A/N: Thank you all so very much for the feedback on the last chapter. I really had fun writing those very domestic scenes between them. S8 is nearly upon us! Who's ready? I think I am; I just need our faves to stay safe! Anyways, we're picking up where we left off, then we'll do a little time jump. Enjoy!

"Are you for real?" she asked, leaning up on her elbow.

"I'm serious," Rick offered. "What do you think?"

"I think...I don't know," she laughs a little as she contends with his offer. "Don't you think it's a little soon?"

Rick sighed; he knows she is going to shut the idea down. Disappointment washes over him and he is regretful he even made the suggestion; he was caught up in the moment. He had enjoyed himself so much spending time with Michonne together with his children. It felt so right to him. And yet, she was there, reminding him that things were moving fast for them.

"You're right," he shrugged. "Forget I even said anything."

"Hey," said Michonne, rubbing her hand up and down his arm. "I didn't say I wouldn't think about it and consider it in the future. But, right now, it's good between us as it is. We're good."

Rick smiled and offered her a chaste kiss.

"We are," he said. "I just love spending time with you. The kids love spending time with you. I dunno; I got swept up in the moment. We don't have to think about rushin' into anything if you're not ready."

She placed her head back to his shoulder.

"I appreciate you sayin' that, Rick," she supplied earnestly. "I love being with you and the kids too."

xXxXx

One month later…

The smiling faces of Rick Grimes and his children on her computer screen filled her heart with such warmth that she was grinning to herself in her office. If someone had walked in, they would have seen the adoration floating in her deep brown eyes. It was the photograph she had chosen to get enlarged and framed for his wall. It was a candid shot of them from when the children had last visited: The three of them lounging on Michonne's sofa. She snapped it, and they all smiled the exact same smile at the exact same time. Her quiet reverie was interrupted by her desk phone; her personal assistant's name flashed on the screen.

"Hey, Maggie," she answered.

"Michonne, I've got Mrs. Monroe, from the Head Office, on the line for you," the young woman offered.

"Thanks, put her though," said Michonne; Maggie did as instructed. "Deanna? How are you?"

"I'm well, Michonne," the woman on the other end of the line greeted. "How have you been keeping?"

"Never been better," she replied in earnest to her boss; they had a good working relationship. The older woman was a mentor to Michonne. "What can I do for you today?"

"I just wanted to be the first to let you know you've been nominated for a Staff Excellence Award," Deanna explained proudly.

"Oh, wow," said Michonne, totally taken by surprize. "That's…great news."

"It's up to a selection panel, of course, and you won't know until the night of the Awards Dinner," said Deanna. "But you've got a good chance of winning it. Your work have been invaluable. Especially your work with your Program."

"Thank you," Michonne replied, completely elated.

"The Dinner will be in two weeks' time," Deanna explained. "I'll send the details to you. Good luck, not that you need it."

Michonne thanked her superior again, before doing a little happy dance at her desk; the first person she called to share the exciting news with was Rick.

xXxXx

"You know he's the married with kids, a dog, and a mortgage type," said Andrea while examining a packet of rice crackers. She and Michonne were shopping for the party she was hosting that evening to help her friend celebrate the exciting news about her nomination.

"I get it," Michonne said. "I really do, and I love him so much. It's just that things are fine the way they are. He stays over at my place more than he is at his place. I'm still as busy as ever. I feel like moving in together is a huge step that doesn't have to necessarily happen, even when two people are in love. What do you think?"

"Well, I can't tell you what to be feeling, but personally, moving in with Shane was one of the best choices I've ever made," said Andrea with a smile. "Sure, he gets on my last nerve sometimes, and he's a bit of a slob, but we make it work. And we're committed to one another."

"I'm committed to Rick," Michonne said, slightly defensively.

"No, I'm not saying you aren't," Andrea recovered. "I'm not questioning your love or commitment to one another, babe. Not at all. There's not even a but coming."

