Hi guys! I was struggling for a bit, unsure exactly where I wanted to go. I know it's probably because I was bragging so much abut the writing streak I was on. But I got a suggestion from a usually quiet reader that set me back on track. So, thanks Katherine! Now I kind of have an idea where we're heading. Thanks for reading!
Chapter Forty Nine
Daryl decided that the best thing he could do was just deal with the pain. Carol and Andrea were having a hard enough time trying to deal with Jo and he knew he wasn't helping. He was lounging on the couch, watching T.V. Andrea was in Jo's room, trying to get the girl to take a nap. Carol breezed in, looking exhausted and frazzled. He felt the stupid grin on his face as he watched her but he couldn't do anything about it.
"Do you need anything?" She asked, blowing a strand of hair out of her face.
He sighed. "You feel like takin' your clothes off?"
She eyed him, hands on her hips. "No. Buck said sex could kill you."
He rolled his eyes. "Buck just wants to mess everything up. It's been two days. Two whole days!"
She flopped down in the chair and propped her legs up on the arm. "You went seventeen years without it, Daryl. You'll be fine. Besides, it's just the pills talking."
He groaned and threw an arm over his eyes. Maybe she was right. He definitely felt different and that was why he wasn't taking anymore. They made him act like an ass and he even knew he was acting like an ass and just couldn't turn it off.
"We need a distraction," she said suddenly, swinging her legs around and leaning forwards in the chair.
He moved his arm, his eyes zeroed in on her chest and he grinned again. "I can think of all sorts of-"
"Daryl Dixon, if you don't stop!" She threw a pillow, smacking him right in the face.
He laid there for second before he pulled the pillow off his face. "Fine," he grumbled.
"We need to figure out a way to get Merle away from here for a while, just until he's had some time to calm down a bit, ya know?"
He turned the idea over in his mind but shook his head. "You got school. We all got work. I'm down for the count for now. I don't see how you're gonna manage to talk Buck into just takin' off."
She looked so defeated that he sat up, wincing and causing her to hurry over to the couch, kneeling next to it. "Damn it, Daryl. You're as bad as Jo," she grumbled. He ignored her fussing and kept moving until he was sitting up all the way. She moved until she was between his knees and reached up cupping his face. "You have to be careful, okay?"
He nodded but pulled her until she smiled slightly and then finally kissed him. She was being careful. Too careful for his liking so he deepened the kiss, causing a small sound to escape her. He smiled against her lips, tugging on her shirt until she finally moved over him, straddling his lap.
"Carol, you heard what Buck said. I can't stand here and let you kill him."
Carol scrambled off of him and turned quickly. Andrea was standing in the doorway, her arms crossed over her chest and a smirk on her lips.
"Go away, Andrea," Daryl growled. "You're killin' the mood."
She glanced down and raised one eyebrow. "Well I'll be damned. Merle told me that it was a Dixon gift but I'm kind of surprised. Not bad Daryl."
Carol turned and then grabbed the pillow, placing it over his lap. He realized what Andrea had been looking at and flushed. There wasn't enough drugs in the house to keep him from getting embarrassed at that.
Andrea chuckled and sat down in the chair that Carol had abandoned. "You guys actually got me to thinking about something."
"Gross," Daryl grumbled, adjusting the pillow in his lap, not that he needed it now.
Andrea made a face. "Not about that, boner boy. I meant what you said about taking a break. If it'll keep Merle out of trouble, I think maybe Buck would go for it. Maybe we can all just get out of town for a while. Just a few days so Merle will have a little bit of time to calm down."
Carol sat down next to him, her eyes bright with excitement. "What about school?"
Andrea shrugged. "What's a few days? Especially if we get your work before we go. Actually, we can call the school now, see if we can get your assignments for the next few days so neither of you fall behind."
Daryl scoffed. "Listen to you soundin' like Missus Mom and shit."
Andrea eyed him. "It's another perk I get for falling for the older brother."
Daryl flipped her off and readjusted himself so he was lying down again, this time with his head in Carol's lap. He hated to admit it but it wasn't a bad idea. But where the hell could they all go?
~H~
Buck watched Merle like a hawk. He wasn't stupid. He knew exactly what Merle had up his sleeve. The next few days were going to be hell. He loved his boys more than anything in the world but damn, they drove him crazy sometimes. He refused to admit, even to himself, that the things about them that drove him up the wall were traits they had inherited from him. Surely he wasn't that bad.
Merle looked up, catching Buck staring at him again and threw the wrench on the work table. "Why the hell do you keep staring at me?" He asked, his hands on his hips.
Buck just shrugged, wiping his hands on the grease rag he kept in his tool box.
Merle growled and stormed over to the refrigerator. He grabbed himself a coke and chugged it, burping loudly.
A very feminine laugh came from the doorway, causing all eyes in the room to move in that direction. Karen was standing there, back lit by the sunlight, holding a paper bag in her hand. She walked on in, her eyes scanning the room until they landed on him. She smiled and then held up the bag. "Thought you and Merle could use some lunch."
"Hell yeah," Merle said as she handed him the bag.
"Hey, beautiful!" One of the other men called out. "Why the hell do the Dixons get special treatment? This garage is full of hungry men."
