AN: Not a lot to say this time… hope you guys enjoy the chapter! Thank you to UltimateBethylFicList, DarylDixon'sLover, Carowen, An Amber Pen, heartherrk, rckyfrk, fieryandpassionate, BetaGirl09, Gabs, Trixieviv, SirensCalling, Guest, 2carlaa, and Mirsa for the reviews!

Chapter 24

Water spilled down their bodies as he pressed her back against the wall of the shower. She hissed as her warm skin touched the cool ceramic behind her. His mouth assaulted her neck as his hands ran down her body, feeling everything she had to offer him. Her hands wrapped around his neck and he could feel her nails dig into the flesh of his shoulder and his hips bucked against her in response.

He felt her leg hitch up over his hip and that was all the invitation he needed to grab the other and hold her thighs in his hands, as he aligned their bodies and pushed into her. Daryl moaned at the euphoric feeling of her wrapped, once again, around him. He wanted to spend all day here but he knew that they were pushing it on time.

He pulled almost completely out of her, only to slam back home again. His eyes were fixed on her face as her eyes closed and water cascaded down her cheeks and lips. She looked angelic and sinful all at the same time and he never wanted to miss this. Her breathing hitched with each heavy thrust and the way she took her bottom lip between her teeth, sent a desire to press his lips to hers like he'd never felt before.

"Beth" He said with a grunt as his motions never slowed. She opened her eyes and freed her lip giving him the chance to claim her mouth with his. She tasted like peppermint and the water dipping into his mouth from the stream above made him feel like he'd never need to drink again.

Her hands, fingers, and nails dug deeper into his mouth as she began to whimper quickly in against his mouth and he reluctantly tore himself away from her to kiss his way down her neck. He licked and nipped at her collarbone as she repeated a devilish pray to God.

"Daryl… please…"

"Whatcha need, darlin'?" He asked between delicate bites along her shoulder.

"I'm gettin' close." She panted. He couldn't help the smirk that dance across his lips. He pulled away from her body and began thrusting harder and harder. A hand slipped from his shoulder and down between them creating more friction for her against her sensitive bundle of nerves and before he could draw a breath she was crashing down around him.

"Oh, Beth…" He felt every pint of blood drain from the rest of his body and travel south, as the building tension in his abdomen rupture at the feel of her walls trembling around him. He groaned as his body convulsed against her and he spilled into her like a dam breaking.

As their heart rates returned to normal, Daryl gently slipped from her and put her back on the floor of the shower. She wobbled a bit and giggled up at him.

"Oh, my God." Her voice was shaky. "I don't know if I can stand." Daryl smirked at her again and wrapped an arm around her and pulled the shower head down to run the water over her hair.

"I got ya." She looked up at her, her eyes bright and wide.

"You're too sweet, you know that?"

"Don't let anyone else hear ya say that. Got a reputation to keep." He mumbled with a small smile on his lips. If he were being honest with himself, he wished that every day could be like this. Paying homage to the other's body and then get cleaned up and go out and face the world, not knowing just what the next day would bring. It was that thought that made him wonder when he started to believe in fairy tales.

Beth stepped from his embrace and began to wash her hair while Daryl turned the spray on himself to clean his body. They finished up in silence, both moving around each other as if they had done this a hundred times before. When they were finished Daryl shut off the water and Beth grabbed their towels. She handed it to him with a quick kiss on the cheek as she stepped out and began to dry off. He noticed her hands shaking in the mirror as she began to brush her hair out.

"Ya nervous?" He placed a hand on her shoulder and leaned down to kiss the skin next to his hand.

"A little."

"You'll be a'right. Just pretend your back in that studio from last week." She turned and looked up into his eyes with another blinding smile.

"I think that will help. Thank you." She reached up and kissed him again before he grabbed his clothes and excused himself to allow her to finish getting ready. Once dressed, he headed out into the living area to see if anyone else was up. To his surprise, Glenn was sitting on the couch looking at his phone and drinking a cup of coffee.

"Walls aren't that thick." Glenn said without looking up and Daryl's face felt like it has spontaneously combusted.

"We know. Heard ya and Maggie from my room last night. Tried to get as far away as we could, but it didn't work." Glenn's face turned an equal shade of red and Daryl was glad he didn't call his bluff.

