"I can't sleep." Beth whispered into the darkness. Daryl had been on the precipice between awake and asleep, and her voice had dragged him back awake. His eyes were still adjusting.

"Jus' try harder," he grumbled.

"I don't want to sleep." she restated, turning her head to look at him. "I don't want to have another nightmare, Daryl. I'm tired of seein' my daddy as a walker. I'm tired of seein' Maggie and Glenn dead. Tired of watchin' walkers get you."

"You dream 'bout me?"

"I'm scared of you leaving me…" she admitted, her voice barely above a whisper.

"I ain't goin' anywhere, sweetheart. I ain't leavin' you alone." he promised.

"Daryl?"

"Yeah?"

"Why did you kiss me this morning?" Shit. He'd been waiting for this, and hoping she wouldn't ask. He didn't reply. "Would you… kiss me again?" Now that surprised him.

"Beth, you don't know what you're sayin'." he said, sitting up. His eyes were finally completely adjusted. "You're just a kid. I got ten years on you."

Now it was Beth's turn to sit up.

"I'm not just a kid. I told you before, I'm almost nineteen. And in this hell, nobody's just a kid, even if they wanna be." She put her hand on his arm, and he flinched it away. "Look, you're annoying as hell, and a little rough around the edges. But you have a good heart, and you've been keeping me safe. I'm not saying I'm in love with you or anything crazy like that. When you kissed me, I've never felt anything like that in my whole life. It doesn't have to mean anything; but… I need you to be more than my protector."

Daryl was speechless.

"So please… kiss me?" He hesitated. "Please?" Her eyes shone even in the darkness, and Daryl found himself leaning in until his lips found hers.

This wasn't like their first kiss. It wasn't harsh and demanding. Rather, he was tender and gentle, as if she might break in his arms if he wasn't careful. She tasted sweet, which completely baffled him since they'd finished the pie filling before leaving in the SUV. It was borderline intoxicating.

His head was still screaming at him to stop, but for once, he shut it off and just felt. He felt her hands on his chest. He felt her move closer to him. He felt her body heat radiating. He felt his cock twitch with anticipation.

He guided her into his lap, wrapping his arms around Beth's waist, keeping her firmly in place as his tongue swept over her bottom lip. She moaned softly, and the sound went straight to his manhood. Beth's fingers found the hem of his shirt and slowly began pulling it off of him.

"If mine goes, yours goes with it," he told her huskily as she yanked it totally off.

"Go for it," she whispered back, gesturing to it. He slipped it off her in a flash, and sucked in breath at the sight of her half naked in front of him. He swore it was even better than his dreams, and he hadn't even taken her bra (a teasingly sexy black lace thing, a beautiful juxtaposition of her milky white skin) off yet.

But Daryl wanted to go at a pace comfortable for Beth, and wouldn't push her any farther than she wanted to go. His mouth was back on hers, kissing deeper than before. He was rusty; it'd been so long since he'd kissed anyone.

He felt her swing her leg over so that she was straddling him, her hands on his shoulders to steady herself. They were cold, but he barely noticed as she rotated her hips on top of him. It was all he could do to stop himself from tearing their clothes to bits and taking her right then.

"You doin' that on purpose, sweetheart?" he asked. She looked at him quizzically.

"Doin' what?" Daryl groaned. Beth was so completely unaware of what her body was doing to him, so innocent to how she was driving him mad with want.

"Nothin'." He went to kiss her once more but she stopped him.

"Am I doing somethin' wrong?" she asked, her voice laced with concern and embarrassment.

"Jesus, Mary, and Joseph, no!" he exclaimed. "You're jus' perfect, tha's all."

Beth snorted. "You're just sayin' that."

Daryl shook his head before placing his lips at the base of her throat, suckling softly.

"Hnnnn," she sighed, as he trailed down her cleavage. "D'you wanna take my bra off, or should I do it myself?"

"You ever gone this far with anyone, sweetheart?" he probed. She shook her head.

"Never wanted to before now…" He reached around and unhooked the bra and let the straps slide down her shoulders. She tossed it off the bed.

Daryl swore as he looked at her. Far better than his dreams, he thought as he swept his thumb over her nipple, causing her to shudder. He leaned in and took it into his mouth, his tongue grazing over it. He relished each and every moan that slipped from her lips.

