Chapter 7
Awhile later, Blair woke up, slipped on her robe, and wanted to go back to work at the desk in the corner, but realized that she'd forgotten to recharge her laptop so now the battery was dead. Sighing, she plugged it in to try to revive power, but the power was still a little weak and they didn't have a very good wifi or cell phone signal in the mountains. Yet she tried to soldier on despite her frustrations.
Suddenly Chuck woke up with a start and asked "What time is it?" as he rubbed his eyes and sat up in bed.
"About five, I think. Uh...yeah it's 4:50 pm, why do you ask?" she inquired, nonchalantly.
"Oh shit! And in California...that's what an hour or two behind here isn't it?" he asked, climbing out of bed to search through his luggage.
"Yes, I believe California's about an hour behind where we're currently at, on Mountain Time or whatever the timezone for Aspen and Denver is." she replied curious to his sudden energy. "What's the rush, Chuck? You don't have a business meeting in California do you? Or if you think you think you can Skype from my laptop, I'll have to warn you that my battery needs to recharge..." she added.
"No no...but California is part of my plan for tonight. Can you get ready in half an hour?" he asked as he rushed into the bathroom to jump in the shower.
"Half an hour? Maybe...but it'll be a tight squeeze if I have to wait on you for the shower." she replied annoyingly.
"Well join me then...I'll promise not to monkey around." he replied sternly.
"We'll see about that!" she sighed as she followed him into the shower. Still, surprisingly Chuck did keep to his word and didn't try to mess around and turn it into a sexy hook up. In fact it was very businesslike indeed, although they did end up helping each other a little, sharing shampoo, conditioner, and body wash as if they shared a shower like that everyday.
The two ended up almost comical rushing along to get dressed in the best they'd brought along, which included another fashionable yet slightly casual suit from Ralph Lauren for Chuck, and a Donna Karan cocktail gown in lavender for Blair. The couple were soon back on the Bass family jet to their unknown destination, though surprisingly they were also joined on the flight by Chuck's brother Don and his fiancée, Betty. Through polite conversation, Blair got to know Betty a bit better, and although she thought the other woman was definitely beautiful and well educated so far, she also seemed a little flat as far as personality went and her slight lisp was annoying as hell. Apparently it was her looks that attracted Don to Betty and vice versa since those two could pass for 'Carey Grant' and 'Grace Kelly' look a likes, although even Blair wondered how a marriage between those two would fare in the long run. (Then there was the fact that Betty oddly reminded her of Serena, a fact which Blair viewed as both a good thing and a bad thing.)
The plane eventually touched down in a decent airport in a surprisingly sunny locale, which caused Blair no small amount of joy, since Chuck had actually surprised her with a warm weather vacation. Thinking that they were going for a romantic dinner at a posh restaurant or club in Hollywood or something, Blair didn't think anything of the limo they climbed into as they rode away together to their surprise.
"Oh Chuck, this is so romantic! Thank you! Though it'd be even more romantic if we didn't have those two along." Blair whispered to Chuck as she sat close to him in the limo.
"Ha ha, I can't help but agree. They wanted to come along though, to the surprise, so I couldn't refuse." he replied, seductively whispering back.
"I wish you'd tell me what the surprise is..." she replied.
"You'll see soon enough." he smirked as he playfully grabbed at her knee.
As Chuck said, soon enough was correct, because they soon arrived at a beach location which looked like it'd been set up for some type of event. Excitedly, although with nervous butterflies in her stomach, Blair followed Chuck to the location where they took a seat in one of the folding chairs, rather than stand in front of the increasingly familiar crowd, she realized with relief. When she looked around, Blair began to recognize a number of people she'd gone to school with, as well as the guys that were once Nate's best friends, and a few that recognized Chuck as well.
Suddenly, the music started to change, and instead of the reggae beat from the steel drums that'd been playing before, a woman with a harp and another woman with a microphone took the side spot light and began singing a contemporary love song, while the guys Blair recognized as Nate's old friends Charlie, Anthony, and Jeremy went to stand under the impromptu wooden pergola in the front, where a priest like guy was standing with a Bible. Suddenly the strains of a wedding march of sorts were played, as everyone looked back to see Serena Vander Woodsen gliding up the center aisle looking like a Grecian Goddess or perhaps more like Helen of Troy, in a long Vera Wang gown that had to have been custom made (since Blair had never seen it in any of her catalogs or runway shows) with a bouquet of calla lilies and white orchids.
