How about some Carol POV smut. Good stuff I believe. Lucky lady. Haha. We just have to get through this extremely awkward dinner first. Hope you enjoy! Thank you for the reviews! I can NOT say that enough! I have some catching up to do but I'll try to post another one in about 12 hours! =)

Chapter Forty Three

Dinner was tense. Everyone pretty much knew why they were there and Daryl wasn't so sure if Rick was going to be able to give the old man a good enough argument to convince him to let them stay. He could only hope. It wasn't a bad set up really if they could make it more secure. The house was big enough for everyone and Hershel wouldn't even have to let them stay in the house at all. They could stay outside. That was what they were all used to to begin with. They could secure the fences. Maybe put more up. With the guns and things that Jenner had sent with them they wouldn't really have a problem keeping everyone safe.

The food was good but the atmosphere wasn't. There was a gloom hanging over everyone. Even Hershel, who was the one that was causing all the tension to begin with. Not that Daryl could blame him much. Not really. If it was just him and Carol and Sophia in a house there was no way he would trust a stranger enough to let them in. Even if they were shot. It was too risky. Hershel was trying to protect his daughters, and the way Merle was looking at Maggie, wasn't going to help them make a case.

He kicked him under the table and Merle glared at him. Daryl gave him a look and then motioned towards Hershel with a nod of his head. All Merle did was roll his eyes.

The only sound in the large dining room was the sound of forks scraping plates and the occasional request for someone to pass something. It was making him tense and he caught Ricks eye from down the table where Rick was sitting to Hershel's right side. Rick gave him a slight nod and then turned to Hershel just as Hershel turned to him. Daryl felt Carol's hand slip into his where it rested on his lap.

He stopped mid chew when his mind skipped back to that night at the CDC. But she just twined her fingers through his and smiled down at her plate a little.

"Hershel." Rick began in that calm and collected tone he used when he wanted to get his point across. "We know you want us to go. I understand your concerns, I really do but we were all hopin' that maybe you would reconsider."

Hershel regarded him levelly for a few long moments before his eyes scanned every face at the table. Lingering on Sophia and then Carl, before slowly shaking his head and returning his eyes to Rick. "I can't. You people are a strong group. And soon there will be a cure. I strongly believe that."

Before Rick could say a word Daryl was talking. He surprised himself by sounding calm. "There ain't a cure. These people ain't sick, Hershel. These people are dead. There ain't a cure for dead." He felt the eyes of everyone on him now and he wished he had just kept his mouth shut. And then Carol gave his fingers a squeeze and he met Hershel's eyes. "You send us out there and you're pretty much handin' out a potential death sentence to everybody in this group."

"It can't be as bad as you all say it is. We haven't seen much out here. If it was as bad as you say then surely there would have been more here." Hershel argued.

Sophia spoke up then. "They're comin'." She said ominously. "They're out there in the woods right now. They are forming herds now. All the one's we saw in the woods together in groups of two's and three's will band together and eventually they'll sniff this place out. And with us gone, your family wont have a chance."

Daryl looked at her. She was smart. Make it seem as though them staying would be the safest thing for Hershel's family instead of arguing how it was be the best thing for themselves. Hershel, though, still didn't look like he was buying any of it. Once again he shook his head.

He gave Sophia a warm smile. "I know they may seem scary, the way they look right now but can you really tell me that you don't think they aren't people anymore?" He asked her.

"Sir, Carl and I were chased through the woods by those things. We've seen them tear apart dead animals and eat them raw. And not only that but just yesterday I was about five inches away from getting my face torn off by the teeth of one of them. Right before I killed it. They are not people. Monsters are real, Mr. Greene. You need to accept it because if you don't your family is going to be the ones that pay."

Hershel looked like his resolve wavered a bit but he shook his head once more. "I can't. I'm sorry."

"My wife is pregnant. Daryl's right. If you send us out there then you're handing us a death sentence. This baby could be a blessing here but out there it will be a curse."

There were several gasps from most of the people at the table, but Daryl already knew that much.

"I'm sure you'll all be fine. There are plenty of other farms. You people can have your pick of them. We would still be close. I'll give you a few days to prepare. Make sure everyone has had their injury's looked at."

"We have Milton for that. Thank you anyway." Andrea said lightly before she stood up and walked out of the room. Milton watched her go and then looked as though he finally got the point that maybe he should follow her.

