A/N: Thanks again for all the reviews and comments. Keep them coming, please! I didn't want to rush this chapter, but I haven't had much time to write lately so I kind of threw it together this morning. I hope it's not disappointing! As for where our characters go from here, I really don't know yet. Stick with me, and I'll figure it out!

When Andrea, Michonne, and Carol left the department store and turned to the food court, they saw that Daryl and the others already had their hands full with walkers. It wasn't a herd, exactly, but there were at least twenty walkers shuffling around the group, snarling and snapping their teeth. Lori, Beth, and Carl were nowhere to be seen. Carol hoped they were hiding somewhere and were safe. Carol watched Rick take out two walkers while Hershel was struggling with one close by. T-Dogg was running in to help Hershel, and Daryl was busy shooting arrows from a distance to take out as many as possible before they came any closer. He looked around to the door of the department store, and when he saw her his eyes widened. "Carol, look out!" he shouted. She turned just in time to see the walker before he grabbed her shoulders. He opened his mouth wide and leaned toward her, then an arrow sailed through the air and landed in his forehead and he dropped. Carol screamed and turned back around to see that Daryl was already aiming his crossbow at other walkers, busy protecting everyone. Andrea and Michonne rushed in to fight, and Carol stood there with her knife, watching in despair.

Suddenly the sound of Hershel's scream rose above all the other noises of their fight, and Carol rushed to him. Maggie and Glenn appeared as well, and the others continued to fight off the remaining walkers. T-Dogg had killed the walker that was attacking Hershel, but not before he had managed to bite Hershel's leg. Maggie sobbed as Hershel cried out and the others looked on in fear. Would they have to put him down? Carol couldn't bear the thought. Hershel had become something of a father figure for all of them. He'd done so much for the group, allowing them to stay on his farm, saving Carl's life. What would they do without him when the time came for Lori's baby to be born? How would Maggie and Beth bear losing their father?

When Rick and the others had finally managed to dispatch the rest of the walkers, they all rushed over to where Hershel lay, bleeding and suffering. Lori, Carl, and Beth came out of hiding as well. Rick quickly made the decision to sever Hershel's leg above the bite, and as horrifying as that solution was, everyone knew it was Hershel's only hope for survival. No one could bear seeing Hershel develop the fever that would lead to his death and turning, and so Rick did what needed to be done. Carol couldn't watch. She walked away, trying not to hear Hershel's screams. She saw Daryl looking at her but she couldn't read his expression. She couldn't think about him now. It was all too much. Too much sadness, too much fear. She'd had enough of being weak and waiting for other people to save her, of being useless during attacks. She knew things had to change, but she wasn't sure what to do. Maybe one more fighter would've made the difference for Hershel. Maybe she should've been fighting alongside T-Dogg to fend off that walker. The guilt overwhelmed her.

They knew there was a possibility that more walkers lay in wait in other parts of the mall, and they were in a hurry to get out. They managed to stop Hershel's blood flow and get him to the cars, and everyone loaded up to leave. The sun was starting to come down and they knew there was always a chance that they would even have to fight walkers at their home base. Would they ever feel safe, even for a moment?

When they got back to their houses, everyone gathered around the cars. "Come with me," Daryl growled, grabbing Carol's arm and leading her to his motorcycle.

"Daryl, wait," Rick's voice followed them. "We need to talk about this, figure out our next step."

Daryl ignored him, getting on his bike and indicating that Carol should as well. She hopped on behind him and grasped his waist, still trembling with the fear she'd felt in the mall. She was so tired of being afraid. "Where are you going?" Rick yelled after them as Daryl started the bike and took off. Carol clung tightly to him, letting herself cry until some of the fear had gone away. He pulled up to the new house with running water, stopped the bike, and led her to the door. "When we get inside, I'm gonna make sure everything's safe. Just stay behind me, and get your knife ready."

They walked through the house, upstairs and down, making sure it was clear. Carol flushed when they checked the bedroom where Daryl had made her come, wondering if he was remembering it too. They went back downstairs and Daryl locked the doors. He moved a heavy chair in front of the front door and blocked the back door with a shelf. "That'll have to do," he muttered, then grasped her hand and led her up the stairs.

