Too Good to Be True

After he slipped the key into his pocket, Matt stood by the basement doors, hearing the predictable sounds of Charlie struggling against the ropes. He didn't feel anywhere near as sorry for her as he'd thought he might, and it was a bit terrifying. He'd only felt like this - like ice was running through his veins - when he was dealing with people that he would torture and eventually kill. He hated that he felt this way about Charlie. But she'd made him feel like she didn't give a damn about him and that brought out the callousness in him. And he had the idea that if he showed Charlie how terrible and awful he could truly be, then she might stop challenging him, stop standing up to him, and then she wouldn't piss him off, which would mean he wouldn't have to hurt her anymore. Because he really did hate to have to hurt her. But he needed to teach her a lesson. And if she learned this one, things would be easier for the both of them.

The next morning, Matt woke up rather early, around nine, and was confused for the shortest fraction of a second when he found himself alone in bed. But then he remembered last night and the callousness Charlie had suddenly brought out of him. He dressed quickly, grabbing the key to the basement door from the top of his dresser and heading downstairs. He went into the kitchen and filled a cup with water from the tap before he unlocked the basement door, flicking on the light before going downstairs. He couldn't tell if Charlie was asleep or just ignoring him, so he gave her a shake anyway, gripping her chin when she looked up at him and pressing the cup to her lips. "Drink," he ordered. "I know you're thirsty." He didn't want to untie her yet, not until he was sure that she'd learned what he wanted her to learn. "Now, are you going to start listening to me? Or do I need to leave you down here for a little longer? I really don't want to do that, Charlie darling, but I will if I have to."

When she realized struggling was useless, Charlie stopped. Tears started falling as she realized how helpless she was. There was no hope of getting out of here until Matt came down to get her. Whenever that happened. Charlie cried until she couldn't anymore and then she cried more. Eventually, she got to the point until she honest to God couldn't anymore. She settled into her seat, listening to the sounds above her, hopeful that Matt wouldn't actually leave her down here all night.

At some point in the middle of the night, Charlie had fallen into an uneasy sleep. Every time she would try to move to get more comfortable, she would jerk awake. She was somewhere half asleep when Matt opened the basement door. She winced against the sudden onslaught of light and kept her eyes. Her heart was racing as he stepped closer and closer, unsure of what to expect from him. Charlie looked up at the shake, her eyes red and puffy from crying and lack of sleep. Charlie sipped at the water, only to pull away because she started coughing. Her eyes widened at the mention of staying down here longer and she began to shake her head, frantic. "Please," she whispered, not able to speak any louder. "I'm sorry. I'll listen," she spoke again. A lone tear fell, it was all she had. "Please, Matt."

Matt felt a soft smile form on his face. He was glad to hear that Charlie was starting to see things his way. He went over and sat the glass of water on the dryer before going back to Charlie, setting himself to the task of undoing the ropes around her wrist. When this was done, Matt pulled Charlie to her feet, reaching out to wipe away the tear that had fallen down her cheek. "Come on, let's get you upstairs and get you cleaned up," he said, wrapping his arm around her shoulder. He kept his grip gentle, knowing that she was already frightened, but still a bit tight, so that she would know not to try anything. He took Charlie upstairs and led her to the bathroom, leaving her there alone for a short time while he went into their adjacent bedroom to grab her a change of clothes.

"Go ahead and take your clothes off while I start the water, okay?" Matt said, trying to make it seem more like a suggestion than an order, even though that's what it really was. When Charlie was naked and the water was warm, Matt had her get into the tub, grabbing her shampoo and things before he lowered himself to his knees. He squirted a bit of shampoo into his palm and started to work it into her hair. "So what time did you need to be at work, Charlie darling?" he asked. He knew it might be a bad idea to broach this subject, since Charlie didn't like Matt's idea of having someone with her while she was at work. But now that Matt had...convinced to listen to his reasoning - and found something to scare Charlie with if she still disagreed - he thought she might be more apt to agree. "I need to know, since I'm taking you."

Charlie's shoulders visibly relaxed when Matt began to untie her wrists. When they were free, Charlie hissed. Her wrists had been rubbed raw in a few places and the cool air hitting the spots stung. She stood, a hand still on the chair to keep her balance. Her legs were wobbly, mostly from nerves. When Matt wrapped an arm around her, she leaned into him. Still holding her wrists to her chest, Charlie was quiet as they entered the bathroom. When Matt left her alone, she took the opportunity to relieve herself.

