A/N: Sorrryyyyy, I had a few things to work on before I could get back to this :). This is - obviously - not the end of this long-awaited evening, but I'm going to upload in chunks that make sense to make sure that updates happen semi-regularly. I hope you all like this one! :)
Following House into the open-plan kitchen, Cameron shrugs when he looks up at her quizzically, imagining it's no secret that she'd be curious to take a look around his home. He's teased her about it plenty, and much worse besides.
"So, what other incriminating stories have you been keeping to yourself?"
He asks as he opens another bottle of wine, glancing down at the blonde's legs with a hint of disappointment as her dress once again covers the upper portion of her thighs.
"My story wasn't incriminating. Not for me, anyway."
"In that case, I'd say you owe me two."
"I owe you nothing."
Cameron counters, but she does so with a smile, handing over her empty glass and watching as House tops it up with merlot.
"That's not what you were just implying."
He points out with a grin, and she shrugs, arguing simply
"My suggestion that you not insult me to my face if you're hoping for anything to happen between us this evening was less an implication of debt, and more just sound advice. If you'd rather we keep sniping at each other over wine, that's fine, so long as you keep your taunts amusing, and-"
House cuts her off roughly, threading his fingers into thick waves as he backs the blonde up against the counter less forcefully than he would like to for fear of hurting her hip. Taking her invitation to deepen their kiss as permission to run his other hand up beneath her sweater to rest over warm silk, he eventually steps back when she pushes him away.
"So you are capable of taking advice..."
Cameron grins, cheeks flushed, and she raises the glass in her hand pointedly to explain her sudden rebuttal.
"I like that shirt, it's a nice colour on you. If I spill wine down the front of it, that might ruin the aesthetic."
Placing the glass to one side, she crosses her arms over her chest as she remains standing with her backside pressed against the counter, green eyes boring into blue.
"I reckon I could have made my peace with that. Aesthetic disaster and all."
House replies, appreciating the impish tug to painted lips and raising a brow when Cameron bites back easily
"That seems a little desperate, given there's no need for it to come to that."
"You're actually quite cutting when you want to be, aren't you?"
House muses, in no way sounding as though he finds this to be a negative discovery.
"I can hold my own, I've been telling you that for years. If that makes me cutting, bitchy, snide, whatever, then there you have it."
"No. You're nice."
"I can be two things."
The blonde challenges, and House nods, drinking her in, before stepping forward so that they stand flush.
"I'm beginning to think you might be many things..."
"And if you'd figured that out sooner, we could have had a much better time working together."
Cameron replies seriously, fully aware that she's kicking the hornet's nest, but curious to see whether House has it in him to hold back the acidic vitriol she's accused him of hurting her with so many times before.
"It's probably for the best that I didn't. You lot didn't always work well, but you worked hard - well, you and Foreman - and I like to think I helped in forcing you to grow and to learn. If I'd realised you could handle more than just my mentorship, I'm not sure either of us would still have their job."
"What a line."
The blonde rolls her eyes, chuckling at the greying doctor's blatant lack of humility, and she cocks a brow when House demands
"You disagree?"
"No, I think it probably all worked out for the best. I was more referring to your ego and predictably low opinion of my capabilities, along with your suggestion that our behaviour would reach such salacious levels it would require termination."
"When you first started working for me, I did have some thoughts..."
"Mm? Enlighten me."
Cameron challenges, letting out a choked gasp of amusement when House reclaims their kiss aggressively. Her wry humour swiftly evolves into something else entirely when he slips a hand beneath her dress and cups scant lace.
"You first..."
House counters, raising a brow when the blonde refuses him a verbal answer and instead kisses him slowly while taking a small step to the left to part her legs ever so slightly.
Suggestively.
"When I first started, I just wanted to impress you..."
She replies eventually, her hands travelling up the front of House's shirt before she grabs the counter behind her with a hissed expletive when he pulls her underwear to one side and enters her with a sly curl of his fingers.
Offering a louder expletive, she winces and pulls her arm back into her side with a bemused chuckle.
"Ouch."
She murmurs against parted lips, and when House pauses to determine the cause of her discomfort, she presses against him pointedly and assures huskily
"My shoulder. It's fine."
"Better safe than sorry... And you did want an answer..."
"Hmm?"
The blonde regards her companion curiously, a small crease finding her brow when he removes his hand from the cover of her dress and places it carefully on her hip before doing the same with its cousin. Using his grip to coax her forward, he takes several steps back towards the kitchen island before guiding her to take his place as he steps to one side; pulling at her hand firmly until she gets the hint and rests it flat on the surface of the counter.
"I was a little more forceful when playing this through in my mind, but I think it's best if you take it from here. I don't want to hurt you."
House confides gruffly, meeting her sharp gaze coolly as she studies him over her shoulder before she looks back down at her hand.
"Come on, it was your suggestion."
He grins.
"What was?"
"Bend over."
House orders, curious to see how she means to react. He's half expecting her to snap back with a sarcastic retort or to roll her eyes in the way he's come to privately relish as it seems a little out of character, yet suits her entirely.
"Oh. Right."
Cameron nods simply; her bizarrely calm response earning her a soft breath of laughter that soon dies on House's lips as he watches the blonde do as she's been told; bracing her weight on her right forearm while moving the left carefully to mirror the position on the other side. Spreading her legs invitingly, she glances back over her shoulder and admits silkily
"You know, I'm kind of disappointed."
"You are?"
