Thanks everyone for reading and responding.

Trina-D – Glad you "enjoyed" the food. Ray's really does have a great menu. Almost everything is good.

Chapter Sixteen

Rick awakened from his slumber to the faint light of the sun bathing the horizon with red and yellow, providing a lovely view of the slowly illuminating Buckhead skyline. He lay there a moment, looking at the empty space next to him, feeling disappointed that he was alone, that Michonne was already up and hadn't wakened him. This was about what had happened the night before. He mused, turning on his back to view the ceiling. When she'd finished her discussion with Mike and turned to return to the restaurant she'd been shocked to see him walking out with her coat. He knew that the dinner was over the minute she'd ran after Mike, that the greatness that had been their evening was ending there. So he'd asked for the check, then left cash on the table for their meal and a hefty tip for the waiter. He not only left the restaurant because their dinner was obviously over, but he wanted to make sure she was okay. Mike had been enraged when he'd seen him and Michonne together and Rick wanted to make sure the man didn't step over line, but everything had been fine. By time he arrived outside the man was crossing against the light leaving Michonne on the side walk.

She'd walked up to him, her eyes a mixture of sorrow and guilt and immediately apologized for leaving him that way. He knew why she'd gone after him. She was worried. She was curious about his wellbeing and worst of all she still felt guilty about their breakup, but he'd not said a word, but just helped her slip on her coat, gently caressing her shoulders and arms as she put it on, letting her know that he was still with her. He'd always be with her, but that didn't mean he wasn't upset by what had happened. From there they'd held hands and made their way towards the car, their walk seeming to go on forever, the mood between them having changed from the sexiness and happiness of before to the heaviness of frustration and guilt.

"I know me going after him hurt you." Michonne stated into the silence, slowing their walk to a halt. "I'm so sorry." She uttered with sincerity, after turning her eyes to his, holding his gaze that seemed troubled.

"It did hurt." Rick admitted, briefly dropping his eyes. "And it was... frustrating…but then I remembered where you're coming from, that I've been here myself…"

"That was no excuse for what I did." Michonne quietly interjected. "…leaving you to run behind a man who is my past."

"You care about him…"

"I do." Michonne declared. "But that's as far as it goes. I care about him as a friend." She emphasized. "I'm concerned about his wellbeing, but it's you that I want to be with."

"I know." Rick seriously replied, then gently touched her cheek, causing her to sigh in contentment and relief. "But thank you for saying it."

"So we're okay?" She asked, holding his stare that was now emanating tenderness and calm.

"Yeah." He softly answered, which prompted her to taste his lips, longingly, passionately, before taking him in her arms. Rick closed his eyes, the emotion in her embrace, touching him deep, making him want to hold onto her forever, but she'd pulled away just as he'd moved to hold her tighter, ending their embrace too soon for his liking. Moments later, they continued their walk in a silence that was still ripe with tension, and made their way to the car and eventually back to the condo. Even though they'd cleared the air, he didn't know if she wanted him to stay or go. Maybe he should leave, give her some space? He'd briefly debated within before she'd answered the question he'd never asked by making love to him with yearning passion, giving him her all, then falling into a peaceful slumber. Rick had watched her with tenderness and love, yet still concerned about the unease that lingered with her. He watched her for how long he didn't know, gently stroking her cheek, helplessly smiling as she lightly stirred at his touch, knowing in that moment that no matter what, he didn't just love her, that he wanted this experience every single day. He wanted to share his life with her, when sleep finally got the better of him and he fell into a slumber himself.

Rick returned to the present and decided to leave the bed, to find Michonne. He slipped on a pair of boxers and a sweat shirt and made his way through the vast condo, finding it empty, which for a minute, made him wonder if she'd gone out. But where at this hour? He mused. When he happened to catch movement out the corner of his eye and turned to see that she was on the balcony.

"Morning." He quietly uttered as he stepped out into the cool air, walking onto the patio.

"Morning." She responded in the same quiet one.

"Can I join you?"

"Of course." She said and moved over on the couch to provide him room to sit down. "Are you barefoot?" She then questioned with concern.

