Hey guys and welcome to Part 2 of "That Was Then, This is Now" *everyone throws confetti*. That's right, due to the somewhat pathetic amount of reviews I ended up getting, you guys wanted me to start Season 3 as a Part 2, which is what I'm doing. So, without further ado, let's continue to get on with the show!
There is Daryl/Tessa fluff, as well as Philosophical Daryl and a lemon at the end of the chapter. And yes, I know the chapter is . . . 7,000 some-odd words again (very, very sorry about that LOL) and I know this will probably never ever happen again but there was a lot I wanted to cover in this chapter and so I'm sorry for not wanting to cut anything. They should go back down to normal the next chapter :)
Maddy-MariXO - A lot of people have been wanting them to have a girl but all I can say is that you will just have to keep reading! ;)
HaloHunter89 - Like, I said, I'm not entirely sure where I'm taking the whole Rick-Has-a-Crush-on-Tessa thing but I'm pretty sure its not gonna get any better. It adds drama, which I need when the group isn't killing zambies and that adds the perfect amount of drama. Thanks for sticking with me this long too :)
- Nagiana
Favorite Line(s):
And suddenly, to Lori and Tessa, the potential of giving birth in a ditch on the side of the road somewhere, loomed even, more frighteningly, closer.
"You're . . . wait a minute . . .?" Seth's eyebrows furrowed in slight confusion and he blinked a couple of times as he shifted slightly, his gun arm slackening slightly. "Tessa . . .?"
They cleared the house out with a record speed and an almost Navy Seal like precision. Tessa stayed outside with the others as the men kicked open the doors and began the clearing of the house. When finally, it was done, they signaled for them and they entered the house, Daryl appearing seconds later, plucking the feathers off of an owl. His heart ached at the look of haggardness on Tessa's face and her slightly sunken, black ringed eyes as she walked in the house after Lori, the two women's great pregnant bellies now very much prominent and he wanted to slap Seth and Ethan on the backs for immediately stepping forward and taking whatever the two women were carrying.
"Ya okay, babydoll?" Daryl quietly asked her in concern as they followed everyone into the living room where they were setting things up and Tessa nodded and shot him a weak smile.
"Yeah . . . yeah, I'm fine, honey, don't worry about me so." She replied with the same weak smile still playing out on her face and the look of sudden weariness that descended upon her made Daryl's heart ache again. The winter had not been good to them. Harsh, biting and freezing, sickness had wafted through their camp with the prevalence of the plague and only the expert, almost constant care of both Hershel and Carol had seen them all make out of it alive. However, that hadn't been the only problem – not by a long shot. Food had also been extremely scarce - even with the two extra hands of Seth and Wren, his little sister - and they were all malnourished, especially Tessa and Lori. Daryl (whenever he could get away with it without her sending him death glares, anyway) always ended up giving Tessa his share of the food when he could afford it, and - much to his chagrin - that seemed to only make the tiniest of dents in her weight.
"Help me down, would you, baby?" She asked him and Daryl nodded as he quickly helped her take a seat on the floor as Lori carefully took her own across the way. Lori was big but everyone always ended up commenting on how Tessa seemed to be huge in comparison. Granted, Lori was a lot taller and thinner than Tessa's short, petite frame but while Lori's belly still appeared a half-moon underneath her shit, Tessa's seemed a damn near full moon.
She shot him a thankful smile, one that he readily returned along with a loving kiss on her forehead as he took a seat beside her and returned to the plucking of the feathers of the owl. Ethan sat on her left and Wren and Seth sat beside him and suddenly, a massive air of weariness descended upon the whole group. They were all exhausted, forlorn and their morale had gone out the window alongside the harsh winter they were lucky enough to have survived. Something needed to happen to give them hope and fast or else their already fragile group would break even more.
Tessa continued to smile as she gently touched Wren's shoulder. The thirteen-year-old jumped and turned to gaze at her, her eyes wide but they softened when she saw it was just Tessa. Seth looked over as well and Tessa's eyes connected with the both of them. "You guys doing okay?" She asked them, her eyes lingering on the bird-like Wren and the both of them nodded, shooting her soft, thankful smiles as they did so.