Curling her shoulders in on herself, Charlie nodded at Matt's suggestion. She peeled her shirt off first, followed by her pants, and finally her underwear. Quiet as Matt moved about, Charlie leaned back into the tub, careful to keep her arms up so her wrists wouldn't touch the water. Charlie glanced to Matt at the question, chewing on her bottom lip. Her head was pounding and her joints sore from being in the same position for nearly 12 hours. "What time is it now?" Charlie asked quietly, closing her eyes. "My head hurts," she mumbled, pulling her legs up a bit so she could sink a by more ink the water. "I'm just going to call Lanie and let her know I'm sick," she finally gave a real answer. While it was the last thing she wanted, Charlie's head was pounding and she had no way to cover up her wrists. She was in no position to go to work where she would need to work around food and make drinks. "If that's okay," her voice was small this time around, suddenly feeling like she needed permission to.

"It's just about ten in the morning, I think," Matt answered, started to rinse the shampoo from Charlie's hair. When Charlie mentioned her head hurting, he wordlessly got to his feet and went to the medicine cabinet, tipping a few aspirin into his palm from the bottle. He took these to Charlie and laid them into her palm. "Here you go, darling," he whispered, kissing just below her ear. He returned to his task, reaching for the conditioner as Charlie mentioned calling in sick to work. And when her voice grew small, so small that he barely heard her ask his permission, he couldn't help the smile that graced his face. He knew he should feel bad that he'd manipulated Charlie so heavily, but the knowledge that he could so easily control her overshadowed the guilt. "Of course it's okay," Matt said, running his fingers through her hair, saturating each strand with conditioner. "That just means we'll get to spend the whole day together, since I don't have to work, either."

Matt knew that Charlie's conditioner needed to sit for a few minutes, so in the meantime he lathered up her loofah, starting with her back as he started to gently scrub her skin. He moved the loofah over her chest, across the flat plane of her stomach, and down to her thighs. He knew that there was absolutely no way Charlie would be interested in doing anything remotely sexual, and so he needed to suppress the thoughts of just how long it had been since he'd been able to touch her, and... "Charlie, look at your wrists," Matt's said, his attention now focused on the bright, angry looking marks on her slender wrists. He knew they were from struggling against the ropes during the night. "We'll have to get some bandages on those when you get out of the tub."

Charlie's face fell as he told her the time - she had been down in the basement for longer than she realized then. She glanced up when Matt left her side, an appreciative smile coming to her lips when he reached for the painkillers. "Thank you," she murmured. Taking them quickly, Charlie settled her head back into the same position that it had been. She swallowed the lump that had formed in her throat at the idea of spending every moment of the day with him but realized there was no point in fighting that. Work would have been a chance at time away but she was feeling too awful physically to go in. She had given up the chance on her own.

Her heart rate picked up the lower that Matt moved the loofah. She pressed her thighs together, hopeful that he wouldn't ask for too much more from her. The thought was abandoned at the sound of her name. Her eyes shot open so that she could look at her wrists. Suddenly, she felt ashamed and she brought them close to her chest. Despite the stinging sensation, Charlie dipped them below the water to hide them from view. She gritted her teeth against the pain, not dating to look up from the water. "I'm sorry," she mumbled, hanging her head. "Don't worry about them. I'll be fine," she spoke again, not wanting to seem like she would be too much trouble.

"Don't be silly," Matt said, beginning to rinse the conditioner from her hair. When he finished, he reached for her wrist, skimming his thumb over the red marks on her skin. "Let me take care of you, Charlie." There was a slight edge to his voice that he couldn't keep away. He closed his eyes, sighed softly before reaching for the plug. As the tub drained, he went to the small cabinet and pulled out a towel, which he offered to Charlie. "Your clothes are on the counter," he said, without looking over his shoulder. His attention was focused on the medicine cabinet; he pulled out a few pieces of gauze, gauze tape, and some antibiotic ointment. He waited until Charlie had finished dressing before he pulled her over to the counter. "Let me see your wrist," Matt said softly. He reached for her left one, which seemed to loom worse than the other. He put a bit of ointment on the marks before applying the gauze around her wrists, securing it with the tape.

