This is a short prompt from a great lady that I should have posted a week ago but I'm a flake. It's four chapters, all finished so I can update them quick. Hope you enjoy, thanks for reading!

Chapter One

She had already decided that she wasn't going to go to the stupid reunion. She didn't have anything to wear, it wasn't like she could brag about her success and she knew that she would be one of the few there without a spouse or at least a damn date.

It would be better to just sit at home, lick her wounds and maybe binge on some Ben and Jerry's.

But then Ed would know that she was missing her ten year high school reunion just because he was there. Every since the divorce had been finalized he had shown up wherever she was, trying his damnedest to talk her into coming back to him, claiming to be a changed man and apologizing for everything he had put her through during their eight year marriage, three of those years they had been legally separated while he fought the divorce tooth and nail.

Well to hell with him.

It was her reunion too, right? It wasn't like she could spend the rest of her life hiding from him, unless she had decided to move to a different state and start over completely, which she couldn't afford to do.

No, she would dress up, put on a smile and she would go to this reunion, Ed be damned. It would be nice to get out of the house and visit with old friends and maybe, just maybe, she would run into the one person that she desperately wanted to see, the one person she refused to even hope would even remember her.

Four hours later, after going out to buy a dress and shoes for the occasion, and then stopping to get her hair done, just because it needed it, not because she had any intentions of impressing anyone, she finally pulled up at the gas station just a few blocks from the Hotel where their reunion was being held.

Of course her car would start acting up just a few minutes before she was suppose to be somewhere. The steam that rolled from the hood had her scowling and she felt ridiculous standing there in a brand new dress with fancy new shoes, getting ready to beg the attendant not to have her car towed. Now she wasn't only showing up to this thing stag, she would be walking the last few blocks. This was just perfect.

Shouldering her bag she headed inside, the cool interior was a relief from the oppressive Georgia heat and the cool air felt good on her bare back. She almost felt like calling a tow truck, tucking her tail between her legs and going back home. It wasn't like she would be missing the reunion because of cowardice. It was because she ran into car trouble, which was a suitable excuse if anyone should ask.

She shook her head, muttering to herself as she approached the counter, determined not to let her ex husband ruin this for her, like he had so many other things. Like her hopes and dreams and youth.

Before she could make it to the counter she stopped in her tracks, swallowing hard and feeling her eyes widen. There, standing in front of a rack of beef jerky, was the one man that she had actually been hoping to see tonight, even though she had doubted that she would. Daryl Dixon hadn't changed a whole lot since the last time she had seen him. His body was long and lean, hard muscled and well defined. She could tell even though he was well covered in a pair of black jeans and a simple button down dress shirt. His black work boots were scuffed and dirty and his eyes were hidden behind a pair of sunglasses. His overgrown hair obscured part of his face but still she recognized him instantly.

Her heart skipped a few beats and she started feeling a little light headed before realizing she was holding her breath. He snatched up a bag and was about to turn towards the register when he must have caught sight of her standing there staring at him. He pulled the glasses off, gave her a slow once over and then, to her relief, he grinned.

"Didn't expect you to come," he said, tucking the sunglasses into the neck of his shirt.

She cleared her throat and smiled, willing her stomach to stop flipping over the sight of him. "I wasn't going to. Last minute change of heart."

He nodded. "Same."

She tried to ignore the fact that even after all these years, she was obviously still not over her first stupid crush. In school he had ran with a different crowd but they had still managed to become friends. Ed had hated him and the feelings had been mutual and even though she had been infatuated with the mystery that was Daryl Dixon, he had never given her the slightest hint that he felt even a fraction of the same attraction towards her. So she had dated Ed and her friendship with Daryl had dissolved. But she still thought of him often. She had never forgotten the feelings she had had for him back then and had decided long ago that she never would.

"Well," she said, trying hard not to stare at him, "I'm glad you changed your mind. It's nice seeing a friendly face."

He snorted at that and the sound had memories stirring in her mind, causing her to grin at him. She wasn't delusional enough to hope that he was still single. She was sure he had a wife or girlfriend waiting for him in his car.

"Heard you married Ed," he said, some of the lightness leaving his voice.

She grimaced and she noticed his brows raise at the look on her face. "I did. The divorce was a little ugly but not near as bad as the marriage had been."

