The moment he'd seen her pregnant belly sticking out his brain had gone into panic mode. The first thing he did was wrack his brain to eliminate himself as a possible suspect as the father. His sexual escapades were more or less limited to drunken one night stands whenever he felt the itch bad enough. For the most part, he avoided women, like he did with most people in general.

But it didn't take too much effort for him to figure out that the baby in her belly didn't belong to him. Something told him he'd recognize this woman for sure if she had. She had these pretty, big blue eyes. They seemed so welcoming and warm. He'd remember them for sure if he'd ever met her before.

So, that left him with assuming that she'd been here for Merle. Which wasn't a stretch to say the least. He got around ten times more often than Daryl did, and he wasn't half as careful as Daryl made sure to be whenever he did decide to go out and get a piece. Some random woman showing up at their door claiming to be carrying Merle's child actually seemed overdue in a way.

The last damn thing Merle Dixon needed was a child to take care of. Hell, neither brother did. In many ways, both of them were still kids themselves. They didn't know a damn thing about raising a child and they hadn't exactly had a shining example to prepare them for the role either.

He couldn't help the immense sense of relief he felt when she'd introduced herself as Hershel's niece. Though, he hadn't been expecting her to be pregnant at all. Hershel hadn't ever mentioned anything about that to him. Neither had Glenn, who happened to be dating Hershel's daughter, which would make her Carol's cousin. Right now he sure wished someone would have told him so he hadn't of made an ass of himself.

He reached out and met her hand with his, giving it a gentle shake, as if he thought he might break her in her pregnant a state. "Nice to meet you." He told her. "I'm Daryl."

She smirked mischievously at him. Blue eyes beaming up at him brightly.

His face reddened again, realizing he'd already told her his name. He rubbed the back of his neck nervously and chewed at his bottom lip. Things weren't getting any less awkward and he wished like hell Merle was here so he could hand her off to him. He motioned for her to step inside. "Why don't you, ah, come on in. I gotta grab the key to show you the other side of the house and we can just walk through this way.

Carol stepped inside and followed the awkward man's steps through his home. She noticed the nice new floors that looked as if they'd just been put in. She saw what looked like fresh paint on the walls. The house looked a hell of a lot nicer than it had the last time she'd been in it a few years ago when she'd been visiting her uncle Hershel.

Her eyes landed on scattered boxes strewn here and there in the kitchen and dining room. Remnants of things she was sure they still hadn't unpacked. Though, the house seemed rather neat overall. Much neater than she would have guessed it to be if she was going from the man's outward appearance.

He had shaggy, blondish/brown hair that hung just below his eyes, his face was covered in at least two days-worth of stubble that hadn't been shaved, he was wearing a brown t-shirt that had the sleeves cut off at some point, and a pair of worn jeans with holes scattered throughout them. His jeans were also frayed and covered in what looked to be oil stains. He definitely wasn't the most clean cut man she'd ever met in her life.

Yet, she had to admit, he was ruggedly handsome, even in his unkempt state. His arms were toned and well-defined, he had a pair of the most piercing blue eyes she thought she'd ever seen in her life, broad shoulders, and handsome face she was sure would look ever better if he'd let himself crack a smile.

As she watched him lead her through the house she let her eyes drift to his ass. Good Lord. This man was gorgeous. She licked her lips and when he turned around to make sure she was still following him she almost jumped out of her skin thinking she'd been caught.

He arched a brow at her when he noticed her jump. "You alright?"

She nodded fervently and she felt her cheeks tinge pink. "Fine. Just fine." She stammered. "I was just admiring…" They were in the kitchen now and she scanned the room to try and find something to compliment. "Your side of the home. It's very, very lovely."

He didn't seem to notice how flustered she'd become and he just shrugged at her. "Thanks." He muttered. "Been doing a lot of work the last few weeks. Just did the finishing touches today."

She groaned inwardly. She couldn't believe she almost got caught checking this man out. She couldn't believe she was checking him out! Okay, that was a lie. She could believe that. Her hormones had been crazy lately and she was almost always in the mood. Problem was, she was single and she hadn't had sex since shortly after she found out she was pregnant almost four months ago. It had been a long, long four months.

