Chapter 30 - I want to find out who Gossip Girl is
Chuck walked into his office to see Jack already sat with a glass of scotch waiting for him. He was supposed to meet Jack first thing but he had rescheduled and then Chuck's meeting had run over. He ran his hand through his hair in frustration.
"You're late Nephew." Jack didn't even turn to look at him but finished his scotch and put the glass down on Chuck's desk. "I would have thought this meeting might be important to you?"
"Can't help a meeting overrunning Jack." Chuck undone the buttons to his suit jacket and sat down in his seat opposite him.
"Must be so hard being CEO." Jack's voice was laced in venom. Here Chuck was doing the job he wanted and he was moaning about it.
Chuck wasn't in the mood. He just wanted to know why Jack had asked to see him. He heard his door open again and was annoyed that the person hadn't even knocked until he saw it was Georgina. "What's she doing here?" Chuck looked at Jack and nodded towards Georgina who had just walked into his office. When Jack had asked to meet him, he had no idea that it would involve Georgina, he didn't even expect to the see the two of them in the same room again, it only been a couple of days surely, they hadn't become acquainted in that time?
"She is the reason I'm here." Jack responded to Chuck and smirked at him. He was flooded with the memory of how Georgina had caught his attention and interest and knew Chuck wouldn't be sat where he was if he knew.
"You can't be serious." Chuck genuinely laughed at the scene in front of him. He had left them together in his office but had no idea that Georgina would be able to persuade his uncle to get involved in whatever she was currently interested in.
"I want to find out who Gossip Girl is." Georgina sat down in the chair next to Jack's and smirked at Jack.
"I'm not interested." Chuck didn't want to get involved. He meant what he said to Blair earlier, he wasn't bothered and it didn't appeal to him to use energy into finding someone that clearly was obsessed with them. For all he cared as long as her blasts didn't affect his relationship with Blair she could continue being infatuated with their lives.
"How can you not be?" Georgina was a little surprised. She thought Chuck would jump at the opportunity to help her. Surely the glory of uncovering Gossip Girl or taking over the site appealed to him?
"Simple. We're not in high school anymore so I don't care." Chuck said honestly, it was about time they all stopped behaving like children and focused their energy on something else, their futures. He was already struggling to get the board to take him seriously after he had run away to Prague and he didn't want them to have any more reason to doubt him. Uncovering the identity of Gossip Girl didn't really aid in his public appeal as CEO of Bass Industries.
"Or you just enjoy the attention. Does seem like you and Blair are her favourite." Georgina tried to taunt Chuck.
"Nothing to do with it but why are you so interested?" It didn't go unnoticed to Chuck that Jack had sat there in almost complete silence since she had entered his office. Gossip Girl hadn't shown much of an interest in Georgina over the years so Chuck couldn't understand why she suddenly was on a mission to uncover who she was.
"Because I'm bored." Georgina answered like it should have been obvious to Chuck that she never really needed an excuse other than her wanting to create some trouble. She had come to Chuck because she thought he would want to do the same.
"Isn't that when you usually try and destroy one of us?" Chuck was growing tired of this game. If this is all they wanted he was happy for them to leave so he could get back to work.
"Usually but why settle for one when I can have the power of Gossip Girl in my hands." Georgina hadn't expected it to be so difficult to get Chuck on board. She was finding it harder than it had been to persuade Jack.
"So, why do you need my help?" Chuck asked growing impatient for her to leave but he knew as soon as he asked her to, she would do anything but.
"You're telling me after all these years you haven't got some idea of who it might be?" Georgina asked.
"No, well, we know it must be one of us but no can't say I've really cared about trying to find out since it backfired on us at graduation." Chuck wasn't going to give Georgina the satisfaction of him confessing to her that he had no idea who it might be.
"Just call Blair." Georgina snapped at him.
"Excuse me?" Chuck couldn't hide his annoyance at her. There was no way he was bringing Blair into one of her schemes especially if Jack was weirdly involved.
"Call Blair. I bet she'll be interested." She knew that Blair would cause a reaction from him but she was also hoping that Blair would be more interested than him in her plot and it couldn't hurt to have Blair's help.
"You call her." He didn't want to admit to Georgina that her pitch may have appealed to Blair more than him.
"Like she'll answer my call. Just call her." She rolled her eyes at Chuck.
"Fine." Chuck took his phone out of his pocket and held down the one on it but before he could talk to Blair, Georgina snatched the phone out of his hand.
