This story ran longer than I anticipated but it's finally concluded. Hopefully there's not too many typos/mistakes.

No Strings Attached - Part IV

Charlie had to do it. She had to face her fears, fight her arrogance and speak with Miles at least one more time before leaving the city. After breakfast with Bass, she'd gone back to her hotel, showered, changed and then sat by her window letting everything settle before giving Miles a call.

She'd been perched on the chair, her feet up and knees against her chest as she stared at the gloomy skies and the grey city skyline for minutes, maybe hours. The heavens looked ominous and dark, a storm rapidly approaching in the distance. The thoughts that meandered through her mind were both delightful and infuriating, only confusing her already unclear head. The insane turn of events all a result of a favor to her best friend, meeting Bass had been a pure serendipitous experience but having been reconnected with Miles was anything but a happy coincidence. And yet, if she were to be faced with the same predicament again, she'd do it all over.

Picking up her phone, she began to dial, putting the receiver to her ear and waiting for Miles to take the call. She heard his voice—and surprised and cheery timbre to his greeting. Charlie knew that was the point of no return.

The French-inspired cafe sat smack in the middle of a quiet Atlanta neighborhood. Charlie's hand was shaking when she opened the door, not because she was scared but because her flight response was highly engaged and the urge to run seemed to be getting the best of her. She thought of Bass's words, somehow finding comfort in the memories of the previous night. He'd been right. Deep down she missed Miles, she missed talking to him about her monotonous college life, her occasional adventures and her constant desire to explore. And a part of her wanted to forget all about him being her biological father and just pick up from where they'd left off.

She was thinking about all those things when she spotted him in a booth next to the windows that lined the surrounding walls of the restaurant. He waved at her, smiling only slightly as if restraining himself from coming off too strong. After all, he hadn't forgotten that he'd been close to beating up Bass the night before and that she'd stormed off visibly angry over the scuffle.

Charlie approached the table, a passive look on her face as she slid into her seat. There were already a couple of glasses of water on the table, and Miles had been browsing the lunch menu before she came in.

"Thank you for agreeing to meet me–" he cleared his throat, "After what happened last night." He looked away, genuinely appearing ashamed of his actions. He took a sip of his water and then waited for Charlie to say something.

With raised eyebrows and a twist of the mouth, her eyes wandered away from him. "It was pretty fucked up, what you did to Bass." She glanced back in his direction. "You ridiculed him in front of all those people."

There was a mocking smile on his face. "He's too old for you, Charlie." It was as if he hadn't heard a word she'd said.

Her mouth dropped open, "You're fucking unbelievable." The waitress came over, a sheepish look on her face as she caught the last of the exchange.

Charlie looked up at her, noticing how her smile waned and her voice teetered. "Can I get you anything else to drink?"

Miles opened his mouth probably to tell her to come back after a few more minutes but Charlie interrupted. "I'll have a vodka on the rocks and I'm actually ready to order…" she scanned the menu rapidly, "I'll have the chicken and pesto panini."

Leaving him no other option, Miles ordered as well.

When the girl had left, the mood between them remained tense, the silence drowning them in a sea of uncertainty. "He's my business partner, Charlie."

She scoffed, "What does that have to do with me?"

His mouth was a flat line, unimpressed by her reply. "You know, I didn't intend for us to spend our lunch talking about Bass." He place this napkins on his lap, rearranging his silverware on the table. "I think we have a lot more important things to talk about."

Charlie lifted one eyebrow, her blue eyes determined and fierce. "Bass is important to me."

He sneered. "You've known him how long?"

The waitress set her drink down without saying a word and then retreated. Charlie took her glass of vodka in her hand and sipped it like it was water. "Not long but he's been very honest with me, unlike some people I've known for years."

Miles stared at her, his eyes challenging. "Don't do that. You know everything I did was because I care about you. You're my daughter. What else was I supposed to do?"

"You can't expect me to just forget that you lied, that my father–"

"Ben." Miles clarified.