"I'm sorry I had to do this to you, Charlie," he said, doing the same to her other wrist. He brought her wrist to his lips and kissed the gauze. "But you understand, right? I can't lose you. You're the only good thing in my life. If I lost you...I wouldn't have anything to live for anymore." He hated to do that to Charlie, to manipulate her like that, but he just had to. Surely she wouldn't be able to handle the thought of knowing that he'd killed himself because of her? And it also served as a way to shift the blame for last night from his shoulders to her. "Come on, let's go lay down in bed," he suggested, smiling softly. "We can order in and we can even watch that movie you like? Sound good?"

Charlie hated the conflicting feelings that were running through her mind. Part of her just wanted to shove Matt away and tell him to fuck off by she was so tired that everything he was doing just felt like she was being spoiled. She could be downstairs still - at least he was being gentle. Her gaze shot toward him, shrinking into the water as he reached for her wrist. "Okay," she agreed quickly, not missing his tone. She didn't want to step even a toe out of line for the rest of the day. Charlie took a minute to stand, watching the water just drain before raising to her feet. Dressing took only a moment, she rushed to pull the clothes onto her body, feeling vulnerable naked. She made a small noise as her left wrist was bandaged, unable to completely ignore the irritation.

She couldn't help the slight smile that came to her lips as he kissed her wrists. She hated that he could be sweet, when he wanted to be. It made being upset that much harder for her. Charlie moved between his arms so she could set her head on his chest, careful not to press too hard on her wrists. "I'm sorry," she murmured, though she was unsure of what she was apologizing for. Was it walking. In on the original scene? Pushing Matt to the point where he locked her downstairs? Hell, she didn't know. She nodded at his suggestion, yawning. "That sounds perfect," she said. Finally, Charlie took a step backward. "Can I call Lanie before? Just to get it out of the way. "

Matt smiled as Charlie moved against his chest, pressing a kiss to the top of her head. When she moved away, asking if she could call her boss, he nodded. "You'll have to use my phone though, yours is dead," he explained. He was sure that it was, but to be completely honest, he had no idea where he'd put her phone before he'd gone to bed last night. But it was somewhere in the house. In the bedroom, Matt handed Charlie his phone after unlocking it. "Make it quick, okay?" he said. "And stay in the bedroom while you call, I want to listen." He still didn't entirely trust Charlie; she was still uneasy around him, and while that was definitely warranted, it made it so that there was still a chance that she might betray him. Matt knew it might be awhile before the thought of turning Matt in wouldn't even cross Charlie's mind. As Charlie spoke to her boss, Matt sat on the bed, waiting for her to finish. He was going to order their food, if Charlie was hungry, and he would need his phone for that.

"So Charlie darling, are you hungry?" Matt asked, taking his phone back from her when she'd finished with her call. He snaked his arms around her waist, pulling her to his chest. "I can go ahead and order us something if you are. What are you in the mood for?" Matt pressed another kiss to the top of her head, gently massaging her lower back. He was sure that she was a little sore there after sitting in that hard chair all night. "Charlie, I just want you to know that I'm really looking forward to just spending the day in bed with you," he whispered. "It's been so long since we've been able to do that, and I've been missing your company."

Charlie frowned at the idea of using Matt's, nodding as she moved over to the bed. She tucked her feet under her, reached for his phone. Tensing at Matt's words, she had to bite back a snotty remark and she was sure that was evident as she ground her teeth together. She hadn't been planning to leave the room though and she didn't want to cause any more problems. Steeling herself against the phone call, Charlie dialed the cafe's number. For just a moment, Charlie was thankful that her throat was still sore, dry as it had been when Matt had ventured downstairs to grab him because her voice was hoarse enough to pull off her lie. A sad sort of smile on her face, Charlie thanked Lanie for the well wishes before hanging up. She closed her eyes, biting back a sob. Lanie was someone that she had considered another mother more or less and to lie to her, it hurt.

