"If these walls could talk, huh?"

That only earned her a snort of amusement out of him.

They were sat up in the guard tower with their legs dangling off the side, feet kicking out in mid-air like a couple of kids. The moon was nearly full overhead, lighting the yard almost as clearly as if it were daylight. With the prison at her back, she could see a few stray walkers clawing at the fence but their moans were barely audible from this distance.

He'd been avoiding her and everyone else as well for the last few days. As far as she knew, Rick hadn't said a word to the others but that hadn't stopped Daryl from being silent and sullen. She'd missed his nightly visits and finally realized she'd have to take matters into her own hands if she wanted to pick up where they'd left off.

The guard tower was the best place to corner him. It was harder to escape.

"I guess I can see why Glenn and Maggie like it up here so well," she said with a smile, glancing over at Daryl out of the corner of her eye.

He shrugged, "Only place around here with any privacy."

"Mmhmm," she murmured in reply, wetting her lips, "And we could all use a little of that lately."

His eyes darted in her direction, cheeks reddening as he found her smiling at him.

"Don't you think so?" she prodded, leaning into him playfully until her bare arm brushed against his.

He swallowed hard but, after a moment, he nodded, "Reckon so."

She leaned against him again, drawn in this time by the warmth of his skin and the little sparks she felt whenever they touched. To her surprise, he pressed back against her, the pressure of his weight against her side widening her smile.

She could feel his muscles stretched tight, tense under his skin. Without much thought, she laid her head down on his broad, hard shoulder. She felt him stiffen at the contact, his breath catching, before he relaxed with a quick exhale through his nose that sounded almost like a laugh.

"It's a nice night isn't it?" she said quietly.

She heard him take a deep breath before murmuring in the affirmative. His body rocked ever so slightly as he kicked his feet out in front of him, eyeing the toes of his scuffed up boots in the moonlight.

"I wish we could stay up here forever," she added, nuzzling her face against the rough material of his shirt.

It smelled of his sweat but it wasn't unpleasant. It was masculine, primal.

"Yeah?" he asked hoarsely, kicking his feet together over and over.

She nodded against him and it wasn't much of a stretch for her to turn her head, pushing the frayed edges of his shirt aside with her nose to press a kiss on his shoulder.

His head cocked sideways as he peeked at her out of the corner of his eye, his feet falling still.

She met his eyes, her lips moving again. His skin was salty under her tongue, but it was also just a little sweet.

She had to giggle as an actual, genuinely amused grin softened his whole face, "You got a thing for shoulders or something, woman?"

"Well, yours are very nice."

Another kiss and then he was wrapping his arm around her, tugging her a little closer. She scooted over until her hip was pressed against his. And then his chin dipped and his lips brushed against hers.

It was so quick and light as a feather that she wasn't even sure it had really happened, but the look on his face told her it had. He was staring straight ahead but she could see his eyes twinkling in the moonlight, his lips pressed together tight as if he were trying to suppress a smile.

His fingers gripped her waist tightly, his fingertips like hot coals through the worn cotton of her shirt.

"That was nice," she said, trying to keep her voice even.

He agreed with a quick dip of his chin before tilting his head back to squint up at the moon overhead. She tilted her face up towards his, parting her lips. But it didn't look like he could take a hint. He just stared up at the sky with the sort of intensity that made her think that perhaps he was pondering the meaning of life.

So she slid her hand up across his cheek, the rough stubble scratching at her fingertips, and turned his face towards hers.

"Kiss me again."

His eyes searched her face for a moment before coming to rest on her lips and then he tilted his head and covered her mouth with his own. It was just another quick brush of his lips but she slid her hand up through his hair, gripping it to hold him in place.

His arm tightened around her, his other hand coming to grip her upper arm. And she let him take the lead for the first time, let him find his way around her lips and tongue. It was a little faltering, a little uncertain, but he picked it up quickly and soon she was sighing into his mouth, her fingernails running across his scalp as his hand slid up from her arm to cup her face.

She was just pulling her legs up from the ledge, turning her body to face his, when there was a sudden rattling at the gate. The sound of metal scraping metal was so loud in the quiet night that they both jumped, his teeth biting down on her bottom lip.

She sought out the source of the noise desperately, fearing the worst, and found it was just a particularly large walker in a pair of overalls throwing himself against the gate. It rattled again, rocking on its hinges as the creature leaned its substantial weight into it.

They both chuckled breathlessly, the sudden surge of adrenaline leaving them a little woozy.

"I-uh-I better go take care of him," Daryl muttered, patting her knee before climbing to his feet.

She nodded, watching him gather up his bow, giving her a quick nod before he disappeared.

She sucked her bottom lip into her mouth, running her tongue over the swollen flesh and tasting the metallic tang of blood.

The door opened far below and she saw him striding purposefully across the yard towards the gate. The moonlight glinted off the blade in his hand as he advanced on his prey. Even from her high perch, she could see his body was taut with the anticipation of plunging that blade into the soft skull of the big walker.

She could also see how nice his ass looked even in those dirty, baggy jeans.

She sighed, fanning her heated cheeks with her hand. Perhaps it was silly to be thinking like that at a time like this, especially when it was turning out to be such a fruitless endeavor. They just couldn't catch a break. If it wasn't one thing, it was another.

Maybe it was sign, some kind of omen? Maybe someone up there was telling them it wasn't meant to be? Maybe she should just give it a rest?

She caught another glimpse of his ass as he bent over and imagined gripping it with both hands, pulling him closer as he thrust into her over and over and over…

Maybe she'd give it one more shot.