"I was just going to message you. What did Jack want?" Blair started to panic when he didn't respond. "Chuck?"
"Blair." Georgina waited for Blair to realise it was her that was calling and not Chuck.
"Urgh! I should have known it was you. What do you want and why have you got Chuck's phone?"
"How soon can you get to his office?" Georgina sat back down on the chair ignoring Chuck's request for his phone back.
"Where's Chuck? What have you done?"
"Just get here." Georgina ended the call before Blair could say anymore. "Here." She handed Chuck's phone back to him.
"Was that really necessary?" Chuck looked down at the screen of his phone. He decided that if Blair called back, he would answer but he didn't want to be the one to call her back, as he didn't want to discuss anything in front of Georgina and Jack. If she didn't call then he would just wait until she arrived.
"Actually, it was." Georgina stated.
"So, are you just expecting to use my office all day?" Chuck decided to take the topic of conversation away from Blair.
"I'll go wait outside for Blair, give you two a moment, I'm sure you have some business to discuss." She knew the business was likely to be her but she was bored of the conversation and didn't want to sit in the office waiting for Blair to arrive so left to find someone else she could annoy.
"You didn't?" Chuck looked at Jack inquisitively.
"Didn't what?" Jack tried to act like he had no idea what Chuck was asking.
"Jack, Georgina? Why else would you be helping her?" Chuck wasn't annoyed he was just shocked that Georgina already had some pull-on Jack.
"Maybe I'm bored too?"
"That's bull. What interested have you got in a blog? You don't even live in New York." Chuck questioned as there had to be a hidden agenda there always was with Jack.
"But I could." Jack wasn't sure why he was so interested. He was trying to convince himself it was boredom and that no one in New York had managed it so why wouldn't he want to help Georgina especially while she was making it worthwhile.
"So, we've gone from you threatening Blair and I to you wanting to live here?" Chuck wasn't convinced.
"I didn't say that." Jack wasn't sure what he was trying to do but he didn't want Chuck to uncover what his real motive was.
"So why you still in New York and helping Georgina?" If Jack really wasn't interested in destroying his life than he would have jumped on the first plane out.
"It may have piqued my interest." Jack started to feel uncomfortable.
"Georgina?" Chuck laughed and shook his head at Jack.
"Would you rather I continue my interest in Blair?" The best defence was an offence and Jack knew it would cause a reaction from Chuck,
"Watch it, Jack." Chuck warned Jack.
"What was that speech you gave me before you went running after Blair... 'what's the point in trying to manipulate running a company if you have no one to share it with?'" At the time Jack had thought Chuck had lost his mind trying to convince Jack there was more to life than watching others suffer.
"So, you want to manipulate me to get Bass Industries to share it with Georgina? You've known her what? A couple of days. Don't be ridiculous Jack." Did he really expect him to believe that Jack was a changed man in the couple of days he had been gone?
"I'm not here to manipulate you." Jack tried to show Chuck he was being sincere.
"What?" Chuck couldn't hide his surprise. The last thing he had expected from Jack was a ceasefire.
"I won in my quest for the Empire but lost it anyway. I lost this time too because you and Blair decided you didn't care if the information got leaked, I still wouldn't have Bass Industries. As long as you don't cut me out of the company maybe it's time, we found a common enemy." It is what Jack had thought about since Chuck left. That as long as him and Blair were a team it was unlikely that he would be able to manipulate them so he could run Bass Industries and the more he tried the more likely it was that Chuck could just cut him out of the company all together.
Chuck raised an eyebrow at Jack. "I'm a little surprised."
"She's one hell of a woman she does this thing with her tongue." Jack didn't like the serious tone the conversation had taken and wanted to lower it.
"Been there, done that." Chuck realised he didn't need the memory of being with Georgina. It was one he never wanted to relive again.
"Could say the same about Blair." Truth was, Jack was only interested in Blair when he could use her against Chuck, this new united front they had didn't really appeal to him.
Chuck clenched his jaw as the reminder irked him.
"Chuck?" Blair raced into his office in a panic. Once she took in that he was safe she turned to Georgina. "Could you not have started with telling me he was okay?"
"Why? What did you think we had done to him?" Georgina rolled her eyes at how dramatic Blair was being.
"You called from his phone and you wouldn't let me speak to him and well - it's you two. Wait! Why are you two teaming up? Eww! you didn't?" Blair caught on to the atmosphere in the room immediately. She knew there was no way Jack would be in Chuck's office teaming up with Georgina unless he had motive.
