A/N Thank you all for the very nice response :) Shall we see how things are going for our couple?

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They'd no sooner gotten inside the small apartment than she did something that surprised him even more than she had earlier. She turned to him and wrapped her arms around his waist resting her head on his chest as she began to softly cry. He may not have even noticed her tears if he hadn't felt her small body shaking slightly and heard her quiet sniffles.

This was miles from anything he was used to and he had no idea how to react. He was trying to decide just what he was supposed to do or say when, in a voice that nearly broke his heart she told him, "I'm so tired of being tired." It was a line straight out of an NA meeting.

His mind was working overtime stirring up all those familiar thoughts and ways, his old thoughts and ways. He knew she was especially vulnerable in that moment. He knew if he played it right he could say a few of those loving words of comfort to the pretty blonde, throw in a little smooth and tender action, and he could have her. Right here tonight. But that would only be a temporary kind of satisfaction. For some reason he knew that, unlike any woman he'd known before, with Beth Greene he wanted something more than just temporary satisfaction.

So he denied his instinct to only think of getting what he wanted in the moment. Instead he'd try his damndest to be patient and wait for the right moment. He lightly rubbed her back in a soothing rather than a sexual way and he acted the gentleman when he said, "Hey now sweet Darlin', Merle's here. Everythin' is gonna be just fine now. C'mon ya get yourself ta bed. I'll wait out here while ya fall asleep."

He was astounded by what she did next. If he didn't know better he'd swear she was baiting him. But he wasn't going to give in, he wasn't going to do anything that he knew he shouldn't. He wouldn't take advantage of her. But how could she possibly know that? Yet it happened, she took his hand and said, "Alright it's this way."

Her room was real sweet and pretty and like something from the 1950's. There was an old diamond patterned quilt on her bed and big white fluffy looking pillows, and he hoped someday to have the opportunity to lay in that bed with her.

The furniture was light colored, something they used to call blonde furniture. The AC unit in the window was humming and there was white noise too. Next to the bed was a small overstuffed chair covered in an old fashion chintz fabric. It was all so sweet, nothing like anything he was accustom to.

He could tell by her voice she was a bundle of nerves when she suggested, "Maybe you could sit in the chair if that's okay Merle, but you don't have to. I don't want to be bossy." He wanted to laugh, he wanted to take her in his arms, he wanted to take her. Instead he simply smiled and told her, "That's just perfect Darlin' I'll sit right there and wait for ya ta fall asleep, k?" It was far from perfect but at least he was with her. After all these months of watching her and obsessing over her he was finally spending his time with the pretty blonde from upstairs. It would do for now.

"Thank you for being so kind to me Merle."

That damn near did it. No one had ever said anything like that to him. Still he didn't do what he wanted, even though he wanted to so badly it hurt him. He held out, he'd checked himself and his impulses at the door and instead of taking advantage and taking her, he took her in his arms again. He pulled her close and he kissed those crazy blonde curls. "It's my pleasure Darlin'." And it truly was.

She curled up in bed as he watched her with a smile on his face and a longing so powerful it could not be ignored. She was a pleasure to look at and he never moved his eyes from her as she drifted off. And then he drifted off.

As she lay in her bed with eyes closed and anxious for sleep, she could feel the man from the end of the counter watching her. A man she didn't even know. That should have had her nearly paralyzed by anxiety, but instead she felt at peace.

Still she questioned herself, what in the world had compelled her to allow this man in her apartment? She was scared to death of men and here was this big man who looked like he could kill her with his bare hands, and yet she'd made herself completely vulnerable to him. What was most baffling to her was that she did not feel afraid. Quite the opposite, she finally felt that maybe everything was going to be okay.

It was simply inexplicable really, since the incident she hadn't been able to trust anyone outside her immediate family. Yet for some reason that she didn't understand she'd placed her life in the hands of this stranger. She'd trusted the rough-looking man, finding she felt safe in his company and certain he would protect her. She fell asleep thinking how crazy and yet how wonderful it all was.

Her alarm woke them at 6:30 and he couldn't help but smile at the sight of her. He'd only thought her hair was crazy before. Morning took that crazy to a whole new level. Her blonde hair was a huge mass of untamed curls and he was more charmed than ever. She was everything he'd never had, like no one he'd ever known or ever cared to know, and his truth was he never wanted a woman more than he wanted this small blonde woman.

