A/N: Thank you all for reading and reviewing. I'm sorry it's taken forever to get to this. I think you're all going to enjoy this instalment. Please do let me know how you liked it. This chapter sees Rick take some initiative and Richonne make an arrangement. Enjoy!

There was something about the river that, after spending a day swimming and frolicking, made one feel tired. But not in a bad way; not where you are completely exhausted. In a way that feels good, as if all of your worries have been washed away in the forgiving stream. Where you feel light inside of your sun-kissed form, and just want to let sleep take over. That's how Rick and Michonne's children felt, respectively. The water and sunlight had slowly replaced their excitable energy with the need to sleep.

André clung to his mother as she and Rick walked side-by-side as she made her way back up the bank to her vehicle.

"He looks like he's ready to hit the hay," said Rick with a smile, gesturing down at the small boy.

"Yeah, he is," said Michonne. "Probably about to be grumpy if I don't get him home soon."

Rick nodded his head in understanding.

"Yeah, I reckon Carl might need a shower and somethin' to eat," he replied. "Then bed."

"That sounds like a good idea," Michonne proffered as she placed the key in the ignition and turned it on so that André could have the A/C on while he waited for his mother to finish talking to her friend.

Friend, she thought to herself. Is that what Rick was? Neighbor, probably; but, friend? After everything they went through in their youth.

It all felt kind of strange.

"I had a good time today," said Rick with that smile she loved, drawing her from her thoughts.

"Me, too."

"Can I see you again?"

"Rick, I – what are we doing here?"

"Hangin' out together, like old times, before you go," he replied.

"Like old times?" she repeated. "Do you remember what we used to do?"

"Course I do," Rick answered as he shifted the weight from one foot to the other. "How could I forget?"

Mirth danced in his clear, blue eyes as his gaze fell to Michonne's lips. Her skin felt warm, but not from the Georgian sunshine. She cleared her throat and then spoke once more.

"I'm not just talkin' about the lazy days down by the water, Rick," she said, hoping that he understood what she was saying.

"Oh, I know what you're talkin' about," he said, as he stepped a little closer. "And if it's okay with you, I'd very much like to rekindle it all. The lazy days. The nights."

The flush of warmth went to Michonne's face as a different type of heat pooled elsewhere.

"You know I'm not here for a long time," she explained again.

"I know," said Rick in hushed tones. "You weren't here for a long time back then, either. So, I'm just gonna put it out there: Can I see you while you're here? I know you felt that earlier, when we were in the water."

She nodded her head.

"I'm too old to waste time," said Rick. "So, I'm bein' straight with you. I wanted to kiss you, Michonne. Hell, I still wanna kiss you. And, if you be honest with yourself, I think you'll find you wanna kiss me, too."

"Shit," she said, with a little nervous chuckle. "You really are keepin' it straight with me."

"I don't know how to be any other way," he said, his gaze soft. "If you want to, I'd really like for us to be together for a little while, just until you leave. No strings attached. What d'ya say?"

Michonne bit her bottom lip and then gave Rick a sweet smile before saying, "Yeah, I'd like that."

xXxXx

It was quiet at the Johnson house without their children around. Rick left Carl at Jeff's place, and André, still tired from his day out, was in bed early. Rick and Michonne sat outside sipping wine out on the front porch. The sun had dropped, causing flashes of orange, pink, and purple to caress the darkening sky. The scent of ripe peaches wafted across the expanse and Michonne was reminded a moment of her youth. The house still felt like home to her, no matter how long she had been gone, and how far she had travelled. Having Rick sitting next to her made her nostalgia that much stronger.

Their conversation was easy. They spoke a little about their lives. Michonne opened up about her marriage, and how she and Mike split up. They realized that they just didn't fit together with their work schedules; he travelled a lot as a journalist.

"He sees André when he can," she said. "I wish it was more, but, what can you do? They love each other, and that's all that matters."

"That's good that they have a relationship," said Rick, suddenly going quiet.

She was not going to press Rick about his wife and her passing. She simply took a drink from her glass and stared out over the grounds of the property.

"It's okay to ask me about her," said Rick suddenly, causing Michonne to glance sideways at him. "About Lori."

Michonne nodded her head, cleared her throat, and then asked, "What happened?"

"We had a few good years," he said softly. "Married too young, probably. Had a few problems, like all couples, I guess. Thought havin' another kid might fix it. That didn't work out so well. She had complications with the baby. Lost both of 'em at the same time."

"Oh, Rick," said Michonne, placing a hand to his shoulder. "I'm so sorry."

