Thanks for all the reviews. I am keeping all your suggestions inside as I write. Just a little info, I picture Rick's look as it was at the end of Season 3, during the "It must have been something else" time. Michonne is how she was in her flash back, put together, light and bright. Rick will be responding to Shane's news in the following chapter.

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Chapter 7

Washington D.C. 5 years ago

Rick was standing in line to grab coffee and a muffin before heading out for another long day of seminars. The light at the end of the tunnel, however, was that he was having dinner with the beautiful woman he had met last night. Michonne. He closed his eyes for a brief second and as the image of her from the night before came to mind, a smile beginning to form on his face.

"That's a good way to get your pockets picked," a sultry voice said in his ear. Opening his eyes, he saw the person he had been imagining, right there in the flesh. He blushed as she stood there smiling at him, arms crossed, head tilted slightly to the side. "Penny for your thoughts?"

" It was nothing. Just trying to remember the name of a guy I ran into yesterday," he lied, hoping it was convincing as he tried to check her out on the sly. Michonne was dressed in a fitted white pants suit, with a teal blouse underneath it. Her braids were pulled together in a low ponytail, showing off her beautiful face. Rick had never been attracted to women who wore suits. Well he was now and then some. "Grabbing some coffee to start your day?"

"I am more of a tea girl. Helps to keep me calm and get me going at the same time," she replied, motioning to the cup in her hand. "I saw you and wanted make sure we were still on for tonight. 7:30 good for you?"

"Sure, that's perfect. Any place you want to go? I don't know the restaurants around here but I was planning on asking around before I made reservations" he said as her phone began to ring. She put up one finger, mouthing 'Just a minute" as she moved to answer the call.

"Hello? Yeah, I am walking out now" she said to the person on phone, rolling her eyes. "Un huh. See you in 20."Michonne pressed a button on her phone and put it in her purse. "I better get going. Duty calls."

"What about tonight?" Rick said as she turned to walk away.

She turned around and smiled. "I went to law school around here. I'll make the reservations. Just make sure you bring the conversation. See you here at 7:30" she said with a wave as she turned back around, walking out the door.

"Bye" he said, enjoying the view of her body as she faded from view.

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Hours later, Rick looked at his reflection in the mirror for the last time before he headed out the door. 'I think I look alright. Not too dressy, not to casual. I look like half the other guys I've seen walking around D.C," he thought to himself. Wearing a grey suit, with a pale bleu button down, no tie and dress shoes, Rick felt nervous. He was used to wearing just a shirt, jacket, jeans and his cowboy boots when he went out in Kings County. But this was Washington D.C, where the big dogs played. You never knew who you would see or run into, from congressmen to television personalities to sports stars. 'Maybe I should wear the tie?' he said glancing in the mirror again. He grabbed the tie, folded it neatly, and placed it in his breast pocket. That way he would be safe in any situation since he didn't know the dress code of the restaurant he and Michonne would be dining at.

"Should I have shaved?" he said out loud, running his hand over his stubble. He never took too much time to think about how he looked most of the time but he wanted to impress this woman. After seeing her in the lobby, Rick had been thinking about dinner with Michonne all day. He had continuously zoned out at every seminar, daydreaming about her and where this dinner would go. Glancing at his watch he noted the time was 7:26 and he decided to take his chances. He made it to the elevator and pressed the button for the lobby. Since he was running late, of course the elevator had to stop on every floor. By the time it reached the lobby, he was a full two minutes late. Walking up to the coffee shop where he had talked to her earlier, he looked around. She was nowhere to be seen. As he continued to look, his phone vibrated with a text message. "You were late. I don't do late. Enjoy dinner on your own. Michonne."

Rick stared down at the phone, mouth agape, not believing what he was reading. He was two minutes late and she had cancelled. TWO MINUTES! With a sigh, Rick at down on a nearby bench with his head in his hands.

As he looked at the ground, he saw the shadow of person stop in front of him. "Penny for your thoughts?" a familiar voice said above him. Rick shook his head and laughed.

