So I wrote this for Tumblr's Richonne Desserts "Richonne Alphabet Series". Letter "D". Just a little taste of Rick defending Michonne against a work predator.


"Is there a problem here?"

Michonne breathed a sigh of relief, stepping away from her persistent supervisor.

After avoiding Gareth for days, he'd managed to corner her in the break room. He'd spent the last five minutes trying to convince her to go out with him.

Unfortunately, politely declining hadn't pierced through his thick ego. She was moments away from bruising his ego – and face – when someone walked in to intervene.

Annoyed at being interrupted, her supervisor tightly smiled. "Can I help you?"

Squinting his blue eyes, the stranger tilted his head. "What do you think you're doing?"

Gareth glanced at her unimpressed with the intruder. He scoffed in his direction, "I'm sorry, who are you?"

The imposing man approached him, unintimidated by his offended attitude. "Rick Grimes, the new managing director." The authoritative twang in his voice left no room for confusion.

Gareth's face immediately lit up in recognition, his voice taking on a sycophantic quality. "Oh wow! Of course, Mr. Grimes! It's so nice to finally meet –"

Ignoring the blatant ass-kissing, the new managing director turned to her with a steady gaze. "Was he bothering you?" His voice had taken on a soft yet firm tone.

She knew she couldn't lie to him but she didn't want to make a fuss her first week. She took a breath, carefully steering clear of any accusations. "I'm okay."

He frowned, searching her eyes for the truth.

"See, she's fine. We were just talking, supervisor to co-worker. Nothing out of the ordinary." Gareth said lightheartedly, attempting to dismiss the compromising position he'd found them in.

"You're fired."

Her veins ran cold. Did he just fire her?

Before she could protest, Rick turned to the petrified man behind him. "Get your things and leave." His fingers twitched at his side as he glowered at him.

"Whaa…wait, you can't fire me," he said, outraged by the sudden termination, "I didn't do anything!"

"You're Gareth Hunter and according to your file, this isn't the first time you've been harassing people around here." His eyes glittered in anger. "But it sure as hell is your last."

Unable to worm his way out, he merely scowled. "Who the hell do you think you are?"

Rick took a menacing step forward, lowering his voice to a growl near his face. "I'm the guy who'll break your jaw and punch your teeth in if you don't walk away right now."

Gareth gaped at him in shock, stuttering as he backed away, "You…I…you'll be hearing from my lawyer!"

Once he stormed out and the commotion had died down, Rick turned to her. "You alright?"

She nodded, her hammering heart settling in her chest.

"You're Michonne Anthony."

She blinked in surprise. How he knew her name was a mystery she didn't have the mental power to contemplate at the moment. "Yes, I am."

He held out his hand. "I'm Rick."

She gave him a firm handshake. "Yes, you are."

The unintentional approval in her voice drew out his amused grin. She released his hand with an awkward smile, relief settling in her shoulders.

He cleared his throat. "I'm sorry you had to go through that. We don't accept that kind of behavior at this company. I won't."

It was refreshing to meet a higher up who stood by his principles. She eyed him cautiously, wondering if it was too soon to trust him. "That's good to hear."

As if sensing her doubt, he maintained her gaze. He lightly sucked in his cheeks, emphasizing his chiseled features. He studied her eyes for a moment before appearing to come to a conclusion about her.

He nodded, unrevealing of his verdict. "Well, let me know if you need anything, Ms. Anthony. I'm just down the hall."

Her eyelashes fluttered at the intense energy he left behind. She took a deep breath, her eyes following his bow-legged swagger out the door. She had to give it to him; Rick Grimes definitely knew how to make an entrance.