"So...this is my surprise, Chuck? Attending Serena's wedding to Nate?" Blair asked, nervously skeptical.
"Yes. Surprise, baby. You'll have to thank me later for getting you into this thing. It seems like you have to be nearly a celebrity to get in...though with my connections it was easy. I was surprised you didn't already have an invitation since Serena is your best friend and all." he admitted, smugly bemused.
"Well...let's just say we've grown apart in the past few years...but thanks for bringing me here, Chuck, because I was a bit curious...about everything." Blair replied, unsure what she thought as she took it all in.
"Oh yeah...Nate. You're not still...I guess I should have thought..." Chuck suddenly remembered, his voice icing over slightly as he remembered how Blair always was around Nate Archibald in the past, especially when it involved Serena Vander Woodsen. He recalled the Christmas Dan, Serena, Nate, and Jenny had gotten stranded in a snow storm on their way home from visiting Brown University, the Christmas that he and Blair had spent with Harold and his partner and their twins at their vacation home in Rhode Island, and how Blair's demeanor toward him had suddenly changed when Nate and Serena were added into the equation. He had hoped that time might lessen Blair's childish jealousies toward her friends, but apparently five or six years hadn't been enough. Slightly angry at himself for unintentionally causing drama for his current relationship with Blair, Chuck tightened his jaw and slipped on a pair of designer shades to hide his eyes from the glare of the sun and the likely angry, jealous glare Blair would shoot toward the wedding couple and himself, and to hide the hurt he'd feel when that would occur.
Blair also slipped on her pair of Chanel sunglasses and glanced briefly at Chuck, then at the happy couple getting married in front. She stared at Nate and Serena expecting to feel the surge of jealousy wash over her that she always did whenever she saw them together, and although Nate was still a hot guy that any woman could fall for and Serena could pull off looking as regal as Helen of Troy in that goddess gown, despite the heat, Blair was surprised when the relationship based jealousy she usually felt didn't come anymore. Sure a small part of her still wished she could look like Serena. Tall, blonde, happy, and seemingly flawlessly beautiful, so she was a little jealous yet in that way, but she wasn't that jealous anymore that she wasn't Serena. For the most part Blair was happy with her life thus far, and was actually glad that she had Chuck, who despite being still a little lazy sometimes, was smart, funny, well connected, a bit of a social climber like herself, and was definitely hot and more than adequate when it came to the bedroom...usually.
Smirking to herself, Blair took Chuck's hand in hers and smirked up at him when he glanced her way, his face cracking in a sly grin, happy and seemingly surprised that she wasn't angry or jealous. Glancing at her fiancée, Blair realized that even if he wasn't a golden boy like Nate, the dark prince and corporate executive Chuck Bass turned out to be wasn't a bad trade off. Chuck leaned down for a quick kiss, which Blair eagerly gave him, sharing private moment of mutual appreciation in each other, before they both turned their attention back to the wedding couple, watching as Nate and Serena married each other in the setting sun of a Malibu beach.
After the ceremony was finished, everyone retired to the luxury beach house club where the reception would take place. The party got into full swing then, variating from a classy affair to an all out beach party. Both Chuck and Blair mingled with guests, which since it was a mix of celebrities and their old high school and college crowd. Chuck morphed a bit into a slightly more polished version of his party boy days, while Blair suddenly became a bit more nervous and uptight. I guess some things will never change. While Chuck was loosening his tie and vacillating between slinging investment opportunities, like he was the leader of his own Billionaire Boys Club, and mimicking the latest rock or rap song with the gang, Blair breezed around to hear the latest gossip about who was with who, who was pregnant or trying to, who was getting a divorce, or starting a new career, or moving up the corporate ladder, and so on. Yes the gossip was a bit more mature than back in high school, but only slightly so, since everyone still loved to hear the latest dirt on everyone else.
Eventually, people began to see the rock on Blair's finger and began to ask her about it then. Rain Hoffstetter-VanHeusen approached Blair with a slightly haughty air and commented. "Blair Waldorf! I haven't seen you in ages! You're looking well. New haircut? New job? New man? Or was that Chuck Bass I saw you arrive with?"