Daryl stopped at the end of the kitchen in front of a white door. He reached beside the door and grabbed a pair of keys where they hung on the wall. He used them to unlock the door in front of him and ushered her through. "This hallway connects our parts of the house. I got a key that unlocks the door to my side and you'll have on that unlocks the door to your side. I can't open yours up without the key and you can't open mine without my key." He jingled the keys in hand for effect.

He flicked a light on and in the middle of the walkway she noticed a washer and dryer. "Mine, yours, or ours?" She asked, nodding to them.

"Yours." He told her. "Me and Merle got a utility room on our side of the house. It's a little bit bigger than your side and there wasn't a place for them in there." He used another key on the key ring he had and unlocked the door at the end of the hall that led into the other side of the house. He felt his face flush again when he got a good look inside. They hadn't done any remodeling to this side of the house and he felt embarrassed that she'd seen how much nicer their side looked compared to this. He probably should have walked her through the backdoor instead.

He stepped out of her way when she walked into the side of the house that would be hers. She was in what she assumed would serve as her living room. It was small, but she could fit a couch and a TV in there. There were two bedrooms off of the living room and one bathroom from what she could see. It had been a long time since she'd been in this place, but it looked almost exactly like she remembered it did.

Daryl noticed her taking in her surroundings and felt the need to apologize. "We ain't exactly got around to fixing this part up yet." He looked down at the brown carpet and grimaced. He'd wanted to fix this part up to before they rented it out, but Merle hadn't wanted to put any money into it yet. He said whoever ended up living there could take it as it was. He said he wasn't gonna put money into anything someone might fuck up.

Carol sensed he seemed to be a little embarrassed about the differences in the sides of the house. It didn't much bother her, though. Right now she just needed a place to live. One that was clean, affordable, and would provide a safe place for her unborn child once it got here. "Come on, the brown carpet's kinda fashionable. Don't you think?"

He glanced down at the carpet, looked up at her and studied her face, trying to read if she was being genuine or not, then cracked a half smile when he realized she was trying to lighten the mood.

And there it was. A hint of a smile on his face. And it looked just as good as she thought it would on him. Fuck. She needed to get laid. This wasn't even right. He was going to be her landlord. And men should be the last thing on her mind right now. Sex was what got her into her current situation.

"You wanna check out the bedrooms?"

"Wh…what?" She felt her face flush as she looked at him dumbfounded.

"The bedrooms." He motioned to the two doors located directly in front of the living room. Two of them. One for you…and uh…..you know…one for." He pointed to her belly.

She smirked at him again. She didn't know why, but for some reason her being pregnant really seemed to spook him. "The baby." She finished for him.

He nodded.

()()()

He showed her both of the bedrooms, the bathroom, then the kitchen. It doubled as a dining room/kitchen area, unlike the side of the house he and his brother lived on which had an individual kitchen and dining room. But there was enough room in there she could fit a small table and still have kitchen space.

There was a door in the kitchen, which he told her would be the primary door for her getting in and out of the house. It led out onto a deck and she would have to climb up and down steps to get in and out of her side of the house.

"Do you need me to install a ramp or something?" He asked her once they were on the deck.

She looked at him like he had two heads. "Why would I need a ramp?"

He looked down at her belly and brought his thumb up to the side of his mouth.

She sighed heavily. "I'm pregnant, Daryl. Not handicapped. Pregnant. I can manage the stairs just fine."

"Sorry." He mumbled, feeling like he'd made an ass of himself, once again. He felt so nervous around her. She flustered him completely. He felt like his brain lost its ability to process things or speak like a normal person around her.

And he didn't know much about pregnant women. Hell, the only one he'd ever been around was Rick's girlfriend, Lori. She was currently five months pregnant with a little boy. She seemed to be about the size Carol was now. He wondered how far along she was. "I didn't know you were pregnant." He blurted out, running a hand through his hair. "No one told me, so I wasn't expecting it when you came to the door. I thought you were…"

"Some girl your brother knocked up." She finished for him.

"Yeah…."

"He must get around a lot if you're expecting some random girl to show up at your door one day carrying his child."

"Merle's kinda…" He searched for an appropriate word. "Promiscuous?"

"I would've gone with a dirty whore, but I suppose yours is more politically correct." She teased. "But I guess I'm one to talk." She rubbed a hand over her belly.