"Yeah, we're just hungry . . ." Wren spoke up, her voice quiet and weak, and Tessa nodded as she rubbed the girl's back.
"Yeah, honey, I know . . . we all are . . ."
It had taken some convincing, but once Tessa had assured the group that, yes, Wren and Seth Williams were the children of her best friend before the apocalypse, a beautiful and cheerful Mexican schoolteacher on the reservation by the name of Fermina Williams - it was easy for them to stay. They were kids after all, and trying their best to eke out an existence in this hellish world. To leave them alone in it after finding other people they could trust, would have been almost cruel. As a result, it was like Tessa had gained two more children to look after, even though Seth himself was seventeen and could more than take care of himself.
Daryl glanced over as he continued plucking the owl and his eyes connected briefly with Seth's. He didn't like the kid. Wren was okay – she was just a scared kid but Seth . . . Tessa had assured him that he was a good kid, just hardened from trying to protect him and his little sister in such a horrible world for God only knew how long and while Daryl had no doubt in his mind that he was a good kid, there was still something about Seth Williams that made his teeth itch. He couldn't put his finger on it and he supposed it could just him being cautious and paranoid over strangers – like he had the right to be in this new world, especially with a quickly growing family on the way – but Daryl had always had good intuition when it came to people and there was something about Seth that made a flag go up in his head.
Everyone jumped when they heard a bang and he immediately brought his eyes up when he saw that it had been Rick who had thrown a half-opened can against the far wall. His eyes landed on Carl sitting slightly stricken with two more cans sitting in front of him and he immediately knew what was wrong. The food in the cans was drastically over their expiration date and Carl probably hadn't checked beforehand like he sometimes forgot to do. Daryl shook his head as Carl's eyes immediately flew onto his.
"They ain' any good, kid. Be sure to check tha expiration date next time, okay?" He told him, his voice quiet and gentle and Carl nodded as he calmed down slightly. Daryl's eyes flew back onto Rick, who seemed on edge. Of course, they were all on edge but Rick seemed the worst. In fact, it seemed the more Lori and Tessa grew closer to giving birth, the more agitated and on edge Rick grew. It was to the point where people were starting to look towards Tessa and Daryl to smooth things over, which alone threw him for a loop. When had people ever looked towards Daryl to smooth things over? Maybe Tessa he could understand since she was quickly growing to become the Queen Bee of the group as well as the Momma Bear, but Daryl?
It was then that they heard T-Dog heave a sigh before getting everyone attentions and rising to his feet, his crowbar hefting in his hands somewhat. He gestured to the window with his head and everyone immediately felt a sinking sensation in their gut. Walkers . . . great . . . that was just great.
"Here, Ethan, take this." Daryl told his son and Ethan nodded as he quickly reached out and took the half-dressed owl as Daryl got to his feet as well, picking up his crossbow as he did so. Seth and Wren helped Tessa to her feet before they quickly helped everyone gather up all their things. They left the house then, everyone jogging in the direction of the cars with Daryl in the lead and Rick bringing up the rear. The walkers hit as soon as everyone was in the cars and driving off, Daryl and Ethan on the bike immediately taking the usual head of the group.
"Are you okay, honey?" Lori asked Tessa from her seat in the front of the truck and Tessa nodded quickly as she wrapped her arms around her belly in an almost protective embrace. Her baby kicked against her leg and she let out a sigh of relief. No matter how skinny she seemed to get, her baby always seemed to hang on. While Lori's had gone quiet quite early, Tessa's was still pretty active, keeping her up late at night and giving her and Daryl their one bright light at the end of the dark tunnel during the winter.
"Yeah, I'm fine; what about you?" She asked in turn and Lori nodded and shot her a weak smile as they continued on.
"I'm fine too. I'm tired, but fine." She told her and Tessa nodded in agreement as she felt Wren take her hand and she allowed her to, her fingers entwining with the young girl's as they continued on their way. There went another potential shelter stolen from them by the walkers.
And suddenly, to Lori and Tessa, the potential of giving birth in a ditch on the side of the road somewhere, loomed even more frighteningly, closer.