"Oh, my gosh," she said, digging her nails into his skin as he greeted her other breast. Daryl couldn't imagine anything on this earth sweeter than the feeling of her perky breast in his mouth. "Daryl, that feels amazin'."

Encouraged by her words, he lifted Beth up and laid her down on the bed, his fingers hooked into the waistband of her pants, swiftly pulling them down her legs and in a pile on the ground. Then he proceeded to ghost his hands over her tummy, so very flat and taut as she lay on the bed. He took that moment to watch her expression; she was staring at him, mouth slightly ajar and smiling at him.

"I wanna try somethin'." he said, slipping his fingers into the delicate lace waist of her panties (which matched the bra, much to Daryl's arousal). "I ain't never done this before."

"Done what, Daryl?" she asked. He gauged her expression as he answered.

"Gone down on a woman before."

Beth smirked. "So you finally admit I'm a woman."

"That's all you got to say, sweetheart?" Daryl asked, shaking his head.

"Were you lookin' for permission?" Beth questioned. "If you really need permission: go ahead."

Without another word, Daryl dragged her panties down her legs before running his hands back up them. They were so soft, so smooth against his calloused hands. Carefully, he dragged her down to the edge of the mattress, sitting on his knees as he placed kisses along her inner thigh. The sight of her netherlips, already slick for him, caused his cock to completely harden.

He brought his hand up and pushed one single digit into her tightness, savoring the gasp and subsequent moan of pleasure from Beth.

"You're a sight for sore eyes, sweetheart," he murmured into her thigh as he began to move his finger, slipping it out and then back in, slowly, teasingly.

"Daryl, don't ever stop, please," Beth's voice was hitched and high pitched. He watched as her chest rose and fell, those perfect breasts along with it. If he loved the sounds she was already making, those were nothing compared to when he finally kissed her, in her most private of places.

Beth couldn't believe this was actually happening. She had never felt more comfortable around any man before, and here she was, completely naked and spread for Daryl Dixon. It was the most exhilarating thing she could ever imagine.

Of course, she'd touched herself before, but even orgasms she'd brought about herself didn't compare to the feeling of just being touched by Daryl. And then, sweet Jesus, when he ran his tongue up her slit, she thought she would burst with pleasure.

"Oh, Daryl," she moaned, her toes curling. His mouth focused on her bundle of nerves, so sensitive and raw. She felt Daryl flick his tongue out on it as he pressed a second finger inside her. She felt a familiar sensation running through her body. "So close… I'm gonna—" Beth didn't have time to finish, because she finished.

Her forehead was beaded with sweat, despite the temperature of the air. She watched and whimpered as he licked his fingers clean of her wetness. He crawled back up the length of her body and kissed her deeply, letting her taste herself on her tongue. She felt as though she may die in delight.

Beth could feel his hard member against her lower stomach, straining against the confines of his jeans. She trailed her hands timidly down his chest and toned, glorious abs, until she found the button. She was about to undo it when she felt his hand over hers, stopping her.

"Just wait, sweetheart." he said kissing her forehead and propping himself up on his arm beside her. "Don't go getting' ahead of yourself. You don' wanna rush into somethin' like that. You should wait 'til it means somethin' to ya."

Beth rolled onto her side and looked him right in the eyes.

"It does mean somethin' to me, Daryl. I would've never even asked you to kiss me if it didn't." He didn't reply, only broke her gaze and stared out into the vast darkness of the barn. "I understand if you don't wanna… I'm not experienced in anything, an' it probably wouldn't be any good anyhow." She turned and pulled the sheets over her naked body.

"What in the world gave you the idea tha' I don' want to?" Daryl articulated the last two words, putting his hand on Beth hip and rolling her back over onto her back. "Sweetheart, I want to. What I don't want is makin' love to you and then havin' you regret it in the mornin' when you come to your senses about me."

"I'm not gonna regret anything, and I'm not changing my mind about you. Damn it, Daryl Dixon, you're stuck with my affection. It isn't goin' anywhere." she told him adamantly. He leaned down and kissed her again.

"I ain't leavin' you, neither. Promise," Daryl replied in her ear. She beamed.