She narrowed her eyes, emphasizing her words. "My father is a wonderful man. He did not deserve to be lied to and he definitely did not deserve the heartache. He's the one you should be apologizing to and with whom you should be trying to make amends, not me." The vodka warmed her throat as she took another swig.

"I've been trying to make things right, Charlie." He looked out the window at the flowing branches of the trees and the drizzle coming down. "All I'm asking is for you to give me the chance to prove myself. I'm not asking you to treat me like a dad. I just want you to know you can count one me whenever you need me."

Charlie looked at him intently, his words really resonating with her. "You can't tell me how to live my life." Her words were soft, it was a sensible request. "And that includes your opinions about my relationship with Bass."

He grumbled, "Can I at least kick his ass if he ever does you wrong?"

She smiled. "Sure." Drinking the rest of her vodka, she set the glass on the table. "But I hope that's not necessary."

Miles nodded, a smile appearing on his face before it broke into a light chuckle. "It's nice to have you back, kid."

Charlie simpered, "Yeah." She sighed. "It's nice to be back."

She knew addictions were bad news—they could only lead to ruin and pain. She also knew that if she didn't leave that second, she'd never make her flight. And yet, the cab stopped right in front of his hotel instead of hers, the sleet pouring down and lightning illuminating the skies, the roaring thunder shaking the ground beneath her as she ran towards the entrance. Her clothes were soaked, hair drenched and teeth chattering from the cold.

The lady at the reception desk glanced up quickly, flashing her a smile as Charlie rounded the corner towards the elevator. Her body was anxious to be in his presence, to see him and feel him once again. When the elevator reached its destination, the doors slid open, her wet form stepping into the hallway as her feet scurried towards his room.

Charlie took a breath, trying to regain control of herself before knocking. Her body was shivering. The door swung open, a smiling Bass staring back at her.

"Charlie." He beamed, "I thought you'd be at the airport by now."

She should have been there. There was a minute of clarity in her mind and she temporarily scolded herself for being so weak, but then he pulled her into him, placing a heated kiss on her mouth and it was all gone.

Bass touched her wet hair, brushing her cold skin with his fingertips and noticing the rest of her was thoroughly soaked. "You're crazy, you know that?" He said, kissing her again, his tongue darting into her mouth.

"You should've gone home, Charlie." Placing another kiss on her mouth, he took her face between his hands, teeth grazing her fleshy lips.

"Why would I want to be anywhere else but here?" Charlie murmured against his mouth, making him smile. Her legs floated off the floor, tightly winding around his hips.

He clenched his hands to her ass as he fervently nipped her lips. His mouth brushed the skin of her chin, trailing over her jaw and down her neck. Charlie tilted her head back, her wet hair coming in contact with solid wall. She played with Bass's curls, thoroughly enjoying the feel of his mouth on her skin. Her breathing hitched when his lips reached her chest.

Without any hesitation, he burrowed his face in her breasts, his tongue skillfully sliding underneath the collar of her shirt and reaching the sensitive parts of her mounds. He pushed her against the wall, one hand unbuttoning her top and sliding it off along with her jacket. Her breasts, perky and cold were sticky from the rain that had seeped through the cloth.

The lacy white bra did very little to hide her hardened nipples. Bass took one between his lips, teasing it over the fabric. She moaned, her aching center craving fulfillment. He looked up at her, loving the way she responded to his touch.

He threw her on the bed, taking complete control and flipping her over on her belly. Charlie felt wet all over, her insides burning up with desire for him. She felt his body hover over her, his heat radiating up and down her body. Bass leaned down to whisper in her ear, "Don't move. I want you just like this."

She stayed in that position, her head turning to get a look at him as he got undressed. He stripped off his shirt first, his trimmed and toned body filling her with lust. His jeans came off swiftly, his body completely naked and his cock impossibly hard. Charlie couldn't wait to have him inside her.

He climbed back on the bed, his skin coming in contact with hers as he kissed and nipped her shoulders and neck. She could feel his cock throbbing against her inner thighs, her walls dripping wet the closer he got to her center. His lips created a path down her spine, not stopping when they reached her lower back and playfully biting the fullness of her ass. Charlie gripped the bed sheets as his tongue teasingly flirted with the space between her legs. She could feel his hot breath near her entrance, driving her insane the closer he got.

