A/N: Thank you all for the wonderful feedback about the last chapter! I was worried about that one and your responses were just what I needed! All of you are amazing for taking the time to read and interact with this story! Thank you Thank you! :) I'm so glad you all are enjoying it so much! Reviews, follows and favs make me so happy so keep them coming!

Chapter Six: Out of my League

Inspired by: Out of my League by Fitz and the Tantrums

It wasn't a dream...

That was the first coherent thought in Rick's head after he turned off the alarm on his phone. He was still a little groggy, but not so much so that he didn't recognize that he wasn't in his own bed waking up from a very vivid dream. The sun was peeking through the blinds and he sat up in bed searching for the person who should've been curled up next to him but she was nowhere in sight. He was more than a little disappointed, but in a way, he knew it was for the best. They had a bad habit of distracting each other and if either of them expected to be at work that day, any distractions had to be put on hold.

He smiled to himself as he climbed out of bed, eager to take care of his necessities so he could go find Michonne. He felt completely energized, despite only having about 5 hours of sleep. They'd stayed awake past midnight talking, laughing, and indulging in each other in the most intimate of ways. Her assault on each of his senses lingered with him. He could still taste her on his lips and his ears were filled with her voice softly moaning his name as their bodies moved as one. When he closed his eyes, he saw her beautiful face contorted in pleasure. The scent of her perfume lingered on his skin reminding him of how it felt to have her skin pressed against his. Everything about her and their night together was branded in his memory like a tattoo and he was sure it would never fade.

Making his way to the bathroom, he saw that she'd left his clothes neatly folded on a chair and he'd never be able to look at that shirt again without picturing her wearing it and the way it hit her just under her perfect ass and exposed her long, gorgeous legs that he wanted wrapped around him as often as possible.

Shaking away that distracting vision, he continued into the bathroom where he found a towel, washcloth, and toothbrush thoughtfully laid out for him. She'd thought of everything and with a grin, Rick decided that her large, standalone shower was calling his his name.

XX

He rounded the corner leading into the kitchen and that's where he found her looking so gorgeous that it stopped him in his tracks. She was leaning against the kitchen island looking at something on her phone and the olive green dress she was wearing was hugging her in all the right places. Her legs were bare and they flowed into a pair of black, sky high heels. She had pulled her hair up into a bun similar to the one she wore at the wedding and a pair of tortoiseshell glasses sat on her face. Her skin was glowing like she'd bathed in rich, dark roast coffee and sunshine.

She hadn't noticed him yet so he just watched her for a minute thinking about how none of the prosecutors in King County looked like that at their courthouse. He must've sighed out loud, because she looked up from her phone and gave him one of her megawatt smiles that made her nose crinkle and put her dimples front and center and Rick felt himself blushing under the weight of that smile that made him forget how to breathe.

"Good morning…", she said; her deep chocolate eyes never leaving his as she put her phone down and focused all of her attention on him.

"Mornin...you look like you've been up for hours. Why didn't you wake me?"

"Because I watched you set your alarm last night and you were sleeping so good that I didn't have the heart to wake you", she answered with a shrug.

"I have to admit that was the best nights sleep I've had in a while."

"Well...you certainly earned it." He caught her little smirk as she lifted her coffee cup to her perfect lips as her compliment brought a prideful smile to his face. "There's coffee over here…bagels too if you're interested", she offered as she put her mug back on the counter.

"I'm interested but I need one thing first." He moved over to her and placed both hands on her hips so that he could gently tug her away from the counter. She pulled her glasses from her face and wrapped her arms around his neck. "Especially since you robbed me of the pleasure of waking up with you in arms."

"If I'd stayed in bed, neither of us would've made it to work today and you know it." It was his turn to shrug and he pulled her a little closer to him.

"Would that have been so bad?"

"No…but one of us has to be the level-headed one." She inhaled deeply and smiled. "You used my body wash, didn't you? Now you're going to smell like coconut all day."

