Daryl jerked awake and looked around, slightly panicked. He had no clue where he was. Surrounded by blue and white curtains, and soft bedding, his mind was disjointed and jumbled upon entering the world of the wakeful. It only took a moment for him to remember the deal and where he was and why. He let out a groan and stretched as he got out of bed. He dressed quickly in a pair of ratty and stained pants and a dark shirt. He had to go to work today and his uniform was in his locker at the shop. No need to be overly dressed for work. He got up and was surprised to find Beth already up, brewing coffee and sitting at her table staring into space. She'd been crying and he could tell from the fact that her eyes and the tip of her nose were all red rimmed. She was sipping a cup of coffee, her soft pink robe wrapped around her shoulders, which were hunched around the cup like she was trying to stay warm. He was suddenly filled with a little guilt. She looked so hopeless and sad, and he couldn't help but feel responsible after last night's brush off.

"Morning." He mumbled and was surprised to see her straighten and smile at him.

"Good morning!" She chirped and stood up. "Would you like coffee? I have creamer in the fridge and sugar in the cupboard. You know, if you want?" He shrugged a shoulder and looked at the clock on the microwave. He was actually up earlier than normal for work.

"Sure coffee sounds great. Just black thanks." She poured him a cup and moved to hand it to him. "Look, just wanted to apologize for last night. I was an ass and I shouldn'ta been." She looked startled and then flustered by his apology. "Just not used to being around most people." She gave him a shrug of her own.

"It's alright."

"No it ain't." He met her eyes. "You're trying to get this kid a home and I'm not exactly making it easy. I'm gonna try, but I'm not going to just be chatty. It's gonna take time. Now, when is the social worker's first visit?"

"Today. About six."

"Alright and what exactly is she going to want to see? I mean…from me?" She bit her lip.

"That you're a balanced individual…and that," she looked away, "we're committed to being a family. I'm assuming she's going to want to make sure I'm not faking it, which I obviously am. I'll do most of the talking, I guess, since she'll be focused more on me anyhow."

"How did we meet?" She gave him a confused look.

"At the diner…" He shook his head.

"No. I mean…for the social worker, how did we meet? How long have we been together? First date? Have I met your family? Have you met mine? We need to at least hammer out the details before this chick shows up and calls our bluff." She looked flustered.

"Uhm…We met through a mutual friend. Rosita. She introduced us at a gathering we were both at. Maybe a birthday?" She wouldn't meet his eyes. "Been together…I don't know Daryl. How long ago was your last relationship?"

"We've been together two years." He said flatly. He wasn't going to admit that he hadn't had a serious relationship his entire life. Flings didn't count. If they did he would still be shamefully inexperienced.

"I only have Maggie and Glenn left. Maggie is my sister, and Glenn is her husband. If we've been together two years, you've obviously met them." She bit her lip. That could pose a problem. She'd have to let Maggie into the little scheme and it was going to cost her something much more dear than money. She didn't want to ask her sister for help, but she had to. "Have I met your family?"

"No." again, his response was flat, leaving no room for argument.

"Ok…" She paused. "First date?" This was where he got uncomfortable. She watched him. His shoulders stiffened. His eyes narrowed just a touch. Her eyes widened. She was learning his signals. She could tell when he was getting uncomfortable.

"Look. I gotta get to work." His voice dropped off as he turned towards the door, leaving the mug of coffee behind untouched.

"Alright. What time do you get off?"

"I'll be back a lil after four." She nodded and watched as he stormed out the door all fire and fury. She had no idea what had pissed him off this time, but she would bet her left arm it had something to do with whatever made him uncomfortable.

Daryl wanted to yell at someone. He'd been so uncomfortable it had been strangling him. He had no clue about relationships and dates. He was in his late thirties and talking about getting cuddly made him itchy and uncomfortable in a way no self-respecting man would admit to. At least he'd helped her realize they'd needed more of a back story than they were simply together. Those pieces of a puzzle were usually important, right? Or, maybe she had known it and just simply hadn't known how to bring up the questions. This was all so confusing. There was no way some social worker was going to look at her, and look at him and actually believe they were together. She was so bright and perky, he was…well he didn't know what to call himself but it sure as hell wasn't bright or perky. He climbed into his truck and sat there before turning it on. As he drove to work his mind whirled around a million miles a minute. What did you do for a girl for a date? He'd never really been on a date, so he had no idea what to expect. What she would expect. Well, if he were to take Beth on a date he'd give her flowers and take her somewhere nice. That was what a girl wanted in a date right? To be treated special? Like she was a princess, showered with expensive gifts and food.

Somehow, even after only knowing her for twenty four hours, that didn't sound like Beth. That didn't sound like something she'd want. Sure she'd want to be treated special, everyone did, but she wouldn't want things with big price tags. He pulled up to work, the smallest auto shop in the whole town and waited. As his eyes lingered on the sign outside he realized, he had no idea what she did for work, and he was fairly certain he'd never mentioned where he worked either. He pulled out his phone and awkwardly dialed her number, hesitating before pushing the call button. She picked up on the third ring.

"Hello?"

"I'm a mechanic." He said tersely into the receiver.

"Ok." She said softly. She waited, but it didn't seem like he was going to say anymore. She debated whether or not to hang up before it dawned on her. "I wait tables part time. And I work on my daddy's farm…it belongs to Mags now, but I work there most days."

