her leg along the length of his own.

Cuddy's eyes began to flutter, her breathing changing as the sense of reality slowly seeped into her senses. Her eyes opened…and his steel blue eyes were all she could see. He had been watching her sleep; that much was perfectly clear to her as she smiled tenderly to him, breathing him into her.

"The alarm." House's voice mumbled, making it hard for Cuddy to understand until the sound of her phone started to buzz from the table beside her.

House saw a pout form on her lips, feeling his spirits lifted by the gesture that she wanted to stay right where she was too. Her body shifted, leaning into him she placed a kiss on his lips, her hand coming up to cup his cheek as she lingered there, allowing her alarm to buzz a bit longer before she answered it.

Pulling away and exposing her backside to House, he reached out and ran his hand down her spine...another one of his cherished places to touch on her. She shut off the noise and placed it back on the nightstand before she turned back to the intoxicating man that was currently giving her goose bumps from his gentle caress.

She held the sheet against her chest as she sat in bed facing him, his hand coming to rest in her lap as he continued to lie back on top of his pillows.

"Probably can't talk you into playing hooky with me." He felt her fingers intertwine with his as he spoke.

"I don't think it would look that great…on my third day back." She brought her other hand to his chest making contact with his bare skin, "We could meet for lunch."

"Yep…or I could cash in on one of my workplace sex-tickets and we could meet for an afternoon snack instead."

Cuddy rolled her eyes, leaning down to him and pressing another wet kiss on top of his lips before she reached for his t-shirt. "Well if I had some help today…perhaps in the clinic…we might be able to do both of those things?" Her eyebrows rose teasingly as she got out of bed.

"I'll see what I can do…Taub owes me. He can help all month if you need…" House sat upright in bed, watching as she reached her hands up and stretched her body, waking her limbs from sleep.

"Fine than I guess I will have to flirt with Taub today…when I work my clinic hours."

"Well that would certainly make his tiny little dreams come true." House mumbled in reply; utterly distracted by the alluring curve of her thigh exposed in front of him, as she continued to stretch her limbs. Her tangled hair fell into her face, her body glowed as the sunlight bounced off her skin from the window in the corner of the bedroom. He sighed with amazement and gratitude, "You are…so very beautiful." He confessed without thinking, his voice was soft...her movements paused to his words…his eyes never straying from her own.

Her lip worried between her teeth, her eyes welled, "…Thank you."

"I think that's probably the first time I've told you that..." House spoke solemnly, "but sometimes it's all I can think about when I'm around you."

Cuddy felt a tear fall down her cheek, a smile tugged the corner of her flushed lips. "I…I don't even have a proper response for that." She studied him, her love overflowing more than she thought possible.

His eyes sparkled, his head tilted, subtly gesturing for her to make her way back into bed…and she understood. Her knees pressed into the mattress as she felt her hand being tugged, warmly wrapped inside his strong fingers, her body falling on top of his…her lips covered instantly….