"Tommy! You're alive!" I can't help the tears streaming down my face as I bury it in my baby brother's sweatshirt. Eli races forward and slams into his uncle full force.

"Oh my God! You're alive. You're alive and you're here." He buries his face in my hair. I notice a scared girl, curled up on the floor. I pull away from him and face her. "Autumn, this is Rylee. We met a few weeks back when I was hiding out in another town. We had her brother with us but . . ." his voice trails off. He doesn't need to finish.

"Uncle Tommy, I don't believe we found you. I can't wait to tell Dad!" Eli is beaming

"Tell dad? Who's all with you?" Tommy turns to me with a confused expression.

"Not tryin to cut this short but we should get back. We have to check in before they send a search party." Daryl interrupts. Tommy looks at him as if he just noticed Daryl and Shane were there. We pack up the supplies in the Jeep along with my newly reunited family. Daryl approaches the vehicle as I'm opening the door.

"Glad you found yer brother." His thick drawl increases my already elated mood.

"I think you might be my lucky charm, Daryl. I might have to keep you around." I tease him

"Lucky charm, hero. Damn woman, you really are crazy." He places his hand on the small of my back and helps me in the vehicle before closing the door. I don't know if Daryl realizes how much that move makes me melt but I can tell Tommy didn't miss the look on my face. He shoots me a quizzical glance. I am grinning ear to ear. I can't help it.

When we pull into the front lawn, Mason and Jimmy come out to help us unload. When Tommy climbs out of the backseat, both guys freeze.

"Look what we picked up in town." I say with a laugh. This is the lightest I've felt in months. I feel almost whole. Everyone is enjoying the good mood. Even Daryl is leaning against the Jeep with a smile on his face. I notice again how sexy he is.

After introductions are made and reunions are had, we all settle into the main hall with the fireplace blazing. Shane is in the kitchen watching the back door. His mood is heavier tonight than most. He stops me when I come into the kitchen for more water.

"You look happy." He says quietly.

"I didn't think we would find him alive. I was afraid for the worst. Of course, I'm happy." I answer. He sighs and shuffles his feet. I can tell something is bugging him.

"You ever just going to be straight with me, Deputy?" I decide that the direct approach is best. "You're going to tear yourself apart chasing something that wasn't yours in the first place. Life is unfair; people come back from the dead now. That's the epitome of unfair, don'tcha think? Rick's your friend, Lori's his wife and it seems she made her decision. Whatever she felt before, I'm sure she doesn't regret it. You kept her alive and safe. You took care of her son. Women can't just ignore those things. She's just scared and confused. I know it's hard Shane, I get it. You need a friend. Let me know if you want to talk."

He looks like he's contemplating what I tell him. I don't expect what he says next.

"I wish he would have stayed dead." The coldness of his tone makes me shiver. He's serious.

"Shane, I am not going to judge you for your feelings but I'm going to give you a piece of friendly advice. Take it however you want. Keep those comments to yourself." I turn on my heel and walk away, right into Daryl. He's staring at Shane over my head.

"Y'all right?" he asks, still not looking at me.

"Yeah, he's just having a rough time." I dismiss Shane's behavior.

Daryl and I walk back to the group surrounding the fire. I sit on the floor, knees pulled to my chest, smiling. Daryl takes a seat in the arm chair that I'm leaning against. My brother is telling everyone how they survived, what happened to them. He explains how every day; more and more walkers have been coming into town. They were planning on moving along tomorrow. We had perfect timing. Eli is sitting next to his uncle, pride and excitement etched on his face. I lean back against the leg of the chair, at peace. Daryl's leg brushes up against my shoulder, sending heat throughout my body. I turn to look up at him and he's more relaxed than he has been since the CDC. Tommy yawns.

"You should turn in little brother. There are a few rooms upstairs not being used. The couches are fairly comfortable." I tell him. Carol leads Rylee up the stairs to help her find some clothes and get her settled in.

"We all should turn in, we're heading out tomorrow. Everyone needs to be on top of their game." Rick reminds us

The group breaks up and heads for bed. Shane and Mason are on first round of watch. Rick tells Daryl to take the night off. Jimmy and Rick will handle the second round of watch. My brother is standing at the bottom of the stairs talking to Mason when I approach; they both drop their whispered conversation.

"What's up boys? It's not nice to whisper about people." I tease them playfully.

"Just filling your brother in on what you've been up to lately." He nods his head toward Daryl. "You still haven't told me what's going on with you and the redneck?"

"We already talked about this. I'm not arguing anymore. Daryl's kept me alive. He's not a bad guy Mase." I try to keep my voice calm.

"Yeah, cuz you're the best judge of character." Mason rolls his eyes

I can't help myself. I slap Mason hard, across the face. "Don't pretend you're any better than anyone else. You couldn't keep your hands off other women while we were together either! Now you're married to one of those girls that were more important than I was. You're not innocent. Get the hell outta my face." I start to head up the stairs. My brother the peacekeeper follows.

"Hey sis. Whoa, whoa, whoa. Wait one moment. I haven't seen you in months. Just give me a second." He grabs my wrist. "Don't run from me. I'm not judging."

