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

I want to start off by saying Happy Holidays to everyone. I apologize for my extended absence. My only excuse is that life has been pretty crazy as of late. Hopefully with the holidays wrapping up, I will be able to find more time in my hectic schedule for this little hobby of writing that I have.

Secondly, I want to give credit for planting the seed of this story to Lowercase32. I believe that is were this idea originated, but if anyone else requested this please let me know and I will be happy to give them proper credit as well.

Thirdly, I'd like to set the scene for all of you. This story picks up approximately five months after 'In a Rut' wrapped up.

Lastly, but by no means least, Enjoy! And let me know what you think.

"Is that my beautiful girlfriend I hear?" Chuck called out from his office as Blair's voice drifted in as she spoke with his assistant.

"You'll have to stop working long enough to poke your head out and see for yourself," Blair called out to him as she and Eugenia cooed over the baby that Eugenia was looking after for a few moments as a favor to another administrative assistant.

Chuck stuck his head out just as Blair picked up the little boy from his baby carrier and cradled him in her arms. "He is so adorable. Look at those chubby little cheeks."

"What is that?" Chuck gasped in horror as he motioned towards the baby that was making himself more at home in Blair's arms. The only thing that belonged in Blair's arms was him.

"This might be a foreign sight for you, Bass, but this is what a little person looks like. They even have a special name for it, they call it a baby," Blair snickered as she lifted up the baby's tiny little hand to make him wave at Chuck.

"Where did it come from?" Chuck demanded.

"Well, Chuck, you see when a man and a woman have sex, the man produces . . ." Blair giggled.

"I mean where did this particular one come from?" Chuck cut her off as his patience was wearing thin. "It can't be either of yours because I believe I would notice a baby bump on either of you."

"Simmon's assistant had a baby a few months ago. She brought him in to show off, but she was pulled into a meeting. I agreed to watch little Henry here," Eugenia explained.

"Give him back," Chuck demanded, "I pay you to assist me, not run a daycare facility."

"Oh, quit being such a stick in the mud," Blair scolded him as she gently bounced the baby up and down as he cooed at her attention.

"He'll be gone in ten minutes," Eugenia assured him.

"Chuck, he smells so good. Come smell him," Blair motioned him towards her.

"I can smell him just find from here," Chuck stood firm in the doorway to his office.

"Chuck, come over here. He's not going to bite," Blair replied.

"You can't promise that," Chuck held firm as he crossed his arms across his chest to show he was holding his ground, "I read in the paper just last week that a baby bit off the tip of his father's finger with his razor sharp baby teeth."

"You made that up," Blair rolled her eyes.

"Call the Times," Chuck replied, "Have them pull the story."

"You are being ridiculous," Blair shook her head as she handed Eugenia back little Henry so she could advance upon Chuck without the risk of him barricading himself in his office to hide away from the 'scary' baby.

"Not that I'm not happy to see you, but what are you doing here?" Chuck inquired as she wrapped her arms around his neck and hugged him.

"We talked about going to lunch today to celebrate my last final of the semester," Blair reminded him as she stuck out her lip in an irresistible pout, "You didn't forget, did you?"

"Of course not," he coughed out as he looked at his watch. He'd remembered to block the time in his day, but the presence of the baby threw him for a loop. "Where will we be dining today?"

"I was hoping for room service," she looked to him with a familiar twinkle in her eyes, "Didn't Bass just buy that the Empire? I was thinking you could give me a private tour of all the renovations that you put it through to give it that special Bass touch, and then we could check into the executive suite for a late lunch and perhaps a little dessert . . . unless you have something you need to get back to the office for this afternoon."

"His schedule is completely clear," Eugenia chimed in as she paused from her playful gnawing on Henry's finger to inform her boss that she'd take care of his afternoon schedule.

"Grab your jacket and let's go," Blair smiled triumphantly as she pulled at his suspenders so that he was pressed even closer to her.

"You're a little early. I'm going to need a few minutes to wrap up a couple of things," he replied as he caressed her bare shoulder lightly with his fingertips as his eyes began to cloud over with a familiar lust. He was so tempted to pull her into his office and have his way with her, but Little Henry called out with a baby giggle. He lost all train of thought as the sound was like nails on a chalkboard to him.

"Okay," she nodded, "I'll stay here with Eugenia and entertain Henry and his chubby cheeks."