House frowns, musing that she has a funny way of showing it given the provocative beauty of her chosen stance.
"Mm. I never said anything about not wanting you to hurt me. Not in the current sense."
"I-... Uh... Do you?"
House clears his throat but fails to keep his surprise from his tone, and the blonde regards him levelly, enquiring with false innocence
"Do I what?"
"Do you want me to?... Hurt you?"
"Well, it's off the table now, isn't it?"
Cameron sighs, lowering her head to assume her proposed position so that her hair hides her grin.
Standing momentarily frozen as he simply stares at her, House shakes his head in frustration when the blonde goads him wickedly
"Any time now..."
Running a hand roughly up the back of her thigh to coax the silk slip of her dress up over her backside to reveal black lace, he reprimands her coy teasing with a hard squeeze of globed flesh. He's tempted to further the act with a warning swat of his palm, but suffers a wave of uncertainty over whether or not she'd been messing with him - fucking with him - just now, and is begrudgingly aware that this had been her intent entirely.
"That's a dangerous invitation to make in jest, Dr Cameron..."
He warns, taking a moment to marvel at the flimsy swatch of her lingerie; wondering if she's ever worn this exact set while sitting across from him during a differential feigning sweetness and virtue.
"Maybe that's why I said it."
She points out, laughing softly when House takes the bait and tugs black lace down over the swell of her ass none too gently. She nips her battered lip between her teeth, expecting him to remove his jeans and make the most of her suggestive pose, but then he runs his fingers devilishly over her slick heat before putting them to rough use, his other hand spread possessively over the round of her ass.
"Fuck..."
She mutters through clenched teeth as House finally relinquishes his tentative approach to touching her, and he's inclined to agree as he drinks in the telling sporadic flexing of toned thighs and soft gold that hides the blonde's face. Removing his hand from her ass to gather a handful of the latter in his fist, he applies pressure to his grip experimentally and watches - surprised - when Cameron moves her head back obediently; eyes closed and breathing fast.
"... You said you wished I'd compliment you without there being a bigger picture behind my words; that you wished I'd simply tell you that you look nice. That you're attractive. Desirable..."
House murmurs, leaning over the blonde with little care for the dull ache this position incites from his thigh as he feels her quiver against him, his confined arousal pressed against her backside needfully.
"... You said you wished there wasn't any deeper incentive to my telling you those things, which is a shame, because right now you're all of them, and several dirtier accolades besides, but, as always, I'm looking at a larger picture... I have a motive."
Bucking his hips once suggestively against her, he smirks as she bites back a moan; wary of taking the implication further in case her jerked response damages her shoulder.
Wary of taking the implication further in case she ruins him there and then; her breathing audible - ragged - as her legs begin to tremble.
"Oh, fuck, I-"
But she chokes on the rest, tensing up beneath him, and he lets go of her hair as she bows her head with her hands fisted so tight her knuckles blanch white.
Slowing the rough thrust of his hand, House feels her ride out her pleasure, enjoying the spent flutter around his fingers, before taking a step back to watch her pull herself together.
"Right... Well..."
Cameron offers in a queerly prim tone as she pushes herself back up and teases her dress down to cover her sex. Stepping out of the black lace caught around her ankles, she pays it no more mind as she turns to face House, looking delightfully flushed.
"That would have been a more enjoyable job interview than the one you gave me, I'll agree."
"You're not like that."
House muses, his tone clearly implying that he sees this as a good thing. Cocking her head and studying him pensively, the blonde offers him a small smile as she replies genially
"Neither are you. I've always liked that about you... You can do my head in with some of the comments you make, and sometimes they sting because, at times, I know you see me as a naive joke, but you've never pushed me, not in a lewd way... Even when I might have liked you to."
"I believe I've pushed for and insinuated all sorts of things!"
House counters.
"Yes, but insinuation was all it was... Mockery was all it was, and you could be cruel, don't get me wrong. I won't call it teasing, because it cut deeper than that, but, you joked earlier that what you'd once fantasised about doing might have cost us our jobs... You've never made me feel like I might lose mine for refusing your crass requests."
She shrugs, and House swallows, struck by her words as he often is when sharing a drink with Cuddy when she's hinted at similar unwanted advances suffered during her career. The same anger that builds in his gut when conversing with the Dean raises its troubled head now, and he offers the blonde a small nod of understanding.
"I told you, already. I make the comments I do because your response amuses me... I shouldn't, I know. Not just from a professional standpoint, which, let's be honest, we both know would do little to stop me, but because I know how you feel - how you felt - about me, and it's cruel. I would never expect anything from you."
"I know."
"... That said, following that little performance, I'm certainly hoping for several things from you."
House admits gruffly, earning himself a small grin as Cameron reaches for her wine.
"Yeah?"
"Maybe."
"Mm."
She replies noncommittally, taking a sip of merlot as she catches the strained pull to dark denim before looking back up with a smirk.
"Like what?"
"You can start by taking the sweater off. Now that you're warmed up."
"...Warmed up?"
Cameron repeats silkily, holding House's gaze with equal fire."
"Aren't you?"
He challenges, and she stares him down silently for a moment before removing grey wool and letting it fall to the floor on top of her underwear.
"That really depends on what more you expect from me..."
She replies with a twitch of her lips.
"I expect nothing, I told you."
"But you'd like several things."
She plays his words back to him, enduring his intense scrutiny as he drinks in slender arms, pale skin, and the low cut of her dress.
"The list is growing."
He agrees, beckoning for her to follow him back to the sofa.