I.

Michonne trotted down the stairs while pulling her hair into a ponytail. The hot water from the shower had dissolved some of the tension that had taken root in her head. The presence of Craig back in her life had put her through a loophole. She needed to find a way to untangle herself. The only way she knew how was to face it head on. It would do her no good to hide from him.

The kitchen was empty, but she saw the remnants of breakfast in the sink. Three bowls of oatmeal. She was about to make it a fourth when she saw her favorite mug and two packets of sugar sitting next to a fresh pot of coffee. She smiled at Rick knowing how she took her morning drink. She poured herself a cup and walked to the patio door where she could see him and Judith. He was walking around the backyard while bouncing the smiling baby on his hip. She watched as Daddy and babygirl played gleefully together, lost in their own world. He was a good dad.

Mike was a good dad too. Until he wasn't.

She pushed those thoughts back to the shadows of her mind and continued to watch play time in the backyard. Seeing him like this made it hard to dismiss whatever feelings she had bubbling at the surface of her heart. If Carl hadn't interrupted them earlier she wasn't sure what would have happened or what hidden truths would have been revealed. She could fall for him so easily, but it wouldn't be smart. They couldn't protect the kids and the rest of the family if they were wrapped up in each other. People died because of distractions.

And what a distraction he would be. Michonne thought as she eyed him in his daily uniform of black jeans, plaid shirt, and cowboy boots. Images of what was under those clothes set up camp in her brain. A heat wave ran from her head down to her toes when she remembered how good it felt to be pressed against his bare chest. How good his hands felt on her. The hot coffee no longer seemed like a good idea. She needed a cold drink. The cool blast from the refrigerator helped calm her loins as she looked for a bottle of water.

"Hey you're up." Michonne looked over the refrigerator door as Carl walked into the kitchen. "Dad told me not to bother you."

"He didn't have to do that."You're never a bother, Carl." Michonne said.

"You know how clueless he can be sometimes." Carl joked.

Michonne laughed and nodded her head. "That I do." She looked at him closely. He was practically bouncing on his heels with a big grin on his face. "You look like you're keeping a secret. Spill it."

"I have a surprise for you."

She smiled at the excitement in his voice. "Okaaay. What is it?" She said as she took her water and coffee and sat at the kitchen table.

"So okay remember how before you wished you had soy milk?" She nodded and he went on. "The Pantry only has can milk and I know you hate that stuff. But Olivia had some almonds. Newsflash, you can make milk out of almonds."

"Mmmhmm, I knew that."

Carl threw his hands in the air and laughed. "Of course you know that. I thought I was going to tell you something new. Anyway, Olivia showed me how to make the milk. Carol helped me find a blender and," He opened the fridge and took out a plastic pitcher she didn't notice before filled with an off-white liquid, "Tah-da, fresh almond milk. Now you can really enjoy your cereal."

Michonne hopped out of her chair and pulled him into a hug. "You are the best, kid. Just the best."

She was always amazed at how thoughtful he could be. He had been through so much in his young life, yet he hadn't let the hardness of the world overtake him. She couldn't love him more if he was her own child.

"Can me and Judith get in on this hugging?" They both looked up as Rick entered the kitchen with the smiling baby still on his hip.

"Judith always gets hugs because she's the cutest thing ever," Michonne said as she wiggled the baby's foot, "But you didn't make me homemade almond milk. I think that denies you any hug privileges." Michonne said and looked over to Carl with a wink. "What do you think?"

Carl looked up at the ceiling as he pretended to think hard about the situation. "Hmmm I don't think so. This is an almond milk only club, and Dad's a hard core cow milk drinker."

"Wow, that hurts. Denied by my first born and my...Michonne. At least I still have my little girl." He said as he gave Judith a kiss on the head before sitting her in the highchair. He looked at his watch. "Carl, aren't you late for school?"

"Crap," Carl said. "You're right." He grabbed his backpack, but paused before heading to the door. "Why do I have to go anyway? I can read, write, add, and subtract. That should enough in this world."

"Because," Michonne said as she ruffled his hair, "When it's revealed in the third act of this movie we're in that Eugene really can cure this thing I expect you to graduate college, get a great job, and make lots of money so you can take care of me in my old age."

Carl laughed and playfully rolled his eyes. "All right, all right." He kissed his sister on the cheek and ran to the door.

"Hey, think fast." Carl turned around just in time to catch the apple Michonne threw to him. "Brain food in case you get hungry."

"Thanks, Michonne." He said then ran out the door.

Rick smiled as he watched their exchange."You're always so good with him."

"It's easy to be. He's a good kid. But he has a great Dad so that's no surprise."

Rick gave her a dismissive wave of his hands. "I don't know if I can take much of the credit. I'm not always the best role model." He shook his head. "A lot is owed to Lori. And you of course. I couldn't have done most of this without you."

"Yes, you could have Rick. You're a good man. You would have found a way." Leaning against the kitchen island she watched as he started washing the breakfast dishes.

"Well I'm glad we found a way." He said to her over his shoulder.

"Me too." She said.

Rick wiped his hands on a dish towel and met Michonne at the island. "You know I like when you wear your hair back like this." He gently pulled on her ponytail.

