A/N: Thanks for all the great comments. Special thanks to Cherokee Jedi for taking a peek.

Thanks to all the folks who are writing new fics and updating. Keep up the great work.

By the way, everyone drop what you're doing (after you review this chapter of course) and head over to DrDiagnostic's blog "Diagnosing House" so you can vote in the Huddy Madness Championship Bracket. Just Google "Diagnosing House" and then click on her latest post!

Anyway...on to our story. It's Tuesday afternoon, we pick up after therapy. This chapter is one of the reasons this story is rated "M" so be prepared...

Cuddy took House's arm and rubbed it soothingly, trying to reassure him and let him know how proud she was of him. He looked down at her and smirked and she returned it. Then suddenly, she shook her head and laughed out loud, almost maniacally. She gazed directly at Nolan and asked boldly, "Are we crazy?"

Nolan, surprised by her question, just let out a chuckle himself. He leaned back in his chair, glad that the worst was over.

"Quite the contrary. You two are the most interesting couple I've ever known and I haven't known you as a couple that long. I think you're both quite sane and I believe it's going to work this time. You two have this incredible, inexplicable bond that draws you back to one another time and time again. Knowing you, I'm quite sure there will be more pain in the future but you have learned from your mistakes and you will continue to learn so long as you communicate like you are now. Most people would have thought you two were crazy for even talking to one another again, but then again most people are not like you. So in answer to your question Lisa, no, you are most definitely not crazy. What you have...is...what works for you."

It was late afternoon when House and Cuddy were finally on their way back to Princeton. They stayed and talked with Nolan for another thirty minutes after the session was over, discussing a number of things, mostly medical-related. Nolan had told Cuddy how pleased he was about the progress in her and House's relationship and said if House was amenable, he would welcome her back again if they felt it was necessary.

After listening to some music on a classic rock station, House and Cuddy had engaged in a spirited debate about whether or not there was a real feud between Neil Young and Lynyrd Skynyrd and whether or not Stevie Nicks actually slept with everyone in Fleetwood Mac, including Christine McVie. In the end, House won the Neil Young argument while they agreed on a draw about Stevie Nicks.

After driving awhile in silence, House announced, "I've got an idea."

"What?"

House took out his phone and dialed.

"House what are you up to?"

House ignored her. "Hey old pal, old buddy, listen can you do me a favor? And by me, I mean Cuddy. Need you to keep Rachel overnight."

"House, no!" Cuddy tried to grab the phone from him.

House pulled away from her and whispered, "Shh, on the phone here."

Cuddy focused her eyes on the road as House talked to Wilson. A few minutes later he hung up and looked at Cuddy with a grin. "Well, that settles it, we are munchkin free till tomorrow morning."

"Maybe I don't want to be munchkin free."

"Look on the bright side, Uncle Wilson gets to spoil her a little longer."

"You should've asked me first."

"Too late."

Cuddy sighed. "What are you up to?"

"It's a surprise," he said, winking at her.

"I hate surprises," she chimed.

"No, you don't. You're leaving soon and I just want to spend one night with you in my apartment, alone, with no distractions, eating too much take-out, watching old movies, and you wearing one of my tee shirts and nothing else." He turned to look out the window, a pouty look on his face.

He looked so adorable when he pouted, she felt bad about arguing with him. "I'm sorry. I'm acting ridiculous," she said with a sigh.

"You can say that again," he mused.

"Okay. I'm sorry. I'm acting ridiculous," she repeated with a smirk.

"You're such a bitch sometimes, you know that?"

"Yeah, I do."

"I'm hoping there will be much more of that later," he said raising his eyebrows up and down.

Cuddy chuckled. "At least let's stop by and see her when we get back."

When they arrived back in Princeton, House and Cuddy went straight to Wilson's apartment. House banged obnoxiously on the door and Wilson opened it with a frown.

"Must you do that every time?"

"Must you be so slow?"

"Hey I was busy." He opened the door wider and Rachel ran towards her mother.

"Mommy!" Rachel yelled happily.

"Hey baby, did you miss me?" Cuddy asked hugging her daughter.

"I missed you this much." Rachel stepped back and held her little hands as far apart as she could.

House rolled his eyes. "We weren't gone that long." Cuddy just elbowed him in the side as she took Rachel's hand and followed her into the living room. When they entered, House and Cuddy stopped in their tracks. House had a shit-eating grin on his face. There before them in the middle of the living room was a small round table and two small chairs. A tea set along with two plates of crackers were on the table.

"Good God Wilson if your dad could see you now," House joked.

"Hey, she wanted to play tea party."