They stopped to regroup on the road when they were sure they were far enough away from the house to where there was no hope of the walkers catching up, and even the bright spring sunshine did little to lift their spirits.
"Fifteen; you guys are on point, okay?" Rick told Carl and Seth and they nodded as Rick returned to Maggie's SUV, where the said woman was stretching out a roadmap on the hood. Tessa and Ethan were standing beside Daryl, Tessa's arm wrapped around Wren's tiny little shoulders and Rick shook his head. "We have nowhere else to go." He spoke up and Maggie sighed as she traced out a path on the map.
"When this herd meets us, we'll be cut off. We'll never make it out."
"What d'ya say, it was 'bout . . . one hundred and fifty head?" Daryl asked Ethan, his eyebrows furrowing in interest, and Tessa slapped him on the arm as Glenn nodded. Daryl glanced at her, saw the wide-eyed look on Wren's face and smiled comfortingly. Standing there beside her, it was almost like Daryl was looking at someone who could very well be Tessa's daughter – maybe even a vision of what their own daughter might look like if the baby was born a girl. They had the same body shape and ebony, pin-straight black hair. The only difference was the skin tone. While Tessa's moved in the direction of the redder tone of her Native American roots, Wren was a little bit darker and olive-toned. Daryl didn't really care anything for Seth but Wren was just a kid. Wren still held a childlike innocence that made the father in him want to protect her.
"That was last week, though," Glenn replied with a wearied shake of his head. "It could be twice that by now."
"This river here could have delayed them," Hershel spoke out as he used a finger to trace a river running along the face of the map. "If we move fast, we might have a shot to tear right through them."
"But if that group combines with that one, then there is a chance they might spill out this way." T-Dog pointed out and no one liked the sound of that.
"So we're blocked." Tessa spoke, her voice dead-pan and Rick shook his head.
"What we'll do is cut back and drive towards Greenville."
"But we picked through that already," Tessa brought up. "It was like this the entire winter - all we did was go around in circles. Are we going to continue to do that?" Rick nodded.
"Yeah, I know that, Tess, and at Noonan, we'll push west. We haven't been through there yet – it'll be new territory for us." Rick's eyes connected with Daryl's this time and they knew this was something he was directing primarily towards his second. "You know as well as I do that we can't keep going from house to house," He spoke and as Daryl nodded in agreement, he continued: "We need to find a place to hole up for a few weeks." He didn't need to elaborate because they all knew what he meant. They all knew that Tessa and Lori's greatest fear was giving birth in a ditch and they knew the longer they stood around going house to house, the more real that fear for them became.
"All right, well is it cool if we hang here for a moment?" T-Dog asked. "We won't take long; we just gotta fill up on water. We can boil it later." Rick nodded and waved a hand towards him as Hershel and Daryl moved up to Rick, Tessa herding Wren back towards the car.
Hershel shook his head as he held Rick and Daryl's eyes. "Tess and Lori can't handle this moving about business for much longer – especially Tess," He told them, his eyes lingering on Daryl's as he spoke. "I hate to say it, but she could go into labor any moment now."
"But tha'd put her goin' early, though, wouldn' it?" Daryl asked, his eyebrows furrowing in concern as his hands moved to his hips and Hershel nodded.
"By about three weeks, by my estimate. I don't like it but by the way she's walking and the way she's been acting, I'd say give her a few days at the most."
"And besides, what else could we do, let them give birth on the run? You know that's their greatest fear -!"
"It's especially Tessa's." Daryl added, interrupting Rick, and Hershel sighed as he placed a comforting hand on the two men's shoulders.
"Does either of you see any way around that?" He asked them and by the pale look that Daryl adopted and the weak one that Rick was holding, they didn't. They really didn't. And even though Daryl dared not say a thing to Tessa about it, he knew she was preparing herself for the same thing as well. She was trying so hard to stay strong – so damn hard, but even Daryl could tell that her strength was waning. They wanted the baby – more than they had ever wanted anything before - they really did - but it was so hard to stay strong when you were looking at facing something that could literally kill you in a matter of seconds and at any given moment.