"I don't care. It'll remind me of you all day." His lips found hers and her arms tightened around his neck as he greeted her the way he wanted to. Her soft lips parted against his almost immediately and he sucked her bottom lip between his drawing a soft, breathy moan from her. Her arms tightened around his neck and that inspired him to deepen the kiss even further; his hands moving down to caress her backside. He tasted coffee and cinnamon on her breath and he knew he'd forever associate those flavors with her.

They stayed like that for a minute before he felt her arms leave his neck and her palms against his chest. Understanding her signal, he dragged his lips away from hers but he continued kissing along her jawbone and down the side of her neck.

"Rick…"

"I know, I know…it's your turn to be the level-headed one." Regretfully, he raised his head and took a step back, letting his hands fall away from her wonderfully curvy body. Her face was flushed and her lipstick was smeared, and her chest was rising and falling rapidly as she tried to catch her breath. He wanted to grab her and kiss the level-headedness right out of her but he took another step back forcing himself to resist that temptation.

She smiled at him and his heart started beating faster when he felt her fingers rubbing against what he was sure was lipstick on his lips. He didn't care about that either. He was proud to wear the evidence of their growing relationship. She'd claimed him and he'd never been happier to belong to someone. "I think you have more of my lipstick on your face than I do", she laughed. "I'm going to go fix my makeup. You should have breakfast."

He nodded and his eyes never left her and that gravity defying behind of hers as she sauntered out of the kitchen and disappeared down the hallway. He shook his head to rouse himself from whatever spell she had him under and grabbed an empty mug off the counter before reaching for the coffee pot. After making his coffee just the way he liked it, he set about toasting a bagel and covering it with the cinnamon cream cheese she had. He'd only taken a few bites when he felt something rubbing against his ankles.

He looked down and T'Challa was staring up at him in that indecipherable way cats seemed to have mastered. He smiled, taking the fact that the cat had initiated contact with him as a good sign.

"Well, good morning to you too, T'Challa." He squatted down and T'Challa only continued staring at him. "I think I'm gonna be around here a lot so we need to come to an understanding." He slowly lifted his hand and moved it toward the cat's head. Almost immediately, the cat swiped at his hand and ran off. He chuckled to himself and rose to his full height. That cat was going to be a challenge but it was one he was more than willing to take it on.

"I think your cat hates me", he announced when she reappeared in the kitchen with her makeup back to it's original state. He'd taken a seat at the kitchen island and was enjoying breakfast as he waited for her return. She ruffled his still damp hair as she passed him and laughed lightly.

"Don't worry. He's just used to to having me all to himself. He'll come around once he gets to know you." He laughed skeptically and took another bite of his bagel.

"Yeah…we'll see…" His eyes followed her as she went back to her breakfast. She was stunningly beautiful and she stole his breath every time he was around him. "You look amazing. I don't know how anyone gets anything done at that courthouse with you looking the way you do." She grinned and finished what was left of her bagel.

"I think they're just used to me…" He scoffed at her explanation like it was the single most ridiculous thing he'd ever heard. The woman was flawless and as a former deputy who'd worked a courthouse a time or two, he knew she had to be the only topic of conversation every time she set foot in there. Sheriffs Deputies were trained to notice everything and there was no way they wouldn't make note of her otherworldly beauty or the gentle grace that punctuated her every move.

He bit his lip and caressed her body with eyes to the point where he noticed her shift under the weight of his stare. "How anyone could ever get used to you is beyond me…"

The air between them was quickly becoming charged and he could tell by the way she was looking at him that she felt it too. Their eyes locked for a few seconds as Rick calculated just how much leave time he had to blow. He was just about to get up from his seat, go over to her and lift her onto the countertop where he planned to mess up her makeup all over again when she looked away and grabbed a paper bag from the fridge and placed it on the island in front of him.

