A/N Thank you all so much! I appreciate your nice reviews/comments, and mostly just taking the time to read the story. Let's see how the first meeting between Carl and Beth goes...

Seeing Rick early Monday mornings always started her week off right. Today though, well today he had Carl with him. Beth recognized him right away from pictures Rick had shown her.

He was a nice looking young boy, and obviously excited to be in the bakery. Rosita, being the smart ass that she could be, hollered to her, "Beth could you help the Sheriff? I have to get something in the back."

Beth knew better, there wasn't anything in the back, except the alley.

"Good morning Sheriff, and good morning to you too," She smiled at him and then the boy. She was trying to be cool, but she was sure it wasn't working. "What can I get you gentlemen today?"

"Beth Greene, I'd like you to meet my son, Carl Grimes," before she could speak the boy shyly held out his hand to shake, "It's nice to meet you Ms Greene." It was obvious he'd been well-schooled on how to behave.

"It's very nice to meet you Carl, and please call me Beth." Beth saw his cheeks turn pink, which was perfect, because she knew hers were too. They had at least one thing in common.

Rick smiled at her broadly and she returned that smile. She did wonder what he was up to, he hadn't told her he'd be bringing Carl in, she hadn't expected this at all.

"I'd forgotten Carl has a dental appointment this morning, I thought I'd get him something nice and sugary so the dentist could earn his money," He smiled at his joke, "I'll have my usual Beth, thank you. Carl, how about you?"

"May I please have one of those giant cinnamon rolls and a cup of hot chocolate?" He looked at her shyly. He was just so sweet and well-mannered.

"That sounds delicious Carl, and I just got those cinnamon rolls done 20 minutes ago, they're nice and fresh, just for you." She smiled at him and then asked Rick. "Do you want to eat these here? I see the little table in the corner is available."

"I think that's a great idea Beth, thank you. You probably just saved me a major car clean-up." She wished he wouldn't smile like that it got her so distracted. Oh not really, she could look at that smile everyday forever.

She brought their pastries and drinks to the table and Rick spoke, "Thanks Beth, this is great." Carl quickly added, "Thank you."

Then just like it was not one of the biggest deals of her life, Rick casually said to the boy, "Son, Beth is going to have lunch with you and I this Saturday. Won't that be nice?"

Carl was so interested in the cinnamon roll and hot chocolate, Beth doubted he knew she was still standing there, "Yeah, sure that sounds great."

Rick smiled and shrugged his shoulders and she just smiled back. She looked forward to asking him what this little "pre introduction" was all about.

She didn't have to wait long. He came back by the bakery at lunch and asked her if she could get away for a few minutes. They sat in his car and he immediately began to explain, "I'm sorry Beth, I swear I didn't mean to blindside you that way. I really had forgotten about him having a dentist appointment this morning, lucky he reminded me. Then while I was getting my shoes on he announced, 'Dad, I know you go to the bakery every morning, I think it's only fair if you take me today, I never get to go.' What could I tell him, 'No my lady friend works there and you don't get to meet her until Saturday'? Anyway Beth, I'm so sorry, are you mad?" He took her hand and was relieved she didn't pull away.

She took a deep breath, "No I understand now, I just for the life of me couldn't figure out what you were doing, I couldn't imagine you bringing him by without giving me some sort of warning."

He looked guilty as he pursed his lips and nodded his head, and she continued, "But I thought he was just so sweet, and oh my he's as handsome as his Daddy."

He had a relieved smile when he told her, "Well the feeling must be mutual. He told me you're very pretty and the best cook he knows. Then he asked me why you were going to lunch with us. It seemed like the perfect opening so I told him we'd been dating. Guess what he said?"

She gave a nervous laugh, "I have no idea, tell me."

"He told me, 'Well that's good Dad you need a girlfriend, especially one who can cook.'" And now they both laughed.

"Now that I've recovered from the surprise of it all, I'm glad this happened Rick. It's a nice icebreaker, that should help make lunch less awkward. I do have something I want to talk to you about too."

"Sure, what?" He was just happy she wasn't angry.

"Well, after Carl and I see each other a few more times, and hopefully become friends, do you think you two could come out to the farm sometime and meet my family? We all have dinner together every Sunday." He could tell how nervous she was.

"Sure Beth, I'd be honored to meet your family, and I think Carl would love the chance to visit a farm." He actually felt uncomfortable as hell about meeting them, but he didn't feel the need to share that honesty with her. He knew as serious as he felt about her he had to meet them. It was just that, well shit, she was so young, he had 12 years on her, he was a damn cradle robber. And then there was Carl. He loved Carl more than anything, but he could see how the parents of a 22 year old woman might be hesitant about their daughter dating an older man with a child. Still he knew it was the right thing to do, and if he wanted this thing with her to be long term, he had to make the commitment and the effort.

They went for their Tuesday walk and were holding hands as they strolled through the park. He mentioned that Dale and Erma had asked to have Carl spend the night Saturday, "They get a little lonely, you know just the two of them. Carl is like the grandchild they'll never have, and they're like the grandparents he doesn't have. It's tough for me to ever say no to Carl spending time with them."

"I think that's so nice Rick, it seems like a good thing for everyone involved. You and Carl are very lucky to have them, and they're very lucky to have you two."

"I was wondering, since Carl's going to be occupied, if you'd like to go out Saturday evening? There's a guy singing at the West Room, he's pretty good." He gave her a hopeful smile. Damn, she was like a drug, the more time he spent with her, the more time he wanted to spend with her.

"That would be nice Rick, I'll look forward to it." She always got so shy when he asked her out, you'd think it was the first time. He found it charming, but then he found everything about her charming.

