THEN

Daryl's idea of a good time took them to the backwoods of Georgia. Again. Camping with a Dixon wasn't like any camping Katie had ever done before. There were no air mattresses, bathrooms within walking distance or running water. This was the absolute definition of roughing it.

It was early. She knew without even opening her eyes. Katie groaned, rolling over to curl into Daryl's naked body. But instead of finding body heat, she rolled into a cold, empty space. Her eyes cracked open to see that the sun had barely started to rise. Typical Daryl. Up with the sun and unable to just sit still and relax. Why couldn't he just stay in the sleeping bag and keep her warm? Goddamn, Daryl Dixon.

Then the smell of coffee and campfire hit her nostrils and she smiled. God bless, Daryl Dixon. He hadn't brought much on their excursion, but the man had made her campfire coffee.

Feeling around the tent floor blindly for clothes, she grabbed Daryl's shirt. She shrugged into it, buttoning it half way and then found a clean pair of panties. A smirk hit her lips when she remembered how he had pulled her panties off the night before.

Outside the tent the morning air was chilly. She stepped out, squinting slightly into the sun.

"Morning, Peach."

God, that voice. It gave her immediate skin prickles starting at her neck, heading down around her front and ending with perfectly pert nipples.

"Good morning." She drawled. "Up at the ass crack of dawn again, I see."

With a smirk, he handed her a cup of coffee. Taking a sip, she closed her eyes and hummed.

"Good?"

"Very good. I'm impressed."

"Drink up. Yer gonna need it for what I have planned."

"Sex in the tent all day?"

"Naw."

She pouted like a toddler. "Damn."

A laugh rumbled in his chest and he stole a kiss. "There'll be plenty a time for that later."

"What's that?" Katie's eyes landed on something roasting on a handmade spit over the fire.

"Breakfast."

"Yeah. But- is that a …. squirrel?"

"Got it this morning."

"How long have you been up?"

Daryl shrugged and moved around the fire, poking at the coals. "A while."

Katie huffed. "Would it kill ya to sleep in once in a while?"

"Yup." He pointed to a fallen log. "Sit. This is ready."

The squirrel was surprisingly edible. While Katie picked at the game, Daryl unloaded a box of empty beer bottles from the back of the truck. A few feet from their tent was a natural rock wall, and he lined the bottles up there.

Excitement bubbled in Katie's chest. "You finally going to let me use that crossbow?"

"Maybe." He deadpanned and threw the empty crate back into the truck. "If you're good."

She grinned. "Silly, Dixon. You know I like to be naughty."

A blush creeped up Daryl's neck making Katie giggle. He made it way too easy to tease him. With a roll of his eyes, he pointed to her breakfast. "Eat."

Obediently, she took a bite and happily watched him set up target practice.

"Jesus! That hurts like a mother fucker!" She cried as the bolt released and the weapon kicked back.

Daryl smirked. "It's a big boy weapon."

Katie dropped the crossbow and rubbed her pulsing shoulder. "Did I at least hit something?"

He shook his head. "Naw. Don't look like it."

"Damn." The crossbow fell to the ground.

"Hey- watch it. She don't belong on the ground." He scooped it up.

"Okay, okay." She continued to massage her shoulder. "How do you carry that thing anyway?"

With a sly smile, Daryl casually flexed his biceps. The sleeves were gone again, giving her an eyeful of rippling muscle. She swore he did it on purpose.

She gave him a good natured eye roll and gentle push before trotting off to grab the bolt. "Okay. Let's try this again."

Daryl threw one arm out towards the bottles in a be my guest gesture. With all the strength in her skinny arms, Katie hefted the weapon from his other hand. She could feel his hawk gaze as she raised it to her still aching shoulder and aimed. Those blue eyes- they sent shivers across her spine …. and then further down. She shook her head to clear it and centered her focus on the targets.

Daryl cleared his throat as she aimed.

"You have something to say?"

"Naw."

"Then zip it. You're distracting me."

He covered his smile with a hand and watched as she took aim and missed the bottles completely- again.

"Try again."

She made a feeble attempt to re-lift the crossbow to her shoulder. "Ugh. Too heavy."

"C'mon lightweight." He took three long strides to stand behind her, and helped lift the weapon. She leaned her back into his chest and let him hold the brunt of the weight. Using his knee, Daryl pressed between her legs to separate them. "Spread 'em."

She couldn't stop the giggle that bubbled up. Daryl paused behind her, and she felt his own silent laugh shake his body. God, they were such kids. But, she loved it. She loved everything about being with this man.

"Bend your knees." He growled into her ear. She complied as he released her arms and ran his large hands down the length of her sides, ending in a firm grip of her hips. His fingertips pressed into her skin as he manhandled her body into the correct position. "There, now aim for the brown bottle on the left. Line it up."

Her arms began to shake under the weight of the bow and Daryl quickly steadied them.

With his help, Katie put the bottle between the bow's sights. "Got it."

"Now, pull." She swayed slightly from the feeling of his breath on her neck. His grip on her arms tightened. "Don't move. Focus."

"I'm trying." She gritted out before feeling his lips graze the nape of her neck. She hissed and pulled the trigger. The brown bottle exploded and she screamed in surprise. "I fucking got it!"

Daryl smirked and slapped her ass hard. "Nice work."

She turned and pushed into his chest. "You were trying to distract me!"

He feigned innocence and pointed to himself.

"You're bad, Dixon."

The sly look that she was starting to become accustomed to crossed his face and he grabbed her hips turning her back towards the bottles. "C'mon, Peach. Do it again."