"So…I made you a lunch for work today. It's just some leftover jambalaya and some cobbler for dessert." He heard the barely concealed desire in her voice and raised an eyebrow remembering the trouble that cobbler had gotten them into the night before. He was sure their use of the cobbler wasn't exactly what her mother had in mind. It didn't really matter though. The cobbler was good but Michonne tasted better.

"You didn't have to do that but thank you."

"I wanted to and you're welcome." she glanced at her watch and frowned. "I have to get going. I have a meeting in an hour." He nodded and finished off the rest of his coffee as she slipped into a camel colored blazer and hoisted her briefcase over her shoulder. After checking his pockets to make sure he had his keys, wallet and phone before picking up the lunch bag she'd put together for him, he met her at the door and took the briefcase from her.

"Let me carry that for you." By the look on her face, he could tell she was thinking about arguing with him but instead, she laughed and picked up her purse.

"Always such a gentleman…"

"You deserve it." She opened the door and he followed her outside, waiting as she closed and locked the door behind them. He took her hand in his, threading their fingers together as they walked toward their vehicles on that sunny, spring morning.

When they reached her SUV, she unlocked it so he could open the door and put her bag inside.

"I guess this is officially the end of our date" she said. He nodded with a sigh, once again taking her hand in his before bringing it up to his lips. He'd been quietly dreading the moment he had to say goodbye to her knowing that it'd be at least five days before he saw her again and he'd miss her for every single second of them.

"Yeah…last night was perfect. Dinner, dessert…everything else…it was all perfect." She grinned and squeezed his hand a little tighter.

"I think so too. So when are doing it again?" He knew he was probably smiling like a damn fool but he didn't care.

"I'd love for you to come to King County this weekend. I'll make sure not to pick up a Saturday shift."

"I'll be there Friday night", she agreed with a nod. He smiled broadly and not wanting to mess up her lipstick again, he kissed her lightly on the side of her mouth. As he pulled away, he felt her hand on his cheek, leading him back. "That's not how you kiss me goodbye." That was all he needed to hear before covering her mouth with his in a deep kiss that ended all too quickly.

He brought his eyes up to meet hers and was struck by the depth of emotion he saw in them. Even though she hadn't said it, her eyes screamed how she felt about him. His heart felt like it was ready to burst and the words came tumbling from his lips before he had a chance to think about them further. He pressed his forehead against hers and closed his eyes.

"I love you, Michonne." he whispered, with his heart in his throat but his toe was already in the water so he took a breath before diving all he way in. "I almost told you so many times last night but I wanted it to be…separate…if that makes any sense. I know this is fast but…I'm in love with you and you should know that."

His ears were ringing and his skin felt like it was burning from the inside. The last thing he wanted to do was scare her away because now that he had her, he almost couldn't imagine not having her. He would go back to being that miserable guy sitting at the bar that night; the guy she'd saved by just giving him a chance. His anxiety only grew when he opened his eyes to see that hers had filled with tears and he started shaking his head like it would reset them to a time before he'd emptied his heart to her. Maybe he'd read her wrong. Maybe he'd just ruined the best thing he'd ever had.

He lifted his forehead from hers without meeting her stare. "I'm sorry…I shouldn't have said anything…"

She silently shook her head, smiling through her tears as she placed her hands on either side of his face and said the words that made him the happiest man in Atlanta…maybe even the entire state of Georgia.

"I love you too."

XXX

She was the only thing his mind for the entire ride back to King County and his mood was so good that the two hour drive felt like nothing as he sang along…badly…to every sappy pop song that came on the radio. He couldn't remember the last time he'd felt so happy. It felt like unmarked territory for him even though he'd been in love before. At least he'd always believed that he and Lori had been in love at some point but he never remembered feeling so intoxicated...so completely consumed by it.

Lori had always complained that he never communicated with her. She was always telling him to "speak" but he always had trouble finding the words. But Michonne overwhelmed him to the point that the words just spilled out of him as made perfectly evident by the fact that he'd admitted to being in love with her after only knowing her a week.

