I do not own any of the TWD characters.

I'll Trade You

"I know I ordered the fish, but your steak looks really good" Beth blinked her big blue eyes at her husband. It was no use. Daryl could not deny his wife anything, especially when she claimed to be "starvin to death" and added in a hushed whisper "I think Baby Dixon wants steak". How could Daryl not respond favorably to that statement – he slid his plate to Beth's spot, taking her plate in the place of his meal. He then contemplated the meaning of life and how it had come to be that he willingly gave up a perfectly cooked filet for a slab of grilled salmon on a bed of rice.

"Look at you eating all healthy and shit" Negan laughed. Daryl responded with only a grumble under his breath. Negan had witnessed the food exchange and the near silent back and forth between Daryl and Beth, but for the life of him he couldn't figure out why Daryl Dixon would willingly give up a slab of red meat. What the hell Negan wondered to himself. He was determined to figure out what their deal was and just as he began to open his mouth and simply ask what the fuck was up, Lucille was requesting his presence.

"Negan" Lucille took Negan by the elbow. "Darling, I need to speak with you."

Negan looked at his wife as if to say that he was listening. "Privately" Lucille added. Negan couldn't tell by the tone of her voice if he was in trouble or not but he figured he may as well get it over with if he was.

"Yes Dear" he told her Lucille as he followed her to the hallway. He nodded at Dwight and Simon manning the ballroom door. Once they were a good distance away from anyone who might overhear them, Lucille began her tirade.

"What on earth are you thinking?" Lucille hissed.

Negan stood for a few seconds and looked as if he were pondering the meaning of life. "My steak is getting cold" Negan replied.

"I cannot believe you set up Morgan and Annette" Lucille proceeded to clue Negan in on what she was upset over. "There is absolutely no way Annette is ready for anything like that."

"Pffft" Negan rolled his eyes.

"She is newly widowed Negan" Lucille continued.

"I am aware" Negan shot back. "I'm also aware that Hershel Greene was an insufferable son of a bitch who made life miserable for the women in his life."

"John Negan!" Lucille gasped.

"It's the truth Lucille" Negan replied "and you damn well know it. Hell, I ain't saying the two of them are going to end up bumping uglies or anything, but damn, don't you think they both deserve to have a nice evening?"

Lucille didn't respond immediately.

"You know they do" Negan said what Lucille refused to say. "They're both lovely people who are very lonely. They've both been lonely for a very, very long time – I'm thinking Annette's been lonely as long or longer than Morgan has."

A look of sadness overtook Lucille's features. "I hadn't thought of it that way – you're probably right."

"Of course I'm right" Negan chuckled. "I'm always fucking right. And damn, Annette's quite the hotty if I'm allowed to say so."

"Negan" Lucille swatted at him. "You are very much not allowed to say that. What the hell's wrong with you?"

"Come on, my meal's probably cold God Dammit." Negan pulled Lucille in for a hug, then kissed her sweetly on the lips. "I love ya Lucy, I love ya!"

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Imagine Negan's surprise upon returning to his table to find that he now had the salmon and rice. Daryl and Beth were both chowing down on a medium rare filet that looked like you could cut it with a butter knife.

"The fuck's going on here?" Negan asked. "Where the hell's my steak?" It was all anyone at the table could do to keep from busting out in laughter.

"John, you go ahead and eat your dinner" Lucille instructed as if her were a four year old. "You don't get near enough omega three in your diet." Everyone watched the red rise from Negan's neck all the way up his face and out the top of his head. Annette looked over at her daughter who was fighting a bad case of the giggles.

"Beth" Annette whispered trying to get her attention. "Beth" she said again. "Enough is enough now."

"I ordered another filet" Beth smiled at him with her biggest and brightest. "Should be here any second now." As if on cue, a server placed a plate in front of Negan. "Just the way you like it Neg, still mooing."

"Thank you Baby Girl" Negan tweaked her nose.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The Rat Pack style band played through the dinner hour and beyond. After Beth had gotten her tummy full, she was ready to dance and Daryl was all too happy to make her wishes come true that evening. Beth was absolutely radiant, not the sickly green from earlier in their hotel suite. The two of them made the rounds greeting and talking with people from Daryl's workplace that Beth had never met before.

"Beth, you're the prettiest woman here" he whispered into the crook of her neck, holding her closely to him as they danced.

"And you are the most handsome man here Daryl Dixon" Beth replied. "Can't wait to get you in my bed again tonight."

"Why, Beth Dixon" Daryl teased. "You are a naughty little girl."

"How do ya think I got in this condition in the first place?" Beth laughed. Negan, Lucille, Morgan, and Annette watched from the table.

"I don't think I've ever seen Daryl Dixon smile as much in one evening as he has tonight" Morgan observed.

"They're both so happy" Annette agreed.

