I'm sorry about the major delay in updating. My editor has had some personal struggles lately,and is no longer able to help me with this project. Then I found I'm pregant, and all things fandom got pushed to the back burner for a while. That said, I know I'm not going to get around to editing the rest of the story so I decided to post the rest of it as is. Please excuse any errors you find. As always I love feedback, and I hope you enjoy the rest of the story. There are about 10 more chapters, and I'll make sure to note the last one as final.

Thanks for reading,

Raven

TITLE: Chapter 14 The Dress

AUTHOR: new_raven

PAIRING: House/Chris

RATING: R

WARNINGS: Dirty

SUMMARY: Stacy's in town.

DISCLAIMER: House and his pretty friends don't belong to me.

Chris stopped by House's office, after her interview at the diner around the corner from the hospital. She had a feeling she might be seeing even more of this office. She'd be working early mornings and overnights at Mickey's, and there was bound to be a decent gap between work and her two afternoon classes. She'd had to register before she'd won the scholarship and only taken what she knew she could pay for.

"I got a job."

"Let me guess. It's got to be clerical or housekeeping, maybe the cafeteria. There are too many med students around for you to get one of their entry level jobs."

"It's not here. I can't volunteer if I work here." She sat in the chair in the corner and propped her feet up testing it out.

"You would get paid though."

"I can make minimum wage anywhere. Scholarships are harder to come by." She put her hands behind her head. She had decided long ago, that she loved the chair. Now she wondered if he'd let her nap there.

"So where's this job?" House said absently, he was watching something in the hallway.

"Mickey's." Chris was too comfortable too turn and see what he was looking at.

He looked back at her with a smirk. "We're getting horizontal on a regular basis. You can stop stalking me."

"It's on the bus route. I applied everywhere…"

She stopped when she saw that he wasn't listening to her. He was looking across the patio towards Wilson's office. Then, he got up and went outside. Chris watched as he waved his arms over his head, as if flagging a plane on the runway. She guessed he wasn't getting the response he wanted when he began to climb over the short wall that separated the spaces. Finally Wilson came out. He looked annoyed but not surprised.

"Nice tie."House said.

"I'm with a patient."

"Are you sleeping with..." House squinted to make out the figure on Wilson's couch, through the glare in the window, "him?"

"He's married; otherwise I'd be all over that." Wilson nodded back towards the elderly man that was now watching them.

"So who's the tie for?"

Wilson sighed. "She's a temp I hired to retire some old patient files."

"You never mentioned her."

"If this is how you act when I wear a new tie, why would I tell you about a new girlfriend?"

"Are you sleeping with her?" House cocked his head to the side.

"I'm going back to my patient."

"Wait." House looked into his office and motioned for Chris to join them.

She considered pretending she hadn't been watching them, but her curiosity was stronger than her pride at the moment. "Yes?" She asked as she opened the door.

"How do I compare to Wilson in bed."

She looked from him to Wilson and back again. "Uh, I imagine he cuddles more?"

House turned to Wilson with a smug grin.

"You told him I hired you?" Wilson asked Chris.

"Was it a secret? I read the HIPPA forms I signed; they didn't say anything about talking to House."

"I assumed if you'd known, you would have grilled me about it by now." Wilson told House.

"She didn't want you to find out we made love for the first time on your couch."

"No we didn't!" Chris shook her head

"How can you say that?" House looked wounded. "It was beautiful."

"Nothing happened in your office." Chris assured Wilson.

"I'm going back to my office now." Wilson shook his head and walked away.

"What was that about?" Chris asked House.

"Wilson doesn't want me to know who he's sleeping with."

"Oh." She twisted her mouth. "Do you have a sister, a brother? Maybe he's gay?"

"He'd tell me if he was gay."

"I bet he would." Chris gave him a little nod and a wink. "An ex?"

House scowled, hopped over the wall again, and burst into Wilson's office. "Are you screwing Cuddy?"

"Have a nice day Walter." Wilson was showing his patient out. He shut the door and turned to House.