"Thank you," he replied. "Had a rough few years, but I'm good, now; Carl's doin' okay. Time passes and you focus on what you need to do. That's how I got by. Counselling helped, too. Me and my boy, we're alright now."

"That's great, Rick," she said, gifting him with a gentle smile. "I'm sorry that happened to you, but I'm so pleased you got through it. You've been through a lot."

He nodded his head and said, "Thank you."

Silence floated between them and weaved in and out of the awkwardness. They finished their drinks and Michonne poured them another. Suddenly, Rick spoke again.

"I don't hold it against you, ya know," said Rick. "The fact that you chose to move so far away."

"For college?"

"Yeah, for everything."

"Thank you. And I – I'm sorry," she replied as she exhaled loudly. "I was a kid. I was hurting. And you were great. But I guess I knew, even back then, that we wouldn't last. There was a whole big world out there for us to see. I don't regret anything."

"I do," said Rick. "I regret not going to you after you left."

Things grew quiet between them for a beat. There was something cathartic about speaking of the things from their youth that hurt them. The things they regretted. The things that could have been.

"Who knows where we could've been if I did," he added, with a smile.

"Um, probably sittin' on my Gramma's porch drinking wine," said Michonne with a chuckle.

"I really am glad you're here, now," said Rick as he reached over and took hold of Michonne's hand.

She gave his hand a squeeze and then said, "Yeah. Me, too."

A comfortable silence passed between them before Rick broke it with a question.

"Hey, do you remember the first time we kissed?"

Michonne felt her tummy do little flips.

"Yeah," she said. "We were in the back of one of your friend's truck – Shane Walsh, right?"

"That's right," he offered.

"Right, so we were stargazing in the back of Shane Walsh's truck, and you called me pretty and then kissed me."

They both let out a little chortle.

"You were smooth back then," said Michonne.

"I'm still smooth," said Rick.

"Some things never change, uh?" she replied.

"And some things do," said Rick, as he repositioned himself so that he was facing Michonne.

"Oh, yeah?" she asked, feeling the mood shift. "Like what?"

He tilted his head to the side and regarded her a moment, before saying, "You were definitely pretty back then, but to look at you now is just – wow. You're beautiful, Michonne. Prettier than those stars and Greek myths you told me all about. You're stunning."

She could not help the bright beam that crossed her face at his words. The soft glow of the porchlight caressed his features, and she saw the sincerity in his deep, blue eyes.

"Wow," said Michonne, scarcely above a whisper. "Still smooth."

They shared a little laugh before Rick grew serious again. He lifted his hand and brought it to Michonne's face. She leaned into his palm and glanced at him through her lashes. Her heart was beating a hundred miles a minute and her tummy continued to do somersaults. Rick's gaze dipped from her pretty brown eyes to her full lips as a smile played on his. He leaned in, cupping her face, and gave her a sweet yet tentative kiss. Their eyes closed as Rick deepened the kiss. It took a moment to become reacquainted with one another's lips, but when they did, it was like old times.

Rick shifted so that he could be closer; Michonne threaded her fingers through his hair. He tasted of the wine they were sipping; she tasted of summer delights and home. Rick thought his heart was going to leap from his chest after she broke the kiss. They pressed their brows together and caught their breath.

"So," said Michonne, as she pulled back to stare into Rick's eyes. "You definitely got better at that."

Rick ran his thumb over her bottom lip before saying, "I got better at a lotta things, darlin'. Just you wait and see."

xXxXx

Michonne was not sure how they had gotten from the front porch, back inside, but only made it to the sofa in the living room. However, it had happened, she was on her back with Rick lying on top of her. His lips and tongue exploring hers as his hand trailed along the curves of her body. When he brought his lips to her neck, he would whisper in her ear just how attracted he was to her; he would whisper exactly what being with her was doing to him. His attentions, and eagerness to give voice to his excited state, caused her to feel less like she recalled her teenage self would have, and more like a grown ass woman.

When she wrapped a leg around his waist and brushed her center against his arousal, Rick cursed out loud.

"Fuck," he whispered, his voice low and gravelly, filled with desire. He gripped her thigh and ground against her before capturing her mouth with his once more.

Michonne's head was swimming in a lust-filled haze. She could not believe that, after all this time, she was making out with Rick Grimes in her grandparents' house, no less. Her whole body was alight as he touched her and kissed her and told her how much he wanted her.

When Rick's hand slid between her thighs, she thought she was going to melt.

"Is this alright?" he asked, as his sure palm brushed against her mound.

"Hmm," was all she could manage as she bit her bottom lip. He smiled and rubbed her through the fabric of her pants as he sucked at her neck once more.