Negan and Lucille made no comments but just watched the young couple in awe. Negan was probably paying more attention than anyone else though because he's the only one that caught what Daryl did when they were leaving the dance floor to take a break from dancing. Negan was certain that he was the only one that had seen the way Daryl was handling Beth – as if she were glass. He'd even glanced at everyone to see if they'd noticed what he had. No one standing around him seemed to be alerted to anything.

Yes, Negan had seen Daryl's hand move down Beth's arm, caressing it along the way. No big deal since the two of them were always touching each other – always. No, it was when Daryl's hand left Beth's wrist and slowly traveled across her stomach and stopped. His hand stopped, hovered over her stomach, and then he gently placed his hand over her stomach and kissed her at the same time. They whispered to each other, laughed and kissed again. Daryl rubbed her stomach – again.

The evening progressed as did the performers. Once the crooners finished their set, a band with more of a Motown vibe took the stage, causing nearly everyone to take to the dance floor.

"I would love to have this dance" Morgan requested as he stood and held out his hand to Annette.

Annette smiled at Morgan. The two of them joined the rest of their family and friends out on the floor where Annette Greene proceeded to show Morgan her few moves and then some.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Dessert was being served – an assortment of sweets to rival any pastry shop or bakery. With nearly everyone being seated again and the fact that the second band had taken a small break, Negan thought he'd take advantage of the timing and offer a toast. He also thought it may verify his suspicion. As the servers quickly got champagne into everyone's hands, Negan took to the stage and grabbed a mic.

"Lucille and I want to thank everyone for coming out tonight to celebrate Daryl and Beth's marriage" he began. The man certainly had no problem gaining attention quickly – his mere presence demanded a person's undivided attention.

"They've had quite the whirlwind romance, courtship, and marriage" Negan stated while everyone laughed politely. "Lucy and I both love them very, very much and we wish them only the best." Negan held up his glass, making sure that the couple each had a glass of their own. Negan smiled at Beth to see her smiling back and even blushing. "To Daryl and Beth, wishing you many, many years of happiness – we can't wait to see what the world has in store for you. We love you both!" Negan drank. Lucille sipped gracefully, Annette drank, so did Morgan, Rick, Michonne. Daryl turned up his glass and downed the bubbly beverage in one gulp – hell, everyone was putting away the bubbly. Everyone except Beth. She just stood there holding the flute, grinning like an idiot. Then Daryl looked to Beth, took her champagne and downed it just as quickly as he had his own. The two of them laughed and whispered to each other, completely unaware that Negan was watching their every move.

And now, Negan was grinning like an idiot. These two schmucks think they can put something over on me. Negan snorted to himself, and grinned some more. He was going to be a granddaddy. Lucille was going to be a grandmother! A baby! Negan couldn't quit smiling and he didn't even realize the band had returned to the stage until the lead singer was asking for his microphone back.

Negan wondered how long he was going to have to wait and how in the hell was he going to keep this to himself!

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Now, most people would have thought that the celebration should be winding down by now. They were two bands down and now a DJ had taken over. People were starting to depart, but it seemed that the party goers still there were pretty rowdy and not slowing down anytime soon.

Daryl and Beth were, however, winding down. Well, Beth was anyway.

"Daryl" Beth tapped him on the shoulder. He looked over to his wife. "I'm tired" she confessed.

"You do look like ya startin to peter out" he teased.

"Do you think it would be rude if we excused ourselves?" Beth asked him. "I can barely hold my head up."

"Let's go tell Negan and Lucille bye" Daryl told her as he kissed her on the forehead. "And ya Momma – everybody else. Let's get you to bed Baby - you've had a big day."

Daryl and Beth made their rounds, hugging and kissing on everyone – thanking them for coming to their celebration. Beth asked her mom if she'd be okay getting herself back to her room. That's when Morgan informed Beth that Annette was in good hands, that he would see to it that she was returned safely to her room when all was said and done. Beth had a little trouble keeping her smirk in check.

"Uh, I'm gonna go get Beth tucked in" Daryl rubbed the back of his neck as he looked at Negan and Lucille. "She's worn out."

"Everything was amazing" Beth told the both of them. "We can never thank you enough for taking such good care of us."

Lucille hugged the both of them and said things like oh nonsense, we love you two so much, etc., etc. Negan on the other hand, wanted to push his luck a bit. "Oh, I'm sure you two will come up with something." And, still, the stupid ass grin Negan had had on his face for the largest portion of the evening.

Daryl just stared at him. Negan stared back and grinned.

"Okay" Beth smiled and giggled. "Well, goodnight."

"Mmmhmmm" Negan still grinning. "Night. Sleep tight." Still grinning.

Daryl kept staring at Negan and wondering what the hell was up with him. He looked deranged. More so than usual – this was his I'm up to something look that Daryl had come to know.

"Alright, well, see ya Monday" Daryl told Negan.

"Mmmhmmmmm" Negan replied. "Take the day if you need to – ya know if you two need to take care of things, anything."

Daryl grabbed Beth by the hand and nearly drug her out of the ballroom. He couldn't remember a time that Negan was so damn goofy – and there'd been plenty.