A story inspired by a prompt from the Good Ship Charloe website.
Miles is throwing his annual New Years Eve bash. Bass shows up planning to finally tell Charlie how he feels...only to learn she is not coming. When Bass finds out Charlie is at home sick with the flu, he leaves the party and goes straight to her place.
Bass had just taken a quick shower before he walked into his bedroom. He put on a simple pair of worn jeans. It was only hours away from midnight as Bass grabbed a black v-neck shirt out of his closet. A fast dammit was rolling of his lips as he realized he was running late. It was New Years Eve and that only meant one thing: Miles' New years Eve Bash.
Normally he couldn't give a fuck if he was late or not, but this year, things were different. Because tonight, she would be there. Charlie Matheson.
He was not sure when it had happened, but somewhere last oktober they had ended up in a heated argument about if they should take a damn left of right when they were hiking in the woods.
Years and years in the Marines and Miss. Tracker of the Year Charlie Matheson had thought she had known better.
She had stood so damn close to him under the cover of the trees on that little path in the forest that he had felt her warm breath on his face and he was able to take in her sweet scent. Her breasts had almost touched his chest, her blue eyes firing into his. It had taken every bit of his self control to not push her against one of the trees behind her and wrap his hand around her ass to pull her against him.
Charlie knew how to play with personal space. She was fast, smart, edgy and stubborn. He had most woman, hell maybe all of them, purring at his side within minutes. But not her, not Charlie. Slowly she had gotten under his skin, she messed with his head and these days he could not take his eyes away from her.
But since one particular evening last year he knew had fallen for her.
He and Miles had gone over to Ben's and Rachel's house to borrow some of Ben's whiskey since Miles had run out of decent stuff and Ben always seemed to have all the good stuff. Bass was relieved when Miles had told him that Rachel and Ben were at the theatre.
He was so tired of hearing about Rachel from Miles. He knew they were screwing around behind Bens back. And although he would always have his best friends back, he was so tired of hearing Rachel preaching about doing the right thing when it came to all the other aspects of her life, knowing she was cheating on Ben and living a lie towards Danny and Charlie with Miles. Miles had stopped the affair before their second , but hell, he was not blind. The tension was still there. It was a damn mess.
Rachel could be self righteous up to the point where he was sick of her holier than thou speeches. But with her gone, he stood behind Miles in a relaxed way when Miles used his emergency key to let himself in.
There was a squeal coming from the living room when Miles had turned on the light in the hallway and both Bass and Miles had turned their heads to see where it came from. They could see Charlie's face appearing above the back of the couch. There was one soft light illuminating the room.
'What the hell, Charlie,' Miles yelled in pure agony.
Charlie was not the girl who would normally curse but Bass swore he heard something rolling of her lips that at least included three curse words. It would have been funny if it had stopped there.
Bass had noticed the glow on her cheeks, her long blonde locks curly and messy and her lips swollen. And then another head appeared close, too fucking close, to hers. Some twenty something punk was there with her, and looking at their bare shoulders, neither him or Charlie was wearing a lot.
'What the hell, Miles? Seriously? What are you guys doing here?' Charlie had shot back at him, while she grabbed a shirt that was somewhere on the floor behind her. Her hair had gotten trapped under the fabric of her shirt before she had freed it in long waves with her hands and Bass' jaws locked at the sight of hard nipples under her shirt when she had lifted her arms.
Bass stared a little bit too long, because Charlie shot him a frowning look. At that point both he and Miles had turned around, giving them both time to grab their other clothes from the ground.
Bass tried to ignore the image of her black panties on the floor close to the couch before Charlie got her hands on those.
Only the sight of them had give him the hard on of the century. Fuck.
Finally dressed, Charlie had turned on some more lights and the guy next to her introduced himself as Jaso Neville. Bass and Miles knew his dad, Tom Neville from their time at the Marines. A total son of a bitch. Bass had felt a sudden urge to grab the little jerk at his shirt and throw him out of the house. There had been icy steel in his eyes when he had looked at the boy, because hell, that was all he still was.