"I'm not screwing anyone."

"Then why are you hiding it?"

Wilson sighed. He knew House wouldn't stop until he had an answer. "It's Stacy. We're having dinner. She asked me not to mention it. Which is understandable, since the last time she was in town, you almost ended her marriage."

House just grinned to himself as he went back out the patio door. "What are you doing for dinner?" He asked Chris when he got back to his office.

"What did Wilson say?"

"You were right. He's sleeping with my brother. Do you still have that black nightgown?"

"Does your brother want to borrow it?"

"Wear it tonight. I'll pick you up."

"I'm not wearing that to dinner."

"Just wear a dress. If I have to put on a tie I want to see some leg."

She called Rachel on her way to school.

"Can I borrow a dress?"

There was a high pitched squeal at the end of the line. "Where is he taking you?"

"I don't know. It's nice though. He says he's wearing a tie."

"Is this your third date?"

"We've never really been on an official date."

"It doesn't really matter, you already gave it up."

"So about that dress?"

"Of course, when do you get out of class? I'll pick you up."

Rachel explained that every woman had a little black dress. Therefore, one should never ever wear a little black dress, unless they are in mourning. A little red dress could be worn just as easily and never faded into the background. She pulled out two options. They were definitely little and red.

"Not that one. I can't do strapless." Chris pointed to the shorter of the dresses.

"This is a band aid dress." The dress looked like it was made of red ace bandages. "Because it looks like you're wrapped in strips of fabric." Rachel explained.

"I thought it was because I'll have to put band aids over my nipples to keep from being arrested." She took the dress, and walked into the bathroom to try it on, leaving the door open enough for conversation.

"The fabric is super stretchy. That's what makes it fit right. This will work on anyone, whether you're built like Cameron Diaz of have an ass like Eva Mendez."

"Eva Mendez doesn't have a big ass." Chris didn't point out that almost no one was actually built like either of those women.

"Of course you wouldn't think so." Rachel said.

"Are you saying I have a fat ass? Am I the Eva to your Cameron?"

"It's not fat, just big." Rachel explained.

"Gee thanks." Chris came to the door way tugging the hem of the dress as far down her thigh as it would go.

"It's not a bad thing. If you've got to have something oversized tits and ass are the way to go."

Chris looked in the mirror. Somehow the dress looked even dirtier than if she had been standing there naked. "No way, this is too much, or not enough depending on how you look at it."

"It looks great. You need shoes."

"What about leaving something to the imagination? This dress is like an HBO miniseries."

"It's just House. He's seen you naked. He knows how the story ends."

"The waiter doesn't."

"Screw the waiter. House will love this dress."

"I do look like a hooker." Chris agreed.

"Hey! I wore that to homecoming last year."

"Was your bra sticking out?" Chris looked at her chest. The strips of fabric made an X from her shoulders to her hips and her black bra overflowed out of the top of the X.

"Take the bra off."

Chris laughed. "I have to wear a bra, trust me."

"That dress would hold Dolly Parton in place. Just try it."

It took both of them to get her bra off and out of the dress without tearing either. "I can just take it off." Chris offered.

"No." Rachel knew she'd never get her back in it. She pulled at the dress, so that Chris could stretch the bra strap down her arm and free herself. "There, now aim for the sky." Rachel grabbed her own chest and shoved it up towards her neck.

Chris imitated her movement. "This is not going to work."

"Here, lean over. Get gravity on your side."

Chris leaned.

Rachel pulled open the neck of the dress. "Hold em where you want em."

Chris positioned her breasts and Rachel let the dress snap back over her hands. "Ouch." Chris carefully removed her fingers. They both looked at their results in the mirror. Chris wriggled and shook trying to prove that it wouldn't hold, but only managed to make her ample cleavage ripple.

"See," Rachel's face was triumphant, "just don't do any jumping jacks."

The thought was a little painful. "That's amazing. Does NASA know about this stuff?" Chris pulled at one shoulder strap and watched it conform to her fingers.

