AN: So now that I have stopped writing McReedus and removed all my published work I have a huge amount of fics just sitting on my computer. I had an idea today and decided to give it a shot. I'm going to take these old McReedus fics or aspects of them (like the smut scenes) and rework them into Caryl fics. I decided to start with Paradise because a lot of people seemed to enjoy it and I figured it might be the easiest to rework into an AU Caryl. I think I got them all but if you see any "Mel's" or "Norman's" those are supposed to be Carol and Daryl's LOL Would love to hear what you guys think of this idea… So far do you think this works as a Caryl AU? Would you like to read more?
Chapter 1
Carol found the perfect lounge chair, tucked nicely in the corner all alone, and set herself up to enjoy an afternoon of sun and a good book. She had picked an adult only resort, but questioned that decision when she realized the young adults were often worse than the children. She wasn't a complete prude by any means, Carol knew how to have a good time, even though Ed had kept that side of her under lock and key for a while. But some of the foolish and embarrassing things she had seen people do in the past couple days just made her shake her head.
It was never easy to be alone at one of these places, especially for the first few days. She'd done it a couple times before she'd met Ed, back when she was young and had her freedom - something she hadn't had for way too long. Everyone assumed if you were alone you were there looking for a fling, which she most certainly was not. Carol just wanted to relax, tan and enjoy a little bit of serenity before heading home for the insanity of the holidays at her new retail job. She had already shooed more than a few needy bachelors away.
Her divorce from Ed had become final only a couple weeks earlier and she just needed a break from the insanity of figuring out her new life as a single woman, living alone. He'd fought her hard but she had a good lawyer and she made out well in the deal. But of course Ed was mad and he kept coming after her until she got a restraining order. He broke it once and ended up in jail for a short stint. SInce then he'd finally started to leave her alone. Thousands of miles from Georgia, in the absolutely stunning Fiji, things were far more laid back and it was exactly what she needed.
Carol took off her swim suit cover and folded it neatly, then kicked off her sandals and climbed into the lounge chair. Before she was even situated a server came by to see if she wanted a drink. Carol ordered a rum and coke then opened her book. The server returned quickly and she tipped him then took a sip of the cold drink.
There was a bit of a commotion across the pool and Carol put down her book for a moment to check it out, suddenly wishing she hadn't. She rolled her eyes when she saw what the commotion was about. Yet another blonde wearing pretty much nothing had made an appearance poolside. At least this girl had the body for the string bikini Carol thought, lifting the book up to get back to her story.
When the commotion continued for longer than usual she looked up again. "You have got to be kidding me," she muttered out loud. Standing beside the blonde was a gorgeous shirtless man she knew all too well. Daryl was smiling a little half grin she didn't often see at work, the gentle breeze blowing through his long hair, and Carol couldn't make herself look away. How could they have possibly booked the same hotel, in the same country, at the same time?
She watched him a little longer, his hand settled possessively low on the back of the curvy blonde. It was a bit strange to see him with a woman like that. Clearly the influence of his older brother Merle, she thought, rolling her eyes.
She'd officially met Daryl for the first time several months ago when she started her new job. He worked for UPS as a delivery driver and was at her store often, sometimes several times a day. The bookstore she worked at was also an outlet for the delivery service where Daryl made his daily pickups every morning and then returned when new orders arrived throughout the day. She giggled the first time she saw him in the little brown shorts that were part of his uniform. It wasn't the first time she'd seen Daryl though. He was actually her neighbor when she'd lived with Ed, before they sold the house and went their separate ways. Though they had never talked about it, there was a good chance Daryl knew or at least suspected she'd been abused by Ed. Before she moved away to another part of town Carol had only actually spoken to Daryl once which resulted in a beating because Ed decided she'd been flirting.
The lived 4 houses down the street and there wasn't a weekend that went by that there wasn't a huge party of some sort. Carol assumed Daryl was quite the party animal, so it surprised her to find out he was actually quite shy and awkward at first. She learned quickly in their brief chats that it was his brother Merle who hosted the loud, rowdy parties, with the young girls, drugs and alcohol, and blaring music.
