"Hey, peach," Jess greeted quietly as she combed Argo's mane.
The sun was just beginning to show over the trees causing the summer day to start heating up, and Jess was about halfway through her morning routine with the horses. She would start with mucking out the fenced area, putting the waste into Rick's compost pile, then she'd make sure they had hay to eat, followed by a thorough brushing that Michonne usually joined her for. Regular maintenance on a horse was a great opportunity at bonding, and Flame, as Michonne had dubbed the new addition, was slowly healing and getting used to having people around that weren't trying to eat her. It would still be a week or more before Jess could begin the work to break Flame back into riding, but in the mean time they could work on their relationship. For Jess, it was relieving to get back into a routine again because such was the life of a cowgirl and she hadn't realized how much she missed it.
Daryl half waved as he sat down on a chair Jess had placed out in the stable just for him, and began working on his crossbow. It'd been a while since he had last done any maintenance on it, and he enjoyed being around Jess, even if they never said a word to each other. Just having her near him made him feel more relaxed than he'd been since long before the turn.
It'd been a few days since the first time they'd slept next to each other, and most of their waking moments since then had been spent together. There wasn't as much for them to do around the prison these days as the hard work of the inhabitants over the past few months had made it a safe, functioning place to call home. Everyone had their duties, Daryl's was mainly to go on runs, help with anything physical, and be on watch every fifth day; Jess's priority was the horses, whether it be training or care, and she would occasionally split watches with Daryl. The Dixon found himself with a lot of down time during the days he wasn't going on runs, so he would seek her out for company.
Before the turn, he would have been just fine on his own, or with Merle, and not care to really be around anyone. Their time at the farm followed by their trials getting into the prison had opened Daryl up to people more and more, though. He knew now that he wouldn't be alive today if it weren't for the people around him, and he also knew that he didn't want to be alone. Now that Merle was gone, these people were all he had left. They were his family now.
Then there was Jess. He'd spent many nights thinking of her, and how her presence in his life had changed him just as much as his time with the Atlanta group all the way through to finding the Prison. He'd been selfish and angry at everything when he was with Merle, and it had persisted some after they'd been separated. However, the others, especially Carol and Rick, had given his life a different meaning. They were always proving how important he was to the group, and that he was more than just a heavy hand to keep around for protection. In the short time he'd known Jess, she'd constantly shown him, and told him a few times too, that he was a good man, despite how Merle had said he wasn't. To her, he wasn't redneck trash, he was a man worthy of her affections. She believed in him and would have his back through thick and thin, no matter what. As much as he wondered if he'd be alive now if it weren't for these people, he wondered twice as much about how different he'd be now if Jess hadn't blown in on a whirlwind into his life.
He was pulled from his thoughts when she started singing a song about going to Texas when she died. He couldn't help the quiet scoff as he ran wax down the length of the string. You could take the girl out of Texas, but you couldn't take Texas out of the girl.
He paused to watch her work and sing, swaying slightly to the tune in her head as she worked the brush over her horse. In his mind, this moment was perfect. There was no danger, nothing trying to kill him or the others; just him sitting there watching an amazing woman do something as mundane as brush a horse as she sang, enjoying her chore.
Jess caught him looking at her with an expression she'd never seen on him before, and she tilted her head in question at him as she pulled the brush away from Argo.
"What?"
He shook his head, tearing his gaze away from her as he went back to work on his crossbow.
"Nothin'," he mumbled, trying to hide his expression.
Jess knew it was something, but she wasn't about to press him because he tended to clam up when he felt pressured into anything. If he wanted to tell her, he would, otherwise, she would just accept the fact that she would never know.
She finished brushing Argo and put away her tools before going into the stable to grab her bow. She came back out with it to stand next to him and checked the scuffed wood of the recurve for cracks before moving onto the bowstring. Jess cursed colorfully as she ran her fingers down the string.
"Well I gotta a big hole inna fence," she said as she felt the slight fraying. "String's on its last legs," she added as she took the tube he held up for her.
"Makin' a run today. Wanna come? May be able to find one," He offered as a solution, watching her gently rub down the string with his wax as to not cause more fraying. The experienced hunter could tell that she wouldn't get too many more pulls with it before it would more than likely snap.
Daryl would have offered to bring her one back, but he really just wanted her to go with him. He'd only seen her in action a couple of times, and he knew she could handle herself alone. She had done well with him at the time they lost Nahar, but he wanted to get more of a feel for how she could handle a following situation with a larger group of people.
