A/N:This was really difficult to write My sister was my inspiration for writing and often helped me with writer's block whenever she could. I can't believe it has been 62 days since her passing…
This chapter, and everything else I write from this point on, is written in her honor.
It is also written in thanks to you all. Over the past 62 days, I have received so many lovely messages that have given me strength and I am so grateful. Thank you all for your support, love, and understanding. I can't promise that updates will be frequent but they will happen eventually.
Without further ado:
Safe and Sound, chapter 2 –
"This place is very…nice," Daryl muttered as he walked into the restaurant, his thoughts focusing on the lavish looking décor. "Looks expensive. You pick this place or did she?" The hunter looked to the sheriff walking beside him, eyeing the jeans and button up the man was wearing and feeling extremely underdressed in his torn jeans and sleeveless button up. "Shoulda told me to dress nicer."
"I picked it," Rick replied calmly, smiling in greeting to the hostess. "I wanted to make sure Beth felt comfortable for this meeting. She's become extremely paranoid and anxious with everything going on. The place isn't as expensive as it looks; it's quite laid back so relax. Most expensive meal is twelve dollars and don't feel underdressed. Lori wants me to meet up with her here in a few hours to see her parents, that's why I'm like this. Missing a big game to see the in-laws…" Daryl snorted and shook his head at Rick who looked at him before turning back to the hostess. "Grimes, we asked for the backroom."
"Ah, yes, hello Sheriff. Your party's third member is already here and back in the room. Follow me, please." Rick nodded and tapped the podium before following the hostess to a closed door at the back of the room. Daryl followed cautiously, his mind warring with the idea of staying and meeting the famous blonde he knew was waiting beyond the door in front of him or turning and running away.
The hunter had been questioning whether he would be a good body guard for the blonde or not since Rick had called and set up the meeting two days ago. Being her bodyguard would mean living with her, a woman he didn't know. A woman who was rich and famous and his experiences with people like that led to judgment from them and discomfort and hurt for him and he had absolutely no desire to deal with that.
Rick vouched for her, however. Rick said she wasn't like that but people can be two-faced. She could act one way in front of friends and family and be another way with strangers or people from poor backgrounds. Daryl was a redneck. A dirty, no-good redneck that this woman, Beth, would take one look at and tell him no, that she didn't want to be seen with him on the streets or backstage or anywhere in public. Daryl didn't know if he could honestly deal with that fierce rejection, not again.
"Daryl," Rick interrupted, his blue eyes meeting Daryl's, "this isn't binding. If you don't like her or don't feel comfortable with the job, you can walk away. I assure you, you won't feel that way and you two will get along. Come on," the sheriff thanked the hostess as she held the door open for the two and walked into the room. Daryl watched the man enter and sighed.
Come on, Darylina, stop being such a pussy, Merle's voice rang in Daryl's head and he frowned, took a deep breath and walked through the open door. The room was of decent size and had three tables in it. The room was obviously designed for parties but today's "party" consisted of three people and a job.
"Beth, it's so good to see you again," Rick approached the blonde sitting at the middle table and she stood, a brilliant smile on her face as she walked around the table to stand in front of Rick. Daryl eyed her as she hugged the sheriff.
Once again, Beth Greene wasn't dressed the way he expected her to be. She was wearing stained boot cut jeans with well-worn work boots and a t-shirt with the logo for Jack Daniels on it. Her long, wavy blonde hair was pulled back in a knot and pulled through the back of the baseball cap she was wearing. Her eyes were hidden behind a large pair of sunglasses. The only part of her face that Daryl could see clearly was the lower half of her face, from her lips down. The rest was hidden in the shadow of her cap and her sunglasses.
Daryl didn't need to see her bright blue eyes to know she was looking at him. He could feel it.
"Beth, this is Daryl Dixon. He's been a friend of mine for quite some time. I think he's the man for the job." Daryl shifted uncomfortably as Beth's attention turned completely to him. The petite blonde walked closer to him, her eyes never straying from his, a soft smile on her lips. Her small hand extended and he looked down at it briefly before raising his to shake it. He felt awful when he realized how soft her hands were compared to his callused and dry hands. A Dixon shouldn't touch a woman like Beth Greene.
Beth tightened her grip on his hand slightly and he lifted his gaze to settle on hers, confusion etching on his face at her change in grip.
"I'm not as fragile as I seem. I work on a farm, Mr. Dixon. You don't need to be worried about hurting me with a simple handshake."