"Uhm… Let's just promise not to say anything again." Glenn muttered and Daryl quickly nodded in agreement.

"What time does she need ta leave?"

"We need to be there by nine so they can get her in make-up." Daryl poured himself a cup of coffee and sat down across from Glenn. "So what are you gunna do?" Glenn asked seriously, putting his phone down on the couch.

"What'ya mean?"

"Well, you're not working for Rick anymore. You gunna just travel with her when things get busy or she's on tour or go back to Kentucky or something?" Daryl's mind flashed to that fantasy from earlier and felt his chest go tight. This, he reminded himself, is why he never allowed himself to believe things could be good. Because in the end, it never was.

He shrugged his shoulders and mumbled a response. "Guess I'll figure it out. Gotta make a livin' somehow so I might head back to Kentucky." Glenn's head bobbed up and down but before he could open his mouth, Maggie's voice drifted through the room.

"Beth, I hope you are up!" She knocked on the door across from her and Glenn's room and both men turned away from the brunette quickly. Daryl heard her open the door and come back out a few minutes later. "Where's Beth?" She directed the question to the men in the room. Neither one of them answered her.

"She's in Daryl's bathroom." Michonne said nonchalantly as she entered the room. Maggie's brow arched and she shot a look to Daryl before heading across the room. Daryl rolled his eyes once she was out of sight and shot his own glare over at Michonne. She simply shrugged and grabbed a banana from the kitchen. "What? I'm supposed to know where she is." She turned her wrist over and looked at her watch and then back to them. "Limo again today?" Glenn nodded. "Should be here by now. We need to leave soon so I'll go down and wait. Dixon, you coming?" Daryl shrugged and followed her out of the hotel room.

They didn't say a word as they sat outside waiting on the other three to join them. Daryl smoked a cigarette and Michonne eyed the people on the street like someone was about to jump out and grab her. He'd seen that look in her eyes before and he knew it well.

"Who was it?" He asked. Michonne turned to face him, with a questioning look. "Who beat ya?" Her eyes widened for half a second before she returned to her guarded observations. She didn't answer him. He continued to watch her until she finally conceded.

"Andre's father was a bastard." It was all she was willing to offer to him.

"My ol' man was the same way." Daryl responded. Michonne looked over at him, her expression changing slightly. "I get it."

Beth, Glenn, and Maggie walked out of the door and the conversation was dropped. Daryl suddenly understood Michonne's protective side. To her, Beth wasn't a job; she didn't want to see her end up in a shitty relationship with someone that was going to hurt her. One day, he hoped she would realize that hurting the blonde by his side was something he knew he'd never be capable of doing.

They arrived at the Today Show set a few minutes before nine and several people quickly came up to greet her. They gave them a quick rundown of what was going to happen and took her bag of clothing from her hand. Daryl and Glenn were shown to a waiting room next door to the dressing room Beth, Maggie, and Michonne were ushered into. Daryl was out of place and very uncomfortable sitting there, waiting with nothing to do. Minutes ticked by like hours until finally Beth entered the room a few minutes shy of ten thirty. He started to make a remark about how long it took a woman to get ready but the words fell short from his lips.

She looked like a country boy's wet dream. She was wearing a short denim skirt and brown cowboy boots with a red t-shirt with a silver horseshoe embroidered on it. Her hair was pulled back into a low ponytail to the side and was draped over her shoulder. Her make-up was delicately applied in such a way that he wasn't sure she was wearing any at all. She was stunning.

The pink in her cheeks snapped him from his trance. "Ya look good." He said sheepishly, having been caught gawking at his girl like a horny teenager. He just hoped no one else noticed the other effects she had on him in this moment and how all he could think about was getting her back to the hotel in one of their rooms.

"Thank you." She blushed and looked down as she stepped up to him. His hand immediately went to her chin to bring her eyes back up to his. If there is one thing he never wanted with them, it was her looking down in front of him. She smiled up at him and reached up to kiss the side of his mouth.

"Ms. Greene, time to go." She looked up at him nervously.

"You're tough. You'll be a'right." He repeated and she squared herself at his words. They followed her out to the side of the stage and waited for the two hostesses to call her over to them. They were giggling and gawking over something Daryl couldn't really understand. It started to make sense to him when they began sipping out of wine glasses and he started to wonder who would actually be watching these two to see Beth sing.

