Chapter 29
Blair began to wake up the next morning, realizing that sometime in the night her husband must've helped her to bed. He still lay beside her. In fact --- she tried to move and soon felt him --- he practically was in her again. This made moving to get up rather awkward.
She watched him. He lay on his side facing her, bodies pressing against each other chest to chest and hip to hip, an arm and a leg thrown possessively around her. The lines around his face had smoothed and he looked young, his brown hair tousled like a boy's. Reaching a hand out, she lightly caressed his cheek and the lines of his jaw, remembering the times when she'd done that after they'd made love back when they were still in high school and she'd touch him like that after he'd fallen asleep.
He opened his eyes and focused on her, his gaze darkening with awareness. He was silent, his eyes traveling across her face and down her body. She couldn't believe the vulnerability she felt in that moment, as well as compassion for him. He raised his hand to trace her face and draw her nearer to him, until they were pressed nose to nose and she could feel his breath on her as he looked her in the eye. He only closed his eyes at the last minute when he began to kiss her, his mouth soft and lazy in the morning as his lips moved slowly and erotically on hers. She could feel his morning stubble, a light contrast to his lush mouth, but she didn't mind.
She could feel him become large and pressing against her, as he rolled over onto her and thrust himself inside of her again. He levered himself above her, cradling her in his hands as he surrounded her , hard, male, possessive, yet protective. He positioned her hips so that she fit around him better, as she felt his the tickle of his chest hair on her nipples, in this terribly intimate round of love making. Even though she loved it, sometimes this intimate love making was unsettling because it exposed her and left her open to reveal things she would rather keep hidden. She wasn't even aware when she began desperately sucking at his mouth as he deepened the kiss and drew her leg around his hip until she could feel all of him against her and in her.
She gasped as she felt this leisurely and thorough round of sex he gave her because it seemed to lay bare her soul and his as well. She knew that he had turned the tables a bit on her and was exposing both of them, but not getting to the matter of talking to her about his issues, like she thought he needed needed to. Instead he exposed his feelings through making love with her, hitting her most sensitive points with deadly accuracy until she was left opened and exposed to him, exposing all of her own insecurities to him as well. It was then that she began to cry out at the emotions he wrought from her as she came, and noticed when he was gritting his teeth and trembling as he became as undone as he'd made her feel, and released his seed. Afterwards, he just collapsed on top of her, as they held each other in that intimate moment.
Blair hadn't realized she'd fallen asleep again, until noticed that Chuck was no longer in bed with her and their shower was running. Believing that their intimate round of love making that morning had meant that he wanted to be more open with her about his emotions in dealing with the issues concerning his mother and Jack, she slipping into the bathroom and then the shower with him. He was just standing under the spray with his back to her, as he washed himself off, so he was surprised when he suddenly felt her arms wrap around his body and her hands caress his chest, but he didn't mind too much.
"Mmm...hello my love...do you need any help in here? I know how you sometimes like my assistance when you wake up with a certain problem...and ask me to help you find a solution at hand." she teased as she went to playfully grab at him.
"Well I hadn't...but since you're available...you really wouldn't mind?" he seductively inquired.
"Of course not! I was coming in to thank you for this morning anyway...so since we're in the shower...I thought we could talk and..." she subtly suggested as she grabbed at him and gave a stroke with her hand to him.
They kissed and touched each other for a while, much foreplay in the shower, but when she tried to get him to talk, he clammed up, so she just held held him in a hug for awhile in the shower as he sorted out his emotions.
~o~o~o~o~
The next several days went on as they usually did for them. The issues with Chuck's mother didn't resolve themselves right away, especially since Evelyn became involved with other issues and Chuck poured himself into some issues his business was having, thus no more meetings could be scheduled with her. Instead, he scheduled meetings with several business clients from other companies in which he wanted to invest in as a way to expand Bass Industries investment portfolio.
One sales representative who insisted on a meeting with Chuck Bass was guy named Fuston "Irish" Sanders, who was one of the sales men for the Soaring Eagle software development company and his intention was not only to get Chuck to invest in the company he represented, but also to market the functionality his software could provide for Bass Industries. With opportunities in mind, Irish arranged to meet Chuck in the restaurant at the Palace Hotel at 11:30 am, so that it could be considered a lunch meeting and Chuck agreed to it.