"Mommy, Uncle Wilson likes to play tea party," Rachel said, happily.

"Does he now?" Cuddy asked, turning to look at Wilson with a raised eyebrow.

"I'm never going to live this down am I?"

"Nope," House replied as he stored the memory of the scene in front of him for future use. Then he yelled, "I gotta pee," over his shoulder and limped to the bathroom.

Cuddy took a seat next to Wilson on the couch and Rachel climbed on her lap.

So...how'd it go?" Wilson asked, glancing back and forth at them.

Cuddy let out a deep sigh. Wilson thought it meant things hadn't gone well, but she surprised him when she replied, "Actually, it was great."

"Really? Do you want to talk about it?"

She thought about it. She didn't want to divulge anything too personal. "He's made great progress with Nolan. I never realized what a great relationship they have."

"He's a good guy."

"He is, I like him."

House re-entered the room and Rachel jumped off her mother's lap and ran over to House and hugged his good leg.

"Hi," she yelled to him.

House leaned down and patted Rachel on the head. "Hey kid." Looking at Cuddy he asked, "So, how much have you blabbed?"

Wilson held his hands up in defense. "She hasn't told me a thing, don't worry."

"House, don't give Wilson a hard time because he cares about you."

"Yeah, yeah, so...you ready to go?" House was anxious to start his alone time with Cuddy.

"But we just got here."

"We have things to do woman, places to go."

"Mommy where ya going?" Rachel asked, looking over at her but not budging from House's side.

"Didn't Uncle Wilson tell you? House and I...have some things we have to do so you're spending the night here," she said.

House cleared his throat, looking quite amused.

"Can I come with you guys?"

"Oh baby, not tonight."

Rachel put on her pouty face, which she had perfected over the course of her short life. She looked up at House with puppy dog eyes. Despite the pain he knew it would cause him to kneel on the floor, he did it anyway and brought himself face to face with Rachel.

"Listen, you know what time out is, right?"

She nodded.

"Well mommy and me need some time out."

She cocked her head and looked at him funny. "You were bad?"

Cuddy let out a snort as she awaited House's reply.

"Never!" Rachel giggled at the expression on his face.

"Anyway, sometimes adults need time out too."

"Mommy's gonna make you sit in the corner?" She asked innocently.

"Well...," he said, looking over at Cuddy.

"House," she warned.

"Not exactly kid. We just need some time alone, to talk about things...adult things. I promise you can have her back tomorrow, is that okay?"

Rachel nodded. "Okay," she said and then she surprised him when she came closer and gave him a hug. At that moment, he didn't have to think about his response, it just happened. He wrapped his arms around her slowly and held her to him for a moment. He looked up and found Wilson and Cuddy smiling at him.

"Oh shut up," he said, sarcastically.

Rachel pulled away from him and shook her finger at his face. "Mommy says you should never tell people to shut up."

"Oh does she?"

"Yes," she responded with her little hands on her hips. House grinned at the mini-Cuddy in the making. He tried to raise himself up from the floor but had a little difficulty. Cuddy tried to help him up and at first he put his hand up indicating he didn't want her help but then he saw Rachel watching him curiously and it occurred to him that maybe he could set a better example by showing it was okay to accept help. He allowed Cuddy to place her hands under his arm and help him. He smiled at her gratefully.

"Thanks," he said.

Rachel took House's hand. "Come play tea party with me."

Cuddy sat there amused watching as her daughter nearly dragged the limping, middle-aged diagnostician across the living room to play with her.

Hours later, a freshly showered, pajama-clad House and Cuddy sat at opposite ends of the leather sofa in House's apartment. It was dark and cold outside and they'd built a small fire which was the only light in the apartment. Near-empty cartons of Chinese food lay between them as they watched Mildred Pierce, making comments and bantering over nearly every scene.

"You know, Mildred should have hauled off and slapped the shit out of Veda," Cuddy said. "Every time I see this movie, I keep hoping for that."

"You better hope Rachel doesn't turn out like that," House joked.

"What? Oh hell no."

"Oh hell yeah. You were no angel when you were younger."

"No, I wasn't." She laughed. "But my daughter isn't a spoiled brat."

"Maybe not a brat."

"Are you saying Rachel is spoiled?" She looked at him incredulously.

He winked at her then nudged her foot with his. "I'm kidding. You show her a lot of love. Nothing wrong with that."

She smiled at him. "Thanks."

"You going to finish that?" He pointed at the last egg roll.

"Have at it," she said. "I'm done." Leaning back into the couch she groaned, "I am so full. I will never eat again!"

"Ha! You say that now. You'll be up for leftovers later," he said, his mouth full of egg roll.

"Never."

