Kate should have been leaving the ladies bathroom. Her hands were washed, twice, and bone dry under the hand dryer yet she remained. The idea of opening the door and facing Merle once more was undesirable to put it lightly. It wasn't like she had never encountered loud mouth arseholes before, only nowadays they never usually had cause to talk to her. Then there was the embarrassed look on Daryl's face whenever his brother opened his mouth, that look was almost worst than Merle himself. Partly because she felt bad for him and partly because she had a distinct understanding of what it felt like to have a family member like Merle.

Kate's parents weren't proud when she was the first one in her family to go to university, when she got her first job or when she passed her driving test. They didn't turn up to the netball games, her graduation or the nativity play even when she got to be Mary. The only time she remembered them being there was when she accidentally conceived Harry when she was 21. But it wasn't exactly support they offered, it was more of a satisfied nod as if now she was in the club, one of them. Like screwing up and ruining her life had somehow made her more relatable. She never really spoke to them now.

Lynette had come out of the bathroom stall and washed her hands in the time that Kate had hovered around like a lost puppy. "Don't pay no mind to Merle."

"Excuse me?" Kate looked to the other woman. Lynette had caramel coloured hair piled high on her head, high arched brows and sharp cheekbones that gave her a shrewd look.

"Merle Dixon…" she pulled a tube of lipstick from the pocket of her jeans and ran the sheer watermelon red over her pout, "you don't need to be hiding from him in here."

"I'm not… hiding... I'm just," Kate tuck her hair behind her ear and Lynette raised one perfectly plucked eyebrow, "okay, I'm avoiding…"

"Merle's probably just plumb jealous his little brother has something he don't… or won't ever have and I'm not just talking about half a brain in his melon," Lynette laughed and fixed her hair in the mirror. "Now I have owned and run this bar for 20 years and I don't think I have ever seen Daryl Dixon smile… but he sure smiles when he looks at you honey… in fact every man in this grill has had a little look at you… pretty as you are, strange as you are to be in this little backwater town. I reckon Merle can go to hell in a handcart and if you want me to find cause to kick that old bastard out you just say the word honey," Lynette gave Kate's arse a gentle slap as she walked past still fixing at her larger than life hair, "oh and if you're ever looking for work I reckon you would look mighty cute in a pair of shorts working behind my bar."

Kate laughed under her breath while imagining telling Lou that she was going to give up her life to serve french fries and beer in some middle of nowhere redneck town. But Lynette was right. She couldn't hide away from Merle, Bo and Harley all night. She followed the other woman to the bar and let her eyes inspect all the other patrons before she regarded herself. Did she really look out of place here? Not that belonging here really mattered.

"So what ya wanna bet with ol' Merle?" he crooned snapping Kate from her daydream.

"Fifty dollars..." she looked him up and down, "if you can afford it."

Merle sniggered, "fifty bucks ain't no fun, how 'bout a little kiss?"

"A kiss? I thought you said it had to be something fun?" she retrieved her cue from its resting place against the wall.

Daryl's cough covered up his laugh but not enough that she didn't hear it, making her smile and the butterflies flutter happily.

Merle licked his lips, stepping so close to Kate that she could smell the faded musk of cheap cologne, "I reckon ya might like it-"

Kate interrupted him "I will give you 100 dollars if you can beat me... If you can't," her eyes flicked to Daryl, "then you have to apologies for interrupting our evening..." she closed any remaining space between her and Merle, "and acting like a huge twat".

Harley and Bo whooped and Merle's expression was unreadable.

Kate stepped away, around the table to safety. He might have made her uncomfortable with his vulgar comments but she wasn't going to stand for his shit. In fact she teased him again, "if you're too scared old man… we don't have to play."

That flicked the switch in Merle's head as a wide grin covered his face and any uncertainty he had about the wager, "we'll flip a coin see who gets to go first…."

/

Kate beat Merle. That was all Daryl needed to know. In between listening all about his enterfuckinprising she whooped him good. His brother even had the audacity to offer to cut her in 15% if she wanted to give him some "seed money."

Fucking hell. You couldn't take Merle anywhere. He was like a child, an obnoxious foul mouthed child. As soon as the eight ball was off the table and the game was officially over, all Daryl wanted to do was grab his date and have her back to himself. But first he could do a little gloating, he couldn't help the shit eating grin that filled his face. It was damn good to see his big brother get knocked off his high horse for a fucking change. Even Bo and Harley were laughing at Merle.