"But?" Michonne asked.

"Look," said Andrea. "You're the only one who knows when you'll be ready to take the next step. You're the only one who's gonna know when you want things to change."

"I know."

"But," Andrea continued. "I'll put it this way: Are you ready for things to go from being yours and Rick's separately, like your place and his place, to being just yours, together?"

Michonne stopped pushing the shopping cart and a pensive expression covered her face.

"Think about it," said Andrea, as she placed a bag of potato chips into the cart.

xXxXx

The weather had grown cooler, which meant the evenings were quite mild. The music playing in Andrea and Shane's backyard was not too loud; people were still able to engage in conversation without having to raise their voices. Michonne was helping Andrea stock the coolers with more beer; Rick was off in the backyard talking to their friends.

"So, when are you and the little lady gonna settle down?" asked Abraham as he sipped from his drink.

Rick raised an eyebrow in his direction, "We are settled."

"You know what I mean," replied Abraham. "When you gonna pop the question? Buy a house together? All that shit I know you're just dyin' to do."

"We're not rushin' into anything," Rick answered, annoyed with his friend's probing. "You know, takin' our time. Something you don't know too much about considering your date is girlfriend number, three or four this year alone…"

"Five, actually but who's countin'?" said Eugene, Abe's new friend who had just joined their group. The others shot him a strange look; they were not used to him yet.

"So, Michonne said she don't wanna, uh?" Abraham asked; Rick's face dropped and a dull headache set in.

"Leave him alone, Abe. Why you gotta be an asshole?" Shane interjected, patting Rick on the shoulder. "Don't listen to him, man."

"Yeah, Shane's right," Abraham added. "I'm just breakin' your balls, buddy."

"Yep," Eugene offered. "He's a ballbreaker."

Again, the men gave the newcomer a questioning stare.

"Anyways," said Abraham. "Take all the damn time you need."

Rick's irritated look changed when Michonne sauntered over, holding a fresh beer for him in her hand. She smiled sweetly at him, before stepping close, handing him his drink, and kissing his cheek. He wrapped a possessive arm around her waist.

"So," she started. "What are you gentlemen huddled over here gossiping about?"

"We're just jawin' about how you need to hurry up and make an honest man of Rick," Abraham blurted out with a chuckle. "Come on, now. Y'all need to make it official…"

"Abe," Rick warned, worried Michonne would be upset with him; instead, she laughed, and Rick felt relieved.

"Some damn nice real estate around these parts," he continued. "Ain't that right, Walsh?"

"That ain't a lie," Shane cajoled.

"Really, now?" Michonne asked, leaning her head on Rick's shoulder.

"Oh, yeah," Abraham replied. "Y'all can get started on makin' some more little Grimes babies."

Michonne and Rick both laughed; it was nice to be the focus of that type of teasing between friends where it was not going to be awkward for them.

"You're a lucky son of a gun, Grimes," Eugene finally said when the laughter died down. "She's definitely got those childbearing hips…"

The whole group went quiet; Shane almost spat his drink out, and Rick felt disbelief and annoyance wash over him at once.

"Excuse me?" said Rick, stepping closer to the newcomer with the odd hairstyle; the mood soon changed.

"I was just, ah, makin' an observation," Eugene replied. "Your lady is fine-lookin'. I was just complimenting her on her peak physical shape…"

"You're gonna stand here in front of me and admit you've been eyein' my woman?" asked Rick, incredulously.

"Well, it's kind of hard not to notice her, especially in that formfitting outfit…"

"Damn, it Eugene!" said Abraham as he nudged his friend out of the way. "Shut your ass up."

"You'd better listen to Abe, Eugene," Rick said, pointing in his direction, as Abraham got in between them and shoved the tactless man in reverse. "Or that haircut's gonna be the least fucked up thing about you tonight."

"All right. That's enough. Come on, baby," Michonne said, gripping Rick around his waist. "Let it go."