He shook his head rapidly. "I wasn't trying to say….I don't think you're a..."

She laughed and absentmindedly put a hand out on his chest. He flinched and she snatched her hand away quickly. "Sorry." She mumbled. "I didn't think you thought that. I was just making light of my situation here. I shouldn't have touched you like that. I'm sorry. Your girlfriend probably wouldn't like that."

He snorted. "She'd have to exist to have a problem with it."

She hummed at that, but didn't say anything.

He cleared his throat. "Let me show you around the yard."

()()()

He walked her around the spacious backyard and then out towards the front. Their house was sitting on two acres of land. They had neighbors, but there was plenty of space separating them from the other houses. Carol thought about how there would be plenty of room for her child to play here. How she felt strangely safe that this strange man was going to be on the other end of the house in case she ever ended up in any trouble. Because despite his awkward nature, he seemed to by the type that knew how to take care of things and handle himself. Between her assessment of him and what praises Hershel had sung about him and his brother, she felt comfortable living on the other side of the house she'd be sharing with two strange men.

Daryl was walking beside her as they made their way back towards the house, hands shoved deep into his pockets. She glanced over at him, a decisive look on her face. "I'd really like to live her if you and your brother will have me."

He glanced up at her and nodded. Knowing her decision on the place was more or less going to determine if she lived here or not and had been the deciding factor from the beginning. "Alright then. It's yours. Hershel told you what rent was, didn't he?"

"He did. I do have one request as far as that's concerned."

"Shoot."

"As a teacher, I only get paid once a month at the end of the month. I'd prefer rent to be due around then if that's alright with the two of you."

Merle wasn't here for him to consult with, but he didn't find it to be an unreasonable request. "Sure thing."

"Thank you, Daryl." She told him softly. "Sometimes money just doesn't seem to last as long when you're only getting a check once a month. I just don't want to not have enough when it comes due for some reason."

"Ain't no problem." He scratched his head as they came to a stop in front of where she'd parked. "Listen, I do gotta talk to Merle about something. We thought it was just gonna be you living here when we set the rent. But I don't know if he's gonna wanna charge more since you're hus.." He paused and glanced down at her ring finger on her left hand. He didn't wanna make an ass out of himself by assuming shit again. There was no ring there and he quickly corrected himself. "Errr…your boyfriend."

This time she bit her bottom lip and shook her head slowly. Just me." She got out, though her voice came out a bit strained and emotional. "Well..." she let out a nervous laugh and rubbed her belly protectively "Us. I guess. Just me and Sophia. Just us girls."

He watched as a certain sadness seemed to wash over her and overtake her completely when he'd brought that up. And for some reason he didn't even understand, seeing her upset pricked at his heart. He rubbed his thumb and index finger together as he shifted his left foot back and forth in the grass. "You're having a little girl?" He softly said, more as a statement than a question.

She nodded. "I'm six months. Or will be this Friday."

He sucked in a deep breath, knowing Merle might get pissed, but not really caring. He should have been here to do this shit like he said he was gonna be "Don't even worry about what I said about the rent. What Hershel told you, that stands. It ain't gonna be no more than what you were told. Not even because you're….you know?" He motioned to her belly. He couldn't fathom raising the rent just because she was gonna have a kid living there, too. Especially not since she was gonna be a single mom.

She almost laughed out loud this time because she was starting to think he was incapable of saying the word pregnant. She folded her arms over her chest and gave him an amused look. "Are you scared of pregnant women or something?"

"No…my friend Rick's girlfriend is having a baby. She's bout as far along as you are. I just.." He struggled to find the words and sighed. "Fuck, I ain't very good with new people, I reckon. Merle's supposed to be handling this renting shit and he dipped out."

She felt the tension brought on by the previous question wash away from her at his admission. It was the most comfortable he'd sounded the entire time she'd been around him. "Well, I did kinda catch you off guard there. Being knocked up and all. Tell you what? Let's start over with each other." She extended her hand to him again. "I'm Carol, Hershel's pregnant niece, and I'm interested in renting your apartment."

He shook his head, but the corner of his lip turned up and he clasped his hand in hers, griping it more firmly this time. "Daryl. Nice to meet you."

Glad people seem to be interested in this! Next chapter we are going to get to know Carol and some of her background. Thanks for reading, reviewing, following, ect!