Bass slipped his hands underneath her, gently lifting her hips off the bed and bringing Charlie to her knees. He ran his tongue along her inner thighs before touching the sensitive flesh of her folds.

"Oh, fuck." She muttered between moans. Charlie had never felt more exposed, but she'd also never felt more satisfied. It was a type of ecstasy she'd never experienced before.

He lapped up her moistness, his tongue engaging in a pleasurable encircling of her clit before salaciously dipping into her crevice. By the time he returned his attention to her pulsating nub, she was already twisting the sheets between her hands, her body quivering as she climaxed and her cries of satisfaction echoing through the room.

Charlie collapsed onto the bed for a moment as she caught her breath, feeling her heart beating hard and fast against her chest. She noticed Bass was getting ready to leave the bed and head to the drawer when her hand clasped on to his wrist. Without saying a word to him, she took his cock in her hand. She jerked it slowly at first, running her hand up and down his shaft and watching his gratified expression.

Her fingers wrapped around his girth, slick and hard as she began to pump him with more fervor. After a few moments, she took him in her mouth, sucking his head and then taking him in inch by inch until she couldn't take him in further.

Bass reclined back on the bed.

Charlie worshipped his cock like it was worthy of reverence, her hand applying just the right amount of pressure as she moved it along his length.

She was delighting in his taste, the tip of her tongue licking every inch of him when he interrupted her. Charlie smiled, knowing he was close to finishing. Without heeding his obvious intentions, she continued to work him with her hand. Bass let out a satisfied grunt, his seed spilling over his own stomach as she brought him over the edge.

The night seemed endless. Their bodies entwined, hands searching for unexplored territory and lips insatiably brushing against flush, damp skin. Charlie climbed over Bass, his cock filling her up as she began to ride him for the third time that night. Her hips moved against him, breasts falling over his face as she bounced over his length.

Bass took a nipple in his mouth, sucking on tender skin as she started to come once again. Her whimpers never got tiresome, on the contrary, he could never get enough. Rolling her over on the bed, he gently slipped in and out of her. It was sweet and slow, followed by sudden and hard thrusts that reached her core and made her body's heat surge. He kissed her, breathing into her mouth as he jolted into her a few more times before finishing.

Charlie let him stay inside her for a few minutes before getting up to get cleaned.

When she returned to bed, he was passed out, sprawled out naked over the covers. She smiled, crawling into bed next to him and planning to sleep until her body had decided it'd had enough.

Time. It was ceaseless and forlorn whenever she was absent. The days passed, dull and uneventful, eventually turning slowly into grueling weeks taken up by business deals and clients. Bass had always been careful not to get involved with someone, that is, until Charlie came along. The change in pace and desperate longing had been a foreign concept to him.

Although he was based in Philadelphia, his occupation required him to be away from home sometimes for weeks at a time. He'd never minded before but he'd also never been so taken with someone like he was with her.

Sure, they always talked whenever he was away and there had been numerous video calls sometimes lasting into the wee hours of the morning. But it wasn't the same as having her there with him, being able to smell her scent and kiss her lips, touch her soft skin and hear her murmur his name in moments of passion.

Charlie, for her part, had tried to keep herself busy with school, keeping her mind occupied with other thoughts seemed to be the only type of solace for her yearning whenever he was gone. They had been together for months and although he'd traveled frequently, three weeks had been the longest they'd ever been apart.

The separation never got any easier.

Charlie tapped her foot on the floor, checking her phone every now and again as people wandered past her. The voice on the intercom continuously announced departing flights while the luggage claim filled up with people only long enough for her to realize none of them were him.

Her heart was pounding with excitement and anticipation. The moment he turned the corner and appeared at the top of the escalator was everything she hoped it would be. He smiled that beautiful smile of his and her stomach did a series of pirouettes in return. His blue eyes were fixed on her the whole way down until he reached the end of the escalator.