She walked him backwards, cupped his face, and then kissed his jawline.

"Can you believe that asshole?" asked Rick, still watching as Abraham chided Eugene over in the distance, far away from Rick. Michonne kept kissing down to his neck, in hopes of bringing his attention back to her.

"Screw him," she offered, pressing her body against Rick's. "Come on. Let's get out of here."

…..

Sated, with her skin glistening and a light sheen of sweat, Michonne listened to the even beating of Rick's heart as she rested her head against his chest. Her fingers gently stroking his bare arm. Upon returning to her place, they had only made it as far as the sofa before their desire for one another had overcome them. After making love on the couch, the couple lay in the dimly lit room with their limbs entwined. Rick stroked Michonne's hair and silently thanked the universe for bringing this woman into his world. Michonne closed her eyes and felt safer than she ever had in her entire life.

"Rick?" she asked.

"Hmm?" he answered.

"We should do it," she whispered. "We should move in together."

She could actually feel his breath hitch before he responded.

"You're being serious right now?" Rick asked, as he shifted. They both sat up beside one another, their legs still touching.

"I am," she smiled; Rick reached over and placed his hand to her thigh. He offered her a large grin of his own.

"Wow," he whispered. "You've really just made me the happiest man alive."

"You make me so happy, Rick," she said sincerely. "And I want to move forward with you. I don't want things to be yours and mine separately. I want them to be ours."

"That's what I want too," he replied, bringing his hand up to cup her face. "I love you so much, Michonne. You have no idea of how much I love you. Let's do this."

They shared another affectionate smile, "Yeah," said Michonne jovially. "Let's do it."

…..

The sunlight of the early morning roused Michonne from her slumber. She glanced over at Rick sleeping beside her; smiling, she pressed a soft kiss to his shoulder. He moved about slightly, then opened his eyes.

"Mornin'," he said, beaming at her,

"Hey," she replied happily. "I gotta take off."

"What time is it?" he asked, squinting in the direction of his alarm clock.

"Seven-thirty," she supplied.

"Can't you stick around a little longer?" he queried, before wrapping her in his arms and drawing her close; he peppered her neck with kisses, causing her to giggle.

"I can't," she said weakly, melting under his attentions. "I've got a message from my boss and I need to go into the office."

"Okay," said Rick, with a pout, as he let go of her. "But get back here when you're done, 'cause we've got more celebrating to do and I ain't even close to bein' finished with you yet."

She gave him a playful smirk, and then leaned down to kiss his mouth passionately.

"I won't be long," she promised, before dragging herself away from Rick.

xXxXx

Deanna Monroe's assistant had placed Michonne on hold; she swivelled in her seat and listened to the familiar, yet indistinguishable music playing in her ear.

"Hello, Michonne?"

"Yes, Deanna," she answered. "I got your message."

"Great," said Deanna. "I'm sorry to be so cryptic about it all, but I have some more good news for you."

"Okay?" asked Michonne. "That's really wonderful. Please, tell me, what's going on?"

"Well, after our conversation yesterday, regarding the Staff Excellence Award, it was brought to my attention that the head honchos want to offer you a promotion," Deanna explained.

"Really?" asked Michonne, almost speechless at the exciting news.

"Yes," Deanna replied. "And I think you're the perfect person for the job."

"Thank you."

"It means longer hours and more work."

"Of course," Michonne smiled. "That's fine by me,"

"And, it goes without saying, but there'll be much better pay."

"That's always a plus," Michonne offered, half-jokingly.

"And, I should mention: The promotion would mean you'll need to be based out of Virginia," Deanna stated lastly.

"I'm sorry?" Michonne queried. "Does this mean I would need to move?"

"Yes," Deanna replied. "Your office would be situated in Alexandria. If you take this promotion, which I assume you will, you'll have to move to from Georgia to Alexandria, Virginia."

A/N: *sighs* what's our girl going to do?