A/N: Thanks for the great reviews. I know you want Huddy together so hang in there, it's on the horizon.

This chapter is dedicated to the resident James Garner fan club! I know...shout out to James Garner in a Huddy fic? But really you had to be there the other day in order to feel the love! Here's to you Freya, Amy, Anne and Veronique! Thanks for sharing the love!

Disclaimer (because it's been a while): Given the absence of hookers in this story, it should be pretty obvious I don't own House, M.D.

"Who says I'm quitting medicine?"

"Nobody else will hire you."

"You said that already."

"Because it's worth repeating," Wilson stressed.

"There are other jobs out there in this profession. Besides, I know people," House replied with an air of confidence.

"Of course you do, but...do they like you?"

"Ouch!" House snapped."Words hurt, ya know." He watched Wilson roll his eyes and then he smirked at successfully managing to annoy his friend once again. He knew Wilson, the insufferable mother hen, would not let this go.

"So uh...House?" Wilson asked, interrupting House's train of thought.

"Yeah?"

"Who's Jerry?"

On Tuesday morning House woke before sunrise as was his usual routine on that day. Even though he'd moved his session with Nolan to Thursday to coincide with his Boston trip, he opted to keep his physical therapy on Tuesdays since he'd adapted to the schedule with his therapist. He needed to be sure to make that appointment early because he had another meeting sandwiched between therapy and work. He retrieved his cell phone from the nightstand to see if he had any messages and frowned when he saw there were none. He and Cuddy had both been so busy, they'd only talked a few times in the last few days. The lack of communication was starting to make him crazy. His left arm caressed the empty side of the bed which would have been hers if she were there with him. Thursday couldn't come soon enough for him. Two days, he thought to himself. In two days, I'll get to hold her again. It still freaked him out at times that they had managed to find their way back together after all they'd been through. He vowed to do his best do put his all into the relationship although he wasn't so blinded by love and optimism to think he wouldn't screw up royally at times. He just hoped they had grown strong enough to weather the storm when he happened.

House sighed deeply and rolled out of bed, massaging his thigh as was the case every morning. He thought about the appointment he had in a few hours and what he would say. He knew it probably wasn't smart to go up against the new Dean so soon but he didn't like the idea of Stevens already dictating to him how he should run his department. Reassigning Chase pissed him off and he was determined to make sure that it did not happen. He removed the fentanyl patch from his leg, grabbed his cane from its resting place against the nightstand and let out a loud groan as he pushed himself into a standing position. Once he steadied himself he limped into the bathroom for a bath, shave and preparation for the day.

As the clock struck nine o'clock, House stood at the reception desk in the warmly and tastefully decorated office of Grantham Communications, Inc. in Hoboken, waiting for the receptionist to hang up the phone. When she did, she looked at him and apologized before asking what she could do for him.

"Greg House. I have a ten o'clock with Mr. Grantham."

The receptionist looked down at the leather appointment book and smiled up at him warmly. "Dr. House, yes please have a seat, I'll take you back in just a few minutes."

House thanked the girl and instead of taking a seat, he chose to stand by the window. He looked outside and viewed the people walking along the tree-lined street in front of the old brownstone which housed the offices of the multi-million dollar company. He'd done some research on the man. Grantham, a Jersey native was a former high school salutatorian and athlete. He'd completed double majors in Journalism/Telecommunications and Business at Princeton. House was surprised to discover he'd made his money the honest way. Grantham stressed strong morale at his company with generous vacation time, higher education and training and a good insurance plan. Family was also very important to him. In an article House read, Grantham talked of the importance of being home with his family as often as possible and attending his daughter's sporting events. From what House gathered, Grantham was the kind of man who respected loyalty, teamwork and friendship. Yes, he thought, that could work in my favor.

"Dr. House, if you'd please follow me, Mr. Grantham will see you now." The receptionist interrupted House's thoughts and led him down the hall. On the walls up and down the spacious hallway hung old vintage black and white framed photos of Hoboken. Yes, Grantham obviously cherished his connection with his hometown.

"Dr. House, so good to see you," Phil Grantham rose from his seat to greet him with a warm smile.

"Grantham," House offered his hand in return. House observed the man carefully. He was about House's age, tall with an athletic build, a head full of brown hair with some gray flecks and a slight tan. He wore a dark business suit that was classy but not over the top.

"Please call me Phil," he said motioning to the plus chair across from the desk.

"Only if you call me House. Nice space you've got here," he said as he sat down.

"Thank you. Most people find it somewhat unexpected that I'd rather work here than across the river."

"Doesn't surprise me. You were born and raised here, so were your parents and grandparents. You've got deep roots and strong family ties. Being here makes you feel grounded, gives you a sense of community."

"Wow. I'm impressed. You've certainly done your homework."

"Reading people is part of what I do."

"I can't thank you enough for what you did for my Leigh Ann. I know you're not much of a people person so I'm very glad you returned my call.

"That's a nice way of putting it. And I see you've done your homework."

"I make it my business. So what brings you here?"

"Well," House said, tapping his cane on the floor between his legs. He looked up at Grantham. "I've got a favor to ask."

Around the same time House was meeting with Phil Grantham, back in Boston Lisa Cuddy was in her office putting together the notes for her next lecture. For the first time in days, she wasn't swamped and it felt good just to take her time on something. She'd just finished pouring herself a cup of tea from the pot located in the solid wood hutch in the corner of her office when her phone rang. She became excited at the thought it might be House. She missed talking to him and was subsequently disappointed that the number on the caller ID didn't register Princeton.