Hershel walked away from them then and Rick swallowed heavily as he turned to face Daryl as he gestured Ethan over to him. His son immediately made his way over to the two men and Daryl grasped his shoulder. "While tha others wash their panties, me and Rick are gonna go hunt. Watch ya momma, okay? And if anythin' happens – anythin' – ya track me as fast as ya can and get to me, okay?" Ethan nodded obediently although a look of slight crestfallenness was on his face. Ever since Seth and Wren joined the group, Daryl hadn't been taking Ethan out hunting with them that much. He took him just enough to keep his skills honed to an expertly fine point but other than that, he stayed at the camp while Daryl oftentimes took Rick. Ethan knew it was nothing personal against him, that Daryl was only wanting him to stay around because his momma could go into labor at any given moment, but he also had no it idea that Ethan was the only one Daryl completely trusted to keep Tessa safe in case something happened – something like Seth.
Daryl smiled a small smile and clamped down harder on his son's shoulder. Ethan returned his small smile as Daryl left him and returned to Rick, where the two wasted no time in heading for the woods. "I don' know 'bout ya, but tha' owl didn' exactly hit tha spot . . ." He spoke and Rick nodded in silent agreement. They stayed in silence for a while until Rick chose to break it.
"Aren't you scared?"
"What? Ya mean of tha birth?" Daryl asked him and Rick nodded. Tessa was obviously going to give birth before Lori and so far, other than the concern he showed when he asked Hershel if that was going to put her into going into premature labor, he was showing absolutely no concern. In fact, he showed absolutely no concern period. Daryl shrugged. "Truthfully . . . I'm scared shitless. I'm prolly more scared than Tess is, in fact. This is ma first rodeo – it ain' hers."
"Then why don't you show it more?" He asked, his voice and face full of interest and confusion, and Daryl just gave another shrug.
"Right now, I'm Tess's strength. I'm tha one she turns to when she needs someone to lean on. If I don' act calm and cool and collected when she needs me, then God only knows how tha's gonna make her act," He shook his head, a slightly green, apprehensive look appearing on his face then. "And truthfully, Rick, I'm scared shitless. I'm scared shitless tha' somethin's gonna happen and I'm gonna lose her. I'm scared shitless tha' if I lose her and not tha baby, then I'm gonna be left alone to raise it – tha' it's gonna grow up with no momma jus' like how Ethan grew up without me and tha' this time, it ain' gettin' a second chance like Ethan did." Rick nodded.
"I know . . . I feel the same half the time." He quietly admitted and Daryl sighed.
"And it's like Tess told me a coupla months ago – it's too late for us to ask for a puppy now, ain' it?" Rick couldn't help but laugh at that and Daryl smiled but refrained from joining in. He nodded instead and looked away, pretending to scan the woods for game or walkers but instead, was thinking about how best to phrase what it wanted to say next. "And I may be outta line sayin' this, but . . . somethin' tells me tha' if we lost Tess, this group would be more broken then if we lost Lori," He gave a half-shrug then. "Tess is an amazin' woman, ain' she?" Rick nodded slowly in agreement.
"I won't dispute you there. She's the glue that holds us together - the both of you are!" Daryl shook his head.
"Naw, I ain' gonna pretend tha' I'm as important as she is. If somethin' happened to me, yeah, everyone would mourn, but . . . but not like they would for Tess. She does more for this group than anyone else – includin' me and ya. I mean, Hell, look at her! She's takin' care of two damn kids who ain' even hers and she's 'bout to pop with mine. She takes over tha reins of the group when it gets too much to handle for Lori and she's taken over tha inventory jobs and tha gun count from Andrea," He shook his head. "I don' see how she does it."
"Yeah, you're a lucky guy, Daryl." Rick muttered and Daryl glanced at him.
"Rick . . . Lori loves ya, ya know? She might not show it at times, but she does. And with ya baby on the way -"
"The baby ain't mine," Rick interrupted him with a slightly defeated sigh and Daryl, even though he already knew this, chose to play dumb.
"What d'ya mean tha baby ain' ya's?" Rick nodded.