"You really had me going there." He raised his eyes to look at her as he stood up and all of a sudden he couldn't breathe. Michonne was a vision, in a beige bandage dress that left little to the imagination, hugging her body perfectly. Her hair was down and she wore minimal make up, just basically blush and eyeliner to emphasize her large, brown, almond shaped eyes. A sheer gloss made her lips look plump, soft and inviting. Her accessories were simple gold and diamond hoop earrings with a matching bracelet and red high heels. "Michonne. You look incredible!" he exclaimed.

"Thank you. You clean up quite well yourself," she replied. Running her hand over his face, she smiled. "I'm glad you didn't shave. You look great with facial hair." The contact sent shivers down both of their bodies.

"Thank you," he said as he turned bright red, still feeling the heat from where she had touched his face. "Ready for dinner?"

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Michonne sipped her cocktail and admired view in front of her. Rick Grimes was even more attractive than she remembered from her earlier meeting with him. And that is what she had thought that morning when she ran into him as he waited for his morning coffee. 'Is it really possible for someone to get better looking everytime you see them?' she thought in her head. The great thing about him was that he didn't seem to even know how hot he was. The hostess had bore holes in him as he had told her the name of his party, laughing when he didn't say anything funny. He had simply walked back to Michonne with a "they are running 10 minutes behind."

"This is a great restaurant Michonne. I probably wouldn't have even been told about it if you had left dinner up to me," Rick said as before he lifted his beer to take a drink. "Those oysters and crab were delicious. I'm now a fan of oysters thanks to you."

Michonne watched the entire time, noticing how his strong hand that grasped the glass seemed to be delicate as well. As he took a drink and licked his lips, she felt a shiver go through her body. 'I wonder what his mouth and hands would feel like' she thought, growing hot at the thought. She shook her head and tried to focus on what he was saying. "Oh I LOVE oysters," she replied catching the end of his comment. Never had Michonne been so affected by a man before and she had dated a variety, from professional athletes, high profile lawyers, even a recording artist. "If you liked that, you are going to love the main course and the wine I chose."

"I have no doubt that I will. So tell me about yourself Michonne," he said curious to find out about the woman sitting next to him. "Where you are from, your family, how you knew about this fantastic restaurant. I want to know everythang."

Michonne had never someone take such an interest in her right away and it was a little unnerving. "My family is from Buckhead. My dad is a lawyer and my mother was a teacher until she had me. I'm an only child and LOVE that now, hated it when I was a kid."

"Why's that?"

"I had no one to blame anything on! I was always the one to break something, to set the alarm off sneaking in to the house after curfew. And you can never talk your way out of anything when your dad is a lawyer! He's hard wired to refute any excuse I try to make," she chuckled. "But trying to win those arguments proved to be early practice for my career. And no I didn't always know I wanted to be a lawyer but in college, my best friend and I could argue anyone under the table, so I ran with it. My dad was beyond proud. Still is." she reflected with a smile. "I knew about this restaurant because I used to come here when I went to law school at Georgetown. Andrea and I had just gotten back from summer in Europe. I fell in love with France so when I came back, I wanted everything French. French movies, clothes, food. I found this place and make it a point to visit everytime I come D.C."

"You spent the summer in Europe? Do you speak any other languages?" Rick had never met anyone like her. She was so experienced and worldly. She vacationed in Europe when on break from law school ! "You obviously know some French since it seemed like you pronounced the food and wine perfectly. Not that I would really know" he chuckled

"French and Spanish fluently. Know bits of Italian and German. Next language I want to conquer is Mandarin. 'Have to be a well rounded lawyer' as my father would says," Michonne replied with a shrug. "Now tell me about YOU. Where are you from, your family and job. I bet you DID always want to be a policeman."

"I have lived in Kings County my whole life. Only child also but I never go into trouble, unless you count covering for my best friend Shane. HE is the trouble maker. And yes I have always wanted to be a policeman" Rick said with a nod. "My granddaddy was a sheriff in Kings County and I wanted to be just like him. Now I'm a sheriff's deputy in the same place. I work along side my best friend everyday. My son respects me, even if I don't know if I want Carl to follow in my footsteps. I will be fine with whatever he chooses, as long as he is happy."

