I could tell Daryl was trying to get me alone the next day to question me about the night before, but I kept myself around other people and he eventually left for the pharmacy run so I could relax. I could see Beth and Carol giving me worried glances, and I was pretty sure Beth had told her what we'd overheard.

When the group got back, I was weeding the carrots with Carl's help. The kitchen windows were open and I could hear Daryl's gravely voice greet Beth. "Ya know where Ana is?" he asked. Beth retorted, "Maybe you should leave her alone, Daryl Dixon," and I could tell Daryl was caught off guard by her tone. "So ya know what's botherin' her, then?" he finally replied, but the only response he got was the door banging as she left and walked into the garden, meeting my eyes and giving me a small smile.

I wondered how long it would take before the whole group knew about my humiliating breakdown but I couldn't blame Beth for being protective. Rick's voice came through the kitchen window as he asked Daryl to look at a spot in the fence he thought needed reinforcing, and I went back to focusing on the job at hand.

Rick and Daryl stayed busy with the fences, and I was able to join the dinner prep crew and choke down some food without any awkward conversations. The evening chores kept my attention until all of the Woodbury folks had made their way to their cell blocks and it was just Carol and I finishing breakfast prep. As she wiped down the counters she spoke quietly. "You should talk to him."

I willed away the now-familiar tears and shook my head. "I can't. He didn't do anything wrong and I'm not mad at him. I just didn't know, and it caught me off guard." She sighed. "I disagree. I don't know what happened between them, but even if it was nothing, just leading her on was wrong, because you two obviously have a relationship on some level. Quite frankly, I think both of you need to deal with this, for everyone's sake, because you two are a big part of our family."

She looked at me seriously. "You're good together, and we all thought you'd eventually get things figured out. I know it's complicated, and I think you were wise not to rush into anything but you can't let him do this. It's not what he wants, not really, and I don't want to see you both miserable."

I groaned in frustration. "Carol, I can't assume I know what he wants because he won't tell me! And I really doubt he's told anyone else, so let's not pretend like it's obvious. We were in a traumatic situation together for a very long time, and maybe that's all it was. Maybe now that we can relax a little, he's realized he wants something different. I've got a lot of baggage, and I can't expect him to take that on just because he felt something for me for a while."

She shook her head and walked toward the door, but threw me a final thought before she left. "He's got baggage too; you know that. We all do, and we need someone who understands that about us and can help us carry it."

I continued to dawdle until everyone had gone to bed, and then made my way up to my cell slowly, lost in thought. I pushed back the curtain that hung over my doorway, stopping short when I saw Daryl sitting on the lower bunk, pulling off his boots. "What are you doing?" I asked quietly, and he shrugged. "Didn' seem like you were gonna talk to me any other time," he said stubbornly.

"Daryl, I can't do this," I said, turning to leave. He crossed the tiny space in an instant, blocking the doorway, and crossed his arms. "Nuh uh. You got a problem with me, yer gonna tell me and stop this avoidance shit."

I was suddenly furious at him for acting like this was all on me. "Avoidance shit?" I whispered furiously. "What the fuck were you doing a few days ago when you switched off of your watch with me? Why have you slept in your perch since then? Don't put that on me."

He rubbed his hands over his face in frustration and seemed to have made a decision. "Fine. Ya wanna be pissed at me for tellin' some bitch she could blow me in the shower, be my guest. But that's me, remember? I'm a lowlife redneck asshole, and this?" he gestured between us, "this doesn't make sense. Me and someone like her hookin' up? That makes sense. You and that shithead Ben? That makes sense. We're from different worlds and we need to stop pretendin'."

I was pretty sure others could hear bits of our whispered argument but at that point, I didn't care. "People change Daryl! I am not the same person whose car broke down near your trailer, and you're sure as hell not the same guy I met that day. We're different people now, but it's like you don't see that at all. I just want you to see me for once, not who I used to be!"