"I think they invented it."

House showed up about half an hour later. Some of that time went to finding the shade of lipstick that matched the dress perfectly, but most of it was spent on stiletto training. Rachel led Chris through the house letting her practice walking and turning on different surfaces, wearing the red, pin-up girl pumps. They were about to make another practice run on the stairs when they heard the car horn.

Chris grabbed her bag and promised to call with details the next day. She took a deep breath as she opened the front door and strutted down the sidewalk towards the car. She could see House's smile and it seemed to get bigger with every step she took. By the time she got into the car Chris was smiling too.

"Wow." House reached over to grab her thigh.

"People can see us." She stretched the seatbelt under his hand.

"Is that spandex?" He slid his hand under the skirt and tested the fabric.

"Spandex's scary big brother." She felt herself blushing. His hand under her skirt was more discreet than the way his eyes were roaming her body. "Don't tell Rachel, but I'm not wearing the shoes. I've got boots in my bag."

"You can wear snow skis for all I care." He hand brushed her breast. "Are you wearing a bra?"

"Why aren't you wearing a tie?" She had just noticed he was wearing the same jeans and wrinkled button down shirt, he'd worn to work.

House turned the car on. "Slight change in plans, I couldn't get a reservation at the place I'd been thinking of."

"Let me go change."

The car was already moving. "Not a chance." He grinned over at her and looked at her legs long enough that she was afraid he'd hit something.

When they pulled into the restaurant parking lot, House was feeling a little bad, not guilty for lying or anything, but disappointed that she was going to mad at him later and he wouldn't get to take full advantage of that dress. The lot was already packed. He got out and went around to her side while she pulled on her tall black boots. They did not take away from the hooker effect, but at least she'd be able to walk.

A couple, in shorts and t-shirts, walked by as she was getting out of the car. She reached back for her bag. "I'm changing."

"Don't change, you look incredible." House took her bag and dropped it back in the floorboard.

She smiled in spite of herself and let him lead the way. A man in a sombrero held the door for them, and they stood in line in front of the hostess counter.

"People are staring." She told House through gritted teeth.

"They are hoping I'm your dad and they still have a shot with you." House winked down at her and let his arm rest around her hips possessively.

"Why don't you just piss on me?" She rolled her eyes, but didn't pull out of his grasp.

"I didn't think you were into that."

She shook her head and folded her arms around her chest. When she saw the effect that had on her cleavage she immediately put them back down at her sides.

"Wilson party of four." House told the hostess.

Chris stared at him.

"Mr. Wilson, the reservation is for two." The hostess told him looking through her stack of papers.

"It's Dr. Wilson and I am sure I made the reservation for four, because I tried three other restaurants that couldn't guarantee seating for four at this hour."

"Just a second," The hostess looked at her seating chart, and then said something in hurried Spanish to one of the waiters. After a moment the waiter nodded back. "Right this way Dr. Wilson."

They followed the hostess to the table. Chris didn't even look at House until the she was gone. "Give me your keys."

"Why?" House opened the menu.

"Because I didn't get dressed up to screw with Wilson."

"You got dressed up to screw with me." House smirked.

"Why are you doing this? Why tell me to wear…"

"I really thought we were going to a nicer place. This is his favorite place. Hers no longer exists."

"Hers?" Chris stopped when she saw Wilson and a stunning brunette following the hostess towards them. House stood to greet them. Chris didn't move. She was glaring at House. The brunette was glaring at House. Wilson was trying not to stare at Chris, and eventually ended up glaring at House too.

"Chris this is Stacy." House motioned between them. "Stacy this is Chris. You both know Wilson."

The women exchanged a glance that seemed to say "My beef's with him. Stay out of my way and I'll stay out of yours." And then both looked back at House with sour faces.

"House, can I talk to you?" Wilson asked.

"Sure, sure. Let's give these two a chance to chat." House followed Wilson away from the table.

Stacy sat down and they regarded each other again.