"You will. Ever notice how you're always hungry an hour after eating Chinese food?"

"Maybe should've ordered extra?"

"Oh, I'm sure I can think of something that will fill you up that's better than Chinese food." He raised his eyebrows at her. "C'mere," he said.

Cuddy collected the containers and put them on the coffee table and moved over to straddle him. He wrapped his arms around her. "I kinda like having you around," he said, eyeing her seductively. He placed gentle kisses on her neck and earlobes, driving her crazy.

"I kinda like being around." She leaned forward, feeling the bulge in his pants. She kissed him passionately and ran her fingers through the hair on the nape of his neck.

"Mmm," she moaned against his lips, savoring how good he felt. One of the things she loved about him was how he kissed her with all that he had. It was like he took everything he felt in his heart-all the things he could never tell her- and conveyed it to her through kisses. She smiled against his lips, thankful that House was a man of action over words.

"Ready for bed?" He asked in that low, sexy, baritone voice that made her melt.

"Oh hell yeah," she replied, kissing him once more.

House stood in front of Cuddy, clad only in his boxers, his hands on her waist, pulling her to him. He kissed her softly on the lips and Cuddy instantly felt the butterflies in her stomach and the anticipation stirring in her lady parts. He abandoned her lips and kissed her nose, then touched his forehead to hers. They stared at one another wordlessly, conveying a thousand thoughts without ever saying a word.

Cuddy wrapped her arms around his neck and met him halfway as he leaned down and parted his lips and took her bottom lip between his and sucked on it gently, eliciting a moan from her. He ran his tongue over her lips teasing her. She opened her mouth wider and caught his tongue and sucked it until she heard him moan and then they resumed kissing. There was no urgency in their kisses, they were simply savoring. When they parted for air, Cuddy turned her head and lay her head against his chest, her ear over his heart. She wrapped her arms around his waist as she listened to his heartbeat. She relished the feeling of being wrapped up safe and secure in his arms. She never wanted the feeling to end.

House slid his hands underneath her tee-shirt, or rather his tee-shirt, and caressed the warm soft skin of her back. He leaned down and whispered in her ear, "A long time ago you said I made you better and hopefully you made me better."

"I remember," she mumbled into his chest. She definitely remembered that moment in the observation room at hospital, when she'd said that to him.

"You do make me better, you know." He kissed the top of her head as his hands continued to glide over her body.

"I do?"

"Oh yeah. You're everything I'm not. You're the yin to my yang," he said, grinning at her.

"So I'm your yin, huh?"

"Yep."

House needed to give his leg a break so he sat down on the bed behind him and pulled her closer so she stood between his knees. She took his face in her hands and kissed him passionately. When they parted, he looked up at her, his eyes full of love and lust.

"You make me better too," she said. "You give me the courage to take chances and go outside my comfort zone. You make my life fun and exciting."

"Really?"

"Yeah. It's actually kind of refreshing."

"You've come a long way baby. I'm proud of you," he said, truthfully.

"Thanks," she replied, blushing. She loved when he told her he was proud of her.

"You know what I wanna do now?" He asked. His voice low and sexy.

"Hmm?"

"I just want to spend the rest of the night naked with you," he said with a sexy twinge of his lips.

"You do?" She smiled slyly.

"Oh yeah," he said, letting out a manly growl as he palmed her ass.

"And what if I don't want to be naked with you?"

House grabbed the hem of her shirt and she helped him lift it over her head, leaving her naked except for her her midnight blue silk panties. He caressed and cupped her perfectly sculpted breasts with his hands, flicking his thumbs over her hard rosy nipples, sending shivers down her spine.

"I can never get enough of these," he said as he licked and sucked every bit of skin he could get his mouth on.

"House," she gasped. He suckled one of her nipples evoking gasps and moans from her. He gently bit one nipple and then moved on to the other. As he suckled her, his hands moved to her panties. He stuck a finger inside her and felt her wetness. She squirmed when his finger entered her and the sensation along with his mouth on her nipple was nearly enough to push her over the edge. He removed his finger and then he reached under the waistband of her panties and slowly pulled them down, letting them fall at her feet. She stepped out of them and kicked them aside.

"Hmm...I think it's too late to not be naked with me," he winked at her making her giggle. God how he loved it when she did that. "Besides, have you ever been able to resist this?" He asked, motioning up and down his body with his hands.

"Absolutely."

"You're a shitty liar, you know that right?"

"I am...and yet you love me anyway."

