Disclaimer: I don't own the characters. They belong to Cecily von Zeigesar and The CW.

First off, I have to say, those that have followed me from story to story . . . thank you. Your words of encouragement mean more to me than I'm able to express.

Here we go again with another series in my continuing story of Chuck and Blair, and their life together. This story is set just a few months after "Starting the Conversation" & "Daddy's Little Girl" & "This Christmas". You might want to check those stories out first if you haven't read them (shameless plug . . . sorry). And if anyone needs an updated sequence as to how my stories fit together (and yes, even though they are written and published out of sequence, they are mostly meant to fit together). I plan on updating my profile soon to plug in the new additions that I have added.

"Only two weeks left, CEO Bass," Blair cooed as he stepped off the elevator after a long Friday at the office. As had been their routine, Charlotte was riding Blair's hip in eager anticipation of Chuck coming home so she could have her daddy time.

Chuck had been counting down the days since he gave his announcement to the Board of Directors more than two months ago. After the Christmas holidays, the board had called an emergency meeting and pleaded with Chuck to give them three months to prepare for his absence. Chuck scoffed at the notion that his replacement needed the additional time, but he conceded to their pleas after demanding that he would be able to leave the office promptly at six each evening and would have all weekends off. He was tired of getting home after Charlotte was already asleep each evening and being pulled into the office during weekend outings with his family.

Chuck smiled brightly as he set down his briefcase and took Charlotte, giving her a big hug and a slobbery kiss on the cheek before he greeted his wife with her kiss.

"How does it feel?" Blair inquired as she reached into the breast pocket of his suit jacket to remove his cell phone, turning it off quickly so that they wouldn't be interrupted.

"Right now, it's exhausting," he admitted as Charlotte curled into him tightly. "I trust Davidson completely with running my company, but the board is behaving irrationally. You'd think I was running away to some deserted island without any form of communication. I've had random board members in my office virtually every day since I announced by indefinite leave of absence. They insist on picking my brain of every piece of possibly relevant information they could possibly need. It's almost as if they've never experienced a change in leadership before."

"I'm sorry," Blair spoke sympathetically as she rubbed his shoulder in comfort.

"I feel like a lab rat right now," he stated as he allowed her to guide him towards the dinner that was waiting for him.

After a quiet dinner and an hour of reading bedtime stories to Charlotte in front of the fireplace in their bedroom, Blair took Charlotte and laid her in her crib in the corner before she pulled her husband to their bed, divesting him of his dress shirt as they went.

"Just think, CEO Bass, in a few weeks time, I'll be the breadwinner in this relationship. Who could have ever foreseen that?" she teased as he lifted her blouse over her head and threw it haphazardly to the floor as she climbed over him.

"You have to go back to work first," he reminded her as he caressed the silky softness of her shoulder as he slid one of the straps of her bra off.

"Not until our daughter is at least a year old," Blair stated as her stomach did a sickening little flip at the thought of leaving Charlotte at home for an extended period of time each day.

"Take your time," he assured her as he sat up and pressed a soft kiss to her lips, "It's not like we depend on our dual incomes for our comfortable existence."

Blair's smile turned wicked as she pushed at he shoulders roughly as she pinned him to the bed.

"Feisty this evening," he grinned as she began to scratch lightly at his chest. "Lucky me."

"Lucky us," she corrected him as he quickly rolled them over as his lips attached to her neck as he began alternating between biting and sucking as he blazed a trail down to the valley between her breasts, still pushed together by the lingerie she had carefully chosen for him before he arrived home that evening.

"Chuck," she gasped into him as his tongue plunged into her mouth as he rocked his hips as he settled in between her legs. The next sound out of her mouth was a groan of frustration at the amount of clothes they still had on. "Take these off," she mumbled as she motioned towards the clothes on the lower halves of their bodies, but found she lacked the ability to do anything to rectify their situation as her hands had mysteriously been pinned over her head.

"Squirm your way free and take them off yourself," he grinned victoriously as he held her wrists tight over her head as she rocked against him groaning in continued frustration.

"Please," she pleaded as she tried to free her wrists. This was a game they had played often, and she had yet to overpower him. Her best bet was to play to his lust and urges for her. "Don't play with me, just take me. You know you want me as much as I want you. I can feel you against me. Why prolong the agony when I am so ready for you? Can't you feel it?"