"So you're Leg Girl?" Chris asked, sizing up her opponent. Her features were sharp but not harsh. She wore a gray v-neck and black slacks. She was confident and professional. She didn't need to wear a mini dress to keep a man's attention.

"You must be Midlife Crisis Girl." Stacy smiled.

The jab made Chris feel more at ease. "I doubt he'll make it to a hundred."

Stacy nodded. "That's true."

"You're not in town to sleep with Wilson." Chris cut to the chase.

"What makes you so sure?" Stacy leaned back in her chair.

"He's House's best friend. I don't know anything about you, other than not to list you as my medical proxy, but Wilson wouldn't do that to House."

"He's been divorced three times and he cheated on all of them. You think he won't cheat on Greg?"

Chris hadn't ever heard anyone call him Greg before. She'd seen the door to his office and his letterhead, but she hadn't heard it. It sounded casual and intimate. Why didn't she call him Greg?

"You're going to ruin his only friendship? What the leg wasn't enough?" Stacy just looked at her.

"Sorry. That's all I've got on you and I feel threatened. I'm already dressed like a cocktail waitress and you have perfect eyebrows."

"It's a good dress." Stacy smiled.

"It's not mine." Chris gritted her teeth.

"I saved his life." Stacy said.

"Yeah, thanks for that." Chris nodded and stared at the salsa.

"Ten years and you're the first one to say that." Stacy let out a short bitter laugh.

The waiter set a pitcher of margaritas and glasses on the table and they helped themselves. "Are you even old enough for that?" Stacy asked.

"Barely," Chris smirked. "Are you really doing Wilson?"

Stacey shook her head. "I'm getting divorced. Wilson is an expert on the subject."

Chris's stomach churned, and not from the tequila. "So you'll be single."

"I'm not a threat."

"He paraded me in here like a pageant contestant to make you jealous. You'll always be a threat." Chris took a long drink.

"Don't read too much into it. He likes messing with people. This was three birds with one reservation. He couldn't pass it up. I'm not a threat, because I'm not interested."

"You still love him. You'd still want him if... things were different."

"I still hate him too. I want him like a diabetic wants pixie sticks. My blood sugar will be high for a week just from this conversation. Being with him again would put me in a coma."

Chris believed her.

"What about you?" Stacy refilled her glass. "If you're after money, you picked the wrong mark. How did you even meet?"

"I was a patient. He noticed me." She shrugged only a little offended by the money comment. "He makes me laugh and the sex is, well you know."

Stacy let herself remember for just a moment, and took another drink. "Does he still hum?"

"Hum?"

"Not all the time, but when he's very very focused."

Chris's face lit up with recognition and she nodded. "'God Save The Queen'! I thought I was imagining it at first."

Stacy considered this. "With me it was 'Oh Canada'. I think it's like baseball."

They both looked across the room at House and Wilson, who were still talking animatedly and then back to one another. They laughed so loud that it drew both men's attention, and they came back the table. House sat next Chris and across from Stacey. Wilson stood behind the only remaining chair, as if he meant to protest, until Stacy handed him a margarita glass.

"What's so funny?" House tried to study both of their faces at once.

Stacy just shook her head, and raised her perfect eyebrows, as if she had no idea what he was referring to.

"Ooohhhh nothing." Chris stretched out the 'O' like the opening to the song and tried to match Stacy's expression. Stacy snickered.

"How much have you had to drink?" House asked both or either of them.

"How long did it take you to learn the 'Star Spangled Banner'?" Chris asked

He looked at her with a confused expression, but she could tell he knew exactly what she was talking about. She and Stacy laughed. Wilson was just confused.

"'Oh Canada' took at least five years," said Stacy.

"I don't know what you're talking about." House took a drink.

"Maybe he doesn't realize he does it out loud."

"What?" Wilson asked.

"Hums during sex," Chris explained.

"To delay things," Stacy added.

"I do not hum."

"You hum." Both women said in unison.

House closed his eyes, tossed his head back, and sighed. "I tried 'Amazing Grace' in college, but national anthems just work better." He admitted. They all laughed.