"Told you so," he muttered, pushing his hair out of his face with one hand and eyeing her.

She sighed heavily. "That you did. But that's the past. What about you? You finally settle down, make an honest man of yourself?" she was surprised this was so easy. She hadn't seen him in ten years. hadn't spoken to him in longer than that.

This had him grinning again and she could get used to the sight of it. She needed to be careful. "Oh yeah. White picket fence, nine to five job with good benefits, just paid off the mini van. I need it, haulin' around six kids and a pregnant woman. Life is good."

Her stomach hit the floor. "Wow," she muttered. "That's really nice, Daryl. I'm happy for you." Even she could detect the false cheer.

He shook his head and gave her a pitying look. "I swear, you're as gullible as you were in school. I was fuckin' with you, Carol."

"Oh," she said, a little too loudly. "Well... how was I suppose to know?" she sounded defensive but she was actually relieved.

He shrugged. "No wife, no kids, and I sure as fuck don't drive no mini van. I did score a decent job though. Dale got in touch with me a few weeks ago and now I'm about to start at the garage. I'm gonna head out to my grandparent's old place off Rout 19 tomorrow and see what needs to be done to make it livable. Till then I got a room at the Hotel they booked for this little shin-dig."

She couldn't hide her surprise. "You moved back?"

He nodded. "Yep. And you know Dale's gossipin' ass ain't gonna not tell me everything that happened since I took off with Merle. How else you think I got the scoop on you and that dipshit that roped you in?"

She rolled her eyes. "How is your brother?"

He shook his head and started towards the counter. "Prison. He'll be out around this time next year." He nodded to the guy behind the counter as the man handed him his change. "What about you?"

She looked down at her watch and frowned. "I got the house in the settlement. I live on the outskirts of town but not near as far as you. No kids." Even though she had always wanted them, she didn't want to bring a child into such a volatile home. She looked up at the clerk and smiled. "I don't drive a mini van either, but the piece of crap car I own literally just broke down."

Daryl glanced out the window and then turned to the clerk himself. "You mind if it stays parked here for a bit?"

The guy shrugged and then Daryl nodded towards the doors. "You wanna lift?"

She nodded, relieved that he had offered, relieved that she wouldn't have to walk in alone, relieved he was back... this was all turning out a lot better than she had ever expected it to.

~H~

He was trying to tell himself that he wasn't all that excited to see her. He tried to tell himself that her confirming that she was indeed divorced hadn't hiked his pulse up a bit. He tried to tell himself that he wasn't some stupid high school kid anymore and his infatuation with her was in the past.

He was a really bad liar.

They both made a beeline for the bar at the back of the room, managing to dodge their old classmates easily because they had both put their heads down. Once they made it he ordered two beers without even asking her what she wanted. He wasn't usually nervous, not like this, and he was trying hard to play it cool, but it just wasn't easy.

Neither one of them sat down at the stools and they both turned to survey the crowd once the bartender rushed off to serve some of the other guests. He slid his eyes towards her and caught her staring.

Good sign.

"Is he here?" he asked absently, picking at the label on his bottle as his eyes scanned the growing crowd.

She looked up, took a long pull from her bottle and then shrugged lightly. "No idea. Probably, especially if he thinks I'll be here. He is in complete denial and assumes I'm going to just forgive him and things can go back to the way they were." She scoffed and the look in her eyes was so bitter it surprised him. "Fat chance."

Worry had his stomach turning a little. It didn't really matter how long it had been since he had seen her, he'd always care about her. Merle called her 'the one that got away' for a reason and he hadn't ever really been able to shake the memory of her. Hell, the only reason he had come here in the first place was to see her. "What did he do that pissed you off so bad that you divorced him?"

She reached up, fingering the thin gold chain around her neck. "The final straw? He had been having an affair."

He frowned. "What?"

She nodded and then she blushed, clearly embarrassed. "Yeah, well, we didn't have the greatest marriage anyway. We didn't really get along. A few times it even got physical. He was a mean man once we got married and why the hell I stayed with him, I'll never know. But I did. I guess I didn't want to admit defeat. When I caught him in another woman's bed, that was just the slap in the face I needed."

He watched her, not saying a word until she finally looked up and met his eyes. "His loss. I never liked that son of a bitch."