Right then though, Daryl was in the middle of the action and he didn't seem to mind too much at all. Carol smiled. She always enjoyed watching the way people interacted in public, especially Daryl because he was very hard to figure out. She couldn't help but like the guy and she had to admit that she looked forward to their encounters at work. But she was in Fiji to be alone and get away from everything familiar from home… this was a most unwelcome discovery. So why had her heart rate picked up just a little?
Daryl glanced around as the crowd started to die down. Carol assumed he was looking for a place to sit. She was just about to put her book back up in hopes he wouldn't see her, but it was too late. Daryl did a double take and his grin got bigger. He gave her a little wave and Carol watched him tug the girl's hand and they headed in her direction. Fuck my life, Carol thought, not in the mood to deal with Daryl or this ditzy blonde trophy.
"Hey Carol, what a fucking coincidence," Daryl said, smiling brilliantly at her. It was so strange to see him this relaxed and laid back. Maybe the tropics agreed with him. Or perhaps it was being thousands of miles from work and his insane brother.
She smiled back, it was impossible not to. Daryl was too charming for his own good
sometimes, especially since he had no clue how handsome and charming he could be. "Yeah, unbelievable."
"Oh, this is Amber," he said, introducing his companion. "Amber, Carol," he finished. Carol stuck out a hand to politely shake and was reciprocated with a perfectly manicured set of acrylics.
"Nice to meet you," Carol said. She received a nod and a forced smile in return.
"Babe, I'm gonna go to the bar okay? I need another drink." Carol watched as Amber kissed him on the cheek and sauntered off, knowing that every person she walked by, male or female, was staring at her bare ass and half exposed boobs.
Carol waited until she was out of earshot before she spoke. "She seems nice," she said, laying on the sarcasm thickly.
"Well she was, until we got here. Now she's annoying the shit outta me," Daryl replied. "But she looks damn good while she's doing it," he said, turning to watch her ass for a minute.
Carol smacked him, but laughed, "you're such a pervert."
"What?" he shrugged sheepishly. "Any chance you have a bikini like that you plan on wearing this week?" Carol eyed him. She'd been teasing and flirting with him for a while but it was just recently that he'd finally started to find the confidence to flirt back.
"Not a chance," Carol said. "How about you? Got anything like Mr. banana hammock over there in your suitcase?" She watched his face change to an expression of disgust. "Or those little brown shorts?" she added. "You know how hot and bothered they get me." Daryl rolled his eyes. She teased him constantly about his uniform.
Daryl shifted her leg over so he could sit down and goosebumps spread over her body despite the heat. "Ain't gonna happen. I'd rather walk around naked."
He left his hand on her leg. Daryl had never been very touchy feely and she wasn't used to his hand being on her bare skin. "It's not that kind of resort," Carol teased, trying to distract herself from the feelings his lingering touch was creating inside her.
"But you wish it was don't you?" he teased her.
Daryl being this forward with his flirting was shocking but she couldn't deny she was enjoying this new side of him. "Mmm, maybe there's a blonde or two I wouldn't mind seeing nude," Carol replied nodding towards a tall Nordic featured guy with a perfect six pack across the way.
"You wound me deeply," Daryl laughed. If Carol was being honest there was another certain someone she certainly wouldn't mind seeing in the buff. Even sitting so close to her, touching her leg, with his shirt off was making her heart rate pick up a bit. Daryl was sexy. It was undeniable. But the girl causing a scene at the bar was apparently his type, not her, despite their habit of flirting at work. "I'm glad you're here," Daryl added, after a moment of silence.
Carol wasn't quite sure why it mattered she was there. If all went according to plan she would resume her alone time and somehow ignore him and the ice queen for the rest of the week. And he would parade around with his sex goddess and party in the sun like people did in places like this.
"What room are you in?" Daryl asked.
Carol hesitated. Did she really want him to know her room number? She decided it didn't matter. Once he got busy with Amber he would forget she was there and forget her room number anyway. "2110," she replied. "You might want to head over there," Carol said, nodding towards the bar. "The flies are circling the shit." A group of men had surrounded Amber to "buy" her free drinks.