Michonne internally chided herself for giggling like a school girl, but it poured out of her before she could halt it. "That's a bit of a non-sequitur." She said.

Rick looked down at his feet with a grin. "I know. Just standing here in front of you like this made me think about how much I like seeing all of your face." He looked back up at her. Their gazes locked and held until Judith's baby talk broke them out of their spell. Michonne wished she knew how to break them out of it once and for all. She couldn't keep getting lost in him.

Rick walked over to the refrigerator and started pouring apple juice in Judith's bottle. "You seem to be doing better than earlier."

"I am." Michonne said grateful he changed the subject.

"How are you going to handle things with Craig?"

"I'm going to go see him today. It doesn't seem right to avoid him. He was out on his own in the woods. I'm sure he needs a friend. Maybe it's best if we get to know each other all over again."

"And if he wants to fall in love all over again?" He leaned on the closed fridge door. "Could make things awkward."

"I'll cross that road when I come to it."

"But are you open to it? Do you ever want to love someone like that again?"

"What's with the twenty questions, Rick?"

Rick looked away from Michonne. He stared out the patio door. He wasn't looking at anything that was outdoors. His thoughts had transported him elsewhere. After a long silence his voice flowed out of him in a murmur. "Like I said earlier, I'm just protective of you, is all."

"I appreciate that Rick, but you know that I can take care of myself."

"I know that better than anyone, but..."

"But what?"

Rick quickly closed the space between them until he was standing right in front of her. One hand hovered on her waist. His touch was barely a whisper. "I can't help caring about you. I care if someone is going to cause you any pain."

"I'm okay Rick, really." Michonne said while avoiding his piercing gaze. She couldn't look at him. She couldn't fall under the magic again.

"I don't think you are."

Michonne glanced at him quickly before looking away again. "How do you know?"

"I just do." Rick placed his hands on either side of Michonne on the island making himself even closer to her. She couldn't help but to look at him now.

"Trust me, Rick. That's all I ask."

"I trust you. I trust you with everything that's in me. But I don't want someone I...I don't trust what I don't know."

"Craig is just one man. What can he do to me?"

"I don't want to find out." Rick moved forward until his forehead was touching Michonne's. "We've lost so much. If anything ever happened to You, Carl, or Judith...I couldn't take it."

Michonne didn't know what to think about him putting her in the same category as his children. She knew he cared, but she never allowed herself to ponder how deeply. The undertones of the conversation were getting to be too much for her. Her hands pushed gently on his chest to get some space between them. He moved without resistance. "I'm not yours, Rick. You can't control who I chose to have in my life."

Rick shook his head as if he was trying to clear his brain. "I didn't mean to come on so strong, Michonne. I just want you to know how much..," He paused and ran his hand over his face, "Lori used to say I never talked enough. That I didn't know how to express my feelings. She was right. It ain't always so easy for me. I keep making the same mistakes and I don't want..."

"Knock, knock. Rick, Michonne. You guys here?" Carol walked through the front door carrying a small stack of plates.

"Gotdammit. Can we ever get some privacy?" Rick muttered to himself. He rubbed his face again as if he was developing a nervous tick. "What do you want, Carol?"

"Thought you might need some extra plates for tonight." Carol looked from Michonne to Rick taking in the scene before her. "Did I interrupt something?"

Michonne looked at Carol in confusion. "What's tonight?"

"You haven't told her yet? Jessie told me it was a done deal." Carol said to Rick.

Rick moved to the kitchen chair next to Judith. He fell into the seat feeling more weary than usual. The morning wasn't going his way at all. "Shit, I forgot. Jessie wants to bring her boys over and cook dinner. I told her I needed to check with you first. Make sure you're okay with having a big group of people over."

"Oh." Michonne said.

"I wasn't trying to keep anything from you." Rick added quickly. "I really did forget." He gave a quick glance to Carol before saying more softly to Michonne. "With you feeling out of sorts yesterday and this morning I guess it just slipped my mind."

"No, it's okay." Michonne said. "You sure this is the best idea? Ron won't talk to Carl anymore because he's still upset about Pete. Could make for an awkward dinner."

"She probably just needs a distraction to not focus on all that happened. Maybe it'll help make things right again." Rick said.

"Distractions can be disastrous," Michonne said, "But if that's what you guys want to do, go for it."

"Sooo," Carol chimed in. "I guess we're good then?"

Michonne turned to her. "Yeah, we're good. I think I'll invite Craig. It'll be good for him to meet some more people. If that's okay with everyone."

"Who's Craig?" Carol asked.

"A stranger." Rick said

"An old friend." Michonne countered. She looked at Rick. "So I'll tell him to come. Are you okay with that?"

"It doesn't seem I have much choice in the matter." Rick said avoiding her gaze while feeding Judith her bottle.

"It's settled then." Michonne said ignoring the obvious irritation in Rick's voice. "I have some things I need to take care of. See you tonight." She pulled on her sweater and walked out the door.

The soft thud of the door closing caused Rick to finally look up. He sighed and started rubbing his forehead, between his eyebrows, as he felt the first inkling of a headache starting to invade.

Carol set the plates on the kitchen counter. She poured herself a cup of coffee and took a seat across from Rick. "What have you done now, Sunshine?"

A/N: Thanks again for all of the wonderful reviews. They help keep me motivated!