She didn't know whether she was hungry really, she was exhausted and overwhelmed. Charlie tensed as she felt an arm around her waist, looking up for the first time. Her eyebrows knit together and for a moment, she hesitated only to cuddle into Matt's chest. This had always been her safe place and right now, Matt was in a good mood. She wasn't about to ruin it. She melted into him, resting her head on his chest as he spoke. "I don't know. Chinese?" It was the first idea that had popped into her head, "Or pizza. Whatever you want is fine."

Charlie smiled at his words, though it never quite reached her eyes. She wrapped her fingers into the material of his shirt, breathing in his scent. Listening to his heartbeat was slowly calming her own nerves. "No promises that I won't fall asleep," she murmured, shifting her weight around so her legs were splayed out in front of her.

"We don't have to eat if you're tired," Matt said, rubbing Charlie's back. "I'm not that hungry either, so why don't we just wait until later to eat?" He nudged her chin up and kissed her lips before he moved away, going over to put on the movie that he'd promised Charlie they would watch. Before he got into bed, Matt shed his shirt - he felt constricted with so much fabric on him when he was trying to sleep or get comfortable in bed. When he was comfortable under the covers, he opened his arms, beckoning Charlie to him. "Come on, Charlie darling," he said, smiling. "Come lay with me." He knew that she would; he could tell she was exhausted and any ill will she felt for him was overshadowed by that. Besides, to him it seemed like his current sweet demeanor was winning her over.

"By the way, you can fall asleep if you want," Matt whispered to Charlie when she was finally in his arms. He had a hand on her lower back, the other running through her damp hair. "I'll just hold you. As long as you're here, I don't care if you're awake or not." Matt settled back as the movie started, absentmindedly rubbing Charlie's back. He knew he would probably end up falling asleep at some point as well, because he'd gotten up much earlier than he usually did. But even subconsciously he knew that he couldn't keep Charlie down in the basement for too long, no matter how much she'd pissed him off.

Charlie hummed in agreement, only to groan when Matt moved away from her. She tensed, looking up to him, apprehensive. She couldn't handle much more right at this very moment, she just hoped that he wouldn't aim for much more. Realizing all that Matt was doing was putting the movie in, Charlie twisted to bury her face into the pillow under her head. God, was she stupid. She sat up when Matt returned, eyeing him as he motioned for her. She didn't want to, not really, but then she remembered just how nice it felt to be cuddled against his chest. Charlie shimmied over to Matt, wasting no time in getting comfortable, careful of her wrists.

Out of habit, Charlie began to trace the outline of his chest tattoos. She tried to focus on the television, figuring the movie would serve to relax her. After a moment, she realized her eyes were getting blurry. Sleep it was. By the time the first scene finished, she was fast asleep on Matt's chest, snoring softly.

---

It was just after two in the afternoon when Charlie started to come to. She squirmed in Matt's arms, stretching her arms above her head. Maneuvering away from him, Charlie tip toes downstairs, intent on having a glass of water and a moment to herself. It was only a matter of time before Matt woke but she's take the few minutes to herself that she could.

It didn't take long for Charlie to fall asleep - Matt could tell by the sounds of her soft snoring. He smiled, brushing a bit of hair away from her face. She always looked so peaceful when she slept. He was almost angry with her for coming home early the other night. If she hadn't, or if she would've just called or texted to let him know she was on her way home, they wouldn't be in this mess. Matt wouldn't have to hurt or manipulate Charlie, and she would still be blissfully ignorant. Soon Matt felt his own eyelids getting heavy, and he reached over for the remote, muting the TV. The sounds of the movie didn't bother him, but the repetition of the menu music would wake him up and drive him crazy. He shifted in bed, rolling over to face Charlie, kissing her forehead softly before he closed his eyes, falling asleep pretty quickly.

When Matt next woke up, it was slightly after two and Charlie was gone. He frowned as he tossed back the comforter. Where the hell was she? Without bothering to find his shirt, he left the bedroom and padded down the hall to the top of the stairs. Listening closely, he thought he could hear sounds of movement in the kitchen. "Charlie?" he called out, starting off down the stairs. "Is that you in the kitchen, darling?" Matt smiled when he saw her in the kitchen, a glass of water in her hands. He could tell by the sleepy look still in her eyes that she'd only just woken up herself. "Did you get a good nap in?" he asked, going over to her. He wrapped his arms around her waist and kissed the top of her head. "I did, having you cuddled up next to me." He smiled before leaning down to press his lips to hers, kissing her lips for a moment before he started trailing his lips down her neck.