"On second thought, it will keep until Monday," Chuck replied quickly as he snatched his suit jacket from his office, snatched her wrist as he emerged as escorted her to the elevator. "Eugenia, I trust you can wrap up everything here on your own."

"Of course," Eugenia agreed, "Have a good weekend, Mister Bass."

Chuck growled at her as he always did when his assistant referred to him so formally as he stepped onto the elevator.

"Goodbye, Henry," Blair called out as Eugenia propped him up to wave Blair goodbye.

"You have outdone yourself, Bass," Blair sighed as she relaxed into the bath that she and Chuck had drawn after they'd consumed their late lunch and then each other.

"With the sex or the hotel," he chuckled as he ran the loofah along her skin, the suds dusting along her smooth belly, making it shimmer like the stars in the sky on a wonderful summer evening.

"You always outdo yourself with the sex," she laughed as she walked her fingers along his forearms, "I was referring to the hotel. It's sophisticated and elegant yet you still managed to make it feel comfortable. That's hard to do, yet you pulled it off flawlessly, and I see touches of you and me everywhere."

"I hope so," he replied, "Because everything that I do has you in mind."

"When is the grand opening?" she inquired as his fingers danced along her abdomen, making patterns in the bubbles he'd left earlier.

"Next month," he replied, "We're open for business, but we wanted to wait for the official opening until we've worked the kinks out of the service."

"Always the brilliant businessman," she smiled as she turned her head to capture his lips in a searing kiss.

"So how does it feel to be one year closer to our future?" he inquired as he moved the wet strands of her hair away from her neck, twirling them around his fingers until they were rolled all the way to her ends and then he flipped the hair over one of her shoulders so the back of her neck was completely exposed.

"It feels incredible," she smiled as his warm breath at her nape sent shivers of desire coursing down her spine, "It's been one hell of a year, but still one of the best of my life because you are were at my side."

"Are you ready for your internship this summer?" he inquired before he had been able to think the question through. She instantly tensed at his touch. He began silently cursing himself out as he knew better. She was extremely nervous about the summer to come.

"No," she shook her head as she let out a shaky breath.

"Things are going to be different this year," he reminded her as he began to massage her shoulders in hopes of relaxing her.

"No more Michael Kors," she nodded. There was a tinge of sadness in her voice for saying the words, but also a more prevalent sound of relief.

Choosing where to do her final internship had been a tough decision for Blair to make. Michael had shown an incredible amount of loyalty in offering her a third internship, and she had been grateful. In the end, she simply couldn't go back to the scene of her assault. Michael had been incredibly understanding and offered to throw his weight around so she could get any internship that she'd wanted. In the end, she'd chosen Vera Wang and received the offer on her own talents.

"Any regrets about not going back?" he inquired.

"No," she shook her head as she forced herself to relax against him. It had been the perfect afternoon. She didn't want to ruin it with her issues. The assault was becoming less and less of a thought to either of them, but it was still there. She still went to therapy every few months. "It's the best decision for me, but I will miss seeing Lucy everyday."

It was her mentor that had made the decision so difficult. Lucy had shown even more loyalty to Blair than Michael had. She'd left Michael Kors after Blair's attack. She swore it was for a better opportunity, but Blair still had her doubts about Lucy's true motives. She'd gone on to work for an up and coming designer and made sure that there was a place for Blair. Blair felt guilty about not taking her up on the offer, but she'd seen Vera Wang as the better opportunity. She had to think about her future, and it was going to be her final internship. She had to finally get things right.

"I know you will," he replied as he linked his fingers with hers.

"Remember that we have her little girl's christening this weekend," she quickly reminded him.

"More babies," he sighed.

"Little Henry really freaked you out, didn't he," she laughed as she turned in the tub to take in his panicked face.

"Children have never been my forte," he reminded her.

"Have you ever held an infant?" Blair inquired.

"No," he shook his head, "Nobody has ever trusted me enough to hold their child, nor did I want them to."

"You are holding Angelica," Blair told him as she jabbed her finger roughly into his chest.

"Lucy will never let me within a hundred yards of her child if she knows your intention," Chuck told her.

"You are holding Angelica," Blair reiterated.

"Breaking your mentor's baby seems like a bad way to end your relationship with her," Chuck tried to make a joke of it.

She rolled her eyes. Her mission for the next day was set. Chuck was going to hold a baby if she had to wrestle him to the ground to do it.