Daryl sighed, "do I have to?" He leaned in and kissed her warmly on the cheek. Carol tried not to let the shock show on her face. That was a first and she enjoyed it more than she could have expected. "I have a feeling this vacation isn't going to be relaxing at all."
"Are you trying to make me feel sorry for you?" Carol joked. "You're the one who brought the eye candy."
"Yeah well you try to say no to my brother." Daryl had a sheepish look on his face, "'specially when he's paying for the trip." Daryl stood up. "See you again soon, I hope." He flashed her another smile and touched her cheek and watched him walk away. Well that was bizarre she thought, before picking up her book and starting to read.
A couple hours later, Carol's book was half finished and the sun was half set. She decided to head inside and change for dinner. She gather up her things and headed towards her room, which led her right past the bar where Daryl and Amber were still hanging out. He was chatting with a group of people while she was letting some random dude do body shots. Carol shook her head, wondering how Daryl had let Merle hook him up with this bimbo. He caught her eye as she passed and shrugged. Carol just shook her head and gave him a little wave.
Carol decided to have dinner in her room so she placed her order and sat on her balcony to watch the sun set while she waited. It was fully dark by the time her food arrived. She checked her watch and realized it was after 9pm already. She ate the delicious meal and decided to have a warm bath before bed.
She sunk into the deep tub and enjoyed the feel of the warm water on her skin. Carol stayed in the tub until the water turned cold. She climbed out and was just about to grab her robe when she heard a knock on the door. "Just a minute," she called, pulling on the fluffy white robe and tying it at the waist.
Carol peeked through the hole and saw Daryl standing there. She pulled open the door and he looked at her. "Can I come in?" he asked. Carol was pretty sure he was drunk. Maybe not completely wasted, but he was definitely feeling no pain. She opened the door wider and let him in. "Amber is passed out. Hopefully for the night because if I gotta hear her say 'Babe' one more time I'm putting her on the next plane back to Georgia."
"Sounds like a great idea anyway," Carol teased.
"It is tempting," Daryl snorted, taking a seat on her bed, then bouncing a bit, like a child would. "I'm not ready to sleep," he said. "Will you come with me? There's an 80s party downstairs."
Carol sighed, "I don't know…" She really wanted to crawl in bed and finish the book she started. He hopped off the bed and sank to his knees in front of her. "What are you doing?" Carol laughed. She'd never seen Daryl drunk before because their relationship had never extended to outside of work. He was pretty cute like this - with so little inhibitions and a lot more confidence than he usually had. Carol realized that he was likely already buzzed when they'd met earlier that day - which would explain the change in behaviour. Or maybe he was just different outside the job.
"I'm begging," he said, grinning up at her. "Please? Pretty please with sugar on top?" Daryl batted his eyelashes. "Come on, it'll be fun."
Carol sighed again. She had a feeling it was going to be a bad idea, yet she found herself giving in. "Okay. But only for an hour or so. Okay?" She couldn't help but be intrigued by this new side of Daryl and this could be her only chance to explore it a little more.
Daryl sprang excitedly to his feet. "Yup, just an hour. Let's go." He grabbed her hand.
"Um, can I get dressed first?" Carol asked.
Daryl looked at her robe and laughed. "Oh right, yup. But hurry, I'm excited."
Carol found a cute strapless sun dress and headed into the bathroom. When she looked at herself in the mirror it was still shocking to see the beautiful woman looking back at her. Ed would never have allowed her to wear a little sundress or spend the money on nice clothes.
She couldn't help but smile listening to Daryl sing Don't Stop Believing just a little out of tune. His voice wafted in from the other room. What a strange turn of events, Carol thought. She took a little longer with her make up than usual before heading back out to meet Daryl.
Her heart started to beat a little faster when he took her hand in his and led her out the door. She had talked to this man countless times. She'd flirted with him more times than she probably should have at work. Now here they were, thousands of miles from home and she wasn't sure she truly knew him at all. Yet… the only thing on her mind was how much she wanted to know more about him. He was here with some other woman, yet it was Carol he was taking out dancing. This is a bad idea? Great idea? Carol couldn't decide which it was. But she was sure as hell going to make sure she found out.