Still flirting with the idea of sleep, Charlie sat at the breakfast bar and nursed her glass of water. She kept finding herself glancing toward the fridge, trying to decide if the effort to make a meal was really worth it. Her stomach growled, just as she heard her name called from upstairs. Charlie tensed, only to find herself rolling her eyes. She bit back a remark, still not wanting to tip Matt into an angry mood again. A sleepy smile greeted Matt when he appeared, happily leaning against his chest. Setting a hand on his chest, Charlie returned the kiss, only to tense as he began to move lower with his lips. Despite herself, she tilted her head to the side to expose more skin along her neck.

Charlie's eyes slipped shut. Her heart was racing a mile a minute, she briefly wondered if he could feel it beating. "I..." She started, leaning back against the counter to break the contact. "I think we should probably think about ordering food," she murmured, her gaze cast downward. Anything to distract Matt from the task he had been focused on. "How does that sound?" She asked quietly, finally tilting her head back so she could look up at him.

When Charlie moved away, Matt frowned, barely biting back the rude remark that had slipped to the tip of his tongue. He couldn't say that he blamed her for not wanting to have sex with him, but it still irritated him a little. "Yeah, let's order some food," he grumbled, walking over to sit at the breakfast table. He slipped his phone out of his pocket and called the pizza place, ordering a large half supreme and half Charlie's favorite. After he hung up, Matt sat at the table for a few minutes, drumming his fingers on the table before he got up and when back to Charlie. "So, do I just disgust you now or something?" he asked, stepping up to her. He didn't want to ruin the good mood they were both in and the easy going atmosphere, but he'd be lying if he said he wasn't a little hurt by having Charlie rebuff him.

"I mean, I know you're tired, but you just seem completely uninterested," Matt said. He put on a face that might be misconstrued as a pout, but he was far above that. "I'm hurt, Charlie," he continued, laying his hand on her hip. "I thought you loved me. You do love me, don't you?" Matt should've been able to guess that the manipulation would slip into their sex life, but even he knew that this was a different type of manipulation. He wasn't playing off of Charlie's dear, he was playing off of her guilt. Matt gripped Charlie's hip, his fingers teasing the skin just under the waistband of her pants. He leaned down to kiss her again, this time slipping his tongue into her mouth.

Charlie felt the mood in the room shift when Matt stepped away from her, leaving a sour taste at the back of her throat. Her stomach twisted into a knot as she sat there, staring at her half empty glass of water. She was only half listening to Matt as he ordered, realizing that it was pizza that he'd chose. The awkward silence that filled the air after Matt hung up made her tense, tugging on her bottom lip, between her teeth. It wasn't until the question that Charlie looked up. A brief look of panic flashed across her features. Things hadn't been this way for long but Charlie realized she had to tread carefully. Especially since Matt had just been a good mood. "Matt..." she tested her voice, only to fall silent as he closed the distance between them. Charlie gulped, feeling uneasy as he spoke again.

She listened, only for her face to fall at the accusation. Charlie was torn, she knew that she loved him. Even with everything that had happened, was there really any use in trying to deny that simple fact? Matt's touch still brought her butterflies but now, she wasn't so sure she knew why. Charlie hesitated a moment too long when Matt leaned in for another kiss, twisting away from the hand on her thigh. She hesitated before reaching a hand up to rest on his shoulder, fingers massaging small circles into the back of his neck. Charlie was still just as tense as he lifted her onto the counter top, pushing the stool she had previously been sitting on, out of the way. An idea popped into her mind, if she could focus on just him, maybe he'd leave her alone. Her hand found its' way to his shorts, fingertips teasing just below the waistband. "Let me show you," she murmured against his lips as she pulled away, breathless. Charlie began to kiss down his jaw, to his neck as she moved her hand further south.

Matt's breath hitched in his throat when he felt Charlie's fingers just beneath his waistband, but her words brought a smirk to his face. "Now that I like the sound of," he said. Matt was perfectly content to just let Charlie put her hands all over him and he tilted his head to the side, exposing his neck to her. And as her hand slipped lower, his hips moved forward, silently asking for more of her touch. Matt ran his own hands up Charlie's thighs, teasing his fingers between her legs before continuing up her sides. He'd been with Charlie long enough and seen her intimately enough times that he knew her body by heart - he knew each curve and slope. It probably spoke to just how long it had been since he and Charlie had actually done anything, but as Matt thought about Charlie and felt her curves beneath his hands, blood began rushing south.