The wildly tangled bedhead, the sleepy blue eyes and the shy smile. He took them all in and he knew. He was hopeless, helpless and powerless. Then she put the icing on the cake when she sleepily told him, "Just knowing you were here Merle, I slept so good. Thank you."

She'd opened her eyes and for just an instant she'd been startled. She'd forgotten the big man was asleep in her bedside chair. She wasn't startled for long though, she was delighted. Even in the morning light with his curly hair looking a mess and his clothes wrinkled from spending the night sleeping in a chair, he looked perfect to her. Big, handsome and with the broadest smile she'd ever seen. She was surprised by the depth of feeling just the sight of him seemed to awaken in her.

She couldn't understand why she was behaving this way with him. It was so unlike her. All men made her nervous and on any given day running into a man that looked like him, a man like him even speaking to her? That would have sent her hurrying home to hide. But she hadn't hidden from this man, she'd invited him in.

There was just something about Merle Dixon that made her feel both safe and calm. And there was that something else and the realization stunned her. She was physically attracted to him. She was excited by the look of him and the thought of him holding her. She'd felt his firm and muscled body and she couldn't deny she'd like to feel that body close to her again, she'd like to feel his touch.

She tried to clear her mind of these kinds of thoughts. She didn't even know this man. He was just being kind. He probably pitied her the way a person pities a wounded animal. But she hoped maybe it was a bit more than that.

There wasn't any part of him that didn't feel cramped up and aching from spending the night sleeping in the small chair. Any other time or situation and he would have been completely out of sorts, cussing and grumbling and impossible to appease. But not when it came to her. With her he smiled a smile that spread from ear to ear and he told her, "It was my pleasure Darlin' I'm happy ya got your rest. I'll just step outta the room while ya get ready for the day. If ya like I can take ya downstairs ta the diner for breakfast or if ya got fixins I could cook for ya right here."

She was young and full of energy and she jumped right up out of the bed smiling at him as she said, "I'd love to have breakfast with you here Merle. I have eggs, bread and grits."

Over breakfast they shared their stories, or at least a small part of their stories. She told him about moving out of her parent's home and the fear, anxiety and insomnia that followed. She didn't tell him why but that didn't mean he didn't suspect. He could read people, he'd sat in so many meetings and heard so many stories he was sure there was a lot more to her story that she wasn't giving up just yet. He wasn't going to press it though, not this day.

He told her a little something about his rough past and how long he'd been working hard at trying to be a better man. "That's so wonderful and brave Merle."

"I don't know about brave Darlin'. It got ta that point of me either gettin' my shit together or dyin'. I guess I chose life." He smiled so as not to appear sullen, "And look at you Darlin', ain't you the brave one? You was scared but ya took that big step anyway and ya got your own place, an as bad as it's been an as little sleep as ya been gettin' ya didn't rush home, did ya now? For a tiny little thing I'd say you're pretty damn tough."

She took his hand and squeezed it, "You're such a nice man Merle."

He smiled as he rubbed his hand over the back of his neck, "Thanks for sayin' so Darlin' but I doubt there's many folks around who'd agree with ya."

"I don't care what anyone else thinks, I already know you. If not for you being there sitting at that counter every night, I might have moved back home a long time ago." She was killing him in a hurry and without even trying.

After breakfast they made their way down the stairs, and he got himself a large coffee to go at the diner before driving her to school. As he pulled up to the curb she leaned over and kissed his cheek, "Will you come back for dinner tonight Merle? Please."

He never thought of himself as that guy, shit he never had been that guy. The guy that makes plans with a woman and sees her for supper or a movie. He'd never been the kind to be seeing a woman at all, unless it was for some friendly sack time. This change in his way shook him somehow and it almost caused him to back off from her, tell her he couldn't. It'd be simple, he'd just never go back in that crappy little diner. But damn if he didn't realize that this with her, this normalcy of making plans to get together and eat and talk, it was what he wanted, and maybe even more than that it was what he needed. At least it was what he wanted and needed with her.

He wanted to really get to know her in all the ways people who aren't afraid of intimacy know each other. He didn't know exactly what it meant, he hadn't had a chance to think it all through quite yet. All he knew was he wanted to have some kind of something with her. So even though he wasn't sure what that might be or how people really did this stuff he was going to try. Because he knew what he didn't want. He didn't want just a quick roll in the hay. Not with her.