"Blair says that you're supposed to hold my little girl," Lucy stated as she approached Chuck with her newly christened daughter in her arms.

Chuck had been standing what he thought to be a safe distance away so that he was out of Blair's line of sight as she'd spoke to their host. He was hoping that if he was out of her sight that he'd also be out of her mind. He should have known better. Blair was never out of his mind, so naturally he was never out of hers.

"I shouldn't," Chuck stammered out as the little green eyes of the infant looked at him curiously as she gnawed away at the pacifier in her mouth. "I've had a couple glasses of champagne."

"Which won't impair your senses one bit," Lucy responded with an amused chuckle. Blair had warned her that Chuck would dodge her in any way he could. "I've heard the stories. A few glasses of champagne for you are a mere appetizer. Set down the glass and hold out your arms."

"That's perfectly alright," Chuck shook his head, "It's not necessary."

Blair approached the pair and took the little girl from Lucy's arms. "Chuck Bass, hold out your arms."

He felt himself break out in a sweat at the prospect of holding the extremely fragile infant that was currently nestled safely in Blair's arms. He momentarily flashed to the future and thought of how this was their child. The green eyes seemed wrong. Their child would have their mother's brown eyes.

"Blair, I can't," Chuck held firm, "I'm sorry, I just can't." He abruptly left the room and found what he hoped would be a hidden safe spot until she was ready to leave.

"Chuck, do children really scare you that much?" Blair inquired as she found him tucked away in a room that was supposed to be off limits to guests. The little girl was still in her arms, although she had now fallen asleep.

"Yes," he snapped.

"We've agreed to not talk about this for a few years, but what will you do when it's our child. You have said that you want children with me," she reminded him as she took a seat next to him.

"I do want that," he nodded as he took in the vision before him. With the little girls eyes closed, it was so much easier to imagine her as their daughter. Blair's comfort with the infant surprised him. She'd had about as much exposure to babies as he'd had over the years, which was very little, but she looked alarmingly at ease with the child.

"Then what are you going to do?" Blair asked, "Children need to be held, Chuck. It helps form the bond that a parent and child should have, and I know how much you want that for any child you have."

"We have," he quickly amended. They both knew that he'd never consider having children if it did not involve her.

"Hold her," Blair encouraged him, "It's just you and me right now."

"What if she starts crying?" he shook his head as he reached out and tentatively held the little girl's hand. He couldn't help but marvel at how soft her skin felt.

"She's sound asleep," Blair replied as she rocked the little girl gently.

"What if she wakes up?" he posed.

"There isn't a woman in the world that can resist your charms, and that includes four month old infants, you'll manage," she assured him.

"Blair, this is a very bad idea," he told her as she shifted the baby so that she was in a position to pass her off to Chuck who was appearing to realize that Blair wasn't going to relent. "I'm going to break her."

"Babies aren't as fragile as you think they are," she laughed softly as she lowered the little baby in to Chuck's arms. The jostling woke up the little girl. Chuck held his breath as their eyes connected. He expected a blood-curling scream, but her little eyelids closed as she feel back to sleep. "Isn't she adorable?"

"She is cute . . . for a baby," he shrugged.

"Our baby will be cuter," Blair giggled as she kissed his cheek before erasing the lipstick trail she'd left.

"Our baby will be gorgeous," he amended, "Any baby with you as their mother will be nothing less."

"Maybe I'll suggest to Lucy that we babysit for her one evening, so she and her husband can have an evening to themselves. You and I can play house," she suggested.

"We already play house every night of the week," he reminded her.

"But we can play house with a baby," Blair giggled as her excitement brightened up her entire face, "It will be so much fun."

"Our definitions of fun are suddenly drastically different," he told her.

"But babies aren't as bad as you thought, are they?" she gulped nervously as she rubbed the top of Angelica's tiny little head.

"They have their moments," he conceded, "And when the time is right, and we're ready for it, we will become parents. I'm not backing out on that, but it's still a few years away."

"I guess," she nodded as she took Angelica back from him and held her close. She wanted to savor the warmth that the little bundle of joy provide as it was like nothing she'd ever felt before in her life.

"We will have this," Chuck assured her as he tilted her head towards his, "And I have the utmost confidence that you will be an amazing mother."

"I hope so," she smiled as he leaned in and kissed her cheek softly.