"Hi Julia," she said, trying to hide her disappointment.

"Hi Leese."

"Everything okay?"

"Geez, mom's right. Every time one of us calls, you think something's wrong."

"Oy vey. It's a habit. I'll work on that. So what's up?"

"Are you busy? Did I call at a bad time?"

"I'm at work, but I can talk for a few minutes."

"Good because boy, do I have something to tell you."

"What?" Cuddy asked.

"You remember Jerry, right?"

"Jerry?" Cuddy's eyebrows furrowed trying to remember.

"Jerry Rosner, from the bank."

It took Cuddy a moment. "Oh yeah." How could she forget the reason...or at least one of them...that House had crashed his car into her home. "You're kidding right? I mean, it didn't work out the first time-"

Julia laughed. "No, no...Jerry's married now, his wife is about to have a baby."

"Oh wow, that's great." Cuddy couldn't imagine why her sister brought him up.

"Yeah, he's very happy now but that's not why I called."

"Okay, now I'm confused."

"Apparently...House went to see him."

"Wh..what?" Cuddy nearly stuttered getting the word out.

"Exactly, can you believe it?"

"But...why?"

Julia was silent for a moment. "He apologized."

"He apologized?" Cuddy repeated.

"Yep. What do you think he's up to?"

Cuddy sat down. "I have no idea. I guess he felt it was time."

"He never mentioned anything to you?"

"No."

"Well, Jerry said he apologized and it seemed pretty sincere."

"House never apologizes...well not to many people anyway."

"He's got to have an angle," Julia said suspiciously.

Cuddy immediately went into defense mode. "In all fairness Julia, he's worked really hard to try and do better, not just for me but for himself too. Change is hard for him. I know that therapy has really helped and I would assume that trying to make amends is part of that."

"Still..."

Cuddy attempted to turn the conversation away from Julia's suspicions. "So, was Jerry upset that House went to see him?"

"At first, yes because he didn't know why he was there or what to expect. I mean his wife is pregnant and all so I can only imagine. But then House apologized out of the blue and Jerry said that he could tell it was sincere. He said...and get this...House was very humble and forthcoming. When Jerry asked him what was going through his mind when he did it, he just opened up."

"Wow." Cuddy knew the guilt and remorse House felt, but knowing he had put his fears and pride aside to do the right thing made her feel very proud of him at that moment.

"I've known Jerry a long time, he's a good guy and he's also got a very strong faith. His father is a rabbi and he was raised like that. It took him some time to get over the anger and shock, as you can imagine. But from what he told me, apparently House's apology finally let him get the closure he needed."

"Wow. This is really something. I'm so proud of him."

"I still can't believe House apologized at all."

Cuddy smiled, understanding her sister's cynicism. But she didn't let it get to her. "I told you Jules, he's trying."

"So you're telling me that you want me to make the donation on the stipulation that Dr. Chase stays on the Diagnostics team?"

"Yep."

"That's it? You don't want anything for yourself?" Grantham eyed House suspiciously. He was making a very generous donation to the hospital's pediatric unit and couldn't believe House's request was so unselfish.

House nodded. "Oh I do get something out of it, but Chase was a pretty important part of diagnosing your daughter. He's a great doctor already but he can be greater. His time and talents will be wasted in the ICU."

"And how will your new Dean handle this? From what you've told me, he's adamant about doing things his way."

"It could backfire royally," House admitted.

"You've definitely got a set of balls."

"I've also got tenure."

Grantham leaned forward and clasped his hands together on his desk blotter. "How do you know I'll do this?"

"Because you're an honest man. You care about people. Chase helped save your daughter's life and he's a good doctor and that matters to you. You want to see him do the same for someone else's kid."

"You're an interesting man, House," Grantham said, shaking his head and smiling.

"That's not exactly how most people would describe me."

"In my business, I take risks. They don't always pay off but fortunately for me and my investors, often enough they do. You're a risk taker too. I like that," he mused.

"Again, something I don't hear very often." House leaned forward and looked at the framed picture on Grantham's desk.

Grantham noticed House looking at the photo. He picked it up and touched frame lovingly. "You know Dr. House, my daughter isn't even supposed to be here. My wife had three miscarriages before Leigh Ann was born. Three. You can't imagine the pain we went through."

House thought about Cuddy and her fertility issues. He knew. "Obviously you didn't give up."

"No. We were forty when we gave it one last try against doctor's orders. We decided if it didn't work, we'd try to adopt. My wife was urged to abort early when she found out she was pregnant but she wouldn't do it. It was a rough pregnancy at first. She was sick the first few months, then it smoothed out. When she delivered there were complications. The cord was wrapped around her neck..." Grantham's eyes were slightly misted but he kept going. "She wasn't breathing at first, but thank God...well as you know, the rest is history."

"And she's never had any health problems?"

"Never...until the last year or so. Leigh Ann is one of the most vibrant, outgoing young girls you'll ever meet." His face glowed with great pride as he caressed the frame. "She's your typical teen at times but she's a good kid and we are very proud of her. Have you ever loved someone so much that you can't imagine your life without them?" He asked House.

House swallowed hard and nodded. He knew all too well.

"These two...they're my world." He set the picture down gently. Then he looked up at House. "I'll be glad to honor your request."

LOL as you can see, House may be changing but he's still a manipulative son of a bitch when he needs to be! Some things a guy just can't change! And maybe we don't want him to!

By the way, as you read, it's Tuesday in this chapter. Don't forget Huddy reunites on Thursday! Thanks for reading. Hang in there. More good stuff to come!