"Good. Now, take off your pants. You're overdressed." Beth could hardly believe she was being so bold; the prospect of sex did incredible things. And he'd called it making love. It was more than sex for him, too. Once Daryl had removed his pants and boxers, she glanced down. He was huge. Beth supposed she hadn't expected anything less, but her imagination could not have prepared her for this.

"Wow," she said, feeling her cheeks turn red. To quell her embarrassment, Daryl kissed her softly on the lips. She was unsure what exactly to do, so Daryl, seemingly sensing that, guided her hand down to wrap around his member. He groaned when her fingers connected, and swore when she began to move her hand up and down slowly.

"You have no idea how good that feels, sweetheart," he said. She giggled.

"Actually, I'm pretty sure I do," she reminded him. He chuckled as well, and then inhaled sharply as she swept her thumb over his head. He reached down and removed her hand from around him, leaving Beth once again looking quizzically at him.

"Don't wanna come undone just yet… Beth, I don't have nothin' by means of… protection." Daryl told her. Beth's cheeks grew hot once more.

"Well, um, I… do." she admitted, swinging her legs off the bed and gliding over to her backpack, where she began to rummage through it before pulling the box from the front pocket.

"Why do you have those, sweetheart?" he questioned as she sauntered back over to the bed.

"Just in case," she responded simply, handing it to Daryl. "Found them in the top drawer in the girl's room."

"I ain't complainin'," he told her as he pulled one from the box and tearing it open. Beth looked away, still mildly embarrassed, as he rolled it onto his member.

Daryl put his hands on her waist and pulled her close to him. He layed her down on the bed before positioning himself on top of her. She could feel him pressing against her thigh, hard and ready.

"It's probably gonna hurt, sweetheart," he told her. Beth nodded. She held her breath as he slowly guided himself inside her. She gasped as he stretched her, inch by inch, until she felt full. There was pain, but it eventually dissipated into unfathomable pleasure. He didn't move again until Beth nodded her head. She placed her hands on his shoulders, bracing herself as he pulled out, and then back in. The pace was slow, almost tortuously so, but if he went any faster, Beth knew it would be too much. She was grateful for his self-control; a lesser man wouldn't have been able to contain himself, she thought.

And he wasn't fucking her. He was making love to her. Daryl was her salvation. Without him, she'd be dead many times over. But he hadn't just saved her life… he'd saved her humanity. She'd never have been able to cope with watching her daddy die, and being separated from Maggie and Judith without him. She needed him, and Beth suspected he needed her too.

"You can go a little faster, Daryl," she whispered. Instead, Beth found herself straddling him, their positions flipped before she'd had a chance to process it. He was so quick. "I—I need a little help."

Daryl's hands secured to her hips, and lifted her up and down with relative ease. This new angle made Beth see stars, and soon she was moving on her own, impaling herself over and over again on his hard cock. It didn't take long for her to come undone once more, with Daryl following soon after. Their moans mixed with each other's, and Beth collapsed on his chest, feeling his heart beat wildly.

"Shit, sweetheart," he said, still panting. "That was incredible." Beth could only nod in response. After a minute of rest, he helped her untangle herself from him. He slipped the condom off and let it fall off the side of the bed. Daryl pulled his boxers back on before dragging Beth's still naked body into his and covering them with the sheets.

"Toldja sleeping together would help keep us warm," she teased, yawning.

"Go to sleep, Beth. I'm here; you're safe. No nightmare is gonna scare you again." he whispered in her ear. She sighed and felt sleep's hold pull her from consciousness.

Before she fell asleep, Beth was certain she heard Daryl murmur, "Shit, I think I love you."

HOLY SHEEEEEEEEEET! I can't even believe I got through that whole chapter. I hope it's everything you guys have been waiting for… I sort of realized, since I've never actually had sex before, I'd be useless writing smut. I thought very seriously about changing this to a T rating and hiding in shame, but then I remembered all my lovelies that have been reading and reviewing, and I just didn't want to let you down.

PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE tell me what you think in the form of a review. I don't know if I'll be able to update in the next few days because I'll be super busy doing stuff irl, so give me a present of (double the amount of) reviews for when I update again Monday night?

Thankyouguysallsomuch!