Chapter 21: Busted

She woke slowly, groggily. The light coming in the open curtains told her clearly it was sometime in the evening. Confused as to why she'd be sleeping at this time of day she made to get up and instantly froze. Her pillow didn't usually snore.

Lifting her head carefully she turned to look up. Daryl. Knowing what she'd see but her sluggish brain needing the confirmation she glanced down to see her 'pillow' had been his bare chest. Lifting the sheet just a second she quickly dropped it again. His chest wasn't all that was bare. I'm naked in bed with Daryl Dixon she thought slowly I had sex with Daryl. Oh Fuck, I had sex with Daryl! As if someone had opened a flood gate memories flooded through her mind. Baby. Pop. Funeral. Rum. Library. Daryl. Kissing Daryl. Naked Daryl. Daryl's hands touching her. Daryl's mouth everywhere. I had sex with Daryl. Pulling back a bit to rest her head on his bicep, she looked up at him again. She studied his sleeping face trying and failing to stop the soft smile slowly taking over her face. Mind blowing, toe curling, earth shaking sex. She shifted slightly, the feel of his warm body pressed against hers sent a shock of pleasure echoing through her. Remembering they'd been only an hour or two from dinner when they left the library she pushed up onto one elbow to check the time. Fuck. Everyone would be gathering for supper in less than ten minutes. Well so much for a round two. Or I guess that'd be round three technically she added with a contented sigh. She turned back to him barely stopping herself from startling at the sleepy eyes watching her quietly. "Hi" she spoke softly laying her head back down on his arm.

That little tilted half smile made all the more adorable by this sleepy relaxed side of him "Hi."

"Did I wake you?"

He gave his half shrug watching her for a moment before glancing around the room his eyes landing on the window at the slightly darker sky. Noting his gaze she remembered the time and that in just a few minutes someone would probably be either knocking on the door or simply barging in to wake her. Either way she'd prefer to not be naked when that happened.

"Dinner's in just a few minutes, we'll have company any minute now" she told him sitting up careful to keep the sheet covering her. She couldn't help being a little embarrassed waking up naked in his arms like that. He seemed to know what she was feeling and turned his back while she got up and dressed. She moved to the window and stood looking out at the grounds below while he pulled his own clothes on. Trying to keep her mind away from the fact there was a handsome man naked five feet behind her Liv allowed her mind to wander to the days events. This afternoons actions complicated things, she had a lot on her plate, and an ever growing list of both worries and tasks. Letting herself become distracted from her responsibilities was not an option. But then this bright spot, this… escape she'd found with Daryl. Just maybe it was really a gift, was really the thing she needed to keep her grounded, keep her sane. It wasn't the sex, though that had been beyond sensational, it was him. Daryl. Just sitting on the balcony talking with him, as had somehow become a regular occurrence, or even when they weren't saying anything at all just sitting there watching the grounds it was as if she were a new person. Or maybe not that she was a new person but that she was her. Olivia. The Olivia she'd been before all this. Lighter. Like that weight that was constantly bearing down on her had been eased off her shoulders just that little bit she needed. Like for those few peaceful moments there was someone there to help, to bear some of that burden with her. Her mind had wandered so far she didn't even notice when he'd finished dressing. Having noticed her distraction he moved up behind her, his hand smoothing over her shoulder gripping it lightly breaking her from her thoughts.

"Liv?"

"Hmm?"

"You alright?" She nodded. Slowly he turned her around to face him studying her face carefully. "You sure?"

She watched his brow furrow slightly as he watched her, "I'm sure." Seeing his serious case of bed head Liv couldn't help but to reach up and ruffle his hair just a bit more with a fond smile. "You better get downstairs, someone spots us both coming out of here we'll have some explaining to do. I'm going to check in on Lori, then I'll be down too."