"So what do you have to say for yourself Merle Dixon?" Kate spoke to his brother like he was a little kid which only made the whole thing sweeter.

"Sorry," the word came out mumbled and inaudible.

"What was that?" Kate's hand went to her ear, " I beat you fair and square. I want my reward and I don't want it half arsed."

"I recon it was rigged…" Merle decided like a big baby.

"Rigged? I've never even been here before." Miss Uppity wasn't going to let him get away with anything.

"Yeah well ya know…" he pointed to one of the pockets, "curve in the table… an' ya got the good cue," he took a shot of bourbon, "and gravity."

"Gravity?" Kate laughed before teasing him, "what goes up must come down?... they best clear the entire town when your ego decides to come crashing back to Earth."

"Sparky's gonna eat ya alive baby brother… better you than me…" Merle slammed his empty shot glass down on the pool table and scurried over to his friends. Half assed apologies were about all Merle could manage, Daryl was surprised he had even managed that.

He reached for Kate's cue, his fingers wrapping around it as he slid it from her grasp, "good game Miss Winning Streak…" the name made her smile, "ya hungry?"

"Peckish."

Peckish, damn the way she talked was so cute. Daryl placed his hand on the small of Kate's back to guide her to take a seat, his head turning to look behind him at Merle as he mouthed the words, "leave us alone."

Merle held out his hands, his grin wide, his brow furrowed, his best impersonation of a man who genuinely didn't know he was an asshole, "what?" he elongated the word but Daryl ignored it.

They took a seat in one of the cosy leather lined booths and Kate glanced at the menu before asking Daryl what he liked to get from here. The best thing to eat at the grill were the BBQ ribs and when Cherry came over, pad in hand, they decided to order a portion to split as well as another drink.

"Do you prefer bunnies or kitties?" Kate inquired, her chin resting in her palm, the glow of the tea light dancing across the wicked look on her face.

"What?" Daryl cocked his head and stared at her in confusion.

"My prize."

Shit. Daryl's throat went dry as he studied her evil grin. He had to believe that she wouldn't be so cruel. "I like both so long as they ain't tattooed on my ass." He'd almost forgot about his little wager with Miss Uppity.

"Is that where you want it?"

He scratched at his stubble while he considered her sitting by watching him get a tattoo, "I have a choice?"

"Not really, you're at my mercy now Mr Dixon."

Jesus, the thought excited him more than anything else. "You're a nice girl, I ain't too worried."

Her evil grin widened further, "I'm not that nice."

Daryl kind of wanted some details, instead he cleared his throat and the drinks arrived with a soft clink as Cherry set them on the table.

Kate twirled the straw around the glass, mixing together the ice and the slice of lemon with the coke before she took a small sip, "maybe you should show me your other ones..." her eyes met his.

"An' what will ya show me?"

Kate's gaze fell to her lap, her mouth dropping open with a half laugh.

Wait a minute, was the woman actually speechless? Then she looked at him again, "I won the bet, I don't have to show you anything."

Daryl inadvertently pressed his hand to the tattoo on his chest then the sick feeling sunk in, the feeling of taking off his shirt and letting Kate see what was underneath, what was on his back. What would she think? Would she recoil? Would she make him tell her all about how he got the scars that ran like scorched earth along his skin?

"I'm gonna…" he held up his packet of cigarettes and headed outside for one even though he really didn't need it. All this time he had been chasing her, imagining his fingers over every inch of her body and the idea had seemed so unrealistic that he had never given a thought to his own nudity if the moment ever arrived.

It wasn't just the ugly way that the mottled flesh looked, it was more the way she was going to look at them and look at him, like he was a victim. He was a man and that meant something to Daryl. It meant he was suppose to be strong, powerful, have the ability to defend himself and his woman. The scars on his back betrayed all of that, he didn't want her to see him as weak. He kicked a rock across the parking lot and let out a miserable grunt.

When he headed back into the bar the big bowl of ribs had arrived, piled high in a sticky BBQ mountain that reminded him of the flintstones. Kate was staring at her phone, a smile on her lips as she typed out a message. He wanted to ask who she was texting but realised that the question was probably as possessive as it sounded in his head.