House laid back on the bed and scooted up on it. Cuddy pulled his boxers off and tossed them aside. She straddled his legs and ran her hands up and down his chest and down to his groin. She kissed the inside of his thighs and ran her hands along them, feeling him shiver under her touch. She took great care to be gentle with his scar as she kissed the area around it. She knew it was sensitive and so her kisses were feather light. She moved up and kissed his stomach, leaving a trail all the way to his nipples where she circled her tongue around each and bit down lightly. House let out a gasp when she lightly bit one of his nipples. He'd always been sensitive there and loved when she did that. She moved lower and wrapped her fingers firmly and gently around his shaft and moved her fist up and down in a slow, steady motion. Taking two fingers, she massaged the underside evoking loud groans of pleasure from him.

"Ohhh God," he moaned, breathing heavily.

Cuddy used both hands in tandem, scaling down his shaft first with one, then the other. She took her time and paid attention to his testicles too, taking each of them in her mouth, lightly sucking, as she moved one hand to stroke his perineum. That was almost too much for House as he began moaning loudly and bucking into her touch. She wanted to take him to the edge but not quite over so she lowered her mouth down on him and sucked up and down his shaft, letting her hands follow as she bobbed up and down on him massaging him with her tongue.

"If you...keep...this up...it'll be...over," he managed to gasp as she licked and sucked his cock. He opened his eyes and raised his head and nearly came at the sight of her bent over him sucking him off. She caught him looking at her and she smiled with her mouth full. He nearly died. God I love this woman, he thought to himself.

"Well then I'll just have to move on won't I?" She replied coyly, then moved her mouth off of him and let her tongue glide up and down the underside of his cock.

"I want to come inside of you," he groaned. He was so hard, he didn't think he would last if she kept this up. Not that he wouldn't mind coming in her mouth but at that moment he just wanted to be buried deep inside her, feeling her walls tighten around him, milking him, until there was nothing left. If there was ever a way to go...he thought to himself.

At that moment, Cuddy moved up his body, leaving kisses in her wake, on his stomach and chest and then when she reached his mouth, she moved her lips over his and sucked on his bottom lip. When he opened his mouth for her, she sucked on his tongue and they kissed deeply and passionately as they moaned their need for one another. House reached down and caressed her thighs and parted her ass cheeks and slipped the tip of his finger into her anus, just enough to hear her gasp with pleasure. He knew it drove her wild when he did that. When she felt his finger, she began grinding herself against him furiously.

"God, you are so beautiful," he told her.

"House...I need you...now...fuck me...please," she whispered into his ear before nibbling on it and moving down to his neck to suck on his Adam's apple.

House flipped them over and nestled himself between her legs. He looked into her eyes as he slid slowly into her. He watched as she gasped while he pushed himself deeper until he was completely sheathed within her. They lay there a moment allowing her to adjust to the feeling of him inside of her and then resting on his elbows, he rocked himself into her and she wrapped her arms around him tightly, pulling his ass against her making sure every inch of him was buried as deep as possible. He leaned down for another kiss and their tongues tangled, their kiss was full of passion and meaning.

"You feel so good to me," he said, between kisses.

"I know...this...is so amazing," she replied, panting. She wanted, needed more of him. The angle of penetration was hitting her g-spot just right. She wasn't sure how much longer she could hold out. She had her arms wrapped around him tightly, hoping the moment would never end.

House watched her movements and was absolutely mesmerized by her beauty. "You are so stunningly beautiful Cuddy. No other woman on this earth compares to you," he said to her without even thinking. Cuddy responded by pulling his face down with her hands and kissing him passionately again.

"God...I wish you stay inside me forever," she cried loudly. Knowing she was on her way to bliss, one of his hands caressed her face as he reached the other down to where they were joined and he began circling her clit. At the same time, he picked up the pace, sliding in and out of her relentlessly. Cuddy began feeling the tingles in her groin spreading as she moved toward her peak. She wanted to hold it and wait for him. She gasped for air and held her breath in spurts and when it hit, she shut her eyes and threw her head back against the pillow and cried loudly.

"House...Oh...Oh God," she cried as spasms of pleasure wracked her entire body. Cuddy arched her back and felt her spine tingle and her toes curl tightly.

House pumped her furiously through her orgasm and hearing her call his name threw him over the edge. As his own orgasm took over, he screwed his eyes shut and his lips sought hers, needing to feel connected at every point possible. Bright light flashed behind his eyelids as his orgasm tore through him, sending jolts of electricity to every part of his body. At that moment, he was completely lost in her and without coherent thought. "Cuddy...Cuddy..., he moaned her name over and over again between frantic open-mouthed kisses and his entire body shook uncontrollably as he released himself inside of her.