Buck felt a muscle in his jaw tick when his eyes landed on the man that spoke. He hadn't been with them long and Buck hadn't liked him much from the start. His name was Johnson and he was a cocky little son of a bitch. If Buck hadn't been locked up at the time, he probably would have made sure that the creep hadn't gotten his leather.
Karen laughed it off, her eyes meeting Bucks from across the room. Merle, acting like a total fat ass, grabbed three burgers out of the bag before handing it back to her. Buck could swear he could feel the eyes of the other men watching her movements. Hell, he had watched her every time she stopped by to visit Clem or one of the other guys. He needed to shake this jealousy shit. Karen wasn't Jenna. She wasn't a lying, cheating manipulative bitch and just because Buck had gotten burned once didn't mean that every woman was like that. He managed a smirk as she held out the bag, her head tilting slightly to one side as she waited for him to take it.
"Can't stay away, huh?" He asked, leaning against the long counter.
She shrugged and looked over her shoulder at the men that were now trying to act like they hadn't been checking her out. "You want me to?" She asked, facing him again.
He shook his head. "Nope."
She grinned but she still kept her distance. He wasn't sure if she was staying away for his sake or hers. He hadn't thought about that. About what last night really meant as far as she was concerned. She had been married to a well respected and much loved member of the club. Would she not want the other men, men that had known and cared about her husband, to know that she was now jumping in the sack with another member?
Did he? It wasn't like he had set his sites on her on purpose. He'd admired her for along time. She was smart and she was strong and she was...
"Why are you looking at me like that?" She asked, her smile fading and worry causing a frown to form between her brows.
He shook his head and took a bite of his burger so he wouldn't have to answer her right away. Once he swallowed she was still looking at him with the same expression. He sighed and managed another look around the shop. Sure enough, everyone kept glancing their way but no one was openly staring anymore. Well, Merle was but that was expected. Merle wasn't worried about Buck's wrath. He decided that his best bet was to lay it all out. He wasn't good at beating around the bush. He never had been. Not until he started hanging around her, anyway. "What are we doin'?" He asked bluntly.
She blinked, her frown deepening. "I- I thought it would be alright to bring you and Merle something to eat. That's all. I'm not checking up on you or anything. I thought-"
He reached out with one hand and pressed his finger to her lips so she would stop rambling. "I wasn't talkin' about the food, Karen. I'm talkin' about what the hell is all this. Me and you?"
Now she looked uncomfortable. "What do you mean?"
He shrugged and finished off the burger. "Say some chick I know walks in and asks me what I'm doin' later because she thinks it would be a good idea for me and her to hook up. What would you say about that?"
She scowled but shook her head. "I wouldn't say anything."
His heart sank at her answer. If the tables were turned and some guy came onto her right in front of him he'd probably-
"I'd just throw her out. By her hair. And deal with you later." She crossed her arms over her chest, her eyes challenging. "And I know you probably don't want to hear that. I know that everything that's happened has happened fast but I'm not a liar. And if I acted like I'd be okay with you seeing some other woman then I would be a liar. If you have someone else on the side then you need to tell me now so I can just step away."
He let her ramble just then. Taking a long drink of water, watching her as she struggled to tell him what was on her mind. Once he was sure she had said her peace he took a deep breath and hooked a finger through her belt loop, pulling her closer. Before she could say another word, because God only knew when she'd stop talking, he kissed her hard. She kissed him back with an intensity that surprised him. It was almost possessive. And he liked it.
He ended the kiss when he heard someone whistle. He ignored the calls from the other men, his eyes on hers. He wanted to make sure that this was the real deal. He wanted her to be okay with the other men knowing that she was with him and him alone. Then maybe they'd put their eyeballs back in their heads when she came around. She smiled, her face flushing but her eyes were bright. "See ya tonight?" He knew she had said she was staying home but he was hoping maybe she had changed her mind.
She shook her head, her smile fading. "My sister and her husband are coming over for dinner tonight. You can come, if you want." She looked hopeful.
He glanced over her shoulder and scowled when Merle flipped him off. "Can't. Not with Daryl in the shape he's in and Merle on the warpath."
"Oh crap, that reminds me. I have to go. Andrea called and needed me to go to the school to pick up Daryl and Carol's assignments for the rest of the week."
He frowned. "What? Why the hell do they both need their work? Daryl is goin' back in a few days and Carol will be there in the mornin'."
Karen shrugged. "Should I not go?"
Buck sighed and shook his head. "Nah. Go ahead. I'll figure out what the hell they're up too when I get back to the house. I'll stop by your place when me and Merle get outta here and pick it up. Save you a trip."
"I'll see you soon then." She sounded disappointed and he knew how she felt. He wanted to tell her to stop being a stubborn ass and just come back to his place once her company left but he'd let her do things her way.
"Yeah." He said grudgingly. "For a few minutes anyway."
She squeezed his hand and then walked away. He watched a few of the other men watch her as she left. The others he could forgive but he found himself approaching Johnson. He threw his arm over the guys shoulder, causing him to flinch.
Johnson looked up, much less cocky than he had been earlier.
"How's it goin', Johnson?" Buck asked pleasantly. He noticed the others watching them, their faces amused.
"Pretty good."
"You know, I catch you eyeballin' my ol' lady like that again, me and you are gonna have a few problems. You get me?" He smiled.
Johnson nodded and slipped out from under Buck's arm. Buck turned back to his work, feeling pretty damn good, considering everything that had been going on lately.
