Daryl entered the watch tower to find Jo laying on a blanket with a smirk.

"Hi," he said, laughing. Daryl knelt down and kissed her. His hand cupped her cheek and he pulled her to him. Jo gripped his shirt and pulled him on top of her. His hands were flying all over her. "I've missed you."

"I've missed you too," she said into his mouth. She tugged his shirt over his head and tossed it aside.

Daryl took a moment to take in her beauty as he was above her. Her soft, light brown waves fell past her shoulders and her green eyes blazed with excitement. Daryl tugged Jo's shirt over her head and kissed her neck as she lowered onto her back again. A moan escaped her lips as he tugged off her pants. He breathed in her scent as Jo dug her fingernails into his back. Daryl rolled onto his back, digging his fingers into her thighs and watching her curls that he loved so much.

Jo sighed and laid her head on his shoulder when it was finished.

"I love you," Daryl whispered in her hair.

She lifted her head and kissed him. "I love you, too." After a moment she said, "I'm not scared anymore, babe."

"Not scared of what?"

"Being with you. Trying to have a life together."

He kissed her again. "I'm glad I have you back."

They slowly dressed and made their way back to the cellblock. Daryl put his arm over Jocelyn's shoulder and she snuggled into him as they entered the prison.

Maggie and Hershel were skinning the animals for dinner when Maggie made eye contact with Daryl and smiled.

"Finally," Hershel said to her as he saw the two walk into their shared cell. "She's been pushing away from everyone for awhile now. I'm glad she's back."

"Me too," Maggie said, throwing cut up meat into a bowl.

Jo and Daryl lay together on the cot and talked about what they would be doing right now if zombies didn't overrun the world.

"I'd take you out to dinner and spoil you rotten," Daryl said. "But, let's be honest, if things were back to normal, you wouldn't go for a guy like me."

Jocelyn leaned up on her elbow. "Not with that kind of confidence, I wouldn't," she said. "I wasn't the kind of girl you think I was. I didn't sit around putting on make-up. I played football and baseball with my brothers." She paused, thinking of the last time she saw her brothers. "But, you're probably right. My brothers would have never let me date a guy like you."

Jo pinched his cheek. Daryl smiled and grabbed her by the waist, tickling her until she screamed "uncle."

"But really," Jo said after a moment, "what's it matter if I would or wouldn't have dated you? We aren't the same people we were… and we never will be."

She lay down on her back, her hands across her stomach and stared at the bottom of the bunk above them.

The truth was, Daryl was wrong. He was everything she ever wanted in a man. Strong, brave, independent, handsome and a fighter. She knew it from the moment she joined the group. She could see through his attitude and composure. He was only like that because of his brother. Daryl was a sweetheart underneath and Jo had a feeling in her gut from the first day something would happen between them. She knew, and she was still scared.

Daryl rolled over to face her. "Tell me a story," he said.

"A story?"

"Yeah. It can be true or not… I just wanna hear you talk."

"A story…" she paused before beginning. "So, there was this girl named Lucy who was a loner most of her life. She never liked to stay in one place. She left home when she was 17 to explore the world, and she never went back home until her dad got really sick. It wasn't that she didn't love him, she just hated home. It reminded her of her mother, who broke her father's heart and never gave a shit about her kids.

"So, her dad got sick and she moved back home to take care of him. Seeing him sick made her regret moving and losing that precious time with him. She beat herself up about it every day. One exceptionally beautiful day, her father was feeling better, so they decided to go for a walk. When they went outside, it was eerily quiet and her two brothers pulled up just as they locked the front door. They were in a panic – talking about people at the hospital eating other people. Lucy didn't understand until Mr. Hendricks, the next door neighbor, came up behind her brother, Alex, and sunk his teeth into his neck."

Daryl realized Jo was telling him her own story and sat up on his elbows to lean close. "You don't have to talk about it," he said.

Jo brushed his hand away from her cheek and continued. "Her other brother, Charlie, rushed them into the house. They could hear Alex screaming outside. Charlie grabbed dad's truck keys and shuffled them into the garage. He didn't even open the garage door – just drove right through it. He drove out of the neighborhood we grew up in, watching friends and neighbors eat or be eaten.

"After hours, we had to stop for gas. Charlie checked everywhere to make sure we were safe. He was almost done pumping when the station attendant came from around the building and grabbed him. Charlie hit him with a bat, but it barely slowed him down. Charlie yelled for us to go. The last thing I saw was my brother's throat being ripped out."

"Jo, please."

"Let me finish," she said, with tears in her eyes. "My dad and I drove all night and then we ran out of gas near a national park we used to camp at. That's when we got out and started walking. We'd almost given up hope when I heard talking… like a whole group of people. And that's when we found you guys. We walked into that camp scared and horrified, but somehow, I only remember one interaction with a grumpy redneck from that day."

She paused to smile. "We walked to the fire and sat down. He immediately stood up and said, 'Oh great, two more mouths to fuckin' feed.' But before you walked away, there was a moment where it was just you and me. We made eye contact and you smirked just a little bit."

Daryl smirked.

"Yeah, just like that," she said, touching his lips. "And it was that moment that I knew you were the one I'd be with." She sighed. "So, you see, Mr. Dixon, you're completely wrong about where I'd be or who I'd be with if we were in a different situation. I liked you even when you were a dick to me."

Daryl reached up and pulled Jo into a kiss. When they parted, he said, "The only reason I was such a dick was because that was the only way I could act around you without having to get to know you. I knew, kind of like you did, that the moment I let you in, I'd be head over heels. And that's exactly what happened."

"You regret it?"

Regret what?"

"That night you saved my life, held me while I cried over my dad and we shared our tent for the first time?"

"That was the best thing I've ever done. I would never regret that." He kissed her again. She laid her head on his chest and they fell asleep.