"Yeah, but I'll be fine." He assured as he took a seat next to her, then leaned over and chastely brushed her lips with his.

"You sure?" She sighed at the warmth in his sweet gesture. "It's pretty chilly out here."

"Yeah." He confirmed, which he followed with another kiss as she pulled him closer, then snuggled against him, burying her face in his neck, loving his male scent. Rick wrapped his arm around her and kissed the top of her head, noting her calm breathes as he looked out over the beautiful lit skyline. He felt joyful, contented, wanting this moment to be infinite, but even in this moment, that filled him with happiness, he could sense that Michonne was not completely there, that something was still troubling her.

"You want to talk about it?" He softly asked.

"What?" Michonne questioned as she drew away to look him in the eyes.

"What's bothering you?" Rick cautiously stated, holding her gaze.

Michonne turned her eyes from Rick to the gradually illuminating sky, then dropped her eyes, thinking. Did she want to confess to him that she was still mulling over Mike, what she had done to her ex after what had happened the previous night? Did he need to know all that she was feeling? Would it make him uneasy and thus pull away from her? Those weren't the questions she should be asking herself. She realized. The real question was why she was shutting him out? Because she was afraid of letting someone completely in, to let in Rick Grimes, a man who wasn't completely available to her, a man who unknowingly had the power to destroy her, which scared her. He was all there emotionally and most certainly physically, but there was still his lingering divorce, hanging over their heads. Sasha's words suddenly rang in her mind, conflicting with her heart, telling her to be careful. But she was beyond being careful. She knew. Careful had left three months ago when she'd nearly made love to him on the shores of that lake in Palmer.

"There's something I didn't tell you about when I went up to Philadelphia for Mr. Thompson's funeral." Michonne finally spoke, compelling Rick to gently squeeze her hand in encouragement. "When there, I learned that Mike had not told his family about our break up." She confessed, to a shocked Rick. "He thought that he was giving me space those weeks after I broke up with him… and that me coming to the funeral was…provided the opportunity for us to stop wasting time and reunite." She revealed, the news of what Mike had pulled frustrating Rick, but he remained quiet, firmly holding her hand, letting her know that he supported her. "I had to reject him again. He was devastated. So much that…he asked me not to go to his father's funeral." She said, thinking how he'd called her later that night, after their argument at his parent's house to tell her what he wanted. "He said…that he couldn't take seeing another person he'd lost, me, at the funeral and deal with his father's death at the same time."

Rick was speechless, angered that Mike had put her in that position, pushing all of his hurt onto her, attempting to force her to rekindle their relationship by lying to his family about them still being together. He also felt for Michonne, who'd had to deal with such a precarious situation, that had obviously made it difficult for her to move past the pain she'd caused when she'd ended things with Mike. She'd told him that things were messy when she was in Philadelphia. Rick thought. But she hadn't provided any details. The only thing she said was that she wanted to put all that had happened behind her, move on, and he was happy to oblige what he saw as her completely closing the door on the part of her life that had involved Mike. However, to now learn, what had gone down, suddenly made the incident with Mike from the previous night more clear.

"I did the right thing, what I wanted, when I walked away from Mike." Michonne uttered, drawing Rick from his thoughts. "But when I saw him last night, the deep regret for the anguish I'd caused him came rushing back…I just wanted to help him…to fix the pain that I'd caused him, but I realized there's nothing more I can do. That I hurt him, I broke his heart and I can't fix that, only he can do that." She said as Rick now stroked her back, comforting her, while watching her in the dawning light, his heart teaming with love and compassion for this beautiful woman. "It's just hard because he was a friend." She exhaled. "And I hate to think that I've caused him so much pain."

"I know." Rick spoke with empathy and warmth, when it was clear she had completed her thoughts. "But what choice did you have?"

"Nothing but the truth." She voiced, knowing that she did the only thing she could, but still struggling with the result of her actions.

"Baby, you have to forgive yourself for hurting him." He urged with compassion, touching her cheek then drifting to a dread, caressing it.

"Forgive?" Michonne echoed his words in surprise, having never even thought of it that way.