At 11:30 on the dot, Chuck walked into the restaurant sauntering in wearing one of his Saville Row designer suits, a gray pin stripe that Blair and a few others always complimented him on when he wore it. His Italian leather shoes made nary a sound as he crossed the carpet after spotting the upper middle aged man in the gabardine suit sitting at a table across the restaurant. Extending his hand in greeting, he stood there for a moment as the older man rose and extended his hand, giving him a firm handshake as he greeted him with "Hello Mr. Bass, Irish Sanders here. It's great that you were willing to meet with me and learn more about my company, Soaring Eagle Incorporated and what we can do for you. But first things first, tell me more about yourself. Wife? Kids?"
Chuck replied nonchalantly saying "Hmm...yes. I have a wife and a baby on the way. She certainly keeps me busy..." as he went on to answer most of Irish's other questions, before the salesman launched into his spiel about the history of the software company he worked for and the many ways having their developers build a website with various online components built in could improve the overall revenue of Chuck's various hotels and Bass Industries overall. However after a few drinks, the salesman became into his cups and admitted something aloud.
Chewing on his gin-soaked olive from his martini, Irish admitted. "Let me tell you something...I'm gonna have another one of these...you with me? Good. Okay Chuck, let me tell you something. I'm not really interested in creative ends or production ends or who controls the distribution of what. I'm interested in one thing and one thing only: selling computer software to the American businessman. Chuck, a lot of people tend to look down on plain old-fashioned selling today, but let me tell you something. Back when I was first breaking into the field of sales, and older salesman told me something that I can still remember to this day. 'Irish, everything is selling' 'Nothing comes into or out of this world if it wasn't for a sale.' 'You don't believe me son? Well, where in the heck would you be if your father wouldn't have sold your mother a load of goods?' Ha ha ha, now isn't that the truth, son? And I bet it was the same way with you and you wife...wasn't it? Ha ha ha!" he wryly laughed aloud.
Chuck just sat there nodding his head in agreement as he only half listened to the salesman's diatribe as Chuck fidgeted with his fingers and began tearing at a loose strip of skin along his thumbnail while the salesman talked and mopped his brow with a handkerchief. This moment sitting in the restaurant of he htel, listening to the mumbled shop talk of other executives throb in a pulse of its own under the clash of knives and forks, brought back memories to Chuck of another time when he had attended one of his father's executive luncheons with him and recalled how similar the atmosphere then was to the present one.
Back when he was ten, he'd accompanied his father Bart on one of his executive luncheons because his father had promised to take him to a Yankees game afterwards, especially since his father had been scheduled to meet with George Steinbrenner, however Steinbrenner had sent another man in his place instead. This other man, ironically also named George, was a short, balding, bespectacled fellow with an annoyingly sarcastic attitude. The seats he'd gotten them weren't the best seats and Chuck had spent most of the game bored because the game ran long, no one got a home run, and he'd spent most of the game with the sun in his eyes, which had given him the first of his many headaches he'd developed over the years, and he'd nearly wet himself from not knowing where the restrooms were and had been afraid to ask his father. In the end, Chuck remembered most the way his father scolded him for failing to thank their host for the nice time, and the look of exhaustion and defeat that had shown on his father's face, which had just started to look old. Then lowering his eyes, he noticed his father's pant leg rhythmically twitching with the nervous habit movement of his pocketed fingers on his genitals. It was that imagine, as well as the memory of George's eating mouth that overcame Chuck that night before bed, as vomiting spasms brought up all of the ballpark hot dogs and soda he'd childishly binged on that day.
Being brought back to the present by the end of Irish's earnest presentation, printed & bound power point presentation and all, Chuck had to swallow the near bile rising in his throat at the boyhood memory of vomiting all of those hot dogs disgusted him, as well as the realization that he'd subconsciously taken up his father's nervous habit of playing pocket pool when he was bored or frustrated, sunk in as he glanced down and noticed the leg of his own trousers rhythmically moving. Disgusted with himself, but keeping his composure, he withdrew his hand from his pocket and lay it on the table, as the meeting concluded at last. He shook hands with the salesman and soon excused himself from the meeting to go take a walk and clear his head, allowing his constituents deal with Irish Sanders, accepting the preliminary proposal if they would, although he'd have the final say in the end.
