Chapter Thirty Seven

Daryl didn't feel right about this at all. Anything could happen to his brother out there, or his uncle and even though he didn't know Randy well, he seemed like a good man and Daryl didn't want anything to happen to him either. If it hadn't been for Randy then his aunt and uncle wouldn't be here right now.

"Why are they so hell bent on you staying behind?" Carol asked from behind him. They had come down to the shack to raid the few shelves that lined the back wall. June wanted all the goods at the main house, which made sense considering everyone took their meals up there.

He shook his head, shouldering his bow. "I don't know but I don't like it."

"I do," she said suddenly, causing him to glance over his shoulder and catch her smiling at him sheepishly. "But not exactly for selfish reasons," she added, turning back to the cans she was sorting on the long table.

"Then what are the reasons?" He grunted, turning to face her and placing his hands on his hips.

She chewed her lip for a second before meeting his eyes again. "Richard and anyone that he's ran into that is possibly more volatile than he is. And before you say anything I am well aware that we have guns and we have ammo. We have the means to protect ourselves and I am more than willing to fight like hell for this family, but I'd feel a hell of a lot better if you were here to fight with me."

He stared at her for a few long moments. The truth was, he wasn't worried about Richard just yet. He knew that he would be soon but the man hadn't really had the time to build himself an army. Not that he wouldn't try. He did understand where she was coming from, though. He would have worried about the same thing if he left her behind but he still felt uneasy about the rest of them leaving without them. "Okay, I get it," he said, still watching her closely.

The relief in her eyes made him feel like he'd made the right decision. The last damn time he'd left he had come back to find her hurt and Damon ready to kill some stupid kid. This was smarter, even if he didn't like being the one to sit out. At least he would know that the women and the kids would be okay.

"You hate the thought of staying, don't you?" She asked, coming around the side of the table.

He shook his head. "Ain't that. I hate the thought of them getting hurt out there and knowing I could have helped somehow. Just one of them cases where It'd make me feel a lot better if I could be in two places at the same damn time."

The sun was setting and the light coming in through the one small window in the shack wasn't enough to brighten the room. She bagged the cans and didn't look up at him again but he could see that she was struggling. She was probably thinking about how she would feel if something really did happen to the others and she had been the one to talk him into staying. But it wasn't like that. Even if she hadn't said a word, he would stay.

She grabbed the bags and stepped around him, offering him an uncertain smile as she headed for the door. Without a seconds thought he reached out and grabbed her around the waist, hauling her back until she slammed into his chest. She dropped the bag and the canned goods rolled away from them. He wasn't letting her walk out feeling guilty. He had only planned on stopping her to tell her to cut that shit out, that the others would be fine without him and he knew it. That was all.

He hadn't expected the jolt that went through him just because she was close but that's what happened. He let out a breath and then pressed his lips to the back of her neck, felt her body tremble against his and he smiled to himself. "I woulda stayed even if you hadn't said anything," he said, the husky quality of his voice filling the quiet of the room even though he'd spoken in a hush.

Her hands covered his and she leaned further into him. "We need to get back up to the main house," she said, not sounding like she wanted to go anywhere at all. She moved her hands, dragging his up her sides.

His fingers caught the hem of her shirt and made quick work lifting it over her head, hands moving over her while his teeth nipped at the skin between her neck and shoulder. "You sure about that?" he asked before he ran his tongue along the column of her throat.

He didn't know exactly what it was about her that made it so fucking hard to keep his hands off of her. If he had to narrow it down he would have to say, everything.

"If we don't then someone will send poor Damon down here and we can agree that that poor boy has been through enough," she said but even as the words left her mouth, she guided his hands up until his he was cupping her breasts.

"He'll live," Daryl muttered into her shoulder.

Her head fell back once his lips trailed up her throat and she gave up arguing. He managed to get her pants unbuttoned when the sound of boots on the stoop had his hands stalling out. He cursed out loud, scooped her shirt up off the floor and shoved it into her hands.

"I swear to fuckin' Christ we're movin' further up the mountain," he growled, stepping around her as she shoved her arms through her shirt sleeves. He stepped around her and threw open the door just as Odin was raising his hand to knock.

"You busy?" Odin asked, giving him a once over. Daryl was holding onto his jacket, strategically covering up his crotch, the same move he'd used the day Damon had caught him. Odin grinned.

"Did you come down here just to fuck with me?"

Odin made a face and placed his hand over his heart. "Well, I can't believe you'd accuse me of such, boy. You know that I'm thrilled you're stickin' it to somebody. Lord knows you of all people needed it."