They started to talk about Beth and how she was an up and coming artist with a beautiful voice and flare for performing; having apparently attended her concert the other night. Daryl rolled his eyes as they rambled on for a few minutes before finally calling her out to them. He watched as they chatted away for a few minutes about her new album, the reason for she got into music, and her family. His breath caught, though, when one of them mentioned the other night in the park.

"Beth, I understand you were involved in an attack the other night in Central Park?"

"Oh yeah, um…" Beth faltered for a moment and glanced over at Daryl. He nodded to her hoping to urge her to continue. "There was a guy that had an unhealthy interest in me. He attacked me but thankfully I had someone there to protect me." She smiled at him and he saw one of the ladies follow her eyes in his direction.

"There was a report about a fire in Kentucky that was apparently tied to him, right?" Daryl groaned and Glenn put his hand on his shoulder.

"These people never know when to stop; they want a story that grabs people's attention. She knows what to do, don't worry." Daryl grunted and turned his attention back to Beth.

"-followed me back there and, I guess set it on fire. That is a side of my life I am thankfully more than ready to put behind me."

"I can imagine so. So tell us about this song you're going to sing for us." Beth visibly relaxed as did Daryl. He was pissed that these two broads put her on the spot about Zach like that. And how the hell had they found out? He was pretty sure that Glenn and the label were supposed to take care of that. Michonne walked up to his right side as she took the stage and whispered in his ear.

"Ya sure quitting was the right call?" His head snapped in her direction and he watched her smirk as she returned back to Maggie's side leaving Daryl wondering why she would ask and no way for him to find out right now.

The show closed at the end of her song and they made their way back to the hotel. Daryl's mind was not firmly drawn on what he was going to do once she left New York. He didn't participate in the conversations in the limo as his mind ran through possibility after possibility. He knew he didn't want to leave her but he also knew he didn't want to rely on someone because he couldn't work. He didn't want to work for Rick again. He couldn't. He needed to talk to her as soon as they got back. He knew their days in New York were now limited to hours.

Beth stopped him they minute they walked into the hotel room. "Is everything ok?" Her hand grasped his forearm tenderly, as if afraid whatever had him closed off would send him running and she was trying to figure out how to keep him there.

"Can we talk?" She nodded and pulled him to her room. He knew Maggie and Glenn were going out to lunch so they wouldn't overhear their conversation. She closed the door behind them and he swore he heard cat calls from the living area from Glenn and someone slapping him.

"What's wrong?" Concern was etched across his face.

"Ya leave tomorrow." It wasn't a question, he didn't really know how to start. "I know ya gotta finish up the album but I'm tryin' ta figure out where I'm gunna fit in here." He decided it was best to just rip the band aid off quickly.

"What do you mean?" She looked paler than she had moments ago and he immediately knew he'd said the wrong thing.

"I ain't never relied on anyone for anythin' in my life. Can't have ya takin' care of me. I gotta figure out what to do about a job. Glenn asked me earlier what I planned on doin' and Michonne thought I made a mistake quittin' the protection gig." She visibly relaxed and giggled softly.

"Well, you could always work for Rick again." She smiled and sat down on the bed.

"Nah, can't do that. Can't get paid to be with ya knowin' I wouldn't just be protectin' ya from anyone that might wanna come after ya." He could feel the heat rise on the back of his neck as he implied what else he'd be doing to her, for her.

"Oh, well what about the bar?" Her smile never left her lips.

"I'd be in Kentucky while you were off tourin' the world." He countered.

"Yeah, that would be hard but I've got another month or so before they release the album and I've got to work in the studio back in Georgia until then. The only things I have scheduled are weekend gigs to make up for what I missed while I was here. When did Dave say the bar would be finished?"

"Didn't. But another month at the earliest. The frame ain't done yet."

"Ok, so we'll take this a day at a time. Come back to Georgia with us and when Dave gets everything back up then you go back to Kentucky and work for him." Daryl sat down next to her on the bed and thought over her suggestion. He didn't like it, not fully, but it really was the only thing that made sense.

"One day at a time?" He asked hesitantly. She nodded back, her face full of confidence and trust.

"One day at a time."

AN: Let me know what you guys thought! I might try to get another chapter out Sunday. *fingers crossed*

Also… 5 more reviews til I hit 300… *whistles innocently*