"If ya got tha room. 'Sides, I could use a day out," she shrugged as she handed the tube back to him. She didn't want to waste that much of his wax since she'd hopefully be getting a new one in a few hours anyway. Even if she didn't, she could find the right materials easily enough to make a new one.
"I hear ya," he said as he stood, slinging the crossbow on his back and the tube of wax into his pocket. "You sure that thing's gonna hold up," he asked as he stepped towards her.
"Even if it don't, I can manage without it," she said as she put her hands on his hips after leaning her bow against the stable wall. Touching him when he came close to her had become easy, and, after their first kiss, he'd let her be the one to initiate the contact. He would just come close enough to her to let her know he was open to her touch, and she would always reach for him.
Daryl put his hands over hers as he leaned down to place a quick kiss on her lips before pulling her hands away.
"Can I trust ya to not to run off and do your own thing while we're out there," he asked, holding her hands in his.
She smiled knowing he was making sure she knew how to follow orders.
"I may'a been a maverick 'fore but I know when I ain't got slack in my rope," she answered truthfully as he let her go, and she picked her bow back up. She'd been used to running the show back in Texas then she was alone for so long after her sister's death, but that didn't mean she didn't know how to be a contributing member to a team.
Daryl grumbled something unintelligible as he turned away to return to the prison.
Jess chuckled as she went back into the stable to gear up. She pulled on a blue plaid flannel shirt over her dark blue tank top before pulling on her belt that had her machete holster attached to it. She slid her sheathed tactical knife in her boot followed by the gun at the back waistband of her jeans. When she got to her quiver, she recounted her arrows to make sure she had the count right before flinging it across her body. After that, she pulled two extra clips for her gun from her leather bag and stuck them in her back pocket.
Jess double checked her weapons to make sure they were secure and was ready to take her bow and leave before something in her bag caught her eye. She tilted her head in brief confusion as she pulled out the small black pouch before she remembered what was in it. Her eyes lit before the urge to kick herself took over because she couldn't believe she forgot she had it. The cowgirl smiled as she stuck the pouch-like wallet in her other back pocket and grabbed her bow to head up to the area where they kept the cars.
When she arrived, Jess saw that there were several people loading stuff into the SUV and truck while Daryl, Sasha, and Michonne were looking at a map of Georgia spread out on the hood of the SUV. Jess approached but hung back to listen as the three discussed where they would try their run at.
"We've hit all the gas stations on sixteen and eighty-five all the way to Woodbury," Daryl was explaining to the other two.
"How about we check out Griffin," Sasha asked, pointing at the city.
"Too big. High chance there's a herd or it's already been picked over," Michonne dismissed.
The three around the map on the SUV were startled when something black landed in the middle of the map. All of them looked up to see Jess standing behind them by a few feet, a hand on her hip and a knowing smirk on her face.
"Ya'll are barkin' up tha wrong tree," she informed before pointing at the black pouch. "Open it up."
They all gave her a quizzical look, but Michonne did as Jess asked and opened the pouch to find over half a dozen maps, each sealed in plastic bags to protect them from moisture. She spread them out on top of their current map and realized that they were all the states between Texas and Georgia plus a few maps of specific regions of states.
"Look at Georgia," she suggested as the three of them looked at the maps in question.
Daryl did what she asked as she came to stand beside him, and there was a collective sound of surprise when the hunter finally opened up the map on top of the other one. Her map was much more detailed than theirs, and she'd marked the route she'd taken through the state before she'd met them. However, they were more impressed by the notes and marks indicating the things she'd found along the map, each with their own symbol with notes about what was found and how many supplies were left at the location.
"Jess, this is amazing," Sasha admitted as she read over the map.
"You even marked places you ran into the living," Michonne said as she followed the route with her finger.
"Yes ma'am. Tha plan was ta return ta tha mountains in west Texas when we found out what happened ta our parents. So, I marked tha places that were safe 'n' tha ones that we needed ta avoid on tha way back," Jess explained.
Daryl turned to look at her with curious eyes, like he was trying to get a read on her but couldn't. Just when he thought he had this woman pegged, she turns around a surprises him with this. Not only was she strong and stubborn, she was smart too.
"So Jess, anywhere close to here you've been that might be a good spot for us to check out?" Sasha asked as she looked up at the cowgirl.