'Well, as much as I want to stand here pretending this,' Miles waved his hand towards Charlie and Jason, 'is not awkward at all, we are here to steal some of your dads whiskey. So if you,' he looked at Charlie again,' shut up about that, I will not tell about your mom and dad about you and nipples over here.'
'Seriously Miles, I am twenty four, I don't think they will mind.' Charlie said, irritation in her voice at the way Miles was treating her like some child.
'I am sure your mom would just love to hear all bout the both of you doing the horizontal mambo on her couch,' Miles said drily.
Charlie sighed. She knew her uncle had a point there.
'So, you are blackmailing me know?' She said, putting her hands on her hips, while at the look of things, Jason was wishing very badly he was anywhere but there.
'What else do you have a badass Uncle for, kid?' Miles shot back at her. Then he nodded at Bass to follow him out of the room.
Miles made some kind of joke about that Neville kid belonging in a boy band with that baby face, and under any other circumstances Bass would have thought it was good fun. But the only thing that was driving him fucking crazy, and not in a good way, was knowing that another guy touched Charlie.
It was still haunting him. Finding Charlie the way they did that one night. He had felt a pull towards her before that, but it was like after that he finally looked at her in a complete different way.
The way she had looked when Miles and Bass had found her, it had ignited a raw want for her. From that moment he knew he was a goner. He had decided that tonight, it was time to make sure shit like finding her with some kind of loser fucking nobody would not happen anymore. She was Miles' niece and twenty fucking four. He wasn't twenty four. But he had fallen for Charlie Matheson and damn it, it was time to do something about it.
He grabbed his keys from the table and he was out of the door. Before he closed the door behind him he saw his wild curls reflecting in the glass and he pulled his hand through his hair. With Charlie on his mind he got in his car and started it and he was on his way to Miles' apartment on the other side of town.
When he walked into Miles crowded and warm apartment, his New years Eve bash was well on its way. There were glasses on the tables, some good old guitar music was playing in the background and by the looks of things, people were on their way to be very drunk. Some of them already were.
Through the windows he could see the skyline of Philadelphia, many lights were surrounding them from the dark but clear night. There was a large roof terrace that belonged to Miles' apartment and last year he had a hot moment with a hot brunette in that one dark corner against the wall.
But tonight, there was a hot stubborn blonde woman on his mind and his eyes were scanning the room like he once had scanned their surroundings when he was a Marine, together with Miles.
Charlie was nowhere to be seen. He found Miles in the kitchen, pouring himself another drink.
'Bass,' Miles raised his glass when he saw his brother, 'you are late. Needed your beauty sleep?'
'Prick,' Bass muttered under his breath, as he took a glass that Miles gave him, Miles throwing him his best suck it up grin.
They talked about the party and he met some woman that had already walked into the kitchen to say hi to him. He couldn't care less about them. He waited a mandatory whole fucking five minutes before he casually asked about Charlie.
'Charlie?' Miles asked, between drinking his whiskey and letting his eyes go to some nice cleavage that just walked by, 'Oh, she is at home man, she has got the flu.'
'What?' He sounded more hoarsely then he had intended. Fuck.
'She sounded like hell, Bass. Promised her I would take her for a night at the bar when she felt better to make up for this well organized bash over here she is missing.'
He nodded at Miles.
'I asked her if I should send Rachel over, but that earned me some nice dead threats. If you will excuse me now, Bass, I have some socializing to do. You know, throwing a party means responsibilities.'
Bass huffed out loud at that last word. He was looking at the clock in the kitchen when he heard Miles talking behind him.
'Nora is it? Nice to meet you, I'm Miles and...' That's all he got because he knew exactly what he was going to do.
That was the advantage of being a know womanizer. When you disappeared from a party, your best friend would not think you were actually on your way to his niece. When he saw Miles was trying his best to pick up the woman that had introduced herself as Nora, he snuck out of the door, and was on his way again to his car.