She smiled at that. "Yeah, I know. He never liked you either."

"Well, that stings, Carol," he muttered, finishing off his beer and sitting it down on the bar. "I mean it. I always assumed the guy thought I hung the moon."

She laughed, which was what he was going for. Talking about her marriage had put a shadow in her eyes that he didn't really care for. This was going to be a good night. At least it could be if she was open to leaving her troubles at the door. She sat her bottle down and leaned against the bar, regarding him with a level look. "I hope we can hang out sometime, now that you're back in town."

He held her gaze, forcing that annoying ass nervousness to the back of his mind and nodded. This was not the time to tuck tail and run from her. He'd done that a long time ago and had been regretting it ever since. "You askin' me out?"

She grinned, ducking her head before another laugh escaped her. "You've changed, Dixon."

He chewed the inside of his lip and watched her. "You ain't."

She looked up then. "Haven't I?"

He shook his head. "Nah. I expected you to, especially after Dale filled in the blanks. But it don't seem you have at all."

"How is that?"

"You still got shitty taste in men," he nodded as the bartender slid another beer his way and before he could say anything else he busied his lips with the bottle.

She was about to say something but then her mouth closed, her lips going flat and her eyes hardening. "Damn it," she hissed, half turning into him, obviously closer than she thought he was and as her breast slid against his arm he felt heat hit his veins like he was some sort of junkie and her body was a drug.

He looked up and realized what had her reacting this way. Ed hadn't aged as well as she had. He looked as though it should have been their twenty year reunion instead of their tenth. Ed spotted him and his eyes narrowed, shifting between him and Carol suspiciously. Carol had turned, facing the bar and Daryl glanced over at her, studied the elegant line of her spine, noting how soft the skin looked there. His eyes kept moving, roaming over the swell of her ass that the dress showed off perfectly. He looked up at Ed from under his brow and winked before grinning, feeling more like Merle than himself at the moment.

Ed looked ready to blow a fuse, his face reddening. "Dixon," he spat, like the name tasted foil on in his mouth.

"Asshole," Daryl greeted, sounding bored.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" Ed asked angrily.

He felt Carol stiffen next to him but he kept playing it cool. He glanced at her ass again and took a long drink before answering. "Enjoying the view. What the hell do you think you're doing?" he raised a brow.

Ed's jaw clenched so hard Daryl was surprised he hadn't heard teeth shattering. Finally Carol turned to face her ex husband, her face tense but determined.

"What do you want, Ed?" she asked.

"I thought you and I could talk. I didn't realize that you came here with someone," he said, clearly trying hard to reign in his anger, but Daryl saw right through it.

"Well, I clearly did. Now, if you'll excuse us," she bit out, grabbing Daryl's hand and nearly pulling him towards the crowd.

They weaved their way through the throngs of people, the sounds of laughter and excited conversation nearly drowning out the music. He let her lead the way and she didn't stop until they were near the exit doors. She dropped his hand and looked up at him, her eyes wide and apologetic.

"I'm sorry, it was really good seeing you but I can't do this. I can't stand that man and I can't stand the thought of him lurking around me all night. I think I'm just gonna call a cab and go home."

He scowled, narrowing his eyes on her. "Didn't peg you for a coward," he said, pushing her and knowing it but not caring. He wanted her here. This was the whole fucking reason he had come down from his room in the first place.

"Dixon!"

They both turned at the sound of a voice calling his name and he sighed when he spotted Shane Walsh waving at him from the middle of the room. He was standing with a few other guys he recognized.

He looked down and she reached into her bag, pulling out a pen and grabbing his hand. "I'll give you my number and you can call me any time you-" Her voice trailed off as he pulled his hand away from her and shook his head.

Wordlessly he grabbed the pen, stuck it into her open bag and then took her hand, pulling her much like she had him as she escaped from Ed.

"What are you doing?" she asked as she hurried to keep up with his longer strides.

"I'm gonna make Ed miserable and I'm gonna try to show you a good time. Is that Andrea wavin' at you?" he asked, hoping she didn't pull away and tell him he was a fucking asshole.

She tightened her grip on his hand and gave him a severe look. "You better make this worth my time, Daryl," she muttered.

He smiled. "I'll do what I can."