"Yes, it's good to see you too Rain. To answer your questions, yes I recently went to my favorite salon for a new style. I've worked at the law offices at Morgan & Associates for almost two years now, with the intent of becoming a partner there as soon as I pass the New York Bar Exam. As far as a man, Chuck Bass and I recently reunited and even more recently became engaged. So yes, to answer your questions, my life has changed somewhat since the last time we spoke." Blair replied succinctly, making sure to less than subtly display her diamond from Chuck.
"My my you certainly are the busy bee, aren't you Blair? Three or four karats from Harry Winston isn't bad." she commented as she noticed Blair's ring. "Well a reunion with Chuck Bass is certainly interesting...but perhaps you two are similar enough to make it work. It can't be any worse than my sister's marriage..." Rain commented as she began to regale tales of her sister's ill-begotten marriage that was fraught with financial, health, and infidelity issues, which made Blair a bit apprehensive about the entire prospect of marriage itself. Although listening to Rain speak, Blair began to wonder if the problems all belonged to the sister or if a few really belonged to Rain and her husband Anthony, themselves.
Eventually, Rain moved on, and Serena came around to greet her guests. Blair didn't know how she did it, but somehow on closer inspection, in her Chloe sheath reception gown Serena came out looking like a life size version of Malibu Barbie, with Nate Archibald as her real life Ken doll to boot. Perhaps the LA lifestyle was settling in a bit too well with Serena and Nate. Thinking of that, Blair had to chuckle as she watched Serena and Nate Archibald wend their way through the crowd. When they approached Blair, Serena squealed in appreciation that her friend had actually made it to her wedding.
"B! Omigod! I didn't know if you'd be able to make it! I couldn't believe it when I discovered through Chuck's inquiries that you still hadn't received your invitations! Although you led me to believe that you and Chuck would be too busy with...each other...to even attend! But I'm so glad you did!" she enthusiastically exclaimed as she gave her friend a hug.
"Well we made it, even though it was a total surprise on the part of Chuck, but not an unpleasant one. My weekend hasn't turned out exactly as I'd thought it would, but it hasn't been entirely bad because not only were we able to attend your wedding, last night Chuck Bass gave me this..." Blair said as she lifted up her three and a half karat Harry Winston engagement ring to show Serena.
"Omigod, B! He PROPOSED? AAH! CONGRATULATIONS!" Serena enthusiastically exclaimed as she examined the ring and gave her friend another hug, nearly squeezing her a bit too hard. "Ah, now I'll have to help you plan your wedding! Have you set a date?" she went on as she wanted to share in her friend's excitement.
"Well..." Blair began, but was soon interrupted by a slightly drunken Chuck Bass, who suddenly came around and slung his arm around her waist almost possessively as he answered the question for her.
"No we haven't set a date yet...but when we do, you two will be the first to know." he suavely said as he stared at Nate and Serena, nearly scowling at Nate as if to tell him to back away, before turning his attention back to Blair. "Miss me beautiful, because I missed you. And this night's giving me some ideas." he insinuated as he began to rub circles on her back and kiss her neck.
"Oh really. Well if you can sober up your drunken ass just a little, maybe I'll consider it." she whispered to him, then added "Play nice now, and I'll be naughty with you later. All right? You needn't be jealous about Nate Archibald anymore...although I love it." as she whispered a giggle in his ear, before giving him a love bite to let him know she was serious.
"Ah so you are serious? Mm..." he mused as she playfully hushed him. Then they turned to greet Nate and Serena again, friendly formal.
"Ha ha you two look cozy. So are you back together again?" Nate mused as he greeted Blair and Chuck.
"Congratulations to you two on your wedding. And yes, Nate, Chuck and I are definitely together again." she said as she held her left hand out, prominently displaying her ring.
"Well congratulations to you two too! Aw man...if we had known we could've had a double wedding!" Nate joked as he spoke more to Chuck than Blair.
"Yeah...that could've been fun...but I don't know what the girls would've thought. I know some might prefer a New York wedding...right, Blair?" Chuck mused, protectively keeping his arm around Blair as they spoke to Nate.
"Oh yeah, Blair and her St. Patrick's ceremony...I nearly forgot!" Nate mused as he vaguely remembered the plans Blair used to babble to him back in high school when she 'planned their wedding' and he'd only half listen. To him now, it seemed so long ago.