Charlie let out a deep sigh. She had made it to her favourite corner of her couch. She had filled a glass of water, grabbed the box of tissues from her bedroom and was dizzy on her feet when she finally made it back to her couch.
She still felt frustrated that she was missing Miles' bash. He always knew how to throw a good party. Good booze, lots of fun. The view from his roof terrace was amazing at midnight, when fireworks were around the whole city.
Half an hour ago, she thought she was still able to make it to the party, but when getting her dress from her closet turned out to feel the same as running a marathon she had finally given up and had called Miles to tell him she was not coming as noises from the party had already started reaching her from the other side of the line. Miles had promised to make it up to her another night.
So when she put the phone back on the table next to her she had looked around her apartment. She was alone and stuck at home on New Year's Eve. Great.
She had ended things with Jason a couple of months ago. She had fallen hard for him, felt things she had never felt before. But her first love and first thing that was close to a relationship had a great start but a not so good ending. He got on her nerves, was too sweet and she did not know what exactly she was missing, but she knew it had been over around autumn. Moving on had not been easy, Jason had tried to contact her again, but it she was moving on.
She had put on the TV to keep her some company. Outside it was cold and dark. Her small apartment was too silent but she was not the woman who would complain. She was too practical and knew this was the way things were tonight. She had just grabbed a blanket from the other side of the couch when she heard the doorbell.
She let out another sigh when she noticed her whole body hurt when she got up from the couch. She had no idea who it could be at this hour. She seriously was hoping it was not her mother, ready to smother her with too much well meant care.
It wasn't her mother.
Because when she looked through the small glass close to her door, she recognised his leather jacket. Bass was here. Bass was here and she was wearing her woollen bunny eared grey socks. They were warm,soft, and she had thought the knitted little ears on top of her feet were funny.
She closed her eyes and told herself that this was Bass. She had known him forever. Don't be stupid Charlie. He had heard her already, so there was no turning back now. Not that Charlie never backed away from anything in her life.
So, with a flu, a running nose, a head full of fever and woollen bunny eared socks she openend her door.
She looked directly in his blue eyes, that were shamelessly roaming over her body and his gaze stopped around her feet.
'What? You never seen socks with some bunny ears?' She shot at him, one hand on her hips. She was leaning into the door for support.
'Can't say I have, Charlotte.' Bass said, a smirk appearing around his face.
She meant to say something smart ass back, she really meant to, but then she had started to cough and getting some oxygen in her lunges had been her first priority.
Bass looked at Charlie, leaning against her front door. Her locks were long and hanging around her face. She was wearing grey soft pants and a simple tank with tiny straps over her shoulders. She looked hot, and not only from the feverish look in her eyes. She looked sick as hell too.
Her eyes fell on the can of chicken soup in his hands.
'What's that?' Charlie wanted to know.
'Brought you some soup, Miles thought it might be a good idea, he wanted to see if you were all right.' Of course, it was complete bullshit and a total lie. Miles did not even know he was here. He had made a stop at that little store a couple of blocks away that was still open en he had grabbed the chicken noodle soup. He knew she liked the soup but it aslo meant he did not have to show up empty handed.
Lucky for him, Charlie did not question his answer and stepped back to let him in.
He walked inside and got out of his jacket. He threw it on one of the kitchen chairs. Charlie had followed him into the kitchen and he saw her swirl on her feet for a second.
'Take it easy,' he said, wanting to walk over to her.
Of course she did not listen and walked towards one of the cabinets and away from him to reach for something to heat up the soup he had brought. When she tried to reach for it she felt dizzy again.
This time his hand was on her arm. For a moment they stood so very close. Bass felt the warmth of her arm, and really tried to ignore the curves of her amazing breasts through her tight tank. Charlie felt his chest for a moment against her upper arm.
Since last year he had this crazy good stubble on his face and for a moment Charlie's eyes flickered to his beard.
'Hey, take it easy, Charlie,' this time there was more force in his voice, 'You think you are the first stubborn as hell Matheson I had to face?' He had placed his hands on either one of her upper arms. 'Couch, now.'