Charlie ran to him, and they suddenly became one of those cheesy couples that greeted each other at airports like they haven't seen each other in years. For the record, Charlie hated those type of displays of affection but chose to forget about that minor detail once she was wrapped around him. If Duncan could have seen her then, she would've never heard the end of it.

They kissed.

"You have no idea how much I've missed you." Bass said.

"No. I think I do." She replied, finally untangling her legs from around his waist and setting her feet back on the ground.

He smiled at her, taking in her beauty and lightly touching her cheek with his hand. Bass noticed a bit of uncertainty in her look. "What's wrong, sweetheart?"

She sighed, "Do we have to go tonight? I kind of just want to stay in."

Bass laughed, putting his arm around her as they began to walk towards the baggage carousel. "It's Miles's birthday. He's just now starting to like me again. Let's not ruin a good thing."

Charlie giggled, "I guess you're right."

"I'm Sebastian Monroe. I'm always right." He teased.

She rolled her eyes, playfully punching his stomach.

Miles's party had Nora written all over it. He would have never agreed to celebrate his 45th birthday surrounded by people dressed in eccentric costumes, drinking something called 'vampire blood' from crystal goblets and dancing to Monster Mash. It just wasn't Miles. But he had the misfortune of being born close to Halloween. It was virtually impossible for his soon-to-be wife not to take advantage of it.

Charlie took a glass of red concoction from one of the servers and sipped. Bass came up behind her, leaning into her ear and whispering sweetly. "This brings back really good memories, doesn't it?."

"I'm not sure good would be the term I would use to describe it." Charlie goaded, biting her lip.

He hugged her from behind, nuzzling her neck. "Call it whatever you want. You still drive me crazy, even more than you did that night."

Charlie was crazy about him too. She turned around, smiling and focusing on his eyes behind the mask. Having only a few hours to get ready after he got home, they didn't have much time to costume shop. A pair of masks seemed to be the most appropriate addition to their attire.

She gazed into his pools of blue with the most profound adoration. She was so happy, her heart felt like it was going to implode. Neither of them ever imagined they'd be standing in the same spot where they'd revealed themselves to each other almost a year ago.

She looked up at the sparkling chandelier, "I can't believe Miles changed his mind about this place."

Bass smiled, "He got a better deal on the building in Druid Hills."

"I'm glad." Charlie said, cocking her head and pulling him in for a kiss.

Miles appeared among the crowd, a glass of whisky in one hand and a plastic sword in the other. He smiled at both of them, greeting them with a hug and saying something about girly cranberry drinks and pork sliders.

Charlie grinned, "Nice costume, Miles. You do see the irony of you being a lawyer dressed like a pirate…"

He playfully pushed her head away, making her and Bass laugh. "At least I'm dressed up. For your information, masks are not costumes."

"We had a very short time to get ready after Bass got back from Washington." She replied. "Be glad we're here." She teased.

Miles smirked, "I am."

The music changed tempo, slowing down to a more romantic tune and taking a break from the upbeat songs. He noticed the way Bass looked at Charlie and that was the only cue he needed to realize his presence was no longer required. "I'm gonna go find my lady before she gets mad at me for not dancing with her." He joked.

"Good call." Charlie replied, watching as he disappeared from sight.

"Dance with me." Bass said in a seductive tone as he playfully tugged at her hand.

Charlie nodded in agreement as he guided her to the dance floor. He put his hands around her lower back, the tips of his fingers resting over the bend of her backside as she interlaced her fingers behind the nape of his neck.

She rested her head on his shoulder as they began to move in perfect harmony. Bass felt whole when he was with her and there was absolutely not doubt in his mind that Charlie felt the same way about him.

He kissed the top of her head. "I love you, Charlie."

He'd said that to her numerous times before but she never got tired of hearing it. Because every time he said he loved her, she could hear the truth in his words.

"I love you too." She replied.

They swayed smoothly back and forth, lost in the moment and in each other. They had finally found their match and there was no other place they'd rather be—to one another, they felt like home.

THE END.

Thanks so much for taking the time to read this. Until next time... xoxo