Kate answered the door and she looked so damn good he thought his eyes might actually pop out of his head. She wore a black dress that hugged her figure all the way to where it stopped just above her knees. The tiny spaghetti straps holding it up drew his eye to her collar bone, which looked oh so kissable. Daryl did a double take. This woman did realise she was going on a date with him right?

Memories of yesterday's picnic in the park and their teenage makeout session seemed like a hazy dream and once more he was standing on her doorstep feeling more like a nervous boy than a full grown man.

"You look very nice Mr Dixon," she gave him a coy smile.

"Well you look goddamn gorgeous," he blurted.

Kate's smile went a little softer at his compliment, less sass, more sweet and in turn he felt his ears redden as he hopped down the steps and away from the look she was giving him.

Shit, why had he even said that? Yes it was true, but that didn't mean he had to admit it. Jesus, so much for not telling her how he felt. What else was going to escape from his runaway mouth?

She joined him at the bottom of her steps, "ready?"

Daryl cleared his throat and nodded, staring at her big brown eyes. Ah fuck it, what was said was said and she did look goddamn gorgeous. He leaned forward and gave her a kiss, the greeting he should have started the night with. Then he took her hand, his fingers weaving with hers as they began to walk down the street to wherever she was planning on taking him.

Good lord, even though he was walking with her he still couldn't quite believe that this woman, wearing a dress like that, was taking him out for drinks. He might have enjoyed it more if he could stop thinking about Jim calling him a 'kept man' and Merle calling Kate a 'sugar mama'. But Kate wasn't organising the date because she was wealthy, she was doing it because she was the boss. He kind of liked that she was the boss.

As Daryl suspected the place they went to was unlike any place he would have ever gone. 'The Skylounge' was atop a fancy hotel that was the kind of place where men wearing bow ties held open the door and pressed the button on the elevator in what seemed like the dumbest waste of time job Daryl had ever seen in his life.

They sat on a glass terrace, high above the smog with the Atlanta skyline providing a backdrop that was almost as pretty as his date. Kate ordered a dirty martini and Daryl a bottle of beer that had a name he couldn't pronounce. Despite the uncomfortable feeling he got being in a place like this, it was nice to be here with her.

Kate sucked an olive off the end of it's little plastic skewer, "did you choose a place for later?"

She meant the tattoo that he was supposed to be getting, but his mind went straight to the gutter as he took a drink of his beer and watched her skewer and suck another olive. Suddenly he was adjusting the discomfort in his jeans. "I did," he managed to say when he recalled he was supposed to answer her question.

"Are you nervous?"

Yes, he thought. "No."

She sipped her drink, a sparkle in her eye, "I'm a little nervous."

"Why?"

"It's a big commitment."

He laughed, she didn't even want to commit to him getting a tattoo, "not for you it ain't."

"Well, perhaps next time you won't make a bet with me."

"Hell yeah I will. Only next time I'll make damn sure I win." Not to mention next time he would think of better stakes.

They enjoyed their drinks followed by three more rounds, talking in the easy way that conversation was with her. When it was time to leave the fancy little bar behind he was feeling so pleasantly relaxed that even fluffy bunnies couldn't have fazed him as they headed for the tattoo shop where he had gotten his last two inks.

/

Several glasses of Dutch courage were sitting nicely in Kate's stomach as she stepped through the full glass door, under the bright fluorescent lights to the ding dong of a door bell. It should have been Daryl that was nervous, he was the one getting the tattoo afterall, but she was seriously regretting her choice of prize. She felt uneasy about doing something to this man which she had known for hardly anytime at all that would sit on his body for the rest of his life.

The walls of the tattoo parlor were covered floor to ceiling in pictures; bright, colourful, dark, monochrome, large, small and everything in between. Choice after choice to inspire people on their lifelong decision.

"Hey man," a voice called and Kate turned her head to see what she assumed was a tattoo artist emerging from the back room. He clasped Daryl's forearm in a familiar sort of way before saying, "Charlene said you were coming down."

"I hope ya ain't too busy," Daryl replied before looking at Kate with a wink, "we could always do this another time."

The wink he gave her followed by a somewhat roguish smirk brought her wicked side to the surface, overpowering any trepidation she was feeling. It was Daryl's bets that had gotten him into this situation after all. Although a night with his tent had a certain appeal that made her regret winning the bet for altogether different reasons.

