'Daryl?' Carol said.

Daryl sat there starring at her and Rick. 'Some fucken greeting!'

'Welcome home you fuckhead,' Rick growled at him, turning Carol away pushing her away into the lounge. Joey was asleep against Merles Chest, sick, hot, flushed face. Merle was stroking his head. Carol nodded her head to the door for him to follow her. Merle put him into her bed. She bent over to tuck him in.

'I'ma sorry babe, I know you don't like me fighting,' Merle hugged her kissing her neck, 'I saw him and saw red,' The beer Merle had been drinking was quickly wearing off due to his nephew being sick and the arrival of Daryl. He was confused. He had felt safe in his relationship with Carol, and with Rick and now Daryl was back he would fuck it all up. Daryl would go nuts when he found out both Rick and he were fucking Carol.

'I know I don't blame you he left without a word, you can't fight in front of Joey,' Carol whispered, she rubbed his back hoping to calm him, and to calm her. Carol's heart was still pounding from looking into his eyes. She knew she shouldn't be feeling this way, she never stopped loving him, but she also loved Merle and Rick. She wasn't giving that up because Daryl chose to come home and upset the apple cart.

Rick come to the door, 'I think you better come, he's cut pretty bad, you might need to stitch him a little,'

'Oh my god... Get my kit,' Carol told them. She was a nurse at the local hospital, she could deal with minor stitching but anything more she would have to take him to the hospital. Daryl was sitting at the table with a cloth pressed up against his head. He looked at her as she sat down.

'Rick can you sit with Joey?' Carol asked Rick, he nodded leaving the room. Before he left he gave Merle a look not to leave them alone together. He didn't want Daryl saying anything to her without one of them being with her. Merle was in the process of cleaning up the floor and the mess in the kitchen. Trying to get all the glass so Joey wouldn't get cut walking across the floor. He didn't want Daryl working his Carol magic either.

'Let me look,' She asked him quietly, he looked at her with the same eyes Joey gave her when he was hurting. He pulled off the cloth making a wincing noise because of the pain, he now was sporting a bit of a headache. Her heart leaped looking at him.

'Merle, get him some pain meds,' Carol directed Merle. Merle was looking, 'In the top, up high, on the left.'

Daryl was starring at her, taking her all in directing Merle confidently, he still hadn't said one word to her, not one word. Carol was dabbing away the blood trying to dry it. He didn't need to go to hospital but he could get away with sticky stitches not needle ones.

'Hold still,' Carol stood up leaning into him tilting his head to the light as she pulled his skin together. He winced with the pain, of the cuts. She fixed it up. 'Anything else?'

He pointed to one on his neck, he undid his shirt a bit and she dabbed at it. Sticking a plaster on it. Merle come and stood by with a glass of water and two pain meds in his hands. He put his hand on the back of Carol neck and rubbed it slightly starring at Daryl. Daryl was starring back, he watched Merle's hands on Carol. She didn't seem bothered at all by his touch.

'Here,' He grunted. Daryl threw them down his throat.

'Where the fuck you been Daryl... Rick and Shane have gone through everything trying to find you...you just disappeared,' Merle growled.

'Got a job on a oil rig... been at sea for a few years before that been working as a farm hand,' Daryl back, sucking in his teeth when she dabbed his sore cuts with sterile wipes.

'Why you come back after so long?' Merle asked him.

'Run into that Glenn Rhee from school ...he told me ... he told me I had a kid!' Daryl stared at Carol. 'Do I?'

Daryl's voice was hard as nails, Carol was shocked that Glenn had opened his big mouth to tell Daryl that when he saw Daryl. Glenn always was a gossip. Ugh it was such a mess. She just stood there in in PJ's starring at him at his question then Rick come into the room carrying Joey. She nodded her head to confirm his question.

'He's really really hot, he's sweating, is he supposed to be sweating like this?' Rick looked at Carol frantic Carol was up peeling him off Rick, his shirt was soaked. Merle appeared out of no where with the forehead temp taker. Carol was stripping him off to his singlet. His temp was high not so high she felt she needed to race him to the hospital. Rick came back with the baby pain meds for Carol to give him.

Merle made a bed up on the couch for him to lie on with cotton sheets underneath and on top of him. The men knew the drill, they worked like a well oiled machine, Daryl looked interested in what was going on, moving across to sit on a chair near the little boy who was sweating under a cotton sheet, he reached out to put his hand on his head to feel it. Merle gave him a glare, Daryl touched him anyway.

Rick come out handing out coffee to everyone. Carol sat beside Joey stroking his head. Rick found himself a seat between her legs staking his claim before Merle did. He didn't want Daryl coming back in thinking he had rights to anymore than Joey. He missed that ship well and truly.

Daryl was starring at Rick. Looking from Merle to Rick to the little boy. He scratched his head looking at everyone.

'What the fuck is going on here?' Daryl growled at everyone.

'Fuck you mean Daryl?' Merle growled.

'Shhhh Merle, language... Joey's right here,' Rick told Merle from the floor.

'I mean what is going on here!... You... Him... Her, I'm not fucken stupid something's going on!' Daryl looked at them all.

'I'm taking Joey to bed now... I'll talk with you in the morning Daryl, there is bedding in the hall cupboard, Merle put his gear in the spare room,' Carol bid everyone goodnight. Rick stood up. Nodded goodnight as well leaving Merle with Daryl. Rick bent down scoping up Joey and the cotton sheets to take him to put in Carol's bed so she could keep an eye on him through the night.

Rick placed him on the side on the bed tucking him in. Kissing his head.

'I'm sorry for fighting,' Rick pulled Carol to him. 'I just don't wana lose you... us you know, even Merle. I'm ok with what we got... I don't want ya going back to Daryl. I just saw him and knew he might try take you and Joey away from me.'

Carol kissed him. 'I'm not going back to Daryl. He left me a long time ago... I love you, I love Merle,'

'Yeah but you know Daryl, he's going to think your still his!' Ricks words come at her neck.

'Yeah well if, just if I decide I might want him... you three are going to have to work that out on the calender, I'm not giving up what I have, I don't want to,' Carol giggled, and Rick chuckled.

'You could handle three guys?' Rick muttered.

'I can handle you and Merle, I'm not running back to Daryl,' Carol told him, he tapped her bum and walked out of the room pulling the door behind him leaving her to settle Joey.

There was a tap at her door, she opened it knowing it would be Daryl.

'He ok?' He asked, Carol looked at the bed.

'He's sick, he should be ok, I'm going to keep an eye on him through the night,' Carol told him he walked in to look at him, he turned and looked at her.

'I didn't know, I didn't know about him... I found out 2 day's ago and come straight here,' Daryl told her. She just stood there nodding.

'I know Daryl, but you just left, you didn't look back or call, that's going to be really hard to forgive,' Carol looked at him, she was tired. She was drained, she climbed into the bed. 'I'll talk to you in the morning!'

'Can I ask you something?' Daryl asked. Carol nodded.

'Are you fucking Rick or Merle or both of them?' Daryl asked, he wasn't stupid, he knew her, even 5years down the track looking paying attention he knew she was fucking both of them, he knew, and she knew he knew.

'Both!' She whispered, 'Its not like that though, I love them, they love me... They been there for Joey from the moment he was born.'

'Where does that leave me?' Daryl whispered stroking the boys head.

'Maybe you should have thought about that when you walked out never coming back,' Carol told him. She had a lump in her throat. She couldn't stand it. She loved him, she always had but she wasn't giving up what she had to make him happy. 'Work it out with Rick and Merle, I will decide if I will take you too...Your going to have to prove that your worth it though.'