Luckily she offered the information freely, "Lou helped me make a new friend…." Kate picked up a rib before settling it on the little white plate in front of her, "I'll be working with him in September."

Daryl folded his fingers together, his elbows digging into the cherry wood table as he pressed his balled up fist against his mouth, covering up the miserable grunt that slipped out. September. It was late June now. It would be July when her work at the museum finished. He wondered what she would do between those months and then he wondered if she could stay with him.

"These smell delicious," Kate breathed in the sticky sweet goodness of the BBQ coating before taking a ladylike bite.

Her phone buzzed two loud vibrations against the table, she didn't react but Daryl did, his eyes landed on the brightly lit screen to see the name 'Bax' and a message, "I look forward to it."

Shit. Who the hell was Bax? Any nervousness Daryl had been feeling about his body was now slipping away, just like when he had spent the afternoon watching Jason laying his hands all over her. Chasing after Kate was certainly keeping him on his toes, the second he relaxed she might get snatched away like a rug being pulled beneath his feet. "When do ya wanna claim ya victory… er... prize?"

"Tonight?"

Tonight, Jesus. He maybe would have done it except then he wouldn't have an excuse to take her out again. "How 'bout Saturday? I might even let ya buy me a drink or two before ya mark me up for life."

A slow smile spread across her face, "I see what you did there Mr Dixon."

"That a yeah?"

She licked the sauce that had clung to the corner of her lip, "yes."

Daryl smiled, satisfied and took a big sticky bite of a rib as Kate carried on eating in her own delicate way, napkin at the ready. He hoped that a few drinks would make him feel more at ease about what was on his back plus he couldn't deny that he hadn't enjoyed the truck ride with her crazy drunken side.

When the ribs were finally dwindled to a pile of bones sitting in a pool of sauce Kate went to go wash her hands unlike Daryl who was happy to lick himself clean like a mangy tom cat. He watched her walk away. The sway of her hips, the bob of her hair, all soft and womanly before feeling the sharp, hard, dig of Bo's elbow jabbing into his rib cage as Merle and his friends descended on the table.

"I got a little somethin' to spice up your night…" Bo held out a packet and before Daryl could comprehend the contents of the bag he grabbed the other man's hand and closed his fingers into a fist to contain his offering.

"I don't need ya shit… What the fuck's wrong with ya'll?" Daryl looked over his shoulder, hoping that nobody had seen.

"Come on man… I ain't saying slip it into her drink… but I gotta say when Debbie takes one of these she's… she's like a fucking animal."

Harley thumped Bo across the back, "don't trust him man, last time I took some of his shit I ended up with a stiff one that wouldn't quit for three fucking days, I nearly went to the fucking ER with that thing,"

"Hey the merch worked, ain't my fault you don't know what to do with it," Bo shoved the packet in the pocket of Daryl's jeans, "you'll thank me later man."

"Goddamnit…" he removed the packet and threw it in Bo's drink, "Merle why'd ya hang around with these douchebags? Jesus fuck."

"Hey!" Bo protested.

Merle did his usual 'I don't give a shit' grin before deciding, "she went to college, Sparky's probably already done all sorts of crazy shit."

"Watch ya fuckin' mouths, the lot of ya'll." Daryl felt about ready to smack the three of them.

"Woah…" Merle held up his hands, "alright brother, ya'll heard him… no disrespectin' Sparky… she's a real classy lady."

Daryl felt his face soften as he leaned back into the leather booth, his fist unclenching onto his thigh. Maybe Merle did know how to be nice afterall.

"Well…" there is was, Merle was never nice without reason, "Imma need to lend a little cash… keep me floatin' 'till I get paid."

"Are ya fuckin' serious?"

"It ain't cheap gettin' a business off the ground an' we ain't all got a sugar mama to look after us."

Daryl stared at his brother. The old bastard had been nothing but a mean asshole to him all night and now he wanted money to top it all off. Ordinarily he would have handed over whatever Merle wanted but what did that get him? His brother wouldn't like him more, or treat him better. He grabbed Kate's coat and his own as he shuffled out of the booth, "no."

"What the fuck ya mean no?"

"Ya didn't ask me nicely," Daryl pointed his finger in his brother's face. Maybe it was time Merle started treating him with a little more respect, "an' I'm sick of ya damn shit."