"Daryl, what are we—"

"Shh," he said. "Just come with me."

He led her back to the bedroom and closed the door behind them, pushing the dresser in front of it. Then he turned back around and stared at the floor, chewing his bottom lip.

"What are we doing here, Daryl?" She stepped toward him.

He finally looked up. "Carol, I don't wanna talk," he said. "I don't wanna think about what we're doin', or whether we should be doin' it, or what it means. I almost lost you tonight."

"But you didn't. You've saved me a thousand times," she said.

"If I need to, I'll save you every day for the rest of my life."

"I need to start saving myself," she said. She wanted to talk to him about her earlier revelation in the mall, her desire to be more useful to the group beyond cooking and cleaning, but she knew this wasn't the time. "But what are we doing here, Daryl?"

He reached toward her and pulled her into his arms. "I just – I had to get you away from everybody else. I had to . . . I had to be with you."

She pressed her face into his neck and wrapped her arms around him, stroking his back. "Ok," she said. "We don't have to talk anymore." She looked up at him, parting her lips slightly, waiting for his kiss. Instead, he shifted his arms so he could pick her up and carry her to the bed. She giggled, astonished that she was able to do so after the horrible day they'd gone through.

He lay her on the bed and then lowered himself down beside her. "Are you sure this is ok with you?" he asked as he started unbuttoning her shirt.

"Oh, Daryl," she said. "This is more than ok." He smiled a little and bent to kiss her. She parted her lips to accept his tongue, moaning a little as he claimed her mouth. For a long time they simply kissed while his hand lightly stroked her stomach and chest. She finally broke away and removed her shirt, and he hastily slipped his shirt over his head. She could never get used to the sight of his strong arms and shoulders. Knowing that he had used that strength once again to keep her alive just made her love him even more. She wanted so badly to tell him that she loved him, that she would always love him, but she decided to stay quiet for now. She knew he cared for her. It was obvious now. But was he ready to hear how she truly felt about him?

Daryl kissed her again, sliding his hand down her stomach to the waistband of her pants. He struggled with the button and zipper a little, and she wondered if he was actually nervous. She reached down to help, unfastening her pants and slipping them down her pants, then kicking her way out of them as he watched. He groaned at the sight of her in just panties, then slid one hand slowly up her thigh. His fingertips lightly brushed across her center then slid down the other thigh. She gasped. "Daryl. . ."

"I don't know if I can wait," he murmured.

"Don't," she whispered. "Don't wait. I want you now." She'd never been so wet in her life, had never wanted so badly to be fucked. The look in his eyes told her that he needed this as badly as she did. He quickly took off his pants and pulled off her underwear, then positioned himself above her. He hesitated for a moment, so Carol reached down and grasped his cock firmly in her hands, guiding it to her entrance. "Now, Daryl," she whispered shakily.

He slid into her slowly, stretching her, filling her, allowing her to feel every inch of him. She cried out as her hips lifted to meet his and he sank into her. He let out a heavy breath and closed his eyes. Just a moment before, Carol had wanted desperately for him to fuck her hard, to push into her quickly, but now she could see that this was what they both needed. As much as they wanted this, they needed to take their time, to make every touch last forever. She briefly allowed herself to wonder how many women Daryl had been with and whether he'd ever loved anyone. She knew she'd never felt anything like this before. Daryl opened his eyes to look at her, and they held each other's gaze as he continued to slowly slide his cock in and out of her. She closed her eyes and bit her lip, and he increased the speed slightly. He slid his hand between them to move his fingers against her clit as his cock stroked inside her, making her moan. "Daryl. . .please. . ." she whispered, and his fingers and cock sped up again. When she came, she forced her eyes open so she could see his face. Watching her come and feeling her body clenching him, pulling him in deeper and tighter made him explode inside her. He stayed inside her for a long moment, collapsing against her and breathing heavily. "I love you," she mouthed over his shoulder, still afraid to say it aloud.