"You're so beautiful, Charlie. Let me see you," Matt said gently. He slid his hands underneath her shirt, breaking the contact between her lips and his neck to slide it over her head. He dropped it onto the floor as he leaned in to kiss her, resting his hands on her hips. At this point, he was torn. He could easily tell that Charlie was uncomfortable with what was happening, but he was quickly approaching the point where he couldn't and wouldn't stop, even if he just had to settle for her hand. But he didn't think he was to the point of forcing her, although it said a lot to Matt that he'd even considered it. "Charlie darling, if you don't want to go any further, you need to tell me now," Matt said breathlessly, pulling away from their kiss.

Charlie was slow to respond to Matt's movements, hesitant to play along. She knew where this was leading and despite how uncomfortable she was with that fact, Matt's mood change when she had pulled away from the kiss was fresh in her mind. She gulped as he broke contact with her body, lifting her arms obediently do he could remove her shirt. Charlie moved to cover her chest, only to halt her movements as Matt moved closer. After a moment, she dropped them, allowing her hands wander into his shorts. Letting her eyes close, Charlie began responding a bit more enthusiastically. She frowned as he pulled away, leaning back to look st him. Her breathe hitched at the question and she lowered her gaze, shrugging her shoulders.

"I love you," she answered, her voice returning the same small tone. She knew that she didn't want this but at the same time, Charlie didn't want Matt to ever question her love for him. Despite everything, she hadn't been completely pushed away. Not yet. Wrapping her arms around herself, Charlie drew in a deep breathe. "It's..it's fine," she spoke finally, leaning forward so kiss him. Anything to distract from the conflict in her mind.

Matt knew he should stop - Charlie was obviously uncomfortable. And before everything that had happened, he would have. But Charlie had seen his darker side and subconsciously that gave him an excuse to keep going, since Charlie had told him that it was fine, even if her body language said something completely different. "If you're sure," Matt murmured, his lips brushing hers. He pressed forward, deepening the kiss as his hands wandered over Charlie's bottle, eventually settling on the clasp to her bra. He gave it a pinch, smirking into their kiss as the undergarment fell away from Charlie's body. "Have I ever told you how absolutely beautiful you are, Charlie?" Matt asked, pulling away from her. He attached his lips to her neck, kissing a trail down to her collarbone, nipping occasionally at her soft skin.

"You're absolutely breathtaking, I'm so lucky," Matt mumbled. "I love you, Charlie." And Matt really did mean that. The love he felt for Charlie was genuine, it always had been and it always would be, no matter what happened. And she still seemed to love him, despite everything that had happened over the past couple days. He reached for Charlie's wrist, wrapping his fingers around it and moving her hand so that it rested on his groin. "Touch me," he said softly, almost pleading. He knew it wouldn't be long before the pizza arrived and they were interrupted, and Matt's wanted to get out of this everything that he could.

Somewhere in the back of her mind, Charlie had hoped that Matt would have picked up on the signs that she was laying down. She nodded in response to his words, letting him take the lead. She trusted Matt enough that if she had spoken up, he would have done things differently. But she hadn't and whatever outcome this had, she knew it was all on her shoulders. A small smile of her own, Charlie gave a shake of her head. "I don't think so," she murmured in response, tilting her head to the side. The further they went, the more relaxed she grew. She had done this a hundred times before with Matt, this didn't have to be any different than any of the past times. "I love you, too," she answered. Allowing one hand to be pulled toward him, Charlie flashed a small smirk as she gave him a light push backward. "I have something else in mind," she teased, slipping off of the counter.

Lowering herself to her knees, Charlie looked up to Matt. "If that's okay," she teased, reaching for the waistband of Matt's shorts. Dipping her hands below it, Charlie pushed the material down Matt's legs. A hundred times before, this was no different. Wrapping her fingers around his length, she focused her attention on him. She leaned forward, her tongue flicking out to tease his tip. If she could focus everything on Matt, then she could get through today without too much complaint.