More importantly though, and this was the part that made him almost delirious with satisfaction, she'd said she loved him too. The smartest, kindest, funniest, and most drop dead gorgeous woman he'd ever had the pleasure of knowing, loved him too and it was going to take him a while to completely process that. She had to go fix her makeup again after he kissed her with everything he had after hearing those words from her lips and he'd been in a daze ever since.

After the divorce, he'd honestly given up on love. For a long time, he didn't think he had anything else to give. What was left of his heart was so bruised...so damaged that he'd written the whole thing off as irreparable. But something about Michonne was healing those broken parts of him. She was making him whole again and after hearing what she'd been through with her ex, he desperately wanted to do the same thing for her.

He was still lost in his own head when he got home. His nosy neighbor, Mrs. Sullivan, from across the street couldn't even ruin his mood when she blatantly questioned him about why he hadn't come home after dropping Carl with his mother as soon as he'd pulled into his driveway. Another perk of small town living was that everyone is always all up in everybody's business

"I stayed in the city with a friend, Mrs. Sullivan. No need to worry." He gave her a smile and a wave as he went inside the house knowing full well that she'd be on the phone with his mother within the hour and she would be calling him soon after.

He was humming as he changed out of his clothes and into his uniform. Like clockwork, his cell phone started ringing. With a deep sigh, he brought the phone to his ear.

"Good morning, mama. Let me guess…Mrs. Sullivan called you?" He heard Loretta Grimes' trademark huff and he knew she was about to launch into one of her tirades. Rick loved his mother more than life but sometimes she forgot that he was a grown ass man with a son of his own, especially after his marriage imploded. When he was at his lowest, her mothering him helped him get through it. She'd done everything she could to make sure he didn't fall completely apart and he was grateful to her for it. Now that he was finally rounding the corner, it had become more than a little annoying.

"First, you don't bring Carl to church Sunday morning. Then, you make me meet you both for lunch at the diner instead of coming over for a good, home cooked meal. Now, Edna Sullivan tells me that you were out all night in Atlanta?! What is going on with you, Rick?" He put her on speaker and went back to getting ready for work.

"Nothing! I told you, Carl's friend Duane spent the night and they were up all night playing video games. By the time they woke up, it was too late for church and lunch at the diner was the only way I could get him to see you that would keep us on schedule." During his explanation, he'd done his best to keep his irritation with the conversation out of his tone but she gave him no similar courtesy as she continued her interrogation.

"Why were you in such a rush to get him back to Atlanta? You're usually dragging your feet on Sunday about taking Carl back. And I thought you and that…B-I-T-C-H…always met halfway…" His mother never cursed but he'd always gotten a laugh out of the way she would spell the words out like that would somehow lessen their meaning.

"Now, mama…you know I always try to get him back to his mother by five. And Lori's been giving me hell about the halfway thing lately...so even if I hadn't made plans, I probably would've driven all the way in."

"Those plans of yours wouldn't have anything to do with that woman you were kissing all over in the middle of the street last Sunday, would it?" He sighed deeply because he should've known that she would've heard about that.

"I wasn't…"

"It better be that same woman because I did not raise you to be running women all over the state of Georgia like your friend Shane!" His best friend had been the bane of his mother's existence since they were kids. According to her, Shane was the root cause of every bad decision Rick had ever made. If she knew Shane had been the one to set him up on a double date with Lori back in high school because he wanted to go out with her friend, Shane wouldn't be allowed to set foot in her house ever again.

"I'm not running women! There's only one woman and it's really new…"

"Nonsense! You're making a spectacle out of yourself in the middle of the street and staying overnight with her in Atlanta! I expect to meet any woman you plan on bringing around my grandson sooner rather than later."

"Yes, mamn."