He only let go of her when she was on the couch and Charlie watched him walk back into the kitchen. She could still feel his hands on her arms, and she really liked his large hands, strong grip and the rougher skin of his fingers on her skin.
She watched the TV and not much later Bass returned with a bowl of hot chicken soup. When he returned, she had curled up with her blanket in her favourite corner again, the place she had sat on just before he had arrived. She closed her eyes for a moment, her body had gotten even more sore and her head hurt. Chicken noodle soup would be perfect and it was nice to have him over, but she was not going to tell him that. Charlie Matheson did not need a man to take care of her. Although she was kind of glad he was here.
The scent of the soup was comforting and she could use something warm inside her stomach. She took the bowl from his hands and started to eat the soup in slow gulps.
Bass decided to sit down in a comfortable chair across from her. For now. He tried to ignore the fact that she was softly blowing air over her soup, to cool it down. Her lips were soft pink and looked so damn good. For one moment he imagined her lips somewhere else.
'So, you are all alone tonight?' he started, casual tone in his voice, 'no company?'
Charlie raised an eyebrow at that question but she still answered.
'Yeah, I am, ' Bass watched something fall over her face but then she continued, 'I guess I'm that single girl in the city, just like in that TV show.'
Bass grinned at her, trying not to show her how happy he was hearing that, knowing that the other guy was not in her life anymore. Jason. Whatever.
'And you, nobody to visit Miles' roof top with this year?' She eat some more soup, hoping to keep her voice as casual as she could.
Bass swallowed with difficulty while Charlie shot him her best grin and he nodded his head, answering her question with a no.
He changed the topic fast, and they ended up talking about her work, his work and the last holidays.
When Charlie had finished her soup, she felt a shiver going through her body. She was so warm, but at the same time, she could not get rid of the deep cold around her.
Without thinking about it, Bass moved over to her and kneeled down in front of her, one of his hands went toward her forehead.
Charlie did not know what was different, but something tonight definitely was. After his question about Jason they talked, but it felt so forced, so not unlike them. Nomrally they would goof around. He had been close to her like this before, but tonight it was just not the same. His other hand rested on her knee when his hand landed on her forehead.
She had spent so much time with Bass. He was there on birthdays, he was there to take her to the park with Miles when she was little and wanted to see the animals, he was there when she broke her wrist and he and Miles had come over with popcorn and pile of movies to watch.
He was there when Timmy from fifth grade had ambushed her on the school yard after school and had kissed her. She had run home, crying and both Miles and Bass were there for a visit. After Miles had promised to kill the little jerk, it had been Bass who had made her a hot chocolate and added some extra marshmallows, giving her a fast wink that had made her tears dissapear, fast.
But somehow, somewhere during the last year, things had changed between them. She remembered him standing so impossibly close a couple of months ago on an autumn day. They were in the woods, taking a long hike through a cold forest on a long path under the trees when they got into a discussion about turning left or right. He had been close enough to almost feel his chest against her.
She had tilted her head to meet his gaze head on and all of a sudden her eyes had wandered to his lips. There had been a raw pulsating energy between the both of them and his piercing blue eyes had held her company when she was home again. Since when did she feel this when it came to Bass?
Tonight, the both of them in her apartment felt new for some reason. The fever prevented her from figuring it out. All there was now was the feeling of his hand on her forehead, his tall body before her.
'You are burning up, Charlie,' his eyes serious.
Charlie nodded at him. 'I think that is what the flu is about, Bass,' She tried to make a joke out of it, but Bass saw how miserable she was. He pulled the blanket closer around her body, his hand on her shoulder for a moment.
'There, you need anything else?'
Charlie felt the fever running through her head, her thoughts chaotic and fuzzy. She did not care anymore if Bass saw her like this, sick and feverish. She was miserable and Bass so close felt so good. His soothing voice close. Again, good.
'Tissues,' she said, nodding at the tissue box on her left.