"Yeah. Forgive." Rick confirmed. "Holding this guilt is not healthy. You have to let it go." He said as she closed her eyes, nodding at his words, feeling them deep, feeling them ease the self-reproach that had continued to haunt her about the breakup with Mike. Michonne lifted her gaze and found a sea of blue, loving and understanding, igniting her heart. She then leaned forward and kissed his lips, with tenderness and care, and again returned her eyes to his, silently thanking him for his wisdom and support. Rick gently smiled, wordlessly conveying 'You're welcome,' before he commenced another kiss, infusing it with love and hunger then pulled her closer, driving her to rest herself against him, her legs now draped over his, her head laying just beneath his chin, with her lips faintly brushing his jaw, stirring him with a smoldering fire. For a long while they remained quiet, happy, savoring the feel of being together as they watched the dawn turn into day.

"What time do you have to be at the Summit?" Michonne quietly asked.

"9:00am." Rick languidly replied. The peace of the moment having nearly relaxed him into a slumber. "My last day here." He then somberly announced the obvious.

"I've been thinking about how we should continue." Michonne stated.

"Me too."

"What are you thinking?"

"You first." Rick encouraged, prompting her to reluctantly sit up.

"We can plan to meet every weekend or every other, if weekly is too difficult." She said thinking about both of their work demands and his commitments to his son. "We can alternate between me going to Palmer and you coming here."

"I was thinking the same thing."

"Seriously?" Michonne questioned with a smile.

"Seriously." Rick replied. "What did you think I was going to say? That we should see each other once a month? Or once every three months?" He jokingly queried. "I'm not waiting that long to see you again." He huskily whispered, warming her heart, driving her to sweetly take his mouth.

"So I guess next weekend I'm in Palmer." She murmured.

"You don't have to." Rick sighed against her mouth, his words surprising her. "I can come back here." He explained then kissed her again.

"I don't mind driving down to Palmer." She softly conveyed after he pulled away.

"I know, but I'm finding that I'm taking a great liking to Atlanta." He lightly smiled as he briefly caressed her arm then drifted to her hand and intertwined their fingers.

"I wonder why?" Michonne teased with a breath, loving the feel of his hand in hers.

"You're a big part of it, but I've always been intrigued by the city." He seriously revealed. "In fact, I've been making some really good connections at the Summit, many of whom informed me of several opportunities for employment at departments here."

"What are you saying? Are you thinking of moving here?" Michonne question with excitement and shock, which gradually changed to alarm.

"Maybe. It would be a welcomed change from Palmer once my divorce is final." He declared. "There's plenty of opportunities for advancement here, the pay is significantly better…and then there's you."

"But what about your son?" Michonne asked one of the questions that was fueling her reservations.

"I can still be apart of his life." Rick assured.

"In what way? You wouldn't be there to take him to school everyday, attend his baseball games, practices or help him with homework…"

"What's really bothering you about this idea?" Rick asked. "Because I feel like your concern is about more than just my relationship with Carl." Michonne drew a deep breath and briefly dropped her eyes, amazed at how he could read her so well and a bit nervous about what she needed to say.

"We've only known each other for three months." She replied, again looking him in the eyes. "And only just…took our relationship to the next level a couple of days ago…now you're talking about moving here…"

"Not tomorrow…"

"Yes, but as soon as your divorce is final, which could be any day now."

"If I made that move it would at least be after Carl finishes this year of school. 8 months from now." He clarified, and was a little stung by the relief Michonne displayed. "You really wouldn't want me to move up here right away?"

"I'd love having you here, living nearby, tomorrow if it were possible." She honestly replied. "But I just don't want us to mess things up by pushing for too much too soon." She said. "Another thing is your divorce …it'll be final at best within the next week, at worst within the next month or longer." She pointed out. "You said yourself that Carl is still struggling with the breakup. I just don't want the situation with him to be exacerbated by you moving here within the next few weeks."

"You make valid points." Rick conceded. "But my divorce will be final within the next couple of weeks at the absolute latest." He vowed. "With regards to us, it can never be too much too soon." He tenderly stated.