"I want to have all the ammo I need to rub in Francine's face. Her precious daughter was sneaking off to cheap motels with her boss and she has the audacity to talk about you kissing someone! She's lucky I'm a Christian but I'm quickly losing my religion when it comes to that whole family!" Rick smiled to himself and shook his head. His mother was a piece of work and as much as he was beginning to enjoy their conversation, his watch told him he had to go.

"Look, mama, I have to get to the station…"

"Go on…I love you. Just remember I need to meet her…ASAP!"

"Ok, ok…I love you too mama", he said, laughing at her insistence that she meet his girlfriend. He just knew he'd better give Michonne fair warning before it happened. No one deserved going into meeting Loretta Grimes blind. Especially not the woman who could quite possibly be the love of his life.

XXX

"…so the owner says the larceny was an inside job. He wants us to interview all of his employees at the store, but I thought we should take a look at the place…" It was a little after 5 and after a very slow afternoon at the station catching up on paperwork and wondering what Michonne was doing but forcing himself not to text her, Rick was driving across King County with his partner in tow.

The owner of a local convenience store discovered some money missing from the store safe and insisted that the sheriff's office look into it. Rick and Shane had picked up the case when it was transferred to the special investigations unit and were headed over to take a look at the scene.

"Mmm…hmm…" Rick briefly took his eyes off the road expecting to see his partner texting his latest conquest or setting up his next. Instead, Shane was looking around the interior of their department issue Charger like he'd never seen it before and sniffing around like a bloodhound. Shane was crazy, but that was especially weird.

"What the hell are you doing?", he asked just as they pulled into a parking space right in front of the convenience store they were supposed to be checking out.

"Nothin'...did you get a new air freshener for the car?" He frowned at Shane's question, wondering what that had to do with anything.

"No, why?" Shane shrugged and shifted in his seat so he was leaning against the car door facing him. The odd look on his face was practically unreadable, but when Shane raised an eyebrow and smirked in that devilish way of his, Rick knew where their conversation was headed.

"Because something in this car smells like those fancy soaps and shit women like to use so either you got laid last night or somebody's been foolin' around in our squad car!" Rick could feel the blush creeping up the sides of his neck and Shane must've noticed too because he started laughing hysterically. "I knew it! I bet you're glad I made you take that ol' love glove, now!" He wasn't about to tell him that they hadn't even used the one he'd given him because Michonne had been well prepared for their date. If he was being honest with himself, he didn't really want to to talk about it at all.

Unlike Shane, Rick had never been one to kiss and tell. Even in high school when all the other guys were bragging about their conquests in the locker room, he'd stayed quiet. He was more willing to take their ragging about being a virgin than tell them he wasn't one.

"I'm not going into detail about it with you…"

"No way, man! You gotta give me something! You ain't been with a woman since way before Lori left!" He was quickly becoming exasperated with that entire conversation and his knuckles were turning white from the tight grip he had on the steering wheel.

"It was a great date! What do you want me to say?"

"That's it? That's all you're going to tell me?"

"Michonne is the real deal. She's…pretty damn close to perfect if I'm being honest."

"She rocked your world didn't she? Had you speaking in tongues…" He knew he had to be six shades of red by how hot he felt all over and the shit-eating grin spread across Shane's face told him that his friend was enjoying how uncomfortable he was a little too much.

"Shane…"

"…that woman's got a body Lori can't even dream about and I bet she knows how to use it!" Even though he wholeheartedly agreed with Shane's assessment, Rick closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose as Shane continued his teasing. "Now I understand why you were struttin' around the station today like nobody could tell you nothin'!"

"I was not!" He denial wasn't as strong as it could've been because the accusation may have been a little warranted. He might have carried himself a little taller and there may have been a slightly more authoritative tone in his voice when he was handing out assignments to the deputies. Shane twisted his lips and raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah you were and I ain't even mad about it. Just tell me it was good and I'll leave you alone."