"Daryl," the hunter corrected, "Mr. Dixon isn't me, Ms. Greene."
"Just like Ms. Greene isn't me. Please, just call me Beth. Let's sit, I'm starving."
The three sat down, Beth on one side of the table, Rick and Daryl sitting on the other. A waiter came in and took their drink orders.
"Let's get right to it, shall we? I can tell you're not completely comfortable, Daryl, and I think it might have something to do with the job so let's go ahead and answer any questions and discuss the important details." Beth thanked the waiter and took her drink the moment he set it down in front of her and took a long drink through the straw.
"What does the job entail? I'd be your body guard, I get that, but what do I need to do?"
"Well, I've had a couple of…unwanted guests at a couple of my hotel rooms and a few incidents at concerts and interviews with shows on TV…so…I desperately need someone to help be a…buffer between me and those people, as terrible as that sounds."
"We saw that on that interview," Rick muttered, his body tense at the memory of seeing the blonde being pulled off the stage and then bombarded at the talk show. "Did those venues not have security available?"
"They did, but some of my fans are more exuberant and their security staff weren't quite prepared, I guess…"
"You could get seriously hurt if it happened again," Rick reprimanded. Beth sighed and nodded.
"I'm aware. I already have, to be honest. That's why I reached out to you first, I need someone around me that I can trust." Beth's eyes moved to Daryl's, "and if you trust someone, I trust them too." The blonde sighed again, "I'm tired of it being so dark so…I'm going to remove all this," she gestured to her hat and sunglasses, "but you can't get upset. It's not as bad as it looks, okay?" Beth took her sunglasses and hat off and Daryl sucked a deep breath in through clenched teeth at the sight of the large, black and blue bruise that marred her pale skin from her hairline, down her right temple to her eyebrow.
Anger boiled in Daryl's veins and he stood abruptly from his chair, causing it to crash to the hardwood floors of the room.
"These people are your fans, right? You're saying they adore you, that they love you? Then they do something ridiculous like drag you off the stage in the middle of a concert?" The hunter's words were heavy with his drawl, his anger making it stronger as he paced and gesticulated fiercely with his arms and hands. "You don't need a bodyguard, you need a goddamn army, woman!"
Flashes of seeing his mother's face all banged and bruised up crossed Daryl's mind and he growled, rubbing at his eyes with the heels of his palms to try and make them vanish from his memory.
This is different. Beth ain't being beat up on purpose, these are accidental injuries from stupid fuckers who don't pay attention to what they're doing.
"Daryl," Beth's voice was full of concern, "it's okay. Look at me." Two soft hands gently touched Daryl's wrists, a whisper of a touch to let him know she was in front of him and that she was there, to keep from startling him. The touch turned into a gentle hold on his wrists and he removed his hands and met het gaze.
"This is why I need you, Daryl. I love my fans but…they can be exuberant. Not everyone thinks what they do over, they're not like you." The hunter eyed Beth for a moment before she continued, "I saw you, eyeing the door before coming in here. You were weighing whether even meeting me was something you might want to do or not. Rick tells me you're a hunter, that means you're observant, right? You think and see the different options and scenarios for striking, am I correct? I need someone with those skills. I need someone who is going to think about the "what if's" and Rick thinks you're that person.
"I'm starting to see it too. I want to get to know you first and I suspect you want to do the same about me. I would, if I was about to live with a stranger. Which I am…so…come on. Calm down and join us again." Daryl sighed and nodded, mumbling a small apology to the blonde before righting his seat and sitting down. Rick gave him a clap on the shoulder before returning his glance to the blonde as she sat down and pulled her cap back on as the waiter returned to take their food orders.
"Paparazzi are another issue we'll have to deal with and I'm on tour, or will be again soon, which means traveling. A lot. Both of those are probably the biggest issues you'll have to deal with. The paparazzi may try to claim you're my boyfriend or some ridiculous thing like that and they may try to dig up information about you. I don't read the tabloids so I never know what they say about me but if you read them, which I doubt – no offense – then you need to be prepared for anything.
"I have to know, do you have combat skills? Hand to hand? You're a hunter, so you clearly have weapon skills of some kind and from what I hear from Rick, you are quite skilled with weapons and have "deadly accurate aim," his words exactly."