"Everything okay?" Kate's voice was a welcome interruption, as was the feeling of her hand resting on his arm.

"Ya ready to go?" he asked to be polite but whether she wanted to or not they were leaving before they ended up flying home like space cadets. The very last fucking thing he wanted to do was offer Miss Uppity drugs and corrupt her on their first date. He passed Kate her jacket and said goodbye to the three fucking idiots as he escorted her away from them as quickly as possible.

"Sorry 'bout them," he waited for Kate to finish pulling on her jacket before he passed her helmet.

"It's okay… we all have family members who make us…" she clipped the strap under her chin and gave him a wry smile, "question our DNA."

Something told Daryl that she was speaking from experience. It occurred to him that Miss Uppity had managed a night with Merle that didn't involve her bursting into a flood of tears, slapping him across his face or calling the police which was the reactions he had seen his brother coax out of almost all women he ever came across. "Well I'm still sorry."

Kate smiled and climbed on the motorcycle with Daryl once more. He thought he was more prepared for the second ride but he wasn't. The journey back to Kate's house was as nice as the ride to Lynette's had been. He had the same warm feeling of her body pressed against his. It filled him up like the ripples from the epicentre of an earthquake, starting at the point her hand touched his chest and trembling to the very tips of every fibre of his body. And then there was her smell, the rich perfume that laced Kate's skin and hair like it had been concocted especially for her to wear it. Fucking hell, he loved the way she smelled. He took one last deep breath of her before turning into her road.

The street Kate's house sat on was as sleepy as it always was, cast in a shroud of darkness lit only by the glow of light creeping behind closed curtains. Even the moon was hiding behind a puff of deep navy blue clouds. He stilled the loud rumble of his motorcyle engine opening up a fresh vacuum of silence on the deserted street.

Kate released him from her warm embrace but it wasn't a sudden pull away, it was slow, deliberate, reluctant. Maybe, like Daryl, she didn't want the night to be over. Because another night down brought them another day closer to her absence.

Together they stood like nervous teenagers in the middle street, fumbling with their helmets and barely catching each others eye. Kate was blushing before he even said a single word and he knew right then that he was going to kiss her.

/

"Despite your brother…" Kate's eyes fell to the motorcycle instead of Daryl's face since looking at him was making her into her usual Daryl induced jelly, "I enjoyed this evening."

"Me too," the touch of his hand running along her hair startled her, drawing her attention away from the bike and back to him.

Kate hadn't been kissed by a man that wasn't Ryan in nearly nine years. Bloody hell, it had been so long she could barely remember the faces of the others. Nine years was almost ten and ten was a decade. An entire decade of getting older coupled with pregnancy and childbirth had surely left their mark on her body. She cleared her throat, running her sweaty palms over the outside of her jeans. She felt almost as if she had never been touched or kissed and everything that came afterwards. She clearly wasn't a virgin but she was something else, terrified.

Kate took a step back from Daryl's hands, nervous butterflies erupting violently around her body. In the abstract the idea of a fling was a good one but right now in the middle of the street as she stood with Daryl and the very real prospect of what lay under his clothes the idea was more nerve wracking than anything else. So nerve wracking that she did what anybody would do, or at least what she would do since she had become some sort of prude. She fled. But not before saying "goodnight."

/

Daryl had been admiring Kate in the way that he had no damn business admiring any woman. The way that made him realise what a huge fucking pussy he had become in the past few weeks. His soppy smile was itching its way across his face as he sat his helmet on the seat of his motorcycle and before he had chance to think another thing she was slipping away, her hair flying behind in long silky go faster stripes as she sped off like a deer running from a bolt. She might have been damn quick but she wasn't quick enough. Not by half, not compared to a man that had a deep longing to feel his lips against hers.

Kate's feet were touching the first step of her house when Daryl reached out, catching the tips of her fingers, pulling her back, "not so fast darlin'."

She stilled. What must have been the space of a heartbeat seemed to defy the laws of time and space before she turned, slow and hesitant until they were face to face. Her big brown eyes wide, her breaths shallow and she was biting that damn lip. He dropped his hold on her hand, letting it slip back to her side.

"I don't like my chances on ya steps." Daryl edged closer until he was grasping her waist. His fingers slipped into the belt loops of her jeans as he tugged her off the treacherous five tiered deathtrap.