The tattoo artist looked at her, a soft smile, "I'm Bobby, Charlene's cousin." Suddenly she saw the resemblance to Daryl's friend, Bobby had the same red hair, the same pale complexion.

"It's a pleasure to meet you Bobby, I'm Kate," she held out her hand and he took it as her eyes inspected the intricate covering of images that blended across his skin from his knuckles all the way up his arm before tucking under the sleeve of his white t shirt.

"You're not from around here?" Bobby asked.

Kate looked up, "I'm from England." It was going to be strange to return home and never be asked the question which she was asked almost daily in the States.

"You getting the ink or Daryl?"

"Me," Daryl interrupted. Bobby turned back to look at him, giving Kate opportunity to inspect the tattoos that were peeking out of the back of his tshirt. She wondered if his whole torso was covered in them like his arms were.

"What you thinking of getting?"

Daryl cleared his throat, catching her attention, "ladies choice…"

Bobby's face screwed up in confusion and the nervous feelings resurfaced in the pit of her stomach as she admitted, "I won a bet."

The redhead laughed, shaking his head as he looked back to Daryl, "you sure you want to do this?"

"I trust 'er."

There was something about they way he said it, or maybe it was the way he had looked at her with those intense blue eyes, but her heart jumped a beat in delight. "You don't have to get one."

"And go back on our bet? Ya better believe I would have been claiming my winnings."

"What you got in mind?" Bobby asked.

Kate bit her lip, all thoughts and options had fallen clean from her head now that the moment was here. She turned to face one wall of pictures, "I'm not entirely sure."

Daryl let out a small snort and she could hear his footsteps as he stood right behind her to rasp down her ear, "no fluffy pink bunnies?"

She looked over her shoulder, "I don't think that's really your style Mr Dixon." Then she began to inspect the boards more closely, searching for inspiration even though she had already been giving the tattoo serious consideration since she had made the bet with him.

Bobby placed his hand on her shoulder, guiding her along the wall until they came upon the flowers, "how about an English Rose?" He pointed to a red rose in full bloom, the colour was almost the same shade as the lipstick sitting in her purse and straight away she knew it was perfect.

She caught Daryl's eye, "then you can remember me always."

"Something' tells me I already will," he said, his voice low and husky as Bobby disappeared to find his sketch book.

"Why don't you guys get settled and decide where you want it while I draw something up?" Bobby said as he ushered them through to the back of the shop and behind one of several heavy grey curtains. Somewhere behind another one she could hear the faint buzz of machinery permeated by disjointed small talk.

Maybe it was the cocktails that were swimming merrily around her bloodstream but there was something surreal about slipping into this private room on slightly jellied legs. A gush of air blew past her as Bobby swished the curtain door shut on clicky runners, sealing them into the room and she felt a chill tingle along her spine. She couldn't decide if it was excitement or fear, maybe a mixture of both.

She watched Daryl, folding his arms across his chest and then unfolding them as she gave into the heavy feeling that was relaxing her limbs and slowing her breathing to long laborious breaths that heaved her chest to full until the air blew hot between her lips. She examined every inch of Daryl's body while she wondered which part she wanted to put her mark on. Then she wondered what the various options looked like in the flesh. "Perhaps," she avoided any sort of eye contact and gave into boozy courage, "you should take off your shirt?"

A strange look was resting on Daryl's face when she finally found the courage to look at his reaction. She wondered if he might be nervous although from what Kate could see, and what she had felt over the top of his shirt, he had nothing to worry about. His body was hard, lean, strong and she was more than a little bit interested in seeing it.

/

Daryl ran his hand through his hair and let out a long sigh.

This was it, the moment he had been dreading and no matter how many drinks he had enjoyed he felt the tension acute like the point of a knife rather than the dull discomfort he had hoped for. Maybe it would be better doing it this way. They were on neutral ground and right now there would be nothing to worry about except having her eyes on his back. In truth the idea of her seeing his secret in the middle of other activities made him feel even more sick.

There was one good thing in all of this. Kate looked like she actually wanted to see him naked. She had a sultry look in her eyes as she looked at him, her fingers teasing her hair. He wasn't used to giving women this sort of reaction and seeing her with it made him push down any fears. Hell, he wanted to be more than shirtless at the end of the night so he might as well get the bad part out of the way now.

/

Shit, Kate realised she was making him uncomfortable. What would she have thought if he had told her to take off her clothes for him? Although the mere idea of him saying that sent a tingle of pleasure along her tipsy body, "you don't have to, I'm sorry."