"Are you really going to attempt to judge me, Blair?"
"Georgina you are married and have a son." Of course, Blair was going to judge her. Her disgust had nothing to do with her sleeping with Jack.
"She's what?" Chuck tried not to choke on the news.
"Did we not tell you?" Blair turned to look at Chuck.
"No, I didn't exactly ask but married? Who married you?" Chuck was genuinely shocked.
"Why? Jealous Chuck? But yes, I'm married, his name is Philip." Georgina caught a glimmer of disgust from Jack when she mentioned Philip's name.
"So, you've added cheat to your resume?" Blair moved closer to Chuck and stood beside the chair he was in.
"Please Blair, not that it's any of your business but Philip and I have an understanding, I can do as I please and he enjoys being the househusband. As long as I give him what he needs once a month he has no interest in how I spend my time." Georgina sat back down in the chair next to Jack's.
"Please, I don't need details. Why did you want me here anyway?" Blair had almost forgot that she had been summoned here.
"Just wanted to know if you'd be interested in helping me take down Gossip Girl?" Georgina tried to gauge if Blair was interested by her reaction but she gave none.
"And why would I want to help you?" Once Blair realised, they weren't here because they wanted to make hers or Chuck's lives hell, she felt herself relax slightly.
"You don't want to be part of a takedown? Fine, I'll leave." Georgina wasn't interested in playing a game with Blair, she had used up her patience with Chuck.
"Don't be so dramatic. So, what's this going to be? The four of us working together to take down Gossip Girl?" Blair didn't know how this was going to work. Georgina and Jack weren't the most trustworthy people but she knew it was better to have them working with you than against you.
"Count me out." Chuck reached out for Blair's hand. He still wasn't interested in getting involved but wanted Blair to know he would support her if she decided to.
"What? How do you not what to be a part of this?" Blair thought Chuck would jump at the opportunity to join her in a scheme.
"We will leave you to your discussion. Call me." Georgina got up before they could protest, she wasn't interested in watching a Chuck and Blair showdown.
"Are you really going to follow her like a lapdog?" Blair questioned Jack.
"Why? Jealous?" Jack got up to follow Georgina.
"Eww! No." Blair wasn't interested in carrying on taunting Jack. Once they had both left, she turned to Chuck. "I thought you would want to be involved you know a scheme is like foreplay."
He gently pulled her into his lap. "You know how much I enjoy playing Blair but I really can't risk the board finding any more reason to question me. I've seen the aftermath of trying to take Gossip Girl down before and don't want to risk it."
"I didn't think about that." She stroked his face welcoming the contact with him. It had only been a few hours but she had missed him. Shopping with Serena had been a good distraction until Georgina called.
"How was your morning?" Chuck asked suddenly realising they had barely said hello since she had arrived in his office.
"It was fine. Serena wanted to know about Paris." Blair smiled at Chuck.
"Oh, did she? What did you tell her?" Chuck smiled back at Blair. He was glad to see her happy he knew she had obviously told Serena about their time in Paris.
"Not much. There was nothing much to tell." Blair giggled. She had told Serena all about the cinema, Monet's House and the dinner with Eleanor. Serena had agreed with Eleanor that although Chuck hadn't gone there to beg her to come back to New York his actions had proven a lot more. She had to explain about seeing Louis too thanks to the Gossip Girl blast but Blair realised it really hadn't bothered her to see Louis engaged. She actually found herself hoping he was as happy as she was with Chuck.
"Oh really? So how come you came back?" Chuck lifted Blair's chin so he could bore his eyes into hers.
"You know why I came back. Have you got some time or do I need to leave?" Blair didn't want to interrupt his day, not when it was his first day back and when he just expressed how worried he was about not being seen to take his position in the company seriously by the board.
"Hmm... I might have some time what did you have in mind?" Even if Chuck had somewhere to be it wasn't as important as being lost in a moment like this with Blair.
"Then how about I show you why I didn't stay in Paris?" Blair stroked the lapel of his suit jacket.
"As much as I love that idea, I can't help but think that I left Georgina and Jack in here and if they are not interested in getting back at us, I bet it has something to do with them using my office." Chuck wanted to get out of his office as soon as he could.
"How about a ride in your limo?" Blair didn't want to think any more about Jack and Georgina and what they may have done in Jack's.
"That I can do and I can have a cleaner come in while we're gone." Chuck pulled Blair in for a kiss before he called for Arthur to meet them downstairs.