I'm back on schedule now and should be able to post a chapter every Saturday until this story is over. It's approaching 200,000 words, so I probably should end it soon, but not before House solves all of his puzzles.

I enjoyed writing this chapter. Hope you enjoy reading it. Leave a comment if you wish.

Chapter 137.

I didn't reply to Wilson's question. Instead, I steered the conversation to a new topic, Jess and Nina's first event.

"Jess asked you to attend?" he sounded both surprised and jealous.

"No. Said I'd be bored, although I could console myself with the food they served. No, but she did invite me to a later party, one where I'd blend in better, and could listen to the comments from the attendees."

"A kind of shill." He smiled.

"You could say that. More of an observer." I bit into my burger and chomped on it.

He took a bite of his own roast beef sandwich and chewed his usual hundred times. "As long as you support them," he said once he swallowed.

"Of course I support them. Nothing makes me happier than to see Jess happy and excited about something." I leered. "Especially excited."

His eyes rolled toward the ceiling.

"You should come along." I took another bite.

"What kind of party is it?"

"An engagement party."

He blanched.

"What? You don't like those?"

His narrowed eyes bored into me. "House, don't you think she's hinting at something, inviting you to someone else's engagement party?"

It was my eyes turn to roll. "Jess and I have talked about all of that sort of thing. We're happy with the way things are. I think you're projecting your fears on me. Are you worried that Nina wants you to propose?"

His expression gave him away. That was exactly what he feared.

"Afraid to commit?" I smirked. "Just because your first three marriages failed doesn't mean a fourth will." I wondered if that had something to do with his flirting with Marisa. "You love Nina too much to cheat on her, and the same goes for Nina."

"I know, intellectually, but every time I think about asking her, I also think about each of my former wives along with how those relationships ended." He looked at his sandwich with distaste and put it down. "House, you can give me all the advice you want, but you've never been in this situation."

"Me? I've never had a relationship that lasted long enough to even get to the asking phase."

"Except you were with Stacy for longer than any of my marriages lasted."

"And you were there to see how that ended." We probably looked like the two saddest men in the room. Not a state I wanted to continue, so I changed the subject slightly. "On the other hand, care to wager how long it'll take Marcello and Cuddy to get together."

He forced a chuckle. "Since I don't know the man, I haven't a clue."

I shrugged. "He's Italian. What more do you need to know?"

That got a laugh out of him. "Okay, I'd say a month. Twenty bucks."

"Last of the big betters." I smirked. "Two weeks, and let's make it fifty."

He actually thought about it before agreeing. Guess he was learning that I usually put my money on sure things, but he also knew Cuddy and what a hard sell she could be.

We went back to eating our lunches, but the subject of Wilson and Nina's relationship wasn't closed and we both knew it.

After lunch, I hung around the lobby waiting for the Locarnos. I wanted to be the one who took Marcello into Cuddy's office, and I was also curious about whether I could spot the men guarding them.

At one on the dot, uncle and nephew came through the doors, two well-dressed and -groomed men. Ricky smiled as he came toward me.

"Dr. House, it's good to see you again." I usually avoid shaking other people's hands, but when he held his out, I took it.

Marcello wasn't so informal. "Good afternoon, Dr. House. Can you show me the way to Dr. Cuddy's office?" He was doing a fair job of hiding his anxiety.

"That's why I was waiting for you. This way." I pointed with my cane, then started in that direction.

"I've never been here." Ricky looked around as we walked.

I wondered where they took him after his car accident. "Hopefully, you'll never have to be. I'll give you a tour while your uncle is talking to my boss."

We reached Cuddy's office. Her receptionist du jour looked up as we approached. "This is Marcello Locarno. He has an appointment to see Dr. Cuddy."

"Of course." She knocked on Cuddy's door although the she-witch could see us through the glass, and opened it for Marcello.

I waited to watch their first encounter. Their wary but admiring glances boded well, so I turned to Ricky. "C'mon. You might be interested in the way we've used all the space in the building." I'd decided on an approach that would appeal to him as a real estate salesman. We walked through the first floor and I showed him the cafeteria, the classrooms, and office space down there. When we returned to the lobby, I pointed out how you could stand on the balcony above and watch the goings on below.

"Wanna see my office and some patient rooms?" I asked casually.

"Sure, why not."

We took the elevator to my floor. The conference room was empty, probably a good thing.

"I like the glass walls, but don't the patients feel more vulnerable with strangers being able to see into their rooms?"

I smiled. "C'mon. Let's go ask a few."

Of course, the first room I took him to was Marisa's. I smiled before I slid the door open. She was awake, sitting up and reading a magazine. "Hi, Marisa. This is a friend of mine, Ricky Locarno."