"It ain't that," Daryl's fingers went to his buttons and undid one of them. Kate hurried forward closing her hand over his.

"Honestly, you don't have to."

Daryl laughed, dark and dangerous as his hands ran through her hair, "I want to… I'm kinda hopin' you'll be seein' more than… just what's under my shirt."

The words sank in like a shot of bourbon, curling like fire along her body as she held his intense gaze. Her fingers weaved between his hands, pushing them aside as she unbuttoned a button on his shirt, then the next, then all of them as they watched each other in utter silence that hung so thick and electric between then that she thought she might blow apart as her slow breath's picked up speed.

Kate let her gaze slide along his neck, all the way down the thin glimpse of his chest that was still mostly hidden by his dark plaid shirt. She licked her lips, touching him like this in this non so private tattoo parlor felt so wrong, but that was what made it so exciting. Her hand was unsteady and tentative as she reached for his chest, her fingers lightly grazing his skin with the softest touch that made him suck in a sharp breath before she pushed back his shirt more forcefully, over his shoulders and down his arms to looked at him more.

Daryl's body was strong, rugged, the kind of body made hard from days filled with manual labour rather than a gym membership and there was something very masculine about that. He wasn't the kind of man that played tennis or golf like Ryan had been, he was the kind of man that could chop down a tree and build her a fort. For a woman that spent hours researching Medieval England, this kind of 'hands on' man had a very exciting appeal.

He had a tattoo over his heart, Norman. She ran her finger along it, brushing through the soft hair that was lightly scattered on his chest

"My Granddaddy," his raspy voice almost made her jump and let out a nervous laugh before she tucked her hair behind her ears and inspected the dragon on the inside of his arm.

Oh dear god his arm was so hard, the feeling of the muscle under her fingers made her breath hitch before she managed to ask, "do you have more?"

"Yeah."

Her eyes went wide, drinking him in as a smile teased at her lips, it was like a treasure hunt, one that she wished they were doing in her bedroom. She pulled her handbag off her shoulder and dropped it to the floor before placing her hand on his shoulder and exploring her way around his body until she reached his back. His body tensed under the hand that was resting on him as her eyes landed on what she immediately knew was the reason the for that odd look when she had wanted him to take off his shirt.

Kate closed her eyes for a moment, although there was no way out of this situation. He was sharing something with her and she didn't know what to say or think. The hard raised lines that covered his back looked old and painful, she moved until she was standing directly behind him. Her horrified face hidden from view. How had this happened to Daryl? Had someone done this to him or had it been some sort of accident? She reached out and traced her finger along one, feeling his body shudder under her touch, words were caught in her throat.

"It was my Daddy… when I was a boy."

Tears pricked in her eyes, and a nauseous feeling rose from the pit of her stomach as she stepped forward wrapping her arms around his chest and pressing the side of her face against him before she stroked her palm over the two demons that covered his right shoulder blade. She held him until she had managed to bite back any tears then let him go and faced him once more. He had been nervous to show her his back but there was something about seeing him so vulnerable that made her want him more than ever.

"Thank you," Kate said, her hands resting on his chest until they sat on his shoulders.

His brow furrowed, "for what?"

"For letting me see you." Kate realised it was a weird thing to say but just like she hid losing Harry from people, she presumed that Daryl hid this part of him. "Sometimes… most times… I don't like people to see me." At least not the broken parts that she tried to hold together, especially the guilt, heartache and depression that had followed her since Harry had been snatched away. The worst part of it was that she tried to pretend that none of that existed, that she was just an ordinary woman behind her carefully refined exterior.

The clicking of the curtain gave her a start and she pushed the backs of her fingers under her lower lash line to push back in any emotions that were in threatening to spill over.

"I drew this up…." Bobby showed a sketch of the red rose that he had drawn up especially for Daryl. "You guys decided where you want it?"

"How about here?" Kate placed her hand on the side of his rib cage.

"Yeah I like that," Bobby said, holding the design over the area before he laughed, "one of the most painful places to get a tat…"

"Is it?" she felt a huge wave of guilt. What on earth was she doing to this man?

"If it's what she wants… I'm at her mercy now," Daryl half smiled before he sat down on the black leather chair.

This was it and even if Kate felt more nervous than previously to put a tattoo on his body she couldn't deny that she relished the idea of giving him a permanent reminder of herself on his body.