"Ugh," Wilson's face twisted and everyone turned to him. "Mindy Starnes? The walls in that apartment were very thin." Everyone laughed again.

"What's good here?" Stacy finally asked Wilson.

Chris was watching House and trying to think of other ways to use this embarrassing information. She wondered if he knew about Stacy's divorce. Wondered what he'd do about it. He broke her train of thought by putting his hand on her knee.

She scowled over at him. "Give me your shirt."

"I'll trade you," he offered.

"I'm cold. You have two shirts. Give me the top one."

He grinned. "We'd all know if you were cold."

She leaned towards him. "Give me the shirt, or this relationship…" she pointed between them "is going to end with even more muscle loss, and I won't start with your leg."

Wilson sucked in a breath, and Stacy smirked into her menu. House's face was a perfect balance of annoyed and amused. He finally rolled his eyes and gave her the shirt. She felt instantly more relaxed with it on.

"Have you tried the ceviche?" Chris asked Wilson, leaning back in her chair and taking another sip of her margarita.

It wasn't as awkward as you might expect. In fact, when House's mouth was full of chile rellano the rest of them had a pretty good time. Chris only felt like a kid, sitting at the grown up table a few times, particularly when the topic of her career came up and they were all encouraging her to go through another eight years of school. House was still pushing med school. Wilson went so far as to mention an oncology fellowship in Boston, and Stacy suggested law school citing that Chris "obviously likes to argue".

When they were done eating, Chris excused herself to smoke a cigarette. She stood, leaning against the hood of the car on the passenger side, when the others came out. House stood beside Chris leaning on her door. The other two stood at the back of the car. Stacy watched Chris's cigarette wistfully, until House took the pack and offered it to her.

Stacy looked to Chris, who nodded. Stacy lit one and handed the pack back to House, but kept the car between them. Chris watched the two of them trying not to react to each other's body language and she was flooded with anger again. He was standing closer to her, but facing Stacy. When he shifted Stacy touched her hair. When Stacey tilted her head, House crossed his arms. It was like watching magnets make each other spin.

They were chatting about the weather. Wilson was attempting to extract Stacy and himself, without rousing House's Spidey-senses. Chris wished the guys would leave, so she could talk to Stacy. She wanted a chance to ask how to avoid her mistakes, how to make this work, how to breathe again if it didn't. How could she be the kind of woman House needs instead of the kind of woman that needs him?

She wanted to ask her things that had nothing to do with him: How to grow up, How to be a woman, a friend, alone? Was she terrified of being alone? Did the cross around her neck help? How did she pay for law school? Where did she get her eyebrows done?

Instead, she said "It was nice to meet you" and watched as the other woman got into the car with Wilson. As they drove away Stacy told Wilson, "I like her, she's going to swallow him alive." But neither House nor Chris ever heard that prediction, and now they were alone. She sat on the hood of the car, and he stood between her and the passenger door.

"What the hell was that?" She snarled at him.

"Dinner."

"I'm not a tennis trophy."

"Tennis would be much more popular." House teased.

She swatted him with the back of her hand. "It's not funny House. Tomorrow, I get to tell Rachel that we didn't have some great, romantic night. That you just wanted me here to make your ex jealous. It didn't even work. She didn't seem jealous to me."

"She was a little jealous." House grinned, because he knew it was true.

Chris huffed at him. "Take me to the house."

"I'm kidding." He stepped in front of her and put one hand on her knee. She batted it away.

"I get that this is just sex. I know I don't matter to you, but you don't get to be mean to me. This was mean. I felt stupid. I'm a lot of things, but I'm not stupid. You made me feel like a complete fool."

"You're not stupid." He moved closer and took her hands in his. "I wouldn't have brought you, if I didn't know you could hold your own, and you did."

"But why did you bring me?"

"I knew I'd have more fun with you here, and you're nice to look at." He watched her shaking her head at him. "I just wanted to know why they were having dinner."