"Before I returned to the group, she was in a relationship with Shane. The baby's his. She says it's not – that she knows it's mine, but . . ." He shook his head. "It's Shane's. I know deep in my gut that it is," He glanced at Daryl. "How do ya do it, man? How do ya keep that spark in your relationship with Tess?" Daryl wordlessly shook his head. That was the wrong question he was asking. The only reason Rick wasn't acting around Lori the way Daryl did around Tess was because of the simple reason that Rick knew the baby wasn't his. It had nothing to do with losing that 'spark', although Daryl supposed that could be part of the reason, but he doubted it was the full reason like Rick was deluding himself into believing. All Rick had to look forward to was the birth of his best friend's kid with his own wife. Daryl looked forward to the birth of his child with his girl. But how could Daryl tell him that? How could Daryl tell him that and not get punched afterwards?
Daryl answered with a weak shrug instead. "I . . ."
"Other than the fantastic sex, I mean." Rick quickly added with a smile and Daryl couldn't help but laugh at that.
"Actually, we've been so damn tired lately tha' we haven' even done tha'! Hell, we haven' made love in . . . God, nigh on three months now, I think? Since we left tha hotel, in fact . . ."
"At least she still wants you, though. Half the time, I think Lori would rather . . ." Rick replied before he stopped himself. He pursed his lips and trailed off then, his voice low and slightly bitter and Daryl glanced at him. He knew why he had stopped. He knew what had been on the tip of his tongue to say but that he had successfully bit back quickly enough before they could come.
Daryl heaved a sigh. "Look, I won' lie to ya, Rick. Me and Tess, we've been through our share of trials since she and Ethan came back. And I know I'm not exactly tha best relationship advisor ya have, but . . . hardships – they're natural, Rick. Hell, it's like raisin' kids and I know I'm not tha best advisor on tha' topic either, but from what I've experienced so far, it's hard but also oddly gratifying. I love Tess, Rick - we've known since we were kids tha' we'd get married and live together forever and have kids and tha whole happy family life. And tha' fact . . . I think tha fact of knowing tha' we've always been right for each other, has been one of tha things tha' has helped us keep our relationship alive, even through all this shit."
Rick smiled a small smile and chuckled. "You make it sound so easy, Daryl. Hell, I've never seen ya get that philosophical before."
Daryl grinned and chuckled in turn as he shook his head. "It ain' easy Rick – it ain' easy by a long Goddamn shot! And boy, I ain' stupid enough to think tha' it is! We jus' . . . we take it a day at a time, ya know? And I ain' gonna say tha' we hope it ends up all right by tha end of tha day, we jus' . . ." He shrugged again. "We jus' learn not to take each other for granted, tha's all. Maybe tha's what happened between ya and Lori . . . ya took each other for granted and tha's how ya lost tha spark." Rick grinned as they stepped onto a set of rundown train tracks.
"I never thought I'd see the day that Daryl Dixon would get philosophical on me." He grinned and Daryl shrugged again, his demeanor immediately changing to its normal gruff one.
"Yeah, well, don' get used to it. Ya were tha one who asked, remember?" Rick nodded, continuing to grin as Daryl's eyebrows furrowed in interest. "Now, ain' tha' a shame . . ." Daryl murmured as they walked along the train tracks for a while until they eventually came across what looked like an abandoned prison, its yard full of walkers.
Daryl, who had been standing in silence observing the structure spread out before them, immediately noticed when Rick had adopted a much lighter demeanor. He glanced over at his friend and immediately furrowed his eyebrows in confusion. "What's up?" Rick glanced at him, a grin spreading across his features.
"This is it," He told him, excitement in his voice. "This is where Lori and Tess will give birth!"
"How are they doin'?" Daryl asked as Tessa returned to their room later that night after settling in Seth and Wren into the adjacent room. Ethan had suggested that he stay with them, lest they feel ignored and Tessa had agreed. They knew Ethan too – they had grown up with him. It'd be good for them to catch up with an old friend.