They came down from their peak together, sweaty and panting heavily. House felt the residual tingling in his spine and the pain in his leg was momentarily gone. Cuddy lay underneath him, still feeling beautiful aftershocks and trying to catch her breath. He kissed her on the nose, then on the forehead and when she opened her eyes, he took her lips and gave her a soul searing kiss. When they parted for air, they smiled at one another.

"You okay?" He asked.

"Never been better."

Their eyes locked and Cuddy thought House had something he wanted to say.

"What is it House?" She asked curiously.

"Itsuitsu to machinishi hito wa kitarikeri," he said, his eyes never leaving hers.

"What was that?" She asked, surprised.

His fingers caressed her cheeks. "It's Japanese. It was written by a monk named Ryokan in 1829. When he was sixty-nine years old, he fell in love with a twenty-nine year old nun and professed his love for her in a poem."

"He did?" She laughed out loud. "Oh come on House, seriously?"

"Very serious," he said.

"What does it mean?"

House swallowed hard. He was still getting used to opening his heart but it was getting easier each time.

"The one I have always waited for has finally come."

"That's...that's beautiful," she said, her eyes tearing up.

"It's not supposed to make you cry." He frowned at her tears and used the pads of his thumbs to wipe them from her eyes.

"They're not tears of sadness House," she said with a slight sniffle.

He leaned down and kissed the salty drops on her cheeks. They lay there a few more minutes still joined until Cuddy shivered and he pulled out of her and rolled on his back. She slid over to him and he wrapped them in the thick comforter. Cuddy laid with her on House's chest and her left leg over his. She could feel his rapid heartbeat beneath her. House reached down with his right hand and took her left one and held it to his chest while his left hand caressed the soft, silky skin of her back.

"What are you thinking?" He asked.

"I feel so good right now," she said.

"Me too."

"House?"

"Hmm?"

"You think the sex will always be this good?"

"Of course it will," he assured her. He kissed the top of her head and they relaxed into each other. House continued to caress her until her breathing slowed to its normal rhythm.

"I don't want you to go," he said quietly, breaking the silence.

"I don't want to go," she murmured into his chest.

"But you can't stay," he said, resignedly.

"I wish we could."

"We've both got plenty of money. We could quit our jobs and travel the world." He looked at her eagerly.

"What about Rachel?"

"We could leave her with your mother."

"What?" She gave him a shocked stare.

"Kidding. Relax...of course we'd take her with us. She'd have a blast."

"You make it sound so easy." She'd always wanted to travel but responsibilities always held her back.

"It is."

She nestled closer to him, planting a kiss on his chest.

"Do you think you would've ever contacted me if I hadn't written that letter?" He asked, out of the blue.

"I honestly don't know." She thought his question was oddly timed but then again, knowing House, it didn't surprise her.

He lifted his head and looked down at her curiously. "Guess that's better than a no," he said sarcastically.

She moved off his chest slightly and rested on her elbow, looking up at him. "It doesn't mean yes or no, it just means I don't know. I wasn't angry with you anymore, I'd already forgiven you in my heart but I don't know if I would've had the courage."

"You? Please! Lisa Cuddy fears nothing and no one."

"You'd be surprised."

"Oh wait, I forgot about your mother."

"Oh God, she scares everyone." She laughed loudly.

"Now that's true," he said. "Hey," he put his finger under her chin to get her to look up at him. "You're one of the most courageous women I've ever met."

She smiled at him and gripped his bicep, squeezing it to show him her thanks. He did not often give compliments to anyone and when he did, it was something to cherish.

He played with her hair, running his fingers through her soft curls. "So, what do we do now?" He asked.

"Well, I need to get back home. Rachel has school and I have missed so much time at work."

"No, I mean us."

"Us? I'm so happy with the way things are going between us," she said, contentedly. "We've come so far. I'm so glad we talk now. The more we do it, the easier it gets. I just feel so much less stressed." She reached up and planted a kiss on his lips and whispered, "Thank you for trusting me enough to include me in your therapy."

"I wanted you to see for yourself that I was trying."

"I never questioned that. I knew you are and I'm so proud of you."

Her head resumed its spot on his chest and he continued touching her. He could never get enough of the feel of her skin under his hands and she never wanted to move from that place. They lay there quietly, listening to the sounds of silence. He stroked her from her neck down to her ass, gave it a squeeze and worked his way back up again. He felt her relax into him.

"You know...seeing you once every couple of weeks isn't enough," he said, unexpectedly.

"I know, I feel the same way," she replied as she ran her fingers up and down his arm.

"What are we doing to do?"

Cuddy sighed deeply. "Well..." she began. "You could move to Boston and live with us."

Thanks for reading. Love the comments!