I could practically see each of them take on a glow. Did I know who would be attracted to whom or not?

When he finally regained the ability to speak, Ricky said, "Hello." Brilliant conversationalist he wasn't, but usually he could manage more than that.

"Hi." She beamed at him.

"You were going to ask her whether she minded the glass walls," I prompted.

"Uh, oh, yeah. Marisa, do you?"

She pulled her eyes off him and looked at the walls and door, then shook her head. "It's not a problem."

He smiled. "Right."

I could have left and neither of them would have noticed, but Taub picked that moment to come in. "House, glad you're here. We've got some more results for Marisa."

I looked at the short one. "Let's go over them in my office. Ricky, can I leave you here? I'll be back soon."

But Ricky's attention was on the pretty songstress. I left with Taub, retracing my steps to my office.

"So, whadda you got?" I took the file from Taub and flipped it open to the latest results. And frowned. "Her electrolytes and white blood counts were stable before. What happened?"

Taub shook his head. "Something triggered this change but, considering she was in a fairly controlled environment here at the hospital, she was off those supplements her boss was feeding her, and Wilson hadn't really started his treatment, that 'something' is a mystery."

"Tell me a fact I don't know." I turned back a page or two, carefully studying the list of meds we'd given Marisa. Nothing there could have caused the decrease in potassium and the increase in erythrocytes. "Besides the team and Wilson, who's been in to see her?"

"Her boss visited yesterday, just before dinnertime. He didn't stay long and he didn't give her anything. We checked."

I pursed my lips. It didn't have to be something he gave her, like pills. "Did he seem alright?"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean was he coughing? Sneezing?"

"I didn't notice. Why? House, even if he gave her a cold it wouldn't explain the drastic change."

"Not a cold, or even the flu." I closed the file and returned to Marisa's room. She and Ricky were talking quietly and smiling at each other. I almost hated to drag him away. "We should head down and see whether Marcello is finished with Cuddy."

Ricky took some time to refocus on me. "Sure. Marisa, I hope they find out what's wrong with you. I'll be back to visit, alright?"

She looked a whole lot better than before his visit. "I'll look forward to it." Her grin made her prettier than ever.

I left Taub to question her about her boss' visit and took Ricky back to the lobby. Marcello stood in Cuddy's doorway, shaking her hand. They were both smiling, a good sign, but I'd have to speak to each of them and get their takes on how their meeting went.

I approached them with Ricky trailing behind. "Guess you're done."

Marcello turned to us. "For today. But I'll be back for the next board meeting on Wednesday."

"It was a pleasure meeting you, Mr. Locarno. I'll see you then." Cuddy turned and reentered her office.

"Would you both like to check out our cafeteria before you go?" I asked.

Marcello shook his head. "Not today, House, but thanks. We do have a business to run. Thanks, Dr. House."

"What are you thanking me for?"

"You were right about Dr. Cuddy. That's one sharp lady. It'll be good working with her."

Ricky hadn't said a word as his uncle and I talked, but he had to add, "I'll be back, too. That patient of yours is a lovely lady."

They left the hospital two happy men. Now that I'd introduced Ricky to Marisa, I hoped we'd be able to cure her. Would anyone think I was getting too soft, worrying about other people's happiness? Or would they realize I had other motives for what I was doing? Certainly, Jess would understand. Wilson had been questioning my actions, but he and my team knew I always had complicated reasons for everything I did. They were all that mattered.

Before I could escape to my office, Cuddy cornered me at the elevator. "You didn't tell me Marcello Locarno was so good-looking."

"Is he?"

"House, don't act surprised." She swatted at me with a file, but she was smiling. "I rarely say this, but thank you."

"What did I do now?" The accomplishment would be so much sweeter if she told me.

"Locarno is perfect for the board, so much better than Peter Giordano. Thank you for arranging that, for encouraging his father to send him."

I tried to turn her good mood to my advantage."Guess that means all those clinic hours I owe you can be wiped out."

"What does one thing have to do with the other?" She pursed her lips. "Okay, don't say I never compromised with you. I'll cut them in half."

That meant I owed her thirty hours instead of sixty, hours I had no intention of working. "Wow! I can't believe your generosity."

"House, quit while you're ahead." She started to walk away.

"Was that file for me?"

She looked at the papers in her hands and then at me. "I don't think so. I understand you still haven't diagnosed your patient."

"That's Wilson's fault. He appropriated her for a while. We'll have her case solved before the day is out."

But as I got into the elevator and hit the button for my floor, I wondered if I would.