Now that Carl had met Beth, Rick had been very open with him about the situation. He didn't think it was fair or particularly wise to hold back. He'd told him how much he cared for Beth and that he really wanted her in their lives. He was happy to see that Carl seemed nonchalant about the whole thing, but still Rick felt the need to continue explaining himself. This was all new territory for him and he hadn't been sure exactly how to handle it. Finally Carl looked at him, in that semi-disgusted preteen way, and said, "Geez okay Dad I get it. Don't you think I know about dating and stuff? Half my friends' parents are either divorced and dating, or divorced and married again. I was starting to think you were a weirdo or something, you never go out with anyone. I'm glad you picked a nice girl, and she's pretty. Now let's go get her so we can eat, I'm starving." What could Rick do but smile and nod?

They pulled up in front of Beth's building and went to her apartment. She handed Carl a pink bakery box and said, "I baked these just for you Carl, mini cinnamon rolls, I hope you enjoy them."

"Wow, thanks Beth! Dad can I have one now?"

"Not until you eat your lunch, and can I tell you both that I'm pretty jealous right now? Beth when was the last time you presented me with a box of delicious baked goods? Oh that's right, never." He was trying to act so serious, so hurt, but he wasn't fooling anyone.

He and Beth had agreed they'd have Carl pick the restaurant, and she was surprised he chose Chinese food. It just didn't seem like something a young boy would pick, she'd expected burgers and milkshakes.

All week she'd thought a lot about what she'd talk to Carl about. She wanted to engage him in conversation, but she didn't want to just ask a lot of questions, seem like she was grilling him. Well she shouldn't have worried, Carl was the one with the questions.

Mostly he questioned her about the farm, especially the animals. By the time they got to the fortune cookies they'd talked about cows, horses, chickens and goats. That's when he surprised her and Rick, "Gosh I sure would like to see all those animals. Do you think my Dad could bring me over sometime?"

"I'd love that Carl, and if your Dad says it's okay, maybe I could saddle up some horses and we could take a little ride, would you like that?"

"Please Dad, PLEASE can we? That would be so much fun! C'mon Dad!" He was tugging at Rick's shirt and all Rick could do was laugh, "Gee, I don't know Carl, you don't seem that interested."

Beth was all smiles getting ready for her evening with Rick, the day had gone so well. Carl was so easy to get along with, it seemed like they'd known each other all along.

Rick was there promptly at seven to pick her up. When she opened the door he stepped in, took her in his arms and kissed her deeply. "Wow Beth, just wow. I couldn't have asked for this day to go any better. I'd say both the Grimes men are stuck on you." He smiled broadly and kissed her again.

"Well I'm pretty crazy about the Grimes men. Carl is a sweetheart Rick. I couldn't believe how he wanted to chat about the farm and the animals, and he knew just the right questions to ask. I enjoyed spending the day with both of you, a lot."

Rick had reserved a small table at the West Room and it was already crowded. The singer was wonderful. He had a mixed bag of music he performed, a little blues, a little jazz, a little country, it was quite the repertoire.

Rick had just ordered a beer for himself and a wine spritzer for her when none other than Daryl Dixon came up to their table. He had a beer in his hand and an unlit cigarette in his mouth. "Hey Sheriff, oh and hey to you, it's Beth isn't it? How ya been?" Beth felt her face flush.

Rick looked between them, wondering how they knew each other. Maybe Daryl stopped by the bakery from time to time, but that didn't seem likely. She answered, "I've been fine and thank you again for what you did, that was very nice of you."

"Yeah well, that wasn't right girl, n he don't work for me no more. I had nuthin' but trouble with that guy. Sorry ya got mixed up in that. So now Rick, when you n Carl gonna be ready ta get out n shoot the bow a little? Can ya get together tomorrow after yer pancakes?" Daryl clapped him on the back, but Rick was caught up in wondering what the hell Beth and Daryl were talking about.

"Um, oh yeah sure, we'll be ready by noon, we can take my truck. Want us to stop by the cabin and pick you up?" Rick was trying to stay focused, not think about what was going on with her.

"Yeah, sounds good. Merle's in town n we been drinkin' all day. I plan on havin' a helluva hangover tomorrow. I might be able ta sleep it off by noon." He smiled a sort of half smile, looked over at her and said, "Nice ta see ya again." Then drifted back up to the bar where he joined a loud man in an unbuttoned shirt and a wife beater t-shirt underneath. The man appeared to be several years older than Daryl and far more boisterous. That must be Merle.

By the time they got back to her house his curiosity had finally gotten the best of him. They were sitting in the cozy little chairs, he was holding her hand and he asked her, "So Beth, how do you know Daryl Dixon?"

He saw the color come up from her neck all the way to her hairline. He thought he saw tears in her eyes and he squeezed her hand, "I'm sorry it's not really any of my business, you don't have to tell me. I was just curious."

"It's okay, it's not really a secret or anything it's just not a very nice story." And as embarrassing as it was she told him about dating Zach, the things he'd said about her when it was over, and how Daryl had made him stop.

Rick would have liked to find this Zach guy and knock him on his ass, but he'd probably left town by now. "I'm sorry Beth, some guys are just jerks, that's the truth. I'm glad Daryl took care of things."

"How do you know Daryl?" She was a little curious herself.

"We went to school together. I guess I've known Daryl and his brother Merle pretty much my whole life. Daryl's one of very few people I call a friend. I always knew he was a good guy, and what you told me put a period on that."

Then he stood, took her hand and gently pulled her up from her chair. He put his hands to either side of her face and started playing his fingers in her curls. "I can't figure out why I'm talking about Daryl when I could be kissing you."

He kissed her with passion, and she returned that kiss in kind.

A/N I'd say it went well, I wonder how things will go at the farm. Thanks so much for reading, please leave a review/comment. xo