多多读书

手机浏览器扫描二维码访问

第30部分（第2页）

“Wonderful；”　Harold　said。　He’d　always　trusted　Blair　pletely。

Blair　sighed　happily　and　nuzzled　closer　to　Chuck。　She　couldn’t　believe　this　was　the　same　Chuck　Bass　she’d　known　growing　up。　He　was　sweet　and　sensitive　and　got　along　well　with　everyone。　Blair　imagined　them　settling　down　in　Sloane　Square。　She’d　be　a　barrister；　he’d　work　as　a　banker　in　Canary　Wharf；　and　they’d　have　three　children　with　adorable　accents　and　picnic　in　Kensington　Gardens　on　weekends。

“Moving　in　already。　Sounds　serious！”　Harold　said　with　a　twinkle　in　his　eye。

“I　apologize　for　your　meddling　dad；”　Giles　piped　up　from　his　tea　party　in　the　corner。　“That’s　why　I　prefer　hanging　out　with　the　knee…high　set。”　Giles　ruffled　Pierre’s　dark　hair。

Suddenly；　the　sound　of　the　doorbell　filled　the　house。

“Did　we　order　something？”　Giles　asked。

Blair　threw　the　plaid　blanket　from　her　knees；　ran　to　the　entryway；　and　flung　open　the　door；　half　expecting　to　find　a　singing　messenger　or　some　over…the…top　surprise　that　Chuck　or　her　generous　father　had　planned　for　her　as　a　post…Christmas　surprise。　A　car？　A　pony？　A　private　plane　to　sweep　them　all　off　to　St。　Barts　for　New　Year’s？

Instead；　her　eyes　fell　on　Serena　van　der　Woodsen；　Nate　Archibald；　that　younger　girl　who’d　been　kicked　out　of　Constance　for　extreme　sluttiness；　and　her　shaggy…haired　older　brother；　who　she’d　heard　Serena　was　actually　seeing。　It　was　like　a　band　of　carolers　gone　wrong。

What。　The。　Fuck？　Was　this　some　sort　of　joke？　A　hallucination　from　too　many　glasses　of　red　wine　and　not　enough　exercise？

Or　a　late　visit　from　the　Ghosts　of　Christmas　Past？

“What　the　hell　are　you　doing　here？”　Blair　asked　rudely。　The　shaggy…haired　guy　awkwardly　shifted　his　weight　from　foot　to　foot；　as　if　he　had　to　pee。

“We’ll　leave。　Sorry　for　the　confusion；”　he　said　quickly；　turning　on　the　sole　of　his　ugly　loafer。

Serena　finally　managed　to　clear　her　throat。　Of　course　she’d　suggested　staying　at　Blair’s　house；　but　the　thought　that　Blair　might　actually　be　here　hadn’t　even　occurred　to　her。　“Yeah；　we’ll　find　a　hotel　in　town。”　Serena　glanced　nervously　at　Blair；　whose　veins　were　throbbing　at　her　temples。　This　was　not　how　she　wanted　to　see　her　former　best　friend　for　the　first　time　after　a　year　apart。　Blair　had　gone　to　Oxford　to　get　away　from　Serena；　and　now　here　she　was；　standing　on　her　doorstep　like　a　stalker。

“Hey　guys！”　Chuck　said；　sidling　up　next　to　Blair。　Serena　tried　to　stop　the　gasp　that　formed　in　her　throat。　What　was　Chuck　Bass　doing　here？　Chuck’s　hand　rested　protectively　on　Blair’s　petite　shoulder。　Was　he…　with　Blair？　“Dan　Humphrey；　long　time　no　see；”　he　said　enthusiastically；　reaching　out　a　hand。

“Hi　Chuck；”　Dan　muttered；　limply　shaking　Chuck’s　hand。　He　hadn’t　thought　it　was　possible　for　the　night　to　get　any　weirder；　but　apparently；　it　could。　What　the　fuck　was　his　Riverside　Prep　nemesis　doing　here；　in　a　pair　of　cashmere　pajamas？

“Who　do　we　have　here？”　Harold　boomed　as　he　strode　down　the　entryway。　“Serena　van　der　Woodsen　and　Nate　Archibald！　Why　didn’t　you　tell　me　they　were　ing；　Bear？”　Harold　cried；　kissing　Serena　on　both　cheeks　and　leaning　in　to　clap　Nate　on　the　back。　“e　in；　e　in！”　Harold　escorted　everyone　inside；　pumping　hands　enthusiastically　as　if　he　were　an　ambassador。

To　a　very　hostile　country？

“Thanks；　sir！”　Serena　said　weakly　as　she　shuffled　into　the　house。　She　didn’t　really　have　a　choice。

“So；　what　brings　you　this　way？”　Harold　asked；　throwing　more　logs　onto　the　crackling　fire　and　settling　back　into　his　leather　wingback　chair　as　if　preparing　for　an　all…night　chat。　Jenny；　Nate；　and　Dan　all　clustered　around　Serena；　delegating　explanation　responsibilities　to　her。

“Mr。　Waldorf；　I’m　really　sorry　to　intrude。　This　is　my　boyfriend；　Dan　Humphrey。”　Serena　emphasized　the　word　boyfriend。　Maybe　if　Blair　knew　she　wasn’t　with　Nate；　she’d　soften　a　little。　“And　his　sister；　Jenny。　Jenny　was　visiting　colleges　and　ran　into　Nate　on　a　tour　of　Brown。　And　we　were　all　driving　back　to　the　city　and　got　stuck　in　the　snow。”　She　shrugged；　as　if　that　explained　everything。

Blair　narrowed　her　eyes。　Of　course　Serena　would　play　the　Miss　Innocent　card；　as　if　they’d　just　happened　to　be　driving　right　past　the　Newport　house。　Newport　wasn’t　exactly　in　Brown’s　backyard。

“So　you　just　ran　into　each　other？”　Blair　asked　icily。

“Yeah。”　Nate　tried　to　catch　Blair’s　eye。　In　his　time　at　Deep　Springs；　he’d　almost　forgotten　how　pretty　she　was。　Her　hair　framed　her　small；　fine…featured　face；　her　eyes　were　bright；　and　she　wore　a　black　sweater　that　hugged　her　petite　frame。　Nate　forced　himself　to　glance　away。　She　looked　happy　now。　The　last　thing　he　wanted　to　do　was　get　in　the　way。　“We　can　leave。　Blair；　we’ll　leave；”　he　repeated　quietly；　trying　to　let　Blair　know　that　he　wasn’t　here　to　fuck　up　her　life。

Again。

“In　this　weather？　Nonsense！　We’re　thrilled　to　have　you。　I　see　Pierre　and　Pauline　have　already　made　a　friend！”　Harold　nodded　to　the　corner；　where　Jenny　was　kneeling　on　the　Oriental…carpeted　floor；　patiently　asking　the　twins　about　their　train　set。　“It’s　almost　their　bedtime。　Almost　my　bedtime；　too；”　Harold　chuckled；　draining　the　last　of　his　wine。　“But　we　have　plenty　of　food；　and　we　all　know　Blair　has　plenty　of　clothes　to　share　with　the　girls。　Our　house　is　your　house；　so　please；　make　yourselves　at　home。　It’ll　be　like　a　big　pajama　party！”