Even though Blair was unsure if what she'd told Chuck about her desire for Nate being a 'thing of the past' would be true or not when she stood in this close of proximity to him again, surprisingly it was. She felt little of any of the strong desire for Nate anymore and just thought of him as a friend and a good match for Serena. She still wanted to brush his hair out of his face, partially because he needed a haircut, but she no longer had the overwhelming desire to jump in bed with him and make all of his problems go away. She had Chuck now to be with, and even if he seemed fairly normal, he still had plenty of issues to deal with as well.
They spent a bit longer at the party, seeing off Nate and Serena as they left on the honeymoon, until Blair thought it was best to corral Chuck in for the night before he was arrested for drunk and disorderly...or at least being annoying. Since going to law school and truly realizing all of the ways people got themselves into legal trouble and needed a lawyer to defend them, Blair had viewed partying in a whole new light. She drank socially, but not enough to become an embarrassment to her image or her profession. Tonight she sensed that she had to remain fairly clear headed, not only for herself, but also for Chuck...which was definitely the case when she had to rely on Chuck's brother Don and his girlfriend Betty to help get a drunken Chuck back into the limo. (Although Don was nearly as drunk as Chuck, so in the end it was a matter of Blair and Betty making sure both Bass brothers were taken care of.)
The couples ended up spending the night in a double suite at a luxury hotel in Malibu. The suite had two separate bedrooms with en-suite full bathrooms, and shared a large, common great room with sofas, an entertainment center, a kitchenette, a patio, and its own private swimming pool. The only things that denoted the suite as part of of hotel and not a luxurious two bedroom apartment was the maid service and the fluffy white towels and robes and the little toiletries that were provided in each bathroom. As soon as the couples got in the suite, they each headed to their bedrooms to put the guys to bed. Blair though, had her hands full with Chuck, who once she stripped him down for a shower, sneaked out the door onto the patio and jumped in the swimming pool stark naked.
Blair followed him outside and in a scolding tone, said "Chuck Bass get your drunken bare ass back in the house before someone calls the cops for indecent exposure!" as she hugged the robe she'd slipped on even tighter around her. Even if it was Malibu, California, it could still be a little chilly at midnight in mid February.
"Aw come on Blaaair! Who's gonna see us? We've got our own private pool!" he drunkenly slurred.
"Yeah...but you should still shut up so that nobody hears. And anyway I don't want to see you drown because you swam drunk...or froze off your skinny fat ass." she scolded.
"I don't think anybody will hear...and I'm sobering up see. Like a true Bass, cold water does it every time. Though I must still be a little drunk...coz you're not making any sense. Which am I, skinny or fat?" he teased, staring up at her as he pushed back his wet hair.
"Skinny or fat...I...don't know. Anymore you're a little bit of both!" she whined indecisively.
"Oh yeah..." he looked down as he saw his slightly soft stomach and ass. "Uh...that's just because I've gone a little soft since I was forced to work my ass off at Deep Springs. Man, that was quite the place! You think living in New York is tough, Blair, you should try castrating a bull! Ha ha fun times!" he chuckled, remembering the work farm his parents had sent him to right out of high school because he'd pissed them off one too many times.
"Yeah, well that's you and I'm me. I had enough adventure traveling with Serena throughout Europe and even part of Asia. I thought it was going to be all luxury hotels...like this...but instead part of the time it was people's homes, and a youth hostel or two. The craziest time was when we stayed in a yurt and the family made us pay by helping clean up and we were even forced to milk a yak because Serena thought it looked like 'fun.'" Blair sighed as she rolled her eyes.
"Ha ha ha...I would've loved to see that! It couldn't be any worse than the first time I had to milk a cow. The little lady nearly kicked me in the balls the first time. Damn it! But it taught me how to treat a Jersey girl right...and a Guernsey and a Holstein..." he joked.
"Ha ha, very funny Chuck! Yeah I remember now all of your jokes and stories about Deep Springs. I still can't believe you lived on an alfalfa farm for two years. That's seemingly so unlike you Chuck." she replied as she sat on the edge of the pool in her robe and underwear.
"Yeah...but it was a good experience. Taught me that you can't expect everything in life just to be handed to you all the time and you shouldn't take comforts for granted..." he mused as he stood at the edge of the pool, grabbing at her legs. "...But if you see something you like, you've got to grab it before it gets away..." he teased as he suddenly wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her into the pool, stifling her protests with a kiss.