"Did Wilson tell you?" She asked.

"No, I don't think he knew."

"She's getting a divorce." Chris ripped the band aide off, and waited for the sting. She didn't know what sort of sign she was looking for on his face, but it didn't come. He only seemed surprised.

"She told you that?" House asked.

Chris shrugged. "You would have found out eventually. She says she's not interested in you, but …"

"She's not. If she was it wouldn't matter." He looked over her shoulder, taking some of the weight off of his words. "You matter."

Chris frowned at him and watched his face, eventually forcing him to meet her gaze. She didn't want to believe him, but she did. "You're just saying that because you want under this dress."

"That doesn't mean it's not true." He grinned at her.

She resisted as long as she could manage. She might have made it a full thirty seconds, if he hadn't been so damned cute, but a smile snuck across her face despite her best efforts and as soon as he saw it, his lips were on hers.

They shared a sweet hard kiss and he found himself pressed between her legs.

"Take this off." He tugged his shirt down her shoulders.

She laughed and took the shirt off. He ran his hands over her freshly exposed arms and back and dropped his head lower and lower down the neckline of her dress. His hips pushed her legs open even wider and the skirt inched up her thighs.

"We can't do it here." She laughed.

"Why not?" House looked around. They were alone in restaurants side lot. The street lamp nearest to them hadn't come on with the others.

"We're outside in public." She stated the very obvious.

"There is plenty of parking in front now. Even if someone pulled back here, they couldn't see what we're doing." He slipped a cautious hand up her thigh giving her ample time to protest.

She was looking around the lot and at the windowless walls on either side of them. When his fingers reached their target he groaned, and she turned back to him with wide eyes and an even wider grin. She imagined 'God Save the Queen' running through his mind.

"Even a thong would have shown up under this." She explained.

He used his free hand to unzip his pants and then pulled out a condom.

"House?" She looked over her shoulder again.

"No one can tell. It will just look like we're making out." He pressed against her thighs.

"Can you... standing up?" She bit her lip. Mentioning his leg never helped his mood.

"We'll find out."

He grinned and pressed closer, but waited until she inched forward and nodded before sliding into her. Their eyes locked as they found a discreet rhythm. She couldn't believe they were doing this, or that she was so turned on by it. A car started somewhere and she broke the kiss to look behind her.

"They can't see us." He assured her.

She kissed him again.

"They couldn't tell what we're doing… unless you laid down."

She furrowed her brows.

"They still couldn't see, but it would be much more obvious…. if someone happened to look around the corner." He was leaning her back on the hood, as he spoke, and she let him until her back was flat against the cool metal and they were at a ninety degree angle.

She looked up towards the front of the lot and then back at him as he pumped into her a little harder. She shut her eyes, bit her lip, and rand her hands over her breasts until her nipples stood out under the tight fabric. House watched her writhing under him. He moaned, clenched his eyes shut, and came harder than he could ever remember.

She lay panting as he zipped himself up. When he slipped his fingers into her she shot up. "House we can finish at your place" She looked around again.

"That just wouldn't be fair." He let his thumb rest on her clit and she whimpered. "Even if someone pulled back here they couldn't see where my hand is. Just don't scream."

She laughed but it turned into a gasp. "Oh."

"Now if Pedro takes the trash out we're busted."

He grinned as her eyes fluttered open. "Oh House."

"Even if he couldn't see my hand under your skirt, and he could." She moaned and bucked against him. "He'd take one look at your face and know exactly what…"

He didn't have to finish because she was coming. "Oo.." The sound was broken by gasps. She put both hands on the side of the car to support herself. Her head was spinning and her ears were ringing. She just didn't want to fall off the car or on him, while she caught her breath.

When she looked up House was wincing. He popped a couple of Vicodin and opened the passenger side door. "You're driving."

She nodded, feeling more than a little guilty and took the keys. They didn't talk much as she drove, but by the time they got to the apartment he seemed to be fine. He wouldn't let her take of the dress until he'd watched her come a few more times.