"I'm sorry, I just get so mad at him. Daryl saved me. He's a friend; a good friend. Eli is even at ease with him." I explain

"I get it. Just keep your eyes open. If things don't feel right or look right, get out while you can. That's all I can ask." Tommy gives me a tight hug. Daryl reaches the top stair. Eli bounds up the stairs right behind him. Eli heads to my room with Daryl who helps him make a bed. Tommy watches in awe as he sees how easily Eli's interactions with Daryl are. A look of understanding crosses his face.

Daryl walks back over and leans on the doorway, tank top and loose fitting jeans in place. I can't help but notice every contour of his muscles. I put my hormones in check. We're friends, barely so.

"My sister tells me you've saved her a few times. I should thank you for keeping her safe." Tommy holds his hand out. Daryl firmly shakes it.

"Did ya feed him yer superhero crap?" Daryl grins.

"I might have told him that you swooped in to my rescue once or twice, maybe more." I tease.

"Well, either way. You also got under Mason's skin which is definitely a plus in my book. I love Mason to death and he's a good father but anytime my sister can get her little digs in on him, I like it." Tommy kisses my forehead and heads into the room next door to the one I'm sleeping in.

Eli is already passed out. The shadow from the candles flicker softly on the wall Daryl is sitting in the chair again, feet propped up on the little table in front of him. I sit down on the couch and pull the blanket up around me. It's a little chilly tonight. We sit silently and watch the dancing shadows on the wall.

"Yer hand hurt?" Daryl asks

"Nah, Mason's face is not nearly as hard as it looks." I giggle a little.

"He's right ya know?" Daryl says looking at his hands

"Mason? What?" I'm not sure where he's goin with this.

"I ain't one of the good guys. Not like Rick or Jimmy." He says.

"I don't care how tough you act Dixon. It doesn't matter how mean and cranky you can be, at the end of the day what matters is how you act when no one is looking. You've been great to me. You didn't need to be. I'm just some crazy chick, who on more than one occasion, almost get's herself killed or falls apart at the slightest sip of whiskey." I smile. "You're one of the good guys, no matter what anyone says."

"I think I'll head downstairs and let you sleep." He gets up and heads to the door. I'm right behind him. I put my hand on the door as he goes to open it. I stand in front of him, staring into his eyes. I don't know what words to say. I try to pour everything I want from him into the slight touch of my fingertips on his chest. He looks down at the sleeping form on the floor.

"He's asleep." I whisper. I tilt my head back and step forward, shortening the space between us. I place both my hands on his hard chest lightly and slide them up and around his neck.

"Stay, please. I want you here." I plead gently. I lean forward on my tip-toes and find his lips with my own. The kiss starts off gentle and innocent. When I break from the kiss and look into his eyes, there is something wild there. I'm not frightened. My skin is electrified with anticipation. His hand tangles in the back of my hair and his lips are on mine; hungry and desperate. We make our way to the couch, kissing the entire way. I push him down on the couch and straddle his lap. His hands rub slowly up and down my back, trying to pull me into him more and more.

"We can't. . ." He breaks away from our kiss. Both of us sit in the silence, out of breath and reluctant to stop. I stay where I am on his lap, unwilling to move and lose this moment. I place my forehead against his. I give him a softer, more gentle kiss on the lips. He doesn't stop me. We kiss like this a little while longer. I finally slide off his lap and on to the couch next to him. I sit curled up with my head on his shoulder, leaning in under his arm.

"Why?" he asks out of nowhere.

"Um, why what?" I ask him confused.

"Why'd you ask me to stay?" he asks.

"I want you here Daryl. I feel safe when you're here. Honestly, I've never felt safe in my life. Even as a kid. My mom had her moments. Tommy and I hid from her outbursts but I never felt safe. You make me feel safe." I tell him.

"I heard your argument with Mason earlier. You never answered him." He says

"You mean I never told him what's going on with us? Well, I don't know the answer to that." I tell him honestly. "You've managed to make me speechless Mr. Dixon. That's a rare and incredible feat of death-defying magic."

He doesn't laugh at my attempt to tease him. "We can't do this." He says seriously.

"We can't do what?" I ask.

"Lose control like that. We ain't gonna be together Autumn. Don't get all mad but it just can't be like that." He whispers.

"Oh," I can't hide the disappointment in my face or voice.

"That kind of shit will get ya killed. It makes you lose focus. We can't do that." He says, his mind is made up. He moves to leave again.

"Dixon?" I stop him. "Just stay for tonight. Keep the world away for tonight and I won't press anything else. We'll go back to our friendly banter and you can step in to save my ass once in awhile. Just don't go." I ask, not meaning to beg.

He sighs and joins me back on the couch. We lay down like we did the night before and I find myself melting into him again. This time, I don't fall asleep. I know that when I do finally close my eyes and morning comes, that will be it; just friends. I swallow past the lump in my throat. I won't cry. I didn't lose him. He didn't hurt me. He was honest and he's right. I have more important things to focus on then his haunting eyes and intoxicating scent. I could ignore his sexy saunter and seductive Southern drawl. But just for tonight, I didn't want to ignore those things. I wanted to take full advantage of them. But I couldn't. Instead, I lay there awake; afraid to move, afraid for morning to come.