"Wow. Very noble of you. Most guys want a mini me and will do anything to get it. I admire you for letting him be who he wants to be." Just when she thought he couldn't get any better, he said things like that.

"I love my boy. He is my world and I would never do anythang to make him feel pressured or unloved.

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Michonne and Rick exited the car and walked into the hotel lobby. Both agreed that their dinner together had been a fantastic experience and though neither wanted the night to end, they both had busy days tomorrow. They had talked for hours about so much but there were still things to learn. Rick had never felt so comfortable around anyone, much less someone he had known for basically a day. Michonne was a breath of fresh air that he desperately needed. They agreed to meet tomorrow night for dinner as well.

"Are you going to choose the restaurant this time?" Michonne said with a grin. "I mean I COULD do your job for you since I obviously did such a fantastic job tonight, but I wouldn't want to over step my bounds."

"Over step your bounds huh?" Rick replied smiling, his head tilting to the side as he stepped closer to her, his eyes dancing as they looked her over, taking a moment to stop at her mouth. "Well, I think I can decide on somethang now that I know what you like."

"Hmmmm. I guess I'll see if you really know what I like tomorrow," she said, glancing down at his lips as she moved closer.

"If you didn't have to be up so early in the morning, I would show you somethang I think you would like right now," he answered back, his voice thick with desire as his hand moved to her waist. His bleu eyes again glancing down to her plump lips and breast before moving back up to her eyes, searching for the go ahead. Seeing a slight nod, he lowered his lips to meet Michonne's.

BEEP BEEP BEEP

BEEP BEEP BEEP

The two pulled apart as Rick reached for his phone. "It's Lori. I have to get this. Something might be wrong with Carl." he said and moved away to talk privately. Michonne watched him on the phone, her heart returning to its normal rhythm as she let out a deep breath. She had almost let him kiss her and in the middle of the lobby where anyone could see! As she watched him smile at whatever the person on the other end of the phone said, she once again admired his appearance. He was such a handsome man and she knew she could easily get in trouble if she gazed at those bleu eyes for much longer. Thank god his phone had rang to break the spell Rick Grimes was working on her. She was now determined to go to her room and get ready for a whopper of a day tomorrow.

"That was Carl. He wanted to say good night to me," Rick said walking back over hoping to go back right back to where they were. He was upset to see that Michonne seemed to want no part of it.

"I am going to take the opportunity to do the same. We both need our sleep. I really had a wonderful time Rick, "she said holding out her hand.

He looked down at her outstretched hand then up to her face. "I don't even get a hug? I think are close enough now that hugs are more appropriate." He opened up his arms and stared at her, praying she would agree to his request. After a slight delay, Michonne walked into his waiting arms and embraced him. As soon as his arms closed around her, he felt like he was hit by lightening. Rick's whole body began to hum from the contact. He could have stayed like that until he felt Michonne pull away. He took the chance to press his lips to her cheek. "See you tomorrow," she said softly in her ear, then turned and walked towards his elevator.

"See you tomorrow Rick," she said giving him one last look before she started in the direction of her own.

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Rick leaned his back against the door he had just closed with a sigh. They had been so close to kissing but Carl's call had put a quick stop to that. His body still felt the electrical impulses from the contact with Michonne; she was pure energy and his body wanted to soak more in.

"Oh well. Maybe tomorrow," he said pushing off from the door and sitting on the bed. Sure Rick was physically attracted to Michonne, who wouldn't be? But he also felt a connection that he had never felt with anyone, not even Lori. It was easy to talk and tell her anything; Rick Grimes wasn't a talker and according to Lori, that helped to facilitate the end of their marriage. But when he looked into the warm brown eyes of Michonne, he felt he could bare his soul because they were the same. He had just taken off his shoes, jacket and tie when he heard a knock at the door; he looked through the peephole. After throwing off the chain and unlocking it, he wrenched the door open. In front of him stood a slightly out of breath Michonne.

"It's tomorrow," she remarked as she pulled him close and smashed her lips against his.