"No you won't! You're like a dog with a bone!" Laughter filled the car they both saw the truth and the humor in that one.

"You're right, I won't!" As his laugh faded, Shane jokingly punched his arm. "I'm happy for you, brother. I just wish you weren't already all in with her. Pretty soon you're going to be telling me to look for a new partner because you're up and movin' to Atlanta…" Rick laughed and shook his head. Shane was strangely willing to talk about him hitting fast forward on his relationship but if anyone dared mention the name Shane Walsh, a woman's name, and moving in in the same sentence, he'd probably lapse into catatonic schizophrenia.

"It's only been a week! I think we're both happy to just enjoy things the way they are for a while." Shane cocked this head to one side and squinted like he was trying to comprehend what he was saying. When he finally spoke, he didn't sound convinced.

"Really? With only seein' each other on the weekends?"

"We'll make it work."

"I don't know. If I were you, I'd want to curl up with that hot cup of cocoa every damn night!"

"C'mon, man…"

"All right, all right...but damn Rick! You gotta admit she's out of your league!" Of course she was out of his league. He didn't need Shane to remind him about that. He saw it every time he laid eyes on her. He pressed his lips together and cleared his throat.

"Regardless…we're not at the point where those kinds of conversations are even on the table."

"I hear ya...It ain't a decision you gotta make right now, but it's comin' and you know it. I'm just saying...your kid is in Atlanta and so is your woman. What in the hell would keep you here?"

Rick paused, letting Shane's words really sink in. Even a broken clock was right twice a day and he had to admit that his buddy was making sense. But it was too soon for all of that. He and Michonne had a lot of getting to know each other left to do and Carl liked coming to King County to see the friends he had to leave behind. It was more complicated that Shane was making it out to be, but Rick had to think about how much easier it would make everything if he were closer to Carl. He also wasn't oblivious to the idea that it would make his new relationship a whole lot easier too.

"...Other than your mama and she needs to go visit that damn brother of yours more often anyway." Rick rolled his eyes at the mention of his erstwhile younger brother. Louisiana was a whole other country as far as Loretta Grimes was concerned and Jeff would have to get married and have kid before she would even think about going down there.

Rick opened the car door and climbed out, waiting as Shane did the same before they started walking toward the convenience store.

"Yeah well…maybe I'll stay in King County because I'd miss your sparkling personality too much…" Out of the corner of his eye, he saw another wide grin stretch across Shane's lips.

"Hell, maybe I'll transfer to the ATL too. Get me a whole new pool of women to choose from!" Rick shook his head as they reached the store, chuckling at the logic only Shane could come up with.

"If that happens, God help the women of Atlanta!"

XXX

It was shortly after 10 pm when Rick finally made it home after work. After changing out of his uniform, he collapsed in front of the tv to settle down. He was thinking about eating the rest of the cobbler Michonne had packed for him when his phone rang and when he saw who it was, he suddenly wasn't so hungry any more.

"Michonne…hi." Sounding too eager to hear from her was another silly thing he didn't care about in his effort to completely care about everything about her.

"Hi. It's not too late to call is it? I didn't want to bother you at work and I kinda wanted to talk to you…not just text." He leaned back against the couch with the phone to his ear and a big smile on his face.

"You could never bother me at work or otherwise and it's always a good time to call. I didn't know how much I wanted to hear your voice until I heard it." He heard her laugh under her breath and could picture her laying across that bed of hers smiling into the phone.

"I missed you too. How was your day?"

"Long! I'm just glad it's over. How was yours?"

"Busy…both with work and with trying to dodge questions from my friend Andrea about our date."

"Really? Shane was relentless too."

"I'm sure he was! Did you thank him for unnecessarily helping you be more proactive?"

"No…but unfortunately he figured it out anyway and patted himself on the back for it."

"How'd he…" she paused and then laughed out loud. "He sniffed you out! I told you that you were going to smell like coconut all day!" He laughed to himself and threw his head back to rest on the back of the sofa.