"What the hell do you want, Odin?" Daryl sighed. He had missed the man and couldn't possibly be more happy that he was alive and well and home where he belonged but damn if Daryl wasn't sick of being the butt of every joke.

"Well, you need to get your squirrelly ass up there to the cabin and be social with the rest of us. We need to figure out what all we need for this place. I want a schedule written up so we can take turns on watch up here. I don't wanna be caught off guard. I know it's still early and shit could smooth out, but my money is on it gettin' worse, you feel what I'm sayin'?"

Daryl nodded and shrugged his jacket on. It was actually a relief for Odin to be here calling the shots like this. He was a smart man who had lived a rough life. It made him sharper than most and already Daryl felt a little safer here.

Carol stepped out then, flashing Odin a shy smile before looking down. She had the same look that her daughter had had when they had walked in on her and Damon in the kitchen.

Odin took the bags of canned goods from her and threw a heavy arm over her shoulder and steered her towards the path. "No worries, little lady. You two will be back here and naked before you know it. Right now is just a bad time."

She flushed and then sighed heavily. "I'm just gonna have to get used to this now, aren't I?" she asked.

Odin grinned. "Yes, ma'am."

~H~

Sophia stood leaning against the counter with the others. Damon, Piper, Eli and Sam remained silent as the adults talked strategy and order. She wasn't only happy about Odin and June's return to the living, she was also happy that Randy and Eli were the ones to find them. Sure, the man looked terrifying at first but once she talked to him for a while she realized that he was a lot like the Dixons. And Eli and Damon got along really well too, which was a great change from the last teenage boy that had stayed with them.

It didn't hurt that he was also cute, which Piper, surprisingly enough, hadn't commented on just yet.

"Randy," Odin said, glancing up at the group of teenagers. "I've seen what that boy of yours can do with a knife. You comfortable bringin' him along?"

Randy grinned and Sophia caught a slow smile break over Eli's face.

Merle looked up then, his eyes raking over the boy and then he snorted. "Shannon Hoon here good with a knife?"

Eli frowned. "Shannon who?"

Sophia was completely astonished when she saw Piper, Piper Dixon of all people, blush furiously and refuse to make eye contact with anyone. She stared down at the floor, glaring.

Daryl chuckled. "The dainty little redhead over there went through a modern day hippie stage for a few years. Got herself obsessed with a band called Blind Melon and you, you little long haired fuck, are a dead ringer for the singer, Shannon Hoon. God, she drove us nuts with that shit."

Randy motioned towards the group of teens, his eyes taking Damon in. "You know what, yours could pass as a famous face too, Odin. He's like a dead ringer for Gilbert, if Gilbert had black hair and a tan."

Damon scowled. "Who the fuck is Gilbert?"

The rest of them laughed.

"My God, he does!" Carol said, grinning at the boy.

Sophia studied him but she had no idea who they were talking about.

"Gilbert," Merle chuckled. "Gilbert Grape. I'll be a son of a bitch, I never noticed before."

Damon scowled even harder. "Can we just get on with the damn plans here?"

Odin just offered his son a grin and a nod. "Yeah, there's gonna be plenty of time to give you crap later. Now, the boys are goin', Randy, me and June. I believe between the-"

"What the hell are you talkin' about?"Merle barked, arms crossing over his chest.

Odin sighed, eyeing his wife briefly. "Look, June is as good as any of us with a gun and she's small, faster on her feet than we are and she knows what she's doin'. Hell, she kept me alive out there. That makes five damn capable people leavin' from here. Somebody needs to stay."

"I'm already stayin'!" Daryl said, sounding angry on his brother's behalf.

Odin nodded. "Yeah, I know. You, Merle and Piper will be the only ones here out of the seven of you that know anything about defending the place. If somethin' nasty goes down, it'll be better if you two are both here to work together. Depending on what we find down there, we could be gone longer than a day. We can't all fit in this fuckin' cabin. We need to build. We have to have tools to do that."

"This is bullshit," Daryl growled.

Merle sighed and shook his head. "No it ain't, little brother. Not really. As much as I hate to sit this one out, it's the smartest thing to do. Hell, we all made it up here so what do we got to prove? I can see the logic in it."

"Yeah, but that don't mean I wasn't lookin' forward to gettin' away from you for a while," Daryl muttered.

Sophia wished that Damon could stay too. She didn't want him out there but she wasn't about to say anything to him about it. Especially since both of his parents would be going. She caught his eye and he gave her a barely perceptible smile that she returned reluctantly.