I had never felt so hot in my life.

When I came to, I had Beth's tiny arms and legs wrapped all around me, heatin' me up like no other. We were still naked, our bodies still pressed together and she was still asleep. Lookin' down at her, I couldn' help but smile. Her blonde hair was everywhere and her breathin' was calm and even. She looked so peaceful compared to how I'd found her a few hours before. After what she told me about what happened between her and her good-fer-nothing boytoy, I had seen red. While I was furious, I stayed to take care of her, to protect her in case he came back. What had ended up happenin' had been unexpected to say the least.

Slowly, I pried myself outta her grasp and got off her bed to grab my jeans from the floor. Her grumblin' when I finally got up made me wanna laugh, but I stayed quiet to let her sleep. As much as I wanted to stay in bed with her, I had to move 'cause I wasn't used'ta cuddlin' with girls, especially ones like Beth. Crossing over her hardwood floors, I went out into the livin' room and sat down on her couch, runnin' my fingers through my hair. It was Saturday night, meanin' Merle would be back in little over a day and that my vacation from 'im would be over. I had enjoyed the past couple'a days, mostly 'cause of the time I had been spendin' with Beth, but I knew once Merle was back that everythin' would go back to the way it was before. She wouldn' wanna see me when Merle was around, not that I blame 'er.

I looked at the clock that hung on her wall and saw that it was around six in the evenin'. We'd been sleepin' for a few hours and I was starvin'. Pickin' up her phone, I ordered us a pizza and went back into her room to find her still asleep. I leaned in the doorway and watched her for a second before I started to feel like I was a creepy old man. I could see the bruises on her arms from when that asshole had grabbed her and it only made me angry again. If I hadn't left to get my bike, I would have been here, I would have been able'ta keep her safe. While I knew that him showin' up had been a total fluke, I couldn' help but feel responsible. If I had waited just a bit longer, nothin' would have happened to her. Story of my life.

Before long Beth was rollin' around in bed like she was tryin' to find me. Her arms were grabbin' at the side of the bed that I had been on and the thought warmed my heart a little. I quickly moved back to the bed and sat down, placin' my hand over hers and for a minute, I coulda sworn she smiled.

"I was wonderin' where you went" she said, causin' me to jump a bit. I had thought she was still asleep, but apparently I had been mistaken. Her Southern Belle accent was definitely more noticeable after we spent time together, it made her all the more cute in my eyes. She opened her eyes and looked at me, her face serious. "I thought that maybe you had..." I knew what she was gettin' at, but it didn't make it any better to hear.

"Nah girl" I replied as I dropped down and kissed her forehead softly. "I was just hungry, 's all. I ordered us a pizza, if that's alright with you."

Beth wiggled her body so she was next to me, her small body wrappin' around me. She was still so warm, and naked, but she looked so beautiful I couldn't take my eyes off 'er. I stroked her hair and her smile just got bigger. "It's like you read my mind, Dixon" she said warmly. "I'm so hungry I could eat one of those creatures you pull outta the woods." I narrowed my eyes at her and she just laughed as she sat up and stretched. Judgin by how quickly she pulled the blanket around her, she had forgotten that she didn't have her clothes, which made me laugh. "Mind waitin' for me out in the living room?" she asked quietly. "I just wanna put some clothes on."

I left her room and went into the kitchen. I found that she'd left the sweet tea pitcher out and poured us each a glass. As I stretched out, I could feel tiny pains shootin' down my back. Wrappin' my arm around my side, I could feel small scratch marks running down my side and it made me grin. What had happened with Beth was completely different from anything I had ever done with any other girl. Granted, it was hot and just a bit rough, but it had also been more. I don't know how it was more, I just knew it was. I was leanin' on the counter, thinkin' about how it felt to have her underneath me, when she finally walked in, wearing her short jean shorts and my tshirt from earlier.

Jumpin' up onto the counter beside me, she grabbed the second glass and chugged it quickly. "Hope you don't mind, but your shirt was the first one I saw" she explained, her cheeks reddening as she spoke. I smiled at her as I sipped from my glass and shook my head. "Nah, you look cute it in" I replied before I realized what I had said. While I was enjoyin' spendin' time with her, I didn't know what was goin' on between us and I didn't want to push her one way or the other. I had never spent time with a girl after we'd hit the sack together, and I had to admit I had no idea what to do in such weird, unfamiliar territory. Plus, she had only been single for less than a day, and I was sure that the last thing she wanted was some old man comin' onto her.

Before she could say anythin', the doorbell rang and I quickly went to go pay for our meal. When I opened the door, I realized it was Beth's friend Glenn who I'd met the other night.

"Oh, hey Daryl" he said awkwardly as he handed me my pizza. "I didn't know you'd be here."

Beth came and snuck around me, pokin' her head out the door so she could say hello to her friend. "Yeah, we were just getting ready to eat and watch a movie. Thanks for gettin' it here so fast, Glenn." Once I handed him his money, and he had said goodbye to both of us, he was gone leavin' me and beth alone again. She grabbed the pizza and brought it over to the kitchen, tellin' me to sit down either at the table or on the couch and she'd bring out our food and drinks. I wasn't used to girls like her, ones that had manners and that were sweeter than sugar. As soon as I plopped down on the couch, she was there sittin' next to me and passin' me my slices and tea.

I could get used to night like that, but I wasn't getting my hopes up any time soon. It would come to an end just like everythin' else, but this time I felt like fightin' just a bit more to hold on.