"Ok." There was another long awkward pause.

"Ok. Well, I'd better get going so I can get ready for work." He gave her a soft 'mm' the wheels in his mind still turning. "Alright, bye." She hung up before he could respond and he was struck with the sensation of wanting to call her back just so he could hear her voice. He shoved his phone into his pocket and got out of his truck. He stalked inside and was grateful others chose not to come too close today. He pulled on his uniform shirt and moved over to his bay. He had a transmission that needed to be rebuilt and after that he was scheduled for a motor flush. He was thankful for the transmission work. He could be stuck doing oil changes and tire rotations like some of the other guys. Some days he would have preferred the easy work, but not today. Today he needed to keep his brain thinking otherwise it might fall into Beth territory and he didn't want to spend his day mooning over some girl paying him to be her boyfriend.

The day went quickly for him. After he'd finished the flush he'd had a car rolled into his bay that needed the whole engine torn apart down to the block. Something had made the sucker lock up and refuse to move, even by hand. He'd had it half torn apart before Tyreese, a big hulking bear of a man, got his attention and let him know it was quitting time. He gave Tyreese a nod. Tyreese was a good guy. Huge and hulking but he was like a big teddy bear, all soft and gooey on the inside. Daryl didn't know anything about soft and gooey, but he and Tyreese got along well enough. Daryl wiped his hands on a rag and cleaned up his bay. He'd have to finish this engine tomorrow. He looked at the clock on his phone and nearly swore. It was almost five and he should have been back to the apartment by now. He ducked out and hopped in his truck, not bothering to dial her number and call. She lived just around the block so he'd be back faster than he could call her.

He stomped up the stairs and to the door to the apartment before he halted. Did he knock? Did he just walk in? He didn't have a key, what if it was locked? Before he could contemplate it too much, Beth rounded the corner from the stairs. She was a sight he'd never seen before. She was filthy and covered from head to toe in hay. She was sweaty and he could see dirt smeared across her face and on her, once yellow now brown spotted, shirt. "Jesus girl. What the hell happened to you?" Her cheeks reddened, although he could barely tell under all the grime.

"Mags needed some help at the farm today." She said. "One of the farm hands was gone so I had to head up and help clean and relay the hay in the stables. Then we had a sow go into labor but the piglets were breached. That's why I'm so late. Oh…" She paused and looked at the door and then back at him. "You left so early this morning I forgot. Here." She pulled a key out of her back pocket. "I meant to take it to you today at work, but…I wasn't sure if that would be ok. I hope you weren't waiting long." She looked so defeated and he couldn't for the life of him understand why.

"Nah. Got caught up in an engine tear down, I lost track of time. I just pulled up myself." He reached for the key and his fingers brushed hers. He was mortified to find that electricity shot up his arm from the small points of contact.

"Good." She smiled and unlocked the door, letting him in first. "You go ahead and shower first." He looked down at himself and then at her.

"Nah. You take the first one. You're dirtier than me anyway." He was suddenly very thirsty at the thought of Beth taking a shower. With the thought came unbidden images. Oh this wasn't good. He pulled open the fridge to see what was available to him. He blinked as he looked and saw there was a little of everything, fresh and new, most of it unopened. He turned and looked at her.

"I picked up some groceries at the store in between jobs. Maggie even bought some beer for me, though I wasn't sure what kind you'd like. I hope that stuff is ok." He looked back to the fridge and then back at her.

"Yeah. S'fine. Thanks." He paused, "Go on girl. We gotta be fed and showered before six." The reminder spurred her into action and she turned on her heel towards the bathroom. Instead of a beer, he grabbed a cup and poured himself some water. The woman worked two jobs, one job probably worked her harder in a day than he did in a week, and she still found time to go grocery shopping rather than going out for some greasy fast-food like he was used to doing. He suddenly knew what their first date would have been, IF they had gone on one. He'd have given her a night off. Cooked her dinner, done the dishes and let her feel pampered by being allowed to sit down and enjoy herself. As the thought struck him that he still could do that for her, without it technically counting as a date and being weird, he heard her emerge from her room. She bounced into the kitchen freshly clean, wet hair pulled back into a lose braid, that sat on a towel slung over a nice grey tank top and jeans. He momentarily lost his words when she smiled at him. She shooed him out of the room and he heaved a sigh, telling himself he wasn't no maid anyway.

Beth pulled out a baking sheet and coated the pork chops with seasonings and oil. She popped it into the oven and started to work on the side dish. She kept herself busy. She could hear the water running in the guest shower and if she stopped to think about it, pictures of Daryl would pop into her mind, and suddenly they changed to decidedly adult images of Daryl, in the shower, covered in soap, surrounded by hot water, and steam and…oh. Beth paused. This was not good. Sure she thought he was attractive but it was really a bad idea to start having x-rated thoughts about your fake boyfriend in the shower. Especially when the man couldn't stand to have a conversation with you. She straightened her shoulders. She could do this. She was a big girl. She could just ignore it. Or so she thought, until she heard the door to the bathroom open and glanced up in time to see Daryl bolt around the corner into his room in nothing but a towel that was slung low across his hips. She stood there gripping the counter for dear life until she didn't think she would make a total fool of herself when she let go.

This was such a bad idea…