Tessa grinned upon catching sight of the lit lamp sitting on the bedside table. "They're doing well. When I left, they were in a rather avid conversation with Ethan, so I chose not to disturb them." She nodded towards the lit lamp then. "And I take it that you and the guys found the generators?" Daryl nodded as he glanced at it and rubbed the back of his neck.
"Yeah, it wasn' too hard ta find. It was in tha basement like Seth said it was . . ." He told her before turning another twinkling gaze onto her. "We have showers too, if ya want one. Nice, warm water . . ." He told her and she grinned.
"And I suppose you were waiting for me to get back before you took yours?" She spoke, already moving to unzip her back and withdraw a couple of towels and her shampoo and body wash. Daryl gave a half-shrug as he got to his feet and moved over to her.
"Well, ya know . . . it'd be smart to conserve water . . ." He told her and Tessa nodded, one of her eyebrows arching in amusement.
"Oh yeah, and our romp in the showers at the CDC didn't immediately jump into your mind?" She joked and Daryl grinned as he moved in the direction of the bathroom. After cutting on the light and then the shower, she grinned when she heard his next words.
"Well, we've already done it in tha shower and since tha' already has been done before, I thought we'd keep tha shower pretty innocent. Shit gets borin' really quick if ya do tha same thing over and over again, ya know?" Tessa shrugged as she withdrew a pair of Daryl's boxers and an oversized shirt. She would be lying if she said she never thought she would be wearing her man's underwear pregnant, but considering they were the only things that fit now, she supposed they would have to do.
She heard him getting undressed in the next room and grinned when she heard the almost orgasmic groan he released at feeling the hot water. After stripping herself, she walked into the already misty bathroom. Daryl's back was to her, showing off that fabulous ass but it wasn't his ass that she was gazing at. As always when he was shirtless and had his back to her, her eyes were drawn to the horrible scars littering his torso, some even stretching a mean length across the broad expanse of skin. Her eyes became mournful as she stepped inside, her fingers gently finding the puckered, raised flesh of one of them. He immediately tensed and recoiled from her touch but calmed down slightly when her fingers left him and her lips connected with the scar instead.
"I despise him for what he done to you . . ." She murmured, her voice bitter and heard Daryl release a scoff of wry laughter then.
"Well he's dead and in tha ground now, so I suppose hangin' onto tha' hate is only bad for ya. And besides . . ." His tone grew quiet and somber then. "He didn' contribute to all of them, ya know."
"She did some of these too, didn't she?" She asked and he nodded.
"Yup. Not even ma old man had enough time in tha day to devote to scarrin' me this badly. And besides . . . she always had to one-up tha old man too." Tessa flinched at the imagery but recovered quickly.
"What was her name?"
"Marla. Merle's named pretty much after her."
"Was she pretty?" He gave another wry laugh then.
"Well, she could never hope to compare to ya, but then again, she wasn' exactly beaten with an ugly stick when she was a kid, either. So yeah, I suppose she was pretty when she was able to set down the bottle and doll herself up."
"What was she like?" Daryl gave another laugh.
"Why ya askin' so many questions 'bout ma childhood all of a sudden?" Tessa shrugged as her fingers gently skated across another scar.
"Just wondering . . ." She trailed off and when it was apparent that Daryl wasn't going to get anything further, he let out an irritated sigh.
"Well, first off, ya wouldn' have liked her and chances are, she wouldn' have liked ya either."
"Why?" Daryl tensed slightly at this.
"Ya were tha type of woman ma old man always went after . . . or tried to, anyway . . ." He told her and Tessa tensed as well, immediately dropping the subject at that moment. That was all she wanted to know about Daryl's mysterious mother for the moment.
They spent the rest of the time washing in silence, silently moving each other out of the way whenever they needed the water and when they were done, they stood there under the slightly cooling spray and held each other for a moment, finding that for once, they never wanted to let the other go. "If it's any consolation . . . ya ain' nothin' like her, Tess" He whispered to her. "Ya everythin' she wasn' . . . ya a great mother," His hand moved to her stomach. "I ain' worried none and neither should ya."