He nodded and was careful to glance around the hallway making sure it was empty, he left the room meeting her eyes and flashing a small brief smile before closing the door quietly behind him. Oh yeah, you're in so much trouble. She sighed quietly still smiling to herself as she grabbed a brush to quickly run through her hair. "Well whatever this is no turning back now, Liv." She told her reflection tossing the brush on her bed and heading for the door.

"Awake are we?" Liv asked with a smile causing Rick and Lori both to startle slightly. "Sorry, didn't mean to scare you."

"No, just didn't hear you come in" Rick replied nestling the baby into the crook of his arm.

"How are you feeling?" Liv asked Lori watching her face carefully.

"Groggy, sore but alive. Thank you for everything you did for us last night."

She shook her head "Aubrey and Hershel helped you pull through, I didn't do anything."

But Lori gave a wane smile "Yes you did. And Daryl too. Thank you."

Knowing better than to argue Liv just nodded with a brief smile. "Have you named her yet?"

"Not yet, we were just talking about that actually. Carl gave us some good things to consider."

"Better hurry Daryl's started calling her the little Ass Kicker and I think it's catching" Liv said making Lori laugh and Rick shake his head.

"Carl told us that too. He likes it" Rick told her smiling.

"Well it does sort of suit her" Liv said thoughtfully.

"Never gonna happen. A nickname maybe" he replied giving her a fake glare.

Liv held up her hands in faux surrender "Hey take it up with Dixon he started it."

Dropping her hands she watched Lori grimace as she tried to adjust her position on the cot. "You okay? Anything I can get you?"

"No I'm fine."

"Alright. We'll bring you guys up a couple of plates. Aubrey and Hershel's already explained everything we got worked out for-?"

"Yeah they did."

"Good. I'll see you later then."

She made it to the doorway and headed down the steps but Rick's voice called her back. "Liv?"

"Yeah?"

He seemed to hesitate as if unsure what to say. "I'm sorry. About your father. He was a good man, I really liked him."

She smiled sadly "Yeah he was. Thank you."

The rest of the evening passed in a tired blur. The events of the previous night and the day catching up to her physically, with Annabeth offering to put Xander to bed at lights out Liv went to bed not long after supper, practically collapsing onto her bed, asleep as soon as she hit the still rumpled blankets. Even Xander seemed to have been exhausted as he slept in as well the next morning allowing Liv to sleep all the way til dawn, waking just before breakfast. She woke with just enough time to wake Xander for his morning feeding and head down to breakfast still dressed in her pajamas.

"What are you doin?"

She turned as Daryl came into the kitchen carrying his empty plate. "With Lori out of commission for a while doesn't hurt for someone to help pick up the slack in here a bit" she replied taking the plate from him. Hershel's helping Dale cover Pop's watch so I need Aubrey to focus a fair amount of her attention on Lori, make sure she's recovering okay. Michonne's taking up a bit of the slack by helping Carol with the cooking so I told her I'd cover the breakfast dishes for a while."

"You don't have to do everything you know. You could ask someone to take up the extra chores."

"I took care of these things myself for months, while putting as little work on the kids and Pop as I could. I'm pretty sure I can handle a couple weeks of dish duty."

"Stubborn" he said watching her, an expression she couldn't name flickering briefly across his features. She merely glanced up at him before grinning.

"Besides I have half the day off today anyways, remember?"

He leaned against the counter still watching her "I remember. As low as I'm feeling right now I think we're all gonna be feelin rough as hell for a month."

"Aw is poor wittle Daryl all hung over?" she said with a pout, laughing as he glared at her.

"How are you not? Doyle and your brother are barely able to move this morning and you're just bouncing around like you didn't drink everyone under the table yesterday."

"Just lucky I guess" she grinned. "I'm still a bit tired but I only get hangovers when I don't stay away from the tequila. Rum and champagne are enough to get me pretty drunk but not blackout, hung over, bra somehow ended up on the ceiling fan drunk. That's a true story actually."

"Weren't that drunk then."

"What do you mean?"

"Yesterday. What happened."

