A/N: Thank you so much to everyone who gave me feedback on this in all forms, I love you all. Thank you for giving this little story a chance. xxoxo

Daryl didn't want it to end. He wanted more time with her but they were already at the car rental place. He drove as slowly as possible and they talked the whole time. Before he knew it they were there and she was starting to say goodbye. He didn't want to say good bye to her yet.

He needed to do something, but he didn't know what. He wasn't the type of guy to mack on every girl he met but he wasn't a virgin either, and she was different, very different from other girls.

But he had thought she was married all this time and didn't think there was any chance, maybe now there was a small chance.

He hoped so as he looked around desperate to start a conversation about anything.

They sat in the truck in front of the car rental place and Daryl noticed a tattoo on her lower arm by her wrist. He hadn't seen that before. It was of a butterfly in flight and the words love in the tail wind. She always wore long sleeves and he figured that was a work prop too.

She didn't show her arms at work for a few reasons he figured, least of all because of the tattoo probably.

It was colorful and beautiful.

He had tattoos but not everyone was as accepting as he was. This girl was a mystery to him and he loved that. If she had one tattoo, chances were she had more and he wanted to find every one of them. He was lost in that thought for a moment, thoughts of touching her skin and being able to look at her filling his head and making him dizzy with longing. This wasn't the first time he thought about her, but he knew he had to speak before she got out. He could go home and jerk off later. Priorities.

Right now he had to step up his game before he was sent down to the minors.

"Nice ink." He said pointing at her wrist.

"Oh, thanks." She said smiling a little, he could tell that outside of work, she was shy and reserved. When she was being a nurse and helping people she spoke with knowledge and authority, in the nicest of ways. But outside of that realm, she was a little shy and it was adorable.

She pulled her sleeve up farther to reveal several other butterfly tattoos trailing up towards her shoulder as if they were flying up her arm. Daryl had never seen anything like that. They looked like they were going to take flight right off her arm, and so colorful.

"Those are beautiful."

"Thanks, I have more elsewhere." She grinned slowly, with a little bit of mischief there he noticed.

"So do I." He said rolling his eyes, he wanted to know where each one of those tattoos was in the worst way now. "Elsewhere."

He looked around the truck and the air was thick outside and making him sweat. He rolled the window down more because there was no air conditioning in the truck and he wished to God there was some.

He was dying, he wanted to talk to her all day long. He wanted to see the other tattoos, but he knew this needed to go slow. Somehow he knew already that a gift had just been dropped into his lap and he needed to be patient. Good things came to those who waited.

"Does it mean anything?" He asked, trying to draw her out. "Girl's ink usually means something. What are the butterflies to you?"

"Hm?" She said.

"The tattoo with the words, love?" He said. "You don't have to tell me, I'm just being nosy, trying to keep you from going so soon."

He grinned at her and she smiled back like she wasn't so shy after all. She turned towards him in the truck and tucked her leg under her very fine ass.

"It's for 'To write love on our arms' for my sister, for suicide prevention." Molly explained.

"She?" He asked, afraid to say it, but he could tell that what he thought was true. Molly had suffered a terrible loss.

Then she nodded. "Yes, she did. We were twins."

"I'm sorry Molly."

"She's with our parents, I believe that, it makes it better to think of it like that." She said nodding her head as if that would make her believe it. "It's an organization 'To write love on our arms' that I volunteer at now."

Of course she volunteered, she was perfect after all, in his eyes. Again he got lost in thoughts of her, he never thought he would see her again after his father was discharged from home care. He had to admit if he saw a Jag pass him on the road he always looked to see if it was her. It never was, until today.

"Christine was hers first, my sister Claudia left her to me, I know she's falling apart but I can't give her up, you know?"

"Don't worry about Christine, Axel is gonna fix the tranny and give me the bill."

"No, Daryl, I know that's expensive."

"And I can afford it, and furthermore, my father would kick my ass if I didn't help you." He said. "You want to cross my father."

She giggled. "No, I guess not."

"You have any brothers or…" He asked wanting to know more about her and wanting confirmation that she wasn't all alone in the world. "Cousins."

"Just me and a parrot that won't talk." She laughed. "His name is pretty boy and he's an asshole."

He laughed along with her, she was so different when she wasn't wearing her nurse hat, so to speak. He didn't think he had ever heard her say a bad word. His vocabulary was very colorful and would be shocking to her he was sure.

Maybe he could work on that, curb his language, if given the right motivation.

"And my two roommates Tara and Alisha, they're nurses too at the hospital on main street." She said. "Any way I don't want to take up any more of your time Daryl."

He couldn't blow this he needed to speak up, give himself a birthday present and go for it for once.

"I'm the boss Molly, I don't punch a clock."

"But."

"Do you want some ice cream?" He asked her pointing to the ice cream stand across the street. "I feel bad that I brought up your family and made you sad."

"I'm ok, Daryl." She said as she got out of the truck and he was walking around to her side. "You don't have to make up for me not having a brother."

"Oh believe me." He said walking closer to her, channeling every bit of bravery he could pull out of himself. "I don't want to be your brother."

She was still standing against the car when he got to her. He looked into her green eyes and tried to decide if this was a good idea and then she looked up at him.

Her eyes were bright and sparkling at him, the sun was behind her lighting her hair, making her more beautiful by the minute.

He was in deep shit.

Even if it was a bad idea he couldn't find a reason not to do this.

"You don't?" She asked.

"No." He said standing in front of her. "I don't."

And then he leaned down and kissed her softly. He wanted to touch her and kiss her more but they were in the middle of a parking lot.

"Come on, it's my birthday, I need some ice cream." He said taking her hand and she allowed him to.

"Ok, then, I'm buying."

"No you're not." He said as they crossed the highway and ran to the ice cream stand.

/

They sat together on a picnic table next to the ice cream stand eating their ice cream cones and talking into the afternoon. It was his thirty seventh birthday and she was turning thirty-five in June. She told him more about her roommates and he was telling her about Merle who was due home soon on leave.

They talked about the books he had read since she had seen him last. She asked him if he had seen 'Shawshank Redemption' since they had both read the story.

He hadn't, she had many times.

His cellphone rang for the fourth time and he showed her the screen. It was his father and he answered it this time.

"Hello, what? I'm late, really? No I'm having ice cream with Molly, yeah that Molly and I won't be back, I'm taking her back to my place."

He held the phone out so she could hear his father yelling "Don't you fucking dare Daryl."

"See ya in a few Dad."

And he hung up laughing and she was too. His father was pissed off.

"I know I probably shouldn't rile him up so much, but I couldn't resist. You're like his little princess." He said. "He likes you a lot."

"I like him too."

They were silent for a few beats, eating their ice cream.

"So are you?" She asked.

"Am I what?" He looked over at her and the expression on her face almost made him drop the rest of his ice cream. He sucked in his breath a little bit because her stare was going right through him. As if she could see into his soul.

"Taking me back to your place?" Her eyes were on fire and he wanted her so badly, he would have picked her up and carried her back to his apartment. But she was worth so much more than that.

She was giving him the opportunity, all he had to do was take it and he couldn't, not today. Even if it was his birthday. He wasn't fucking it up by moving too fast, not this time, not with this girl.

So he shook his head. "Nope."

She actually looked disappointed. Then she reached into her pocket and took out a pen.

"That's a pity." She said taking his hand and writing her phone number on the palm of his hand, then she brought it to her lips and kissed his palm. "Call me."

She said and she got up to walk across the street to rent her car, leaving him dumbfounded and staring at his hand.