He reached for her and pulled her close to him then so that he could kiss her. He pulled her as close as he could get with her belly in the way, anyway -
No . . . no, it wasn't in the way, he found himself immediately correcting himself as she broke apart from him and cut off the shower. He watched her as she left the shower then and padded into the next room. He followed her after a moment, only to find her getting dressed. He watched for a moment before he started getting dressed as well. Her stomach - it was a part of her - an incredibly sexy part of her, too. He had found himself thinking about it many nights in bed and while on watch just letting his brain wander 'cause there was nothing else better to do. And not-to-mention, he also thought about it while he watched her do anything else that had her walking around, her thick black hair swishing against her back in its customary intricate white clip.
That belly of hers was hot as Hell, and was all his doing too!
Eventually, he let out a laugh as he took her hand and drug her back to him, where he kissed her again, his voice coming out guttural and thick. "Goddamnit if ya ain' sexy as a chocolate-covered sin, babydoll!" He spoke huskily and she immediately returned his grin with a laugh of her own as she moved closer to him, her arms moving around his neck as she did so. Tessa returned the grin as her fingers tightened in the fresh shirt that he had so recently put on. She raised her head to him slightly and lightly kissed the side of his neck, feeling his arms tighten around her as she did so. Her mouth trailed up and over his chin to his lips and it was then that her hand came up to cup the side of his face as she kissed him softly. Her other hand slipped under his shirt, relishing in the feel of his warm skin against her fingers and allowed the hairs on his abdomen play out in-between her fingers and allowed the pads to run across the puckered flesh of the numerous scars that littered his chest as well and which only made him end up kissing her harder. Her hand wandered up his chest, tweaking a nipple between the side of her finger and thumb and he groaned into her mouth and pulled her closer, his hand moving over the smooth roundness of her stomach. Pulling at the shirt seconds later, his hand finally reached soft skin.
With a grin on her face, she pushed him back, making him get off the bed. After he helped her sit up, he pulled his shirt off. Tessa leaned forward and ran her nose over the soft hairs around his navel before laying a kiss against his belly. Daryl brushed her hair back from her face and tipped her head so he could look at her eyes.
"Good Lord ya beautiful, babydoll . . .!" He told her, his voice coming out almost breathless as his hand brushed over her cheek and chin. Tessa smiled at him as she reached up for the buckle on his belt. He grabbed her wrists, stilling her movements before pulling back. He dropped her hands as he reached for her shirt, pulling it free from her frame. Once it was on the floor he kissed her softly, guiding her back down on the mattress, letting her shoulders and back rest against the scratchiness of the blanket underneath her. He lay next to her, his hands moving over her and stroking every inch of skin he could reach - memorizing every inch of her belly. In just a short little while, this would all be gone and their baby would be in the world with them. And he would miss her belly, he had to admit. Daryl wasn't lying when he said that he found it hotter than anything else he had ever seen on a woman before and that was probably because it was his, though - all his because he didn't have to dispute his claim like Rick did with Lori.
He sat up and kissed the side of her belly before letting his mouth drift back down to her chest. He took one nipple in his mouth, careful to not use his teeth. Most of her body had become super sensitive and didn't need the overstimulation of teeth. He had accidentally done it one night and he swore to God that the punch she landed on his arm had temporarily numbed it. She did gasp at the flick of his tongue, though, and arched her back off of the bed as one of her hands tightened in his still damp hair and as he led a trail of burning kisses to her other breast. His hands moved over her sides, around her belly. He trailed kisses down the smooth hill, over her extended navel and down to the waistband. His fingers hooked under the band of both the sweats and the shorts and tugged them down her legs until they were pooled around her ankles. Carefully he pulled them from her and tossed them to the side.
Daryl parted her legs and opened her to him as he moved between them. Carefully, he dragged a cheek up the inside of her right thigh, making her fingers tighten on the blanket. He slowed his movements as he approached her core, seemingly coming to a halt just millimeters from where she needed his touch the most. Placing a kiss to the apex between her thighs, Daryl placed his other cheek against her other thigh.