"Last town I hit 'fore Daryl picked me up was called Zebulon. Cute li'l town 'n' practically untouched. Seems like most of 'em hightailed it outta there to a safe zone before they started burnin' 'em. Few walkers 'n' didn't run into any living. That was a few months back, though, so someone else could'a hit it between now 'n' then. Worth a shot, though, 'cause if it's still intact, that pharmacy, hardware store, 'n' market could stock ya'll up 'til fall."
"Do you remember all the towns you stopped in?" He found it odd that she remembered so much about the town after all of her travels.
"Naw, just tha more recent ones. Jus' got good short term memory," she boasted as she leaned up against the SUV next to him. She gave him a sly smile as she rested the tip of her bow on the ground.
"I see the symbols for those three places here on the map, and Zebulon is only about twenty miles out," Michonne observed, "I say it's our best shot. If not, she's also marked gas stations along her route we can check out."
"Zebulon it is," Sasha pronounced as she started to fold the map back up.
"Let's do it," Daryl quipped as he pushed away from the car and turned towards his bike.
Once Sasha had the map folded, she started putting the maps back like she found them. She turned to hand them back to Jess, but the archer just held her hand up.
"Ya'll hang onto 'em fer now. I ain't goin' nowhere fer a few weeks 'n' ya'll can plan ahead with 'em," she offered as she picked her bow back up.
"Thanks," Sasha said as she tucked the pouch into one of the pockets of the riot vest she was wearing. "These will come in handy," she added as she turned to round up the rest of the people going on the run.
Jess noticed that Michonne waited for her to follow.
"I'm in the truck," Michonne pointed at the vehicle as she watched the thoughts cross Jess's face. Maybe she'd feel more comfortable with her around.
However, before Jess could answer, there was a soft whistle from the corner of the nook they kept the vehicles in. When she looked over, she saw Daryl leaning against the bike, waiting for the caravan to be ready to leave. He nodded his head, indicating that he wanted her to come over.
"Hoes before bros I guess," Michonne quoted with a hint of mischievousness in her voice.
Jess looked at her in surprise as this was the first time anyone had admitted to knowing what was going on between her and Daryl. Daryl was always one to disappear when he wasn't needed, no one ever questioned where he went, and everyone knew Jess was always out at the stable. The only ones that were out there on a regular basis were Rick, Carl, and Michonne.
"Don't worry," Michonne assured, "not everyone knows."
Jess sighed before she headed towards Daryl, worried what he would think about Michonne knowing about them. It's not like they were in a very serious relationship, yet, as Daryl wanted to take things slow, but she wasn't sure he wanted the others to know about it so soon in case it would put a strain on his relationship with any of them.
When she was close enough to him, he spoke to her nonchalantly as he watched her.
"Ya ridden a bike before?"
Relief showed on her face as she stopped a few feet away from him.
"Ya askin' me ta ride with ya, peach?" She questioned playfully, attempting to mask the evident relief on her expression.
Daryl shrugged as he stood to hook his weapon onto the front of his bike to keep from looking at her, and Jess thought that was cute.
"Whatever," he mumbled, brushing off her question.
"Beats ridin' in a full car a people I dunno," Jess conceded. In all honesty, Jess was ecstatic because riding with him was a way to be close to him around the others without too much speculation; that and it was really more her style to ride in the open than stuffed into a metal car.
"Alright guys," Sasha called out to all that had gathered. There were a total of six people that had either volunteered or been chosen to go on the trip: her, Daryl, Michonne, Sasha, Glenn, and a new kid named Zach. Jess hadn't been around him much. She knew Daryl had run into him on on one of his hunting trips, and he seemed like a nice kid. "We're headed to a little town called Zebulon about thirty miles from here. We're going to check out the market and pharmacy first. We'll see where we are after that," she looked at Daryl. "Lead the way."
The hunter turned to his bike with a nod as the briefing concluded, and everyone else headed to the two vehicles. As Jess approached, Daryl easily settled into his seat before looking up at her.
"Can I trust ya to play nice back there," he asked in a teasing voice with a serious expression.
"I promise ta behave, Dixon," she defended as she pulled her bow over her head and across her body.
He hid his smirk as he started the bike, and she climbed on behind him. When they began to move, Daryl felt her hands at his sides to hold on and after they were out of the prison and on the road, wrapped her arms around him completely. Daryl liked the feel of her around him, pressed close enough he could feel her warmth, even on the hot, humid summer day.
A/N: I just want to take a moment and thank my new beta. She beta's all the things and is well on her way to shaping me into a better writer. You know who you are. THANK YOU! Don't forget to check my profile for updates!