"And I told you I didn't care and I still don't."

"I have to admit that I kinda like the thought of you smelling like me all day…it low key lets everyone know you're taken." Her voice was so damn sexy. He could listen to her all night long.

"Possessive…I kinda like that. How about you show me how possessive you can be when you come down here this weekend?" Had he really just said that? He'd never been as flirty in his entire life as he was with Michonne. For about the hundredth time since he'd known her, he had to ask himself what she was doing to him.

"That's actually the main reason I was calling. I forgot that one of my friends is having a birthday party for her husband on Saturday…" The high he was on only evaporated slightly at the news that she wasn't going to able to come to see him that weekend. He'd imagined them spending lazy mornings in bed together, going to the diner for her favorite pancakes, showing her his town, grilling steaks, drinking beer, and just spending time together. With only one day together, all that would have to change.

"It's ok. We can work something out for Sunday." He was trying to sound ok with the reduction in time but disappointment tinged his every word.

"Actually…I was thinking you could go with me…if you wanted to. I know that'll be back to back trips to Atlanta and it's Mother's Day…" A wide smile burst across his face and he answered quickly and definitively.

"I'll be there."

"Yeah?"

"Definitely. I just have to get back in time to take my mama out to dinner and then next weekend you can come here."

"Ok…wait. Don't you have Carl next weekend?" He could almost see the cute little ridge that appeared between her eyebrows when she was confused.

"Yep…but I figure why delay the inevitable and next weekend is the King County Strawberry Festival. You can't miss that."

"I do love strawberries…but are you sure? About letting me meet Carl?" It was something he'd been so worried about not too long ago. Letting his son meet a woman that he knew he would adore when there was a chance it could all go away, terrified him. He just wasn't as worried about it going away any more.

"Of course! You've already met him. We may as well make it official." One thing he'd already learned about Michonne was that she was a thinker. He could hear the wheels turning in her head until she finally processed what he was telling her.

"Ok, then…I can't wait to officially meet your son."

"Good. He's looking forward to meeting you too." She sighed and he knew what was coming. "You have to go, don't you? Still being the level-headed one?"

"Unfortunately, yes. I have to be in court early tomorrow."

"That's too bad. I was hoping we could talk more about your possessiveness, counselor."

"That's a conversation for another time. Preferably when we're in the same room. Ideally, when we're both in said room minus a few articles of clothing…" The images that flashed through his mind were causing his body to react and he closed his eyes to try to reign those thoughts back in.

"You're killin' me, gorgeous…" His words rushed out in what was practically a moan and when he heard her laugh, it only made his situation worse.

"I'm sorry. I'll make it up to you this weekend."

"I'm going to hold you to that one." He'd never been more serious about anything in his life. He didn't get off work until 9 Friday night and he was already planning to drive straight to her townhouse. His earlier conversation with Shane floated through his head but he pushed it away just as quickly, content to fool himself into believing their relationship wasn't on the fast track.

"You're not the only one in this relationship who keeps their word", she whispered, interrupting his train of thought.

"Good to know…", he said, wishing he could keep her on the phone a little longer but knowing that it wasn't possible even as they both lingered in silence. "Sleep well and kick ass in court tomorrow."

"I will. Good night, Rick. I love you." Right then, he knew he'd never get tired of hearing her say those words.

"I love you too."

XXXX

A/N: I wanted to get this posted before the show kills me Sunday night! :)

So…I know I said "time jump" but you gotta go where the characters take you right? I think the time jump is going to be put off for a couple chapters. I think I have a few ideas for their next few weekends together. :) A real plot is slowly developing…

Let me know what you all think!

Also…T'Challa is based on my own very cute but very mean black cat, Gambit. His hobbies include knocking things over and swatting at people. :)

Also, also…for any fans of Love Tumbles Down…I'm working on it I promise. I hit a wall with that one but I think I'm rounding the corner. :)