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

"You're drinking vodka," Blair stated in surprise as she let herself into his suite. He was sitting on the sofa with a tumbler full of the alcohol. She thought at first he was merely drinking water, but one smell of his breath when she leaned in to kiss him told her otherwise. "You don't drink vodka unless something is really bothering you."

"Very astute observation," he remarked sarcastically as she pulled away from him without following through on the kiss. He was clearly not in the mood. His coat and suit tie had come off already and were slung haphazardly on a chair and his dress shirt had several buttons undone. His eyes looked vacant, like he wasn't really there. "It's only taken you six weeks to figure that out. I'm impressed."

Blair frowned as she plopped herself down on the couch cushion next to him. "What's going on, Bass," she snapped, "It's not me you're upset with. Did something happen at the office?"

Chuck groaned as she brought up the subject that had been bothering since he got home an hour earlier. Naturally it wouldn't take her long to figure it out. Blair could read him like a book, and at the moment it pissed him off.

"Lily happened," he told her. His words came out harsh and annoyed.

"What could Lily have done?" Blair asked in confusion, "She doesn't even go to the office. Doesn't she have someone else running the empire until she thinks you're ready to take over?"

"Not anymore," he snapped.

"Chuck, what aren't you telling me?" she pressed.

"Starting Monday morning, you're looking at the new CEO of Bass Industries," he stated as he took a deep breath when the words hit him like a slap in the face yet again.

"Chuck, this is great news!" she exclaimed as she reached out and hugged him, "This is what you wanted."

"This is what I thought I wanted," he corrected her as he tensed in her embrace, "I was foolish to think it. I don't want any part of this hellish empire. I should just call up dear old Uncle Jack and hand it over."

Blair winced at the sound of his uncle's name. He was a sore subject for both of them for very different reasons. "If you really believed that, you would have made the call already," she stated.

"And give that attempted rapist bastard what he wants, forget it," he bite out harshly.

"What's really going on, Bass," she snapped as she grabbed his chin and forced him to look into her eyes. He couldn't hide from her there. He tried to avert his eyes, to look anywhere else but at the warm, caring gaze she was giving him, but it was no use. One look and the walls he'd spent the better part of an hour building came crumbling down.

"I'm scared," he admitted, the anger in his eyes completely gone but replaced by sheer terror, "I don't know what I'm doing, Blair. I'm going to drive this company into the ground. I'm going to let my father down."

"Chuck," she whispered in reassurance as she hugged him tight. He didn't fight her embrace this time. He craved it . . . he needed it. "You would never let that happen."

"What the hell do I know about running a multi-billion dollar corporation?" he whispered in her ear, "I barely graduated high school."

"You graduated from one of the best prep schools in the world without even trying," she clarified, "Imagine what you could have done if you had tried . . . if you had cared enough to try. You're a lot smarter than you give yourself credit for. You were smart enough to hold on to me, weren't you?"

Chuck laughed softly as a single tear escaped his eye.

"I believe you can do this," Blair assured him as she captured his lips with hers.

"How do you do that?" he inquired with a sigh as he pulled away only so that he could pull her into his lap so that she was closer to him.

"Do what?" she asked as she caressed his chin gently with a finger.

"I've spent the past hour absolutely destroying my self confidence. With a few well chosen words, you make me believe once more that I can move mountains," he explained.

"That's because I already believe you can," she assured him, "I've seen it with my own eyes."

"You're good for my ego, Waldorf," he chuckled as he looked at her in amusement, "I don't know what I would do without you right now."

"Well, we don't have to find out," she replied, "I'm not planning on going anywhere for awhile."

"We should go somewhere for the weekend," he announced suddenly, "I need to get away from the city for a few days to clear my head before I take this plunge."

"Where would you like to go?" she inquired as she let the surprise wash right over her. She was getting used to his impulsiveness, "The Hamptons?"

"I'd rather not," he shook his head, "I really don't want to go anywhere that I might be recognized and forced to talk about business."

"You do know that you're Chuck Bass, future CEO of Bass Industries, one of the most well known companies in the world. You're bound to get recognized wherever we go," she teased.

"Then let's buy me a deserted island and go there," he chuckled.

"Let's fly to Maine for the weekend and stay at some quaint little bed and breakfast," she suggested. She knew better than to humor him with the private island talk. He would definitely do it if he received the slightest bit of encouragement from her.

"I like the bed part," he leered.

"There's the man I fell in love with," she laughed. She was happy to hear that he was returning to himself. "I'll call Lily and see if she knows anyplace that would be worthy of our time."

"Wait," he replied as he caught her hand as she stood to get her phone. He pulled his cell phone out of his pants pocket. "I'll just call my assistant."

"What assistant?" Blair inquired, her eyebrow raising in curiosity.

"The one that they hired for me this afternoon," he laughed, "Her name is Eugenia, and she's a very nice lady."

"Nice," she prompted as she crossed her arms in front of her chest, "How nice?"

"You have nothing to be worried about, Waldorf," he chuckled, "She's not my type."

"She's female and breathing," Blair responded sarcastically, "Therefore she's your type."

Chuck laughed at how jealous she sounded at that moment. "Have I ever given you a reason to think that I'd be unfaithful to you?" She continued to scowl at him. "Recently," he added quickly.

She continued to glare at him evilly.

The truth of it was that he had never given her reason to believe he would be unfaithful. When they were first messing around with each other behind everyone's back he was faithful. When they spent their one-week together last year, he was faithful. For the blissful six weeks they'd been together this time, he'd been faithful and intended to remain so.

"Give me a little credit here," he requested, "I'm trying very hard to be the boyfriend that you want me to be. Do you know how many offers I've turned down in the six weeks we've been together?"

"What offers?" she exclaimed in anger.

He gulped nervously. He was making this situation worse every time he opened his mouth. "Blair, you know my reputation better than anyone. You know that easy woman throw themselves at my feet. I try to tell them that I have a girlfriend, but I always get the 'Chuck Bass doesn't do girlfriends' response. Not once have I brought one of those girls back to this suite. Not once have I even been tempted. Why would I do something so stupid? Why would I risk losing what we have?"

"Because you're Chuck Bass," she threw at him.

He hated that his best pickup line was now being thrown back in his face as an insult.

"I'm not that Chuck Bass anymore," he tried to convince her. "You've changed me, remember. We've changed each other. You are the only woman that I want now."

"I need to meet this assistant of yours," she demanded as she took a deep breath to calm herself down, "Let her know where your priorities are."

"Stake your claim, if you must," he teased.

"Mark my territory," she corrected him.

"By all means, mark away," he replied as he opened his arms as if to surrender to her.

"I should give you a hickey for that remark," she eyed him devilishly as she sat in his lap again and bit his neck lightly, "Right here your neck where your suit and tie can't cover. That would be fun to explain to the Board of Directors on your first day."

"Does this mean I'm forgiven?" he inquired as she continued kissing his neck, working a path up to his earlobe.

"Forgiven for what?" she inquired as she breathed into his ear. She apparently had already forgotten their most recent argument. If there was one thing that his father taught him it was that if it could get you into trouble for reminding the woman in his life of something he did, said or didn't do, he should keep his mouth shut . . . so he did.

TBC. . .