Bass grinned at her. So Charlie was not only hot as hell, stubborn and smart, she was damn adorable when she was sick. He reached for the box and handed her the little box.
He told her he would be right back and walked over to the kitchen, remembering the bottle of whiskey he had spotted in her kitchen earlier. A true Matheson, he had thought and had smiled for a moment. He found a glass in one of her cabinets. He had not grabbed a drink earlier, for the simple reason he had not been sure if he would stay longer than a couple of minutes to check up on her. But Charlie did not seem to mind he was here and he decided a drink and some more time at her place could not hurt. That, and he would not leave her alone like this. He did not give a damn if he would sit next to her while she would sleep for a full night and day, he was going to stay.
When he walked back to the couch, Charlie was peeking over at him from the blanket.
'What are you doing?' She yawned, while another shiver went through her body, 'don't you have a party to go to?'
Bass put the glass and bottle in front of him on her coffee table. This time, he sat down next to her. Fuck, her couch was small. And because of his weight on it now too, the both of them moved closer to the middle. But maybe, while he felt her body close to his, that wasn't a bad thing at all.
'It's pretty much the same thing every year. When I left, Miles was busy hitting on some woman. I'm sure he doesn't even notice I am gone.'
For the second time in a short time he moved the blanket more around her.
'Besides, you and your bunny ears are very good company,' he said, teasing her.
'You are quite the gentleman, aren't you?' Charlie shot at him, while her stomach did a flip that had nothing to do with her flu when she heard his low voice when those words rolled of his lips.
'Always, Charlie. Always.' A smirk appeared on his face.
Of course Bass meant it, smug idiot, Charlie thought. She wanted to roll her eyes at him but she felt the dull pain that was now behind and around her eyes,so she changed her mind. She smiled faintly back at him.
They watched the television and soon it was close to midnight. The countdown would soon start. He felt her shift and when he watched her again, so close next to him, her eyes had closed and she was leaning more and more into him.
He looked at Charlie again, when he put the glass full of warm liquid close to his lips.
He held his breath for a moment when her head touched his chest. He shifted his shoulder slowly to give her more room. God, she felt so damn good, curled up against him. He did not move. In front of him, on the television the countdown had begun.
5...4..3...2...1... The crowd on television started to cheer. He heard them in the background, but his eyes were only on Charlie.
'Happy New Year, Charlie' he said softly.
She shifted, only moving closer to him.
'Happy New year, Bass,' she whispered.
He pulled an arm around her shoulders. At that moment she woke up again for a second, and she opened her eyes just a little. Her head was tilted back against his strong and muscled upper arm and for a moment the room seemed to consists of only them.
Charlie felt warm, and taken care of and she felt his breath on her face, all whiskey and Bass. She moved her head closer to his, letting her body melt into the space between his chest and his shoulder. His arm behind her, against the curve of her back, supported her like she weighed nothing.
She waited. Not sure what she was waiting for. But then Bass moved closer and she felt the stubble of his beard against her face.
Their lips brushed. It only lasted a second. But being so close to him, even with a fever and the flu, so close to him in his arms, her head in the hollow of his body on her couch, was just simply overwhelming.
Her eyes got heavy again and she moved back and closer to his chest, her thoughts chaotic and dreamy again. Bass had watched her beautiful face. Even sick, she was so god damn beautiful to look at.
He was not the kind of guy that would take advantage of her. She was sick, feverish. But when she had learned in, and he could not control himself, he had allowed it to happen. He had no choice. He had to feel, how her soft lips would feel against his. It was a sweet almost innocent kiss, but it was a kiss. The look in her eyes had tore right through him.
He needed more, so much more. But for now he watched people celebrating the new year on TV, drank his whiskey and moved his fingers slowly over her sleeping form and through her hair, while she slept in his arms. The fireworks were welcoming a new year in the night sky outside and above the city.
Author's Note Thanks for visiting this story, I loved writing it and I adored this prompt, so a big thank you for the prompt I got from the Good Ship Charloe Website! Chapter two will be here soon!