"Your chances?" Kate's voice was a whisper, quiet even in the silent street. She leaned back against his pull, a feeble attempt at resisting him. God this woman was stubborn. Her hands swooped up to land on his chest and for a split second he thought she might push him away but instead they just rested there like two white flags. Daryl was going to defeat this crazy English woman at least one time and for his trouble he was damn well going to savour it.

/

"Daryl…" Kate breathed his name, starting a sentence she couldn't find the rest of the words for. Instead her lips fell open in silence, capturing the attention of his dark blue eyes. For one heartstopping moment his sight lingered on her lips and she couldn't stop herself from licking her tongue along it like an invitation, or perhaps it was a dare. He took the bait, stepping so close that she could feel the warmth of his coke sweet breath heating her all the way down to where her toes curled in her boots.

One of his hands slipped from her waist to cup her cheek, his thumb running like electricity along her lower lip releasing from her a shuddery involuntary whimper. The dark smile that crossed his face made her blush. He was affecting her more than she would have ever admitted in words but her body admitted it in every other way and now he knew it. His thumb skirted over the rosy glow of her cheek before it found a home in the tangle of hair at the nape of her neck, erupting another wave of tingles that ran along her spine until her legs trembled.

Daryl's head dipped down, slowly, uncertainly, a chance to change her mind if she could think of anything but his mouth or the way his hands were holding her firm and unwavering. Their noses brushed in one half of an eskimo kiss and then their lips were touching. Daryl was kissing her. It started soft, like the stroke of a feather, light and tingly but it was enough to make her whimper again.

His hand caressed a path from her hip to the center of her back where he drew her even closer to him. There was no uncertainty in his kisses now, just the firm eager press of his lips and a soft groan that moaned from his throat into her mouth sending a pool of heat to her stomach. Her body arched to where he was pulling her. Her fingers balled into the soft worn fabric of his shirt and she opened her mouth, letting his tongue slip inside to taste her and kiss her more deeply, more desperate.

Daryl kissed Kate until she was a breathless mess, limp in his arms and wondering why they hadn't done this sooner. But instead of holding her tighter like she wanted he let her go, leaving a chill where there had been heat and a want where there had been hesitation.

/

"I should go," Daryl panted, running his hand over her soft hair, just to touch her again. Though it pained him he knew he had to call it a night. He wasn't sure if he could go in the house without doing far more than kissing her and since Merle had screwed up his plans it was probably best not to even put himself in that situation. Goddamnit.

"Goodnight," he said before pressing his lips against hers again, one chaste kiss that was nowhere near close enough to what he wanted to do.

Kate's brow furrowed as she said "goodnight…" like it was a made up word.

"Night," Daryl reaffirmed. Jesus. He was saying the words but he couldn't quite bring himself to move away. They were standing close but not quite touching, he swallowed down hard, one more couldn't hurt. His wrapped his arms around her centre, sweeping her off her feet to kiss her again for good measure. One last kiss to ensure that friendship was well and truly fallen from the table leaving behind whatever it may.

"Night..." his voice was shaky as he let her slip from his arms back to the floor, smoothing out her ruffled hair then stepping away, "now go on in the house so I know I dropped ya off safely."

/

Kate glanced down the empty street, was he really just going to leave? She wasn't entirely sure how to proceed or why he wasn't kissing her anymore. "I think I'll be okay."

Daryl was unwavering, nodding to the door, his hands thrusting into his pockets and his adam's apple bobbing in one hard painful looking swallow.

Kate gathered her purse from where it had fallen to the floor. Minutes ago she had been scared he might kiss her now she was disappointed he wasn't kissing her more. But from the way he was commanding her and the way he took a step closer to his bike she realised that she definitely wasn't going to be getting anything more, at least not tonight. Perhaps he was trying to be a gentleman. Or maybe he had changed his mind. Shit, what if he didn't like the kiss?

"Well," Kate straightened down the front of her shirt, "I'll see you at work then… Mr Dixon."

"Yes ma'am."

Kate hovered on her steps for a moment before opening her door, she wanted to ask if he'd changed his mind or if he was waiting for an invitation but there was no way in hell any of those questions would get remotely close to leaving her lips so she let out a light sigh and stepped into her house.

A/N- Thank you for reading and thank you to everyone that has taken the time to leave a comment :)