It was after he'd completed a walk of nearly half a block outside of his building, that came back and rode the elevator up to his office where he found his wife Blair, sitting at his desk holding a basket with a bow, obviously with a surprise in store.
"Ah so for what do I owe this surprise? I hope you didn't bring me lunch because I already ate." he admitted as he walked into the room.
"Well that's a good thing my love because I already ate part of the froi grois, caviar, and the prosciutto on rye that I purchased at Dean & DeLuca's for us to share...I'm sorry. Still if you have already had lunch...I hope you saved room for dessert because look what I found..." she admitted as she drew a pasteboard box from the bottom of her basket and handed it to him to open.
"Ah...eclairs! You know me well. So my hungry little missus didn't quite eat everything I see. That's excellent..." he mused as he wrapped his arm around her and leaned in for a kiss.
"Yes, I'm not a pig! Anyway do you want something to drink? Coffee? Tea? I brought my french press along because I can't stand the coffee in your hotel." she asked as she poured the hot water she'd gotten through her french press.
"Ah so are you a connoisseur now, my little barista? I think I'll take some coffee, if you don't mind." he mused as he sat down in his chair.
"Ha, I'm no barista...especially no boho barista..." she declared as she glared at him for a second and poured some coffee into an espresso cup. "I'm just a connoisseur of something more than the typical restaurant fare style coffee like they serve here." she said as she walked back and handed him a cup and lean against the edge of his desk to sip her's.
"Ah indeed. So now you have an opinion on the type of coffee we serve here? What are your suggestions for a change?" he said, as he tried to hide his irritation behind his expression.
"Well I do have quite a few ideas...like the opportunity for the guests to be able to have french press coffee in their rooms if they so desire. And the decorating in some of the rooms could be updated...but that's beside the point, because I came to visit you. You've seemed so tense and on edge lately and I wondered what was wrong." she said as she stared at him and read the real, fragile man he was behind his countenance.
"Nothing's wrong. Just things being a bit stressful at work, that's all. Nonetheless...I'm glad you're here my love. Hmm...have you been shopping today? Your feet seem a little swollen..." he mused, distracting her from the topic of himself by having her talk about her day, as he subtly motioned for her to sit on his desk.
"Oh yes somewhat...although swollen feet come with the territory if a woman is pregnant. Anyway, before Dean & DeLuca, I stopped at a bakery on..." Blair said as she went on to extol the events of her day thus far, as Chuck removed her high heels from her feet and went on to massage them through her stockings.
As Blair talked on, Chuck continued with his massage, going past her feet and ankles, allowing his fingers to travel up her calves and then to her thighs, until she subconsciously realized that her husband was rubbing her ass with one hand. Smirking, she looked down and asked "Hmm...Chuck my love, what are you doing?"
"You're my wife, darling...what do you think I'm doing?" he slyly mused.
"Yes...but is the door locked? We don't need anybody barging in now do we?" she asked, as she let him move her leg to his shoulder, as he scooted closer.
"Perhaps...although nothing is fun without a bit of risk, now isn't it, love? Mmm...now where's Bass Jr. at? I want to see how our small fry is growing..." he mused as he tried to help her with her skirt.
"Bass Jr, you say? Interesting excuse. All right here you go...for a peek." she mused as she unbuttoned her wrap around skirt and showed off her baby bump, which was covered by a white, silk slip.
Chuck ran his hands over her silk covered belly, making satisfied groans as he did so, which only added to the seductive quality of the situation, until let out a sigh and lay his head on her belly after planting a kiss there. She reached down and ran her fingers through his hair, as he acquiesced to her touch and let out a low groan as wrapped his hands around her back and hips, continuing to hold her.
They sat like that for a few moments, until he began kissing his way down her belly through her slip, then lifted it to find the womanly part between her legs which the scent of was driving him insane. When he went to remove her underwear, she asked if he was sure, but one look from his seductive eyes was all she needed, as Chuck went down on her and had a little Blair with his éclair. Licking her, laving her, and driving her insanely mad with sensual desire.