"Chuck Bass! You sneaky asshole! Pull me into the pool like this! Now I'm soaking wet and you've ruined my underwear!" she protested as she attempted to wiggle out of his arms, but he wouldn't let her.
"Oh but you didn't mind back in high school. Remember if you can back when we were fifteen or so, and you'd just came back from your aunt's wedding in Scotland, was it? I had that party...and we were drunk...like now...and you let me..." he mused as he held her against him, while trying to slip off her underwear underwater.
Suddenly, Blair recalled the event Chuck spoke of. An event she was surprised he'd even remembered, considering the circumstances. She had just gotten back from her aunt's wedding at the Waldorf castle in Gleneagles, Scotland, and had expected a joyous reunion with Nate, but instead he was acting somewhat strained and withdrawn. Still when she learned that Chuck Bass was throwing a late-summer bash at his family's Ninth floor suite in the Tribeca Star Hotel, she eagerly encouraged Nate to go and escape for awhile, and he agreed to go with her. The party seemed to work as everyone became inebriated on alcohol and a few drugs, which led to skinny dipping in the jacuzzi, making out in showers, in the beds, and so forth. Blair and Nate had both kissed a few other people at the party other than each other, but in the end a bunch of the kids passed out in a heap on the beds.
Somehow, Blair had ended up on a king sized bed in her underwear, with Nate, Rain, and Kati on one side, and Chuck Bass on the other side. When she tried to cuddle up to Nate and he uncharacteristically rebuffed her, so in her drunken haze, Blair turned to Chuck for a cuddle, which he gave her and then some. When she felt Chuck's hands caress her ass, she momentarily rebuffed him by clamping her thighs together, and reluctantly refusing. But he was a convincing creature with his kisses and his touches and she was drunk and sexually frustrated enough that she suddenly felt rebellious. So, when he asked again, she gave in and felt Chuck slip his fingers under the elastic around the leg of her bikini to touch her, gasping when she felt his fingers at her moist core. Blair felt a little guilty that she was laying in a king sized bed letting Chuck Bass finger fuck her through her underpants, but she was also drunk enough and his fingers felt so good down there that after a minute she didn't care and just went with it, mewling into a pillow and crying out Chuck's name as she came for him in her first orgasm. In her haze, she'd even let him show her how to stroke him off, giving her a crash course on how to pleasure a boy.
Chuck himself was more than pleased afterwards, because now he'd have two secrets about his friends to hold over them. One, that he knew about Nate and Serena losing their mutual virginities to each other, while Blair hadn't a clue yet. Two, that he'd just finger fucked Nate's virgin girlfriend, Blair, while they all lay in bed together...and Nate was none the wiser, totally unaware as he slept on that it was Chuck Bass himself who had been the one to awaken Blair's sexuality. Blair was a surprisingly sexy little thing when she got going...and something he'd have to look into again perhaps, once she gave it up to Nate. He'd even gotten her to stroke him a little while he stroked her...which in turn became Blair's unconscious reference point to what a teenage boy's penis size and shape felt like...and thus was the reason why she assumed Nate would need 'ribbed, extra large, extra long' condoms when she later bought a box for their first time.
"Yeah...I remember now Chuck. Although, if I hadn't been drunk and desperate and rejected by Nate, I probably wouldn't have allowed you to go that far at the time." she sighed, slipping her arms around him.
"Perhaps...but I know you liked it...because I soon had you wet and panting. I don't know how Nate could sleep through you enjoying yourself so much with me? He must've really been high." he chuckled.
"Ha ha, yeah perhaps. I felt like such a bad girl afterwards...but it was fun at the time...and you certainly taught me a thing or two that night. That you have magic fingers, and what the male anatomy felt like for the first time...and how it likes to be felt. Two good lessons." she mused.
"Indeed...well do you care for a refresher course or would you rather relive old times?" he mused as he slipped his magic fingers under her wet bikini to touch her.
"Well...only if I can do likewise to you..." she mused as she cupped him and wrapped her hand around his appendage underwater.
"Of course...although touching you now is a little more...smooth..." he teased as he stroked her.
"That's because you got to me even before my first bikini wax that first time. You had me au naturale. So which do you prefer?" she asked, seductively.
"Either...because you feel fucking good either way..." he teased as he stroked her and she stroked him, not minding then how much noise they made as they made love in the swimming pool. Afterwards, they ran in and went to bed, collapsing together before falling asleep, drunken and sated, oblivious it was already Monday.