"Always," he nodded as he kept his firm grip on her wrists as she continued to squirm underneath him. "If you want me so much, break free."

"We both know I can't," she growled.

"Try for me," he encouraged her as he loosened his hold ever so slightly.

"If you want me just as much as I want you, just let me go," she hissed as she tried twisting her wrists but was unsuccessful at freeing herself. "Our sex life is spicy enough that we don't need these games."

"True," he agreed as he alternated his kisses from one side of her neck to the other. She could feel his smirk against her skin as she gave one more crack at freeing her wrists. Just as she pulled free, Charlotte let out a cry. Chuck whipped his head towards their daughter and was on his feet before Blair had a moment to contemplate her options.

"Charlotte, Mommy and Daddy are trying to have sex," Chuck stated very matter of fact as he picked Charlotte up in his arms and held her tight to his bare chest as he rocked her gently back and forth, "And you, Little Girl, are interrupting. You know we love you, Sweetheart, but that is not acceptable."

Blair chuckled as she listened to his stern lecture.

"So, here is the deal," he continued, "Either you fall back to sleep right now and stay asleep until Mommy and I finish, or you can scream your little lungs out in your own room until we're done. Either way, Mommy and I are finishing what we started."

"Chuck!" Blair scolded.

"Her eyes are closed, and she's already falling back to sleep," Chuck spoke softly as he rotated to show Blair that Charlotte was already settling down.

"You cannot give an infant that kind of ultimatum," Blair stated, "Especially our infant."

"And I'd never let her scream her little lungs out in her room," he assured her as he stepped towards the bed, climbing in with Charlotte still tucked securely in his arms.

"What happened to 'Charlotte is not allowed in our bed'," Blair inquired as she took her daughter from Chuck.

"It's only for a few moments," he shrugged, "She's not sleeping here."

"She feels a little warm," Blair stated as she pressed her lips to Charlotte's forehead. Chuck was off the bed and heading towards the bathroom to grab the ear thermometer.

"98.9," Chuck stated after the thermometer beeped its results.

"Barely above normal," Blair stated as she looked at Chuck with slightly panicked eyes.

"I'll call the pediatrician," he stated as he slid from the bed again.

"It's okay, Sweetheart," Blair stated, "Daddy and Mommy are going to take care of you."

Charlotte began fussing in her sleep as her hand began pulling at her ear.

"Chuck," Blair called out to her husband. She was surprised at how worried her voice sounded.

Chuck strolled into their bedroom with his cell phone attached to his ear as he was obviously speaking to Charlotte's doctor. He stopped speaking as he looked to Blair whose eyes were as wide as saucers.

"She's pulling at her ear," Blair informed him.

Chuck gave that additional information to the doctor, and then listened to the doctor's instructions carefully.

"He thinks it's either a cold, an ear infection, or she could possibly be teething," Chuck informed Blair as he ended the call as he kissed Charlotte's forehead. "He said to give her a dose of Infant Tylenol and watch her closely throughout the night. If her fever spikes we should bring her to the ER. He said he'd make sure she has an appointment first thing in the morning." Blair could see the guilt on his face for the earlier scolding he gave his daughter.

"Chuck, you didn't know she had a fever," Blair stated as she caressed his worried face.

"I had her in my arms. She felt a little warm against my chest. I thought it was from sitting in front of the fire early," Chuck stated as he caressed Charlotte's head.

"Don't beat yourself up," Blair requested as she caressed his chest, "Children get colds."

"I should have known something was wrong. I held her for over a minute," Chuck insisted as his eyes filled with tears. "You held her for a few seconds, and knew instantly that she felt warm. I was too focused on getting back to making love to you that I ignored my daughter's illness."

"Stop," she spoke forcefully as she looked deep into his eyes, "Self loathing isn't going to help our daughter."

"I'll take the first shift. Get some sleep. I'll wake you in a few hours," Chuck offered as he took Charlotte from Blair and slid from the bed towards the leather chair near her crib.

Blair watched Chuck with Charlotte for a few moments before she disappeared into her closet to find a nightgown.

"I'm so sorry, Charlotte," Chuck whispered softly so that Blair couldn't hear. "I'll never be that selfish ever again."

TBC. . .

Reviews are encouraged. . .