Once he was done with his mouth, he had to sate his raging desire before he ruined his pants, so he stood up between her legs and began unbuttoning his pants. Looking up at him with heady desire, she reached out to help him, and before either realized it, he was alive in their hands just before he plunged inside of her as her body welcomed him home. They thrust and parried in their dance of love on the desk, as Blair glanced up to watch him as he arched his back and rolled his head back as he made love to her. When he felt her walls clamp around him, they both came together in a heady but muffled shout of each other's names, and he collapsed on top of her to hold her for a moment.
A moment later, as they held each other and tried to catch their breaths, Chuck's secretary knocked on the door, telling them that he had a meeting in five minutes. Reluctantly, they disengaged from each other, and Blair gathered up her clothing and headed to the private restroom to dress and fix her hair and makeup, while Chuck just had to tuck himself back in, put his suit coat back on, comb his hair, and he was ready to go. Blair pondered then how in times like this, he could seduce her down to near nudity, but he could stay fully dressed, and yet they could make love. 'Ah the unfairness of men versus women sometimes...' she pondered as she fixed herself up, and gave Chuck a quick kiss before she left to go home. The pensive look he tried to hide from her as she left concerned her more than anything, so she hoped he would have a good day otherwise.
That afternoon, Blair decided to make sure Chuck had a good dinner to come home to, and a romantic one as well, so she set out the hearts and Valentine's Day themed table settings as well as made sure his favorite meal was made. That evening, when he came home from work, Blair was still putting the finishing touches on the table setting, when he walked into the dining area.
"Hello darling...what's this? It isn't Valentine's Day already? " he asked, slightly enthusiastic but also visibly drained.
"Oh Chuck, you ruined my surprise! I thought I'd do something special for you since you...well just because." she sighed as she gave him a hug and kiss.
"Since I what?" he asked, slightly tense.
"Since you...seemed so tense today...Are you alright, my darling?" she asked as she looked into his face and saw new lines of worry there.
"I'm fine...I had a difficult day...and we'll leave it at that. What are we having for dinner?" he gruffly replied as he sat in his chair.
"Filet minion, french peas, braized baby carrots, whipped potatoes, and a chocolate mousse for dessert." she replied.
"Hmm...okay. I hope it's medium well done..." he replied flatly.
"Yes it should be. I made sure Dorota cooked it the way you like. So anything interesting happen at work today...other than our little interlude?" she mused.
"Your visit was enjoyable, but the rest of the day consisted of meetings that served to remind me of how much I'm becoming like my father...and I find it distasteful." he admitted forlornly.
"Oh darling it can't be that bad. As I've told you before you're not your father, so you needn't worry...I..." she began, but he interrupted her.
"You what? You can reassure me all you want, but little good it'll do." he replied.
"Oh Chuck what's wrong? If it isn't work, then is it your mother?" she asked.
"Blair...I'd rather not talk about it." he sternly replied as he cut his steak, almost letting the knife slip from his fingers.
"Oh dear, here let me help you. You need to be careful so that you don't cut yourself." she teasingly chided him as she reached to help him.
"I don't need your help! I'm not your child, so quit trying to play mother!" he growled under his breath, as he grabbed the handle of the knife in a white knuckled grasp and plunged the tip into the antique dining table with such force that that handle quivered back and forth.
"Chuck Bass...What the heck are you trying to prove? Shoving knives into the dining table? You're scaring me!" she gasped as she scolded him.
"I'm sorry...but at least I missed your hand. Anyway you wouldn't understand my problems because has your mother ever really abandoned you? No! Have you had to deal with incompetent assholes at a multi-million dollar hotel who bring all of their petty problems for me to solve? No! Once you do, then maybe you'll understand where I'm coming from." Chuck bellowed as he left the room angrily and went upstairs.
"Chuck! I might not understand everything you're going through...but I still love you!" she cried, as she tried to comprehend what was wrong with him because he was obviously having some issues he was dealing with. She wanted to help but he kept shutting her out. Eventually she just broke down in tears after she realized he'd drunk himself into a stupor, so instead of laying beside the drunken mess Chuck had become, she slept on the sofa by herself.