"I own guns and have a concealed carry license, plus a crossbow and multiple knives," flashes of the numerous fist fights Daryl had gotten into because of his brother crossed his mind and he frowned, "I'm skilled at several types of hand-to-hand combat. Why? You expecting a need for violence?"
"No, nothing like that…just..making sure." The conversation paused as their food was brought in. Daryl observed as Beth lowered her head slightly to hide her face from their waiter and thanked him before he left the room. "The last thing I can think of to talk to you about is pay.
"The farmhouse has many rooms, so you are welcome to stay there with me…though it is preferred that you do, I can arrange an apartment or the guest…room…thing above the barn, although I wouldn't suggest that because it's quite cold in there…"
"The house will be fine, Beth," Daryl interrupted, making the blonde sigh in relief.
"Thank you. You won't need to worry about room and board or utilities or any of that. I will happily cook if you help clean and help with groceries and you don't need to feel obligated to help me with the farm work, but if you want to help with it, I won't say no. I just figure dealing with the paparazzi and all that is enough work for you to do. You won't need to worry about insurances; I'll provide those for you too.
"I figure that you're getting the short end of the stick here with having to deal with everything and traveling and what not..so I will happily help cover any expenses but….well, research online says that the average bodyguard pay is around sixty thousand a year so that's what we'll start you with."
Daryl inhaled in surprise at the large amount and all the benefits Beth said she would cover and choked on his drink.
"Sixty…thousand?" he choked out around his coughs. Beth nodded, her eyes full of concern.
"Are you…"
"Are you sure? That's a lot of money and you don't even know if I'll be any good at it."
"Money doesn't mean anything to me, Daryl. The farmhouse has been paid off for…half a century. I don't have any debts that need to be paid off…the money just goes to paying for sets and designs and charities. The latter is, of course, the best way to spend the money I've earned but I need a bodyguard. A damn good one too. I think you'll be it and I'm asking a lot of you and I want to make sure you are well compensated for it." Daryl stared at the blonde, flabbergasted.
"What the hell does a person do with that much money?" he asked and Rick chuckled. The hunter had almost forgotten the man was with them, he had been so quiet.
"They live lavishly, normally," Rick answered.
"I…I don't need that kind of money…" Daryl stuttered. Beth's face fell and the hunter immediately backtracked. "I'm not saying no to the job, I'll help you out but…I'm not sure what to do with the income. If you're going to pay me that much, I'll help out with the farm work and pay for my own insurances and expenses. I ain't some charity case, Greene, and I don't want you to treat me like one."
"I wasn't trying to…"
"I'm just saying, Beth."
"Understood," the blonde nodded. "The farmhouse is situated in the middle of over a hundred acres of land. There's a wooded area behind the barn and farmhouse that is excellent for hunting. You are more than welcome to use it anytime you want." Daryl smiled slightly at her words. Hunting was not just a way he fed himself before living with Rick, it was also a way he relieved stress and relaxed.
"It's just you, right? I don't need to worry about protecting a sister or anything do I? Cuz I ain't a babysitter." Beth's lips flattened into a straight line on her face and she shook her head no.
"It's just me," she answered tightly. "Does this mean you'll take the job?" Daryl took a bite out of his hamburger and nodded. The blonde smiled brightly before taking a bite of her cheeseburger. "When can you start?"
"When do you want me to start?" the hunter asked. Beth looked down at her plate and bit her lower lip before glancing back up at Daryl, her eyes silently pleading. "Tonight or tomorrow work for you?" he mumbled, making the blonde smile slightly.
"Is tonight okay with you?" she asked and Daryl could see the nerves and anxiety that Rick had talked about earlier in her eyes. "If that's too soon to expect you, I understand completely…we can just do this weekend or," Beth began to ramble and Daryl shook his head.
"Tonight's fine. I've only got a duffle bag of clothes, nothing that will take long to pack and move."
"Oh…that's great. Thank you, Daryl…and Rick, thank you for convincing him to do this and bringing him here." Rick nodded, his mouth full of his food and Daryl smirked at the man before eyeing the blonde across from him.
She wasn't as bad as he had expected her to be which made the hunter think that maybe this bodyguard thing wouldn't be as bad as he had first thought. Plus the pay was more than he expected it to be and his…boss was pretty nice to look at, friendly too. Maybe they would become friends, maybe he would become someone who deserved to even be in the presence of the woman in front of him.
Don't get ahead of yourself, Dixon.
It's a job, a roof over your head, and food. That's it. Nothing more.
