Now What? - Recap

In the aftermath of the accident, House and Cuddy kiss. Cuddy then takes off House's shirt to check his injuries. She then removes his pants and examines his old leg injury over his objections. Cuddy tells him that she loves him and kisses it. Houses undresses her, they kiss, and he carries her to bed.

The next morning, they wake up in bed and House wonders what's next. She insists that it's all good and they don't have to talk through things, but he wonders what they should do that day. She wants to go home, get dressed, and go to work. Cuddy's phone rings and House realizes it's her new assistant, Alex. House answers it and claims that Cuddy is sick and won't be coming in. Alex tries to explain that Dr. Richardson threw up in the OR. House tells him to deal with it on his own and hangs up.

The team meets and Taub tries to focus on a new case. Foreman worries that House might have trouble dealing with the death of his patient. Chase admits that he secretly read Hadley's letter of resignation, and Foreman admits that he ripped it up. They want to know why she's resigning but she doesn't want to discuss it.

House and Chase are cleaning up when her phone rings again. She wants to take it but House insists that they're more important than what's going on at the hospital. He suggests they keep the morning for themselves. She agrees and he thanks her. He figures that she has to focus on the hospital no matter what. Cuddy admits that there are several problems. One of them is that their only neurosurgeon, Richardson, has to stay on-site so they can maintain they're Level 1 Trauma Center status. If they don't have that status, they have to transfer all of the patients out of the ICU. He tells her he's going to make her a magical bath and ushers her out. Once he's alone, he calls Chase and tells him to pretend to be a neurosurgeon. As they talk, House dumps everything in the bathroom into the bathwater. When Chase objects, House tells him to divert any emergencies to other hospitals. When Chase asks where he is, House hangs up.

Foreman goes to see Hadley and ask why she's going to Rome on a flight the next day. He figures she's going to a clinic that is doing Huntington's trials. He warns her that it's dangerous and insists that he's worried about her, but Hadley objects to her invasion of privacy and walks away.

House and Cuddy take a bath together, and he wonders if they're both overreacting because they lost a patient. He wonders why she's becoming impulsive, and Cuddy tells him not to overanalyze things. They realize House's secret bath is burning their genitals and quickly get out.

Foreman and Chase confront Alex, who is worried about finding a neurosurgeon. Chase claims he's a neurosurgeon but knows better, since Cuddy told him not to believe anything they say.

House serves breakfast but soon realizes that Cuddy doesn't want to stay. He explains that he can tell when she's lying and knows her tell. House then goes to the bathroom and takes Chase's call, and Chase tells him that Alex told the DPH that they have no neurosurgeons. House leaves him to deal with it and goes back to Cuddy.

The team tries to find neurosurgeons without success, and wonder if House is testing them. They wonder whether to report it, or try to cover it up. Hadley suggests they go to see Richardson and make him better. Chase ends up going with her.

House decides to celebrate their relationship by cutting open a bottle of champagne with a sword. It doesn't go well. Wilson starts knocking on the door. They try to hide, but Wilson calls and hears House's cell phone ring. House pretends to be his answering machine and claims that Cuddy gave him the day off, and he's coping fine with the loss of his patient. Wilson says he'll come back the next day.

Hadley and Chase talk to Richardson, who is violently ill from bad sushi. When he admits he treated himself without success, they wonder if it's something other than food poisoning. They offer to give him a risky drug to make the symptoms go away, and he agrees.

After another round of sex, Cuddy accuses House of hiding her from Wilson. She insists that she doesn't want to hide their relationship, and then wonders if House is ready.

While they wait for Richardson's medication, Hadley and Chase play chase and figure if there are any side effects, they can treat him at the hospital. Chase doesn't want to discuss her Huntington's, but asks if she wants to have sex with him since she's leaving. Richardson comes in, seemingly cured. However, he is soon obsessing about a shiny lamp and acting high.

House decides to film him and Cuddy having sex together so he can send it to Wilson as proof. They hear someone breaking in and House goes to investigate. He finds Wilson trying to climb in the window and stuck halfway through. House fixes tea and claims he's relaxing, but Wilson doesn't think he's fine. When that doesn't work, House says he's having sex with his girlfriend and finally helps Wilson inside. House finally says that he and Cuddy are an item, but Wilson figures that he's hallucinating again. House takes him to the bedroom, but there's no sign of Cuddy. Wilson checks House and confirms he's not on drugs, and wonders why he apparently lied. House claims he was just making a point and tells Wilson to go. Once Wilson leaves, House checks and finds Cuddy hiding in the closet.

Richardson is clearly high and Taub tells Alex they can cure him before the DPH inspector gets there. Taub then asks Hadley how long she's going to go, and tells her to take the risk so she doesn't die.

Cuddy figures that House can't be pressured into going public. In response, he offers to play her a game of Boggle.

Malkin, the DPH inspector, arrives. Chase tries to bluff by claiming Richardson is in surgery. Malkin doesn't buy it and wonders why Alex reported that Richardson was gone. Alex lies and claims he misunderstood. They almost get away with it, but Richardson staggers out of the OR and strips off his clothing. Malkin figures that he's stoned and orders them to shut down the ICU and ER.

Cuddy and House play Boggle and discuss why House can't say he loves her after she said she loves him. He insists he can't say it, but he does spell it out on the tiles.

As Malkin oversees the patient evacuation, the team tries to diagnose Richardson. The lab results are negative but Richardson's behavior gets worse. Foreman suggests that the delirium and nausea are symptoms of an underlying condition. Richardson admits that he snuck out and went to a seafood festival. Hadley figures he ate roe, causing his illness. Once they administer the fast-acting antidote, they can present him as the hospital's neurosurgeon.

Cuddy talks about a trip to France and House prepares to buy tickets. He suggests they just drop everything and leave, but Cuddy wants to stay and take care of her daughter. House wonders why she can impulsively break off her engagement, but not change her schedule. Cuddy reluctantly agrees to go in two weeks, once she has a chance to make arrangements for Rachel.

As Hadley gives Richardson the antidote, Foreman apologizes for violating her privacy. He offers to go with her as a friend, and she thanks him for the gesture. However, she says that she'll go on her own.

Cuddy thanks House for everything and starts to go. He stops her and says that their relationship can't work. He warns that she'll eventually remember all of the horrible things he's done, and realize he's an insane choice for a woman with a kid.

Chase and Hadley bring Richardson in and he acts normal, passing Malkin's tests. The inspector tells them to bring the patients back. As Chase leaves with Hadley, he suggests that she didn't make it clear when she refused his invitation to sex. Hadley very emphatically tells him no and hugs him, and he points out she's giving him mixed signals.

Cuddy figures that House is afraid because he feels happy, and assures him that she wants him just the way he is. She tells him he'll always be the most incredible man she's ever known, and tells him that she's going home. House says that he loves her.

Chase and Taub find Foreman alone with the cake. He tells them that he confirmed Hadley wasn't scheduled for surgery in Rome, and the clinic has never heard of her. Hadley has been lying to them all day, disconnected her phone lines, and disappeared.

Cuddy tells House that everything will be fine and goes. Outside, she looks nervous... and inside, House also looks worried.

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