The next morning, still in a mood, Chuck got up and decided to take a bath, because his drinking from the night before had left him feeling sick, nearly feverish. Soaking in their bath tub just felt good to him, better than just a shower, and while he was relaxing in the tub, he started to fall asleep and dream. In his dream, he suddenly started to remember the end of a movie Blair had once made him watch, Revolutionary Road, where the young husband had gone off to work thinking that he and his wife had settled their quarrel from the night before without incident...only to learn later that day that his wife had accidentally committed suicide while trying to perform her own self abortion with boiling hot water and a hot water bottle enema kit. Quite the disturbing dream indeed, especially when the roles of "Frank and April" fluctuated between being taken on by himself and his father and Blair and his mother, in his own dream!
Meanwhile, Blair woke up, still angry but also concerned for her husband. Chuck could certainly push her buttons, but she still loved him and hoped that he'd be okay, despite his issues from last night. Feeling like she needed to freshen up herself, Blair made her way upstairs to take a bath, and begrudgingly discovered that Chuck was hogging the bathtub, and seemed to be fine albeit hungover and a bit disturbed. Deciding to leave him alone for a few minutes, she jumped in the shower to let the rain shower relieve her stresses and unwind.
Once she was done with her shower, Blair realized that Chuck was still in the tub, and seemed to be somewhat upset. Despite being angry at him, she still felt compassion toward him and went to check on him, only to discover that he was slightly feverish and moaning, and had been in the tub so long that he would be starting to prune up by now. She pulled the drain lever to let all the water out as she found him a white fluffy towel to dry him off. As the water drained out, it left his skin in goose pimples, causing the hair on his body to stick straight out. She felt a wave of compassion flow over her as she noticed not only how shriveled most of his body had become...but also certain parts of his body, which was surprising.
"Ah Chuck my love, time to get you out of the tub before you boil away your body, and especially your manhood...and we certainly can't have that. I couldn't stand it!" she teased as she helped him stand and climb out of the bathtub and he leaned against her shoulder.
"You stayed? You're helping me? Don't leave...I love you darling..." he groggily said as he wrapped his arms around her.
"I love you too, Chuck. Come on, let's get you to bed because I don't want you to fall down. I hope you're sorry about last night." she replied.
"Yes...just stay with me and don't go. I was...afraid you'd be like the girl in that movie that died after the fight with her husband. I didn't want that to happen to you!" he sighed as they tumbled into bed.
"Girl that died after that fight with her husband?" she replied skeptically.
"Yes...the one with DiCaprio and Winslet..." he sighed as he buried his face against her stomach.
What? Titanic? That was when Leo died after the ship capsized. Kate's character didn't die in that film." she replied, stroking his hair.
"No not Titanic...the other one...from the 50s or something..." he replied.
"Other one? Oh...Revolutionary Road? Oh...well...yeah I can see some of the similarities between us and them...but I wouldn't do that to myself. Even though my pregnancy was a surprise too...I'm not going to do that. It'd be too tragic...and I love our baby and you too much to do that. Were you worried that I would?" she sighed, realizing the scene Chuck had meant and reassuring him that she wouldn't do that, especially now.
"Maybe some. I didn't want you to...Anyway you mentioned Titanic. Hmm...if I remembered correctly wasn't their first time in a car?" he mused.
"Ah yes it was Charles my darling...you remembered it well. One of my favorite scenes too." she mused.
"So do you want to reenact it?" he teased.
"What? Again? Well we can got as far as you want, but aren't you sick?" she pondered.
"Well holding you is the best elixir in the world...so I'll see what I can do..." he seductively mused as he covered her with his body.
"Ah Chuck Bass...I love you so much...you and your literally hot body. I hope you're feeling up to it." she teased as she reached for his manhood and realized it wasn't so shriveled anymore.
"Well as you can tell...just being with you makes this Bass man ready for anything." he seductively mumbled as he took her right then.
Their round didn't last long though, because soon Chuck was shaking because of his temperature, so in the end Blair just held him as she nursed him back to health as well as she could, feeling so much passion and compassion for the beautiful yet troubled young man she had married.