Daryl looked at Carol and she gave him an encouraging smile. "We'll be alright." She said but he could see the fear in her eyes. He needed to figure out a way to make this work. Maybe he could talk to the old man alone. Then he dismissed that idea. He wasn't good at stuff like that. Rick was the man that needed to be the one to get him alone.

Sophia was looking down the table. Her and Carl nodded to one another and then he caught her eyes shift to Merle. Merle was looking right at her and he nodded himself. So whatever Sophia was up too Carl was in on it too. And so was his brother. He glared at Merle from across the table but Merle didn't pay him any mind because suddenly Maggie threw down her napkin and stormed out of the room. A few seconds later the front door slammed.

Merle glanced towards the living room but didn't make a move to follow the girl. It was good thing too since she looked to be mad enough to really do some damage to him if he wasn't careful. Merle finally caught his eye but looked away quickly.

Everyone dispersed after that. Carol and Sophia stayed to help the other women clear the table but Daryl found himself watching Carl carefully. Sophia was better at hiding things than the boy was. So was Merle. Not to mention the fact that Merle and Sophia didn't see Daryl as much of a threat. Carl on the other hand was always pretty nervous around him so he decided right then that he'd work on the boy first and if nothing came of it then he'd probably have to get into a fist fight with Merle. Those usually ended badly for Daryl but he had one hand up on his big brother this time. He chuckled quietly at his own joke. Surprisingly Merle glanced up right then and scowled at him as though he could read Daryl's mind.

~H~

After all the dishes were cleared and the kitchen was back in order, which didn't take long with so many people helping, Carol was finally able to make her way to their room. Well, what would be their room for the next two days anyway. That was all they had left and it made her sad. She loved it here. You could almost pretend like the world hadn't ended in a place as beautiful as this.

But now it was almost over. Soon they would be right back out there on the road with nothing but uncertainty to light there way. That existence seemed very very dark to her. She knew Daryl was right and that the farm wasn't any safer than anywhere else they could end up. But it felt safe.

She stopped outside of Merle and Sophia's room before going to her own. Calling it Merle and Sophia's room just sounded odd but that is exactly what it had become. And she was okay with that. She knew, somehow, that Merle had told her the truth. That he would let them all die but he would make sure Sophia was with him before he did it. It gave her a grim comfort. If someone as ruthless and cold as Merle Dixon was looking after her little girl then she was much safer than the rest of them were.

When she walked in her eyes went straight to the couch. Sophia was asleep already. Merle was on his side, facing the door, but he wasn't sleeping. His eyes were on her.

"You need anything before I go to bed?" She whispered.

He looked like he was thinking about it and then he nodded. "A bed warmer if you're offerin', beautiful." He wiggled his eyebrows at her and grinned.

She rolled her eyes. "Goodnight, Merle."

"Goodnight, Carol." he winked.

She giggled as she shut the door. She thought about Andrea earlier and how she had walked out and thought maybe she should go check on her. But when she walked by the room she shared with Daryl she noticed that there was no light shining out from under the door. She thought for sure he would wait on her to come to bed before he went to sleep. She went in and didn't see him in the bed. She flipped the switch but nothing happened. She sighed and made her way through the dark to the lamp next to the bed.

A rough hand covered her mouth and she felt a hard body slam into her from behind. A strong arm went around her waist and she was moved roughly towards the bed. She was afraid for about two seconds but she knew that hand, the body pressed up against hers, the arm around her waist. She could be blind and deaf and still know him when he touched her. He was being rougher than usual which for some reason filled her with a new sort of thrill. He had always at least tried to be gentle, although it didn't always work. He was still Daryl Dixon. He was a rough man.

He stopped moving her when her knees brushed the bed and then he spun her around, catching her mouth with his. He only broke the kiss long enough to yank her shirt up over her head and then he went right back to where he was. Even his kiss was rougher than usual, his tongue quick and insistent, dancing with hers almost violently. His hands trailed up her back and fumbled with her bra strap for a few impatient seconds before he gave up and ripped the hooks away. As soon as that small barrier fell away to the floor his mouth went straight to her breasts. His teeth were agonizing on her tender flesh but she held his head with both her hands to keep him there.

When he finally brought his head back up she was nearly panting, her breath heaving out of her loudly but she couldn't stop or she felt as though she would surely suffocate. His chest was as bare as hers and where his wet kisses had left her chest cold at his departure the heat from his skin pressing against hers was a stimulating sensation all it's own.