Daryl was practically vibrating with tension and seemed ready to bolt. "Don't see you? Are you fucking kidding me?" he growled. "You're all I see, all the goddamn time! I couldn't even get a fuckin' blow job, because I couldn't stand the thought of being' with anyone else. I just need you out of my head for two seconds so I can think straight -" but he cut himself off and his mouth was on mine before he finished the thought, hard and needy. I gripped his shirt and pulled him into me further, responding with just as much fervor. I'd wanted to taste his mouth for months, imagined it all over my body as I lay next to him at night, and I couldn't get enough.

He ran his hands down my back, cupping my ass and pulling me up to wrap my legs around his waist. He rocked into me, teeth nipping at my jaw and down my neck. "Oh fuck," I breathed, pressing my hips against him and relishing the sensation of having his hard length against my aching core. I ran my hands under his shirt, feeling the muscles of his back and the uneven lines of his scars. He brought his mouth back to meet mine but carried us to my bunk and laid me on my back, settling himself between my legs. I was already unbuttoning his shirt clumsily, pushing it off his shoulders while he tugged mine up and over my head.

He paused, breathing heavily, and looked down at me, the lamplight casting shadows on his face. He dropped softer kisses to the swell of my breasts, and I arched my back so he could unclasp my bra. The scar that ran along the curve of my left breast was still a purple-red raised line, and I wondered if I should have kept it covered. But Daryl just kissed along it softly, and then drew my taut nipple into his mouth, scraping slightly with his teeth before swirling his tongue around it.

I whimpered, arching my back and I felt him groan quietly against my skin before moving his attention to the other breast. I tried to keep quiet, but I'd wanted this for so long I felt dizzy with need. "Daryl, please," I whispered, pressing my hips into his. He kissed down my stomach to my naval before unbuttoning my pants and tugging them down along with my soaked panties. I kicked them off and fumbled with his belt, but he stood and did it himself, dropping his pants to the floor and covering my body with his own again.

He drew his fingers through the wet heat of my folds, gathering moisture until he reached my swollen clit, and worked it gently, building heat and tension with every stroke until I was trembling and holding back breathless whines. I could feel him, hard and ready between my legs, but he looked at me carefully, still holding himself up on his elbows, and whispered, "Ya sure?" I nodded. "I've been sure for a long time," I confessed, "but I don't have a condom." Daryl shook his head, "Don' need one, took care a that a while ago," he said, and after a slight pause I nodded, trusting him, and he let out a shaky breath and kissed me again, pushing into me slowly.

It had been a really, really long time since I'd been with anyone, and I felt myself stretching as Daryl filled me, his lips shifting to my neck. I exhaled, relishing the slight pain mixed with pleasure, and rocked my hips against him once he was fully sheathed inside me. "Jesus," he muttered against my skin, "You're gonna kill me." Each thrust sent waves of pleasure through me, and the sensation of finally having him inside me was overwhelming.

I ran my hands through his hair and tugged him back up to my face, nipping at his bottom lip before slipping my tongue into his mouth. He kissed back hungrily and slipped a hand between our bodies, to circle my clit again with his finger. He swallowed my cry of pleasure with his open mouth and hummed a quiet "shhh", but I was almost lost in the sensation of the tremors taking over my body. I'd been waiting for this for so long that I was at the brink of my climax in no time at all.

His pace picked up, and I tumbled over the edge of my orgasm, my walls spasming around his cock. I buried my cries in his neck as his thrusting sped up until he came with a harsh "Fuck!" muffled by the pillow, and collapsed on top of me.

We lay there, breathing heavily, until he rolled off me and grabbed my towel from the hook on the wall, cleaning me up gently before putting out the light and lying back down next to me. "You okay?" he murmured softly, and I nodded. "So much better than okay," I said, laying my head on his chest. I listened to his breathing slow, fully relaxed for the first time in ages, and felt myself drifting off. I knew we needed to talk, but I was too exhausted, emotionally and physically. His hand ran up and down my back softly, reassuring me that he wasn't going to pull away from me again, and I drifted off to sleep.