"You think so?" Michonne uttered as she held his stare, seeing it in his eyes and feeling it again, powerful and deep, the profound and intense emotion that he felt for her, but had yet to define.

"Yeah." Rick softly confirmed, wanting so much to say more, to tell her he loved her, but knowing she wasn't quite ready to hear those words. So instead he gave her a kiss, with slow passion and yearning, expressing without words how much he loved her. "And as far as Carl goes, I agree." He huskily continued after pulling away, leaving Michonne breathless, purposely steering the conversation away from what he was so close to confessing. "The last thing I want is for him to think the worst of me, or our relationship."

"He'll need time to get used to everything…" Michonne sighed still reeling from the passionate kiss they'd shared.

Rick nodded in agreement, now completely understanding where she was coming from. "8 months may or may not be enough time." He realized aloud.

"We can see where we all are when we get there, decide if a move is the right thing." She added.

Ok. Rick quietly agreed, then kissed her lips again, contently sighing as Michonne snuggled against him, somewhat disappointed by what they'd decided. Though he'd not fully committed to making the move in 8 months, in his head, his heart, he was already preparing himself to do it, to relocate to Atlanta and was thus getting excited by the prospect, but Michonne was right. There were still some things to be considered, specifically Carl, because he wasn't the least bit worried about them jinxing things by moving too fast. They were right. They were real. The realest relationship he'd ever had and he had no doubt that where they were, the pacing of their relationship was right where it should be. Rick looked to the sky and guessed at least 15-20 minutes had gone by. "We have about two hours until I have to be at the Summit." He said.

"An hour and a half if you subtract travel time." Michonne voiced, her tone low, then lightly brushed her lips against his neck, before resting her head beneath his chin once more.

"That means we don't have much time." Rick then breathed.

"For what?" She asked, after moving to look him in the eyes, completely intrigued by his statement.

"For me to cook you breakfast." He announced what she did not expect and in turn made her laugh.

"You're going to cook me breakfast?" She questioned with mirth.

"You haven't tasted what I can do with an omelet." Rick bragged. "I've got to give you something to remember me by while we're apart for the next few days."

"Believe me, I'm not going to forget you that easily." Michonne sexily replied.

"That's good to know, but the omelet will seal the deal." He uttered then kissed her mouth, before playfully wandering to her neck and chest causing her to laugh once more.

Four hours later…

Michonne stepped out of the shower, thinking about her talk with Rick, how good she felt about it and the moments after. She knew now that she was done with the guilt that had plagued her due to what had happened with Mike, not just because she'd finally accepted that healing it, healing him was out of her hands, but the guidance and support Rick had provided. Any other man would've been annoyed and impatient with her confession but he'd had her back the entire time she was working through her emotions. He was truly an incredible man who was not just her lover, not just a friend, but someone who was quickly becoming so much more. She cautiously allowed herself to admit, at the deep, emotion and warmth that stirred within her at the thought of him. Michonne fleetingly recalled the rest of their conversation before settling on all that had followed.

The omelet he'd made, which had been pulled together with ingredients she had in her refrigerator, included asparagus, cherry tomatoes and feta cheese. It had been delicious, to her surprise. She smiled as she dried off, now recalling how they'd eaten and just talked, then feeling heated by the memory of the love making that had followed, in the kitchen no less, that had been way too short, before he'd had to go. She already missed him, missed the week that he wouldn't be there, but she was excited about seeing him one more time before he left.

They planned to meet and grab a late lunch near the Georgia Aquarium. Michonne finished drying off and headed for the closet, trying to decide on what she'd wear. Maybe a short dress with boots? It was chilly enough for that and Rick loved seeing her in anything that showed off her legs and ass. She smiled to herself, when her cell phone began to ring. She walked to the nightstand, observed the number on its face. However, she didn't recognize it, but it was a Palmer area code, like Rick's phone. She hesitantly picked up the call, answering with "Hello."

"Is this Miconne?" A woman immediately asked in a terse and hoarse voice, mispronouncing her name.

"This is Michonne." She firmly corrected. "Who is this?" She then retorted, her irritation igniting at the woman's rude tone.

"Mrs. Lori Grimes." The woman harshly revealed.