Tessa groaned in frustration as he moved his whiskered cheek further down to her knee. With one last peck on her knee cap, Daryl slid from the bed, gently guiding her hips over to the edge. He kneeled in front of her and encouraged her legs to rest on his shoulders, keeping the strain of their weight off her back. He leaned forward and pressed a kiss to the top of her core, slowly opening her up with his tongue, small little flicks until he grazed her nub, making her sigh and her hands to tighten on the bedding underneath her.
His thumbs gently opened her to his mouth and he smoothed his tongue along every inch of her delicate skin, relishing the taste of her - the feel of her. He loved the soft noises she was making as she was trying hard to keep quiet, though it wasn't exactly working. And not for the first time he wished they were somewhere where she could make all the noise she wanted and not in a place that echoed something awful!
Smiling against her, Daryl moved lower, delving his tongue deep inside her, enjoying the feel of her body clutching at him, trying to pull the muscle in - to keep it in place. Knowing what she needed, he replaced his tongue with his middle finger and curled it against her. He dragged it across that sensitive part of her and she immediately let out a small cry.
"Oh God. . ."
Her fingers white knuckled around the blanket and her breathing came out in shallow puffs of air - the echo of it and the soft noises he was making against her were all that could be heard. Feeling her body tighten, he sucked her nub into his mouth, flicking it with just the tip of his tongue, making her come hard around his finger. At least she had sense enough to grab a pillow so that she could muffle the whines and moans that immediately tore from her lips.
Gently he lowered her legs back down and helped her scoot back up until she was fully lying on the bed. Daryl smiled as he ran his callused hand down her leg until he reached the blood red polish on her toes. He grinned at the sight. Beth – he should have figured. The young girl was the only explanations for it, he was sure. Daryl gently stroked his fingers over her toes before he placed her foot on the bed.
She snuggled back into the pillow, her eyes half open as she watched him pull the remainder of his clothing off. As he moved to lie down beside her, Tessa turned to face the wall, letting him spoon her from behind. Shivers ran through her body as his warm breath skidded over her ear, his hand reaching up to brush her hair back. He laid a soft, lingering kiss on the side of her neck, making her sigh and close her eyes as his hand snaked under her arm, coming to rest on her stomach as he pressed his legs to the back of hers.
She relaxed into his embrace, enjoying the feel of his hands smoothing over her skin. She relished the feeling of being enveloped by him - every inch of her back pressed into his warm frame and suddenly, his hands seemed to be everywhere at once.
He shifted his hips slightly and gently pressed against her, his cock slowly entering her. She dipped her head forward and sighed as he slid in fully. Her fingers tangled with his over her stomach as he achingly moved behind her, sending her head spinning with the almost languid pace he was setting.
Tessa's heart was going to burst, she knew it! She felt so completely wrapped in Daryl that it was almost heady. He was a man of few words, but the way he was moving behind her, the soft, gentle pull of his cock - the feel of his hands over her skin . . . she knew what he was saying, and her heart ached because of it.
His lips met her neck and trailed down her shoulder, the scratch of his stubble against her skin making her sigh and whine. Tessa pulled his fingers up to her mouth, sucking the tip of one finger between her lips, her tongue dancing over the rough skin. Her teeth grazed the digit and Daryl pressed his forehead to her shoulder blade, his hip driving a little harder into her, small gasps floating to her ears now.
She pressed back against him, letting his hand drop from her mouth. His arm draped across her chest, and hooked around her ribs, anchoring her against him as his movements became deliberately shallow and adopting a hard stroking. Her fingers dug into his arm, gripping it as she felt her body start to tremble around him. She bit her bottom lip as she moved with him, her hips stumbling a second before her world burst around her.
As she blinked through the fog in her brain, both of them from sated lust and exhaustion, Tessa felt a sheet being drawn over her - over them. She turned and snuggled against Daryl's warmth, her head on his shoulder, her hand across his stomach as she felt his breathing even out, ghosting through her hair. He kissed her head, and tightened his arms around her. "Night . . ." He whispered.
"Night . . ." She mumbled in turn against his skin. Tessa's hand settled over his heart, the steady rise and fall of his chest comforting her and luring her into a deep sleep. "I love you."
Daryl shifted sleepily, his face burying in her hair. "I love ya too, babydoll . . ." He whispered, before finally drifting to sleep.