His hands went to the button of her pants and then he was yanking them down over her hips and shoving her down onto the bed before tearing them away and tossing them to the side. She was now sitting on the edge of the bed and he shoved her legs apart causing her to gasp. He hooked his arms behind her knees and pulled her forwards so she was barely on the bed anymore at all and then she felt his tongue high up on her inner thigh and her hands instantly grabbed the edge of the mattress in a white knuckled grip.

She couldn't help but wonder vaguely what this new urgency was all about. Not that she minded. At all.

There was no hesitation in his actions this time. It was like all he had to do was study her once and then he knew every place to touch. She kept her mouth clamped tightly shut once she felt his hot tongue start to explore her. And she was surprised when he changed tactics on her, but it was a pleasant surprise. Where he had just been anything but gentle, now everything he did was slow and exaggerated, teasing and tormenting. After a while she squirmed with impatience and she felt his hot breath as he moved his mouth away and laughed.

He stopped playing around then and as soon as he put all his concentration in that one small space she was right there, with barely any effort from him at all. Right before she felt herself let go she let her back drop to the bed. She grabbed a pillow at the very last second and covered her face with it. She was there but also far away as she tried to not let herself fall completely off the edge of the bed. Every muscle in her body twitching erratically as white spots danced behind her closed eyelids and the pillow did it's job of muffling the cries that escaped her mouth.

He moved the pillow away from her face and then nearly lifted her off the bed as he moved her back and before she could even get her bearings he was inside her, pushing past what little resistance her body gave him, since her body wasn't used to the size of him, and just like the night before he had to pause. Regain control of himself before he started moving.

She felt that heat pooling low in her stomach as he drove into her and then she felt his mouth by her ear, "If you wanna enjoy the ride a little longer you need to try to avoid doin' that just yet. I'm holdin' on by a thread here and if you let go there ain't gonna be no holdin' on for me."

His voice was low in her ear and smooth as silk and if he thought that was going to help anything he was dead wrong because the sound of that voice sent her flying over the edge. She didn't even know how he knew she was already so close but it didn't really matter.

"Goddamn it, Carol." he growled as the first wave hit her so hard she actually screamed but it only lasted a half a second before he crushed her mouth with his own. And to her surprise that first wave of pleasure wasn't the last because she felt the muscles inside her coil around him like a snake, trying to hold him in place. This was going to be a repeat of last night. He was already being a little rough with her but she suddenly wanted it rougher. Needed him too.

"Harder." She whimpered, not even meaning to say it out loud, but god, that's all she wanted.

"Fuck, fuck, fuck don't say that." But even as he said it he obliged even though she knew he wouldn't last much longer. But that didn't matter because she was already beyond caring. He hooked his arm behind her knee and pulled it up. This position gave him better leverage and she felt even more of him, deeper than before.

She heard herself getting louder again as he picked up the pace and she had to do something. Somewhere in her clouded thoughts she remembered that there were people here that could hear her so she bit down, not very gently, onto the side of his neck. She heard him hiss and then felt him tense and then growl viciously into her throat as he finally came with her. His skin was salty from the sweat. He tasted amazing.

His head stayed on her chest and he didn't move away for some time. He did unhook her leg from his arm and she wrapped it around him to try to keep him in place. She didn't want him to go anywhere just yet. She was still wracked with tremors and he must have been able to feel it every time one hit her because she would hear him chuckle low in his throat. It was a very self satisfied sound. But eventually he pulled away from her, landing heavily onto his back and then pulling her over so she was draped across his chest.

He traced patterns lightly on the sensitive skin of her back and she heard a rumbling laugh in his chest.

"Why are you laughing?" She whispered.

"I gotta be the only man in the world that has to try to talk his woman into not getting off too quick. And to think, I was all worried I wasn't gonna be good enough for you." He snorted and then laughed a little louder.

She grinned. She didn't get to hear that laugh very often and she loved it. "You're full of yourself." She whispered.

He shook his head. "No I ain't. You're just that damn easy to please."

She reached behind her and groped for the blanket. She was suddenly tired. Much too tired to get up and hunt for something to wear. So she threw the blanket over them and almost fell asleep instantly with the feel of his hands on her back and the sound of his heartbeat slowly returning to normal.