Katie managed to hit a few more bottles, and by the time the last bolt was lined up they were both thrumming with sexual tension. Once it released and hit its mark, Daryl grabbed her hair and tilted her head back so his lips could feast on her now exposed neck. He placed hot, wet kisses on every inch of her skin.

Leaning back into him, ass firm against his growing jeans, Katie moaned. "You're killing me."

With one last nip of her collarbone he released her and shouldered the crossbow. "C'mon. Let's test out those shootin' super powers. Go find some squirrel."

Shooting a moving target turned out to be a lot harder than shooting a bottle. But, Daryl made it look easy. So, Katie dutifully trailed behind him as he hunted, carrying their loot in a small bag.

"Looks like rain." Daryl mused, squinting upward. Not a minute later, the sky opened up. Big, fat drops began to fall and Katie shrieked. Daryl grabbed her elbow and together they ran the short quarter mile back to their campsite.

Laughing and soaked to the bone they fell to the floor inside the tent.

"Oh my god, I'm freezing."

Daryl was already shucking off his clothes. "C'mon. Get 'em off." He crawled into the sleeping bag and held it open for her to join. "Body heat."

"Now this is the kind of camping I like." She shimmied in beside him.

Once they were properly curled up together, Katie sighed. "Thanks for the hunting lesson."

His hand stroked her back. "Mmmhmm."

"We're a good team."

"Yeah. Regular ole fucking Barbie and Ken."

Katie snorted. "More like Bonnie and Clyde."

A smile spread across Daryl's face. "Kinda like the sound of that."

"Too bad they die in the end."

"Maybe." His fingertips began to wind themselves into her hair. "If I'm gonna die fighting for anyone…. it's gonna be you."

Katie shifted so she could see his face and gave him a huge smile. "Oh my god. That's the sweetest fucking thing you've ever said to me."

Daryl blushed. "Gaw. Forget I said anything."

"Nope. Not gonna happen."

He groaned and pushed against her head, tucking it back into his chest. "You're such a pain in my ass."

"You love it."

He grunted.

They fell into a comfortable silence as the rain pounded on the roof of the tent. They were both enjoying a moment of rest when Katie began to gently trace a scar on Daryl's shoulder. Instinctively, he froze up. He didn't know why she'd never asked about them before. Maybe she had already put the puzzle together without his help.

Her big brown eyes met his, she wasn't asking him to talk about it. That wasn't something she would do. She was so good about giving him the privacy he needed. But this time, something just clicked and it felt like it was time to talk. "I was in middle school when Merle joined the marines. As soon as he left….he came for me instead."

"Your dad?" She asked carefully and quietly.

Daryl nodded. Katie reached for his hand to thread their fingers together. He flinched, but she held tight. She made it so easy to drop his defenses. "Some dad, huh?"

"It wasn't your fault." She murmured.

"Maybe. Maybe not. I was a little shit back then. Probably deserved most of it."

"Doesn't matter. This shouldn't have happened to you." Her voice was earnest and so sincere that Daryl almost believed her.

Suddenly uncomfortable, he grunted. "Stop touchin' 'em. They're ugly."

Getting up onto her knees, Katie knelt over him. He watched her bare breasts sway as she leaned closer and her lips touched the scar. Her kiss on his skin was so gentle, as if she was trying to erase all the pain with her mouth. Daryl's eyes fluttered close and his demand that she stop was forgotten.

"You're gorgeous to me." She whispered against his shoulder. And she meant it. It wasn't just that Daryl was objectively handsome, because he was. But, she was attracted to so much more than just his looks. There was kindness in his eyes and his slow smile that she knew were reserved just for her. His loyalty. His protective nature. The secret heart of gold. All made one complete gorgeous Daryl Dixon package.

As her lips worked over his skin, Daryl reached for a stray lock of hair that had escaped the messy bun on top of her head. He ran it through his fingers before cupping her cheek and bringing her face to his. He couldn't get enough of the sweet taste of her lips. They connected in absolute tenderness and his thumb drug along the delicate skin of her neck.

Katie felt a hot tightening in her stomach as her teeth scraped across his bottom lip and their tongues stroked. She moved over him, knees straddling his hips. A moan escaped Daryl's mouth when she slid against his quickly hardening cock. His hands found her breasts, thumbs running over pebbled nipples. Katie hissed at his touch.

She took a hold of his thickness in her hand and slowly lowered herself onto him. They both groaned in delight as their bodies became one. Katie slowly began to move her hips in a figure eight motion and Daryl's hands moved to her hips. They found a rhythm and Katie's body rocked over him. He held tightly to her hips and gritted his teeth as she moved up and down. Each time his cock was buried inside her, Katie squeezed him tightly with her soft, slick walls. Their moans as they moved were drowned out by the driving rain.

What happened in that tent could only be described as making love. A slow give and take, with each of them wanting nothing more than to give the other pleasure. They both came hard, their bodies quivering as they came down from the high.

Katie collapsed onto Daryl's chest, both of their breathing ragged.

"I love you." She breathed into skin.

He stilled. Why would she say that? He was broken. Unloveable. He let her hold him and her presence was like a soothing balm. It didn't heal all the wounds, but it certainly made them feel better.

And he loved her too. Jesus. He loved the shit out of her. Her humor, her strength, her ability to see the good in people. But those three little words just wouldn't come.

After a moment, she peered up at him. He hoped the look in his own eyes was conveying how he felt even if he couldn't say it. Gently, she kissed him and said it again. "You don't have to say it back. But, I need you to know. I love you, Daryl Dixon."