So he answered with a smile, "Uh yeah sure Darlin'. It's gonna be about seven or so before I can get by, is that too late?" He wanted to catch a late afternoon meeting, then shower and shave.

"No it's not too late, that would be perfect. I'll have time to fix you something real nice."

"Don't ya be goin' ta too much trouble for me now Darlin'. I'm a simple man and real easy ta please." And then he kissed her cheek got out and opened her door for her. He helped her down and he said something he'd never said to any woman, "What I'm lookin' forward to is just spendin' the evenin' with ya Beth." He couldn't quite let her go, he had a hand on her waist while he played with a stray curl of her hair, then he leaned in and kissed her cheek again. He smiled as he told her, "Ya have ya a real nice day now an I'll see ya soon."

He watched her walk in the big building while he silently told himself what an honest to gawd idiot he was. He had no business at all starting up with this woman. Once she really got to know him, once she found out who he really was down deep inside there was just no way a sweet, timid young woman like her was ever going to want a broken-down old doper like him.

And she shouldn't settle for him even if she was inclined to, she deserved so much better than a man like him. Still he knew like he knew he needed air to breathe, she had something more he needed. He wasn't going to walk away. He was going to let this thing, whatever the hell it may turn out to be, play out.

He arrived at the shop looking like he'd slept in his clothes all night, because indeed he had. There hadn't been time to run home and grab a shower and a shave. Thank God she'd had that extra toothbrush. But he knew his brother Daryl was going to take one look at him and assume the worst. There was no reason his brother shouldn't. He'd put the kid through too much way too many times.

He took a deep breath, rubbed a hand along the back of his neck, steeled himself and set out to set baby brother straight.

There was some accusing and there was some cussing from both sides and then Merle came clean with his little brother about where he'd been. Daryl gave him a rare smile then and said, "Well shit brother why didn't ya just say ya was all in love an whatnot." He thought he was kidding and so his brother's response came as quite the shock.

"Ain't sayin' I'm in love ya dumb ass, I ain't even sure I know what love is or how it's done. But I aim ta try and find out." The words he spoke shocked Merle just as much as they did his brother.

Daryl wasn't a big talker any time but he was completely speechless then. Never had he known his brother to get anywhere near serious with any woman. Merle didn't mistreat or take unfair advantage of them, but he also didn't make even the smallest of commitments to one.

Merle hurried home from work, took a quick shower, shaved and dressed in a fresh set of clothes. It had been a long day at work and since he'd stayed at Beth's he hadn't packed himself a lunch, he was starving. He held out though, she was cooking and even if she was the worst damn cook on this earth he planned to enjoy every bite of whatever she served.

He arrived at her place and she opened the door all sparkly-eyed and with a great big smile. He almost thought he should turn and go. How could this beautiful young and fresh-faced woman want anything to do with him. But dammit, it seemed she did and he wasn't going to turn away from that. "Hey Darlin', how was your day?"

"Come in Merle." He stepped inside and she went on, "It was so much better than usual. Gee, I'd forgotten the difference a good night's rest could make."

What came over him he didn't know, but what amazed him was she didn't resist when he took her in his arms and kissed her with a heat he was sure she had to feel. He drew back, smiled and said, "I'm sorry, maybe that was too soon, but kissing you that way is sumthin' I've wanted ta do for quite a while now."

Her hand had gone to her face where her fingers lightly touched her lips, "No really, it was…I hadn't expected that Merle but it was nice and I didn't mind."

He had to ask then, "Just how old are ya Darlin'?"

"I'm an adult, 22."

He couldn't help a small laugh, "Well I learned a long time ago, how old ya are don't have nuthin' ta do with whether or not you're an adult." Then he laid an open palm softly on her cheek and with all the hope in the world he asked, "Ya sure ya wanna start sumthin' with an old boy like me? I'm 32 Darlin'."

She threw him for a minute when she asked, "Is that what we're doing Merle, starting something?"

He was never more honest in his life than when he answered, "I'm hopin' so."

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A/N I hope you enjoyed this chapter and that you'll leave a comment / review. If you'd like to see the chapter photo it's on my tumblr blogs, gneebee and bethylmethbrick. I hope to see you all back here next Wednesday for more of Open All Night. Until then - have a great week and remember, I love ya large! xo gneebee