"How 'bout now?" he whispered, his breath hot on her skin, while he slipped his hand under the waistband of her pants. She mewed a little when his rough skin ghosted over the scantness of her panties.

"Yeah," she breathed. "That's nice, Rick. That's real nice."

He massaged her until her underwear was damp from her arousal. Then, he brought his mouth back to hers and kissed her hungrily as his fingers found their way into her panties.

"Fuck," said Rick against her mouth as he felt the heat between her thighs. "You're so wet."

"Yeah, because of you," she replied, teasingly.

He smiled and then dipped his finger between her glorious folds. He trailed her juices up to her throbbing little nub before he massaged her there.

"Hmmm," she moaned, as she dug her nails into his arm. "Shit, Rick."

He thumbed her clit before plunging two fingers inside of her sweet sex, and whispering, "Hmm. Say my name again."

"Rick," she moaned as he pumped his skilful fingers in and out, again and again.

"God, you sound so good," he said. "You feel so fuckin' good."

"I wanna feel you, too," she said, barely able to contain herself as he continued working his magic. "But not here. Let's go up to my room."

Rick kissed her lips once more, before withdrawing his hand from between Michonne's legs. He took his damp fingers and ran his tongue over them, before sucking them into his mouth. Michonne almost came undone at the sight of him tasting her juices that way. It made her more eager for what was to come.

"Hmm," said Rick with a devilish grin. "Tastes even better than I remember."

Michonne smiled back at him; there was definitely going to be benefits to their little arrangement now that Rick was a grown ass man with a few more tricks up his sleeve. A man with a few more years of experience under his belt, but with the same look in his eyes that was present in their youth: Desire and adoration.

The anticipation was so thick in the air that they scrambled quickly to move off the couch and get to the bedroom. Michonne took hold of Rick's hand and began to lead him toward the staircase. She giggled as he got behind her and kissed her neck as they walked. Just as they began to ascend, they heard a little voice.

"Mama? Mama I don't feel so well."

They each glanced up to see André standing at the top of the stairs looking quite pale and unwell. Rick let go of Michonne as she made her way up to her son quickly.

"Aww, you're not feelin' good, baby?" she asked. "Where does it hurt?"

"My tummy," André replied as Michonne sat on the top step and placed a hand to his forehead.

She glanced back down and gave him an apologetic look.

"Raincheck?" she asked, as Rick nodded his head.

"Yeah," he said. "Hope it ain't serious."

"Probably too much sun and water," said Michonne.

"I hope you feel better real soon, buddy," Rick said to André.

The small boy gave a weak smile and nodded his head.

"I'll let myself out," said Rick as he and Michonne shared a sweet smile. "Goodnight."

"Goodnight, Rick," she said. "I'll call you tomorrow."

xXxXx

"You and Rick did what on your grandmama's couch?" asked Sasha as she waddled from the fridge back to her kitchen table.

"Keep your voice down," Michonne said, as she placed her hands to her face.

Sasha waved off her concern and then took up a seat. She placed the pitcher of iced tea on the table; Michonne poured them each a glass.

"We made out and fooled around a little," said Michonne. "Like we were a couple of horny teenagers."

"What the hell?" said Sasha, with a bright smile on her pretty face. "Who made the first move?"

"We both did, kind of," said Michonne. "I mean, we both knew what we were gettin' into, that's why he was there –"

"Hold up," said Sasha, blinking rapidly before raising her eyebrows. "That's why he was there? Are you tellin' me you had a dick appointment with your one-time childhood sweetheart, Rick Grimes?"

Michonne could not help but burst out into laughter.

"Yeah, I guess," she said. "When you put it like that."

"And you just forgot to mention this to me?"

"Well, I was kind of busy setting this up."

"When did you set up this appointment?"

"At the river."

"Wow," said Sasha, with a smile. "Y'all are some thirsty asses. One afternoon of swimming and you're back in the saddle?"

Michonne shrugged, "We're just gonna see each other while I'm here."

"Right," said Sasha, dubiously.

"What?"

"Nothin', it's just that Rick was your first love and all o' that."

"And?"

"And, y'know, those feelings might start to creep back up."

"I'm not a sixteen-year-old girl anymore, Sash," said Michonne. "I can do this. I can have a little fun with Rick while I'm here. It's not that deep."

"Okay," said Sasha as she sipped from her iced tea and looked at her friend.

"Okay," said Michonne as she nodded her head and took a deep breath, as if she was trying to convince herself that she could do it; that she could sleep with Rick, no strings attached, and then leave when the time came.