The time while she watched him getting a tattoo done seemed to disappear, and she found more enjoyment in it than she thought she would. It was quite an art to affix something on someone's skin in the way that Bobby was painting without hesitation and as painful as it looked with the tiny needle tirelessly stabbing away, Daryl seemed to barely notice.

"What you think?" Bobby said when he put his tool down for the final time.

"Its beautiful," Kate decided as Bobby held a mirror up so Daryl could get a good look before it was bandaged up.

"Have you decided what your gonna get?" Bobby looked directly at her when he had finished dressing Daryl's new tattoo.

Kate sat upright, her eyes glancing between the two men. "I couldn't possibly."

"Sure ya could," Daryl pulled his shirt over his body, fastening the buttons.

"Wait here," Bobby insisted as he snuck around the curtain.

Kate stood from her seat and Daryl walked across the floor, "don't ya wanna know what it feels like?"

"I'm certain I'd look ridiculous with a tattoo."

He smirked as he gave her a slow once over, "that definitely ain't what I think."

Bobby returned with a book filled to burst with options that he began to show to Daryl rather than Kate. "Something small," the two men had equal wicked grins.

"I'm not going to do it," she protested but they didn't even bat an eyelash. Instead they took their time to choose a design that they agreed on.

Even if she was hovering by the curtain, arms crossed and defiant, her curiosity was piqued as she tilted her head to catch a glimpse of what they were looking at.

"How 'bout this?" Daryl brought the book over to her, his arms wrapping around her body, his chin resting over her shoulder as he held the book in front of her and pointed to the design.

Arrows. All types of designs; small, delicate, feminine and with just enough hint of a certain crossbow wielding redneck. Kate laughed nervously as she closed the book. "They're very nice but…"

Before she could continue he threw the book onto a chair then pushed her firmly, but not roughly, into the hot seat. Kate let him lay her back, his hands pushing her shoulders, his eyes never leaving hers until he was picking up her foot, inspecting with a small frown at the two tiny buckles on her ankle before clumsy fingers began to unfasten them. Her heart was pounding too hard and her body was too filled with electric tingles for her to protest as he loosened the buckle then delicately removed her left shoe like it might have been made of glass.

Then she caught Bobby's eye, remembering what they were planning on doing to her and snatched her foot away from Daryl. This was crazy.

"Just relax," he crooned in a way that made her want to do exactly as she was told.

Kate bit her lip, a big part of her did want to do something against her better judgement but another part of her couldn't intentionally do something that she might come to regret.

"Give in," he said even softer as the tip of his finger brushed along the underside of her foot to a wave of tickles

Giving in wasn't easily in her nature no matter how much she wanted to, "I don't think I can."

"Sure ya can… all ya gotta do is say yes."

Kate leaned her head back against the smooth leather of the chair, letting out a soft laugh. Maybe one day she would regret this but right now she was saying, "yes," and enjoying every minute of letting go and giving in.

A/N- Thank you for reading :)

Justcallmewhatever- I don't think she's stringing him along in a way that she is toying with him but I do think she is resistant not just to Daryl but to anyone. She doesn't really want to have a relationship and she is leaving so she's got to protect herself a little bit. Whereas I think Daryl is wearing his heart on his sleeve a little bit more. In the beginning Kate didn't even want to make friends with anyone but Daryl has got under her skin and whether she likes it or not he's pulling her out of mourning and back into the real world.

Jean- I know its sad about Lou but it was when I was writing that scene in the other story that I started thinking about writing this one and what the characters would be like if they never had to fight for their lives all the time. Now I'm writing this one I'm thinking about part two of path's crossed lol. I don't know what it is but whenever I'm writing one thing and I want to be writing something else! Custard is like thick sweet creamy milk... You can make it from scratch but its not the same as the artificial stuff . Its so funny to think of an Aero in a foreign food isle! I love the mint ones best, I bite off the chocolate shell then let the bubbles melt in my mouth.

BreenaBelle- I don't really think of Kate looking like anyone in particular but if I had to say I would go with a sort of Anne Hathaway/Emma Watson/Kim Sears love child. Same with the rest of the OC's they're just sort of in my head would have probably been easier if I'd have picked people and made a pinterest board or something lol. But this story does have a song which I've listened to as inspiration since I started planning , Kiss Me by Ed Sheeran. Its so sexy and romantic and I love old school romance.

Anyway I think I've waffled quite enough ;)