"Yeah." She rinsed her hands drying them on a towel she set aside before turning to lean on the counter beside him. "Wondered when that was going to come up."

"Don't women usually go all talkative about that stuff?"

She chuckled "Sometimes." They stood there leaning against the counters for a few moment before Liv broke the silence. "It's good we already did….that." At his curious look and seeing the smile pulling at the corner of his mouth at her blushing face she shrugged and continued. "Well at least we already got that out of the way. No unfulfilled emotions and hormones to cloud our thinking. Obsessing over what it would be like."

He was slow to respond "I don't know. I might be obsessing" he gave a self-deprecating smile. "Just a bit" he added holding up his thumb and forefinger a half inch apart looking at her through the gap. She laughed, nodding, her gaze drawn to her bare feet, toes tapping on the floor.

"Yeah," she lifted a shoulder in a slow shrug. "I might be still obsessing too." She looked up again raising her hand and mimicking his earlier actions "just a little bit".

He nodded simply watching her before bringing his free hand to her chin. Her eyes went to his, not really able to identify the odd look on his face before he brought his mouth carefully to hers. Surprise held her in place for a moment before the mix of pleasure and tiredness got the better of her. Her body melded to his front as her lips responded. The hand moved to cradle her cheek as his other slid around to cup her neck, thumb stroking gently against the soft skin.

Just as the kiss began to deepen, her brain just barely registered the thud of the kitchen door opening. At the tiny gasp their lips broke apart both heads snapping around to look at the small girl frozen in the doorway. Her little mouth hung open in shock but before either adult could come up with something to say her face lit up in an ear to ear grin and she spun on her heel taking off down the hallway with a loud holler of "Annabeth!"

"Sky!" Liv called taking off after her leaving Daryl running a hand over his face a small smile playing at the corners of his mouth, uncomfortable as he was at having been caught you couldn't help but be amused at the little girls antics and her mother's reaction to them.

Liv managed to catch up to the fast little monkey at the bottom of the staircase, hauling her up in her arms and clamping a hand over the giggling mouth. Annabeth and Carol appeared at the top of the stairs followed by John and Dale.

"What's going on?" Annabeth asked with a confused smile, coming down to the living room.

"Nothing" Liv replied with as nonchalant of a shrug as she could manage around the squirming girl in her arms. Just then she felt a slobbery tongue hit her palm as Sky licked her hand. "Ew!" she said pulling her hand back to wipe it off only realizing her mistake as Sky started to blurt out

"Mama was-!" Liv managed to clamp her hand back over the little blabber mouth and started up the stairs with her little captive.

"Mama was what?" Annabeth asked a sly grin appearing on her face.

"Nothing." Liv said quickly. "Just going to go get her ready for the day. Can't run around in our pjs all day, can we?"

A/N: So here are two of the chapters I promised. Sorry it took so long, guys. Can't promise to have updates up at any specific time guys. Every time I do say a time the universe seems to work against me and prevent me from updating in 101 different ways. I will however do my best to at least add one update a month whenever humanly possible. More if I can. Little guys been sick yet again. For anyone who's ever had a two year old with viral pneumonia and had to give them steroids and breathing treatments you know they make them bounce off the walls at 90 miles an hour and wheeze and gasp while they're doing it. By the time bedtimes here and they finally crash all you have the energy left to do is collapse into a coma and pop up out of a dead sleep at every little cough or noise they make. I've been so tired I poured apple juice into my cereal instead of milk and another morning put the milk on top of the fridge and the cereal in the fridge instead of the other way around. Didn't even notice the apple juice thing til I took a bite, FYI apple juice and Raisin Bran incredibly gross. But he's doing much better now and I got a magical six hours straight of sleep that has my brain functioning again. So here they are, I always like to hear what you guys think. Thanks for reading. Oh and I have a poll open on my profile I'd like to get an idea of which one you guys would like best, if you want to check it out and way in your opinion that'd be great. It's not relevant for at least a little while but I don't always write the chapters in order so that relates to something I was toying with.