Hmmm… I haven't updated in a LONG time! With Beth's death in the cannon TWD, I lost a lot of my spark with writing. But, a great thanks to everyone who kept encouraging me to write, and reminding me that I have obligations to finish these stories! You know who you are! Many Thanks!

Please bear with me as I try to recollect my ideas for this story :)

Take Me as I Am
Chapter 18
[Red-handed]

"Quit pickin' at it, gonna scar if you rip it off now," Daryl grumbled from his seat across the small table in the kitchen.

Beth shrugged at his comment. Her attention was solely focused on the scab on her forearm, "It'll scar regardless. It keeps catching onto my shirt when I change. It's only a matter of time before it my sleeves rip the dang thing off and make a bloody mess."

"That scab is pretty gross. I remember picking that stuff off of my knees and elbows," Carl jumped in the conversation, pausing on occasion to swallow the food in his mouth.

"Don't talk with your mouth full Carl," Rick corrected his young teenage son.

"Sorry," he grinned after swallowing his mouth of food. "I don't blame Beth though. That scab looks like a piece of beef jerky stuck to her arm."

"Ooh, what I wouldn't do for some beef jerky right now. Maybe I should eat my arm," Beth joked and looked up from her arm, only to find a table of faces staring at her with a disbelieving stare. She couldn't help but laugh merrily at their expense. "I'm kidding!"

The others chuckled and quickly finished their breakfast before heading out for the daily chores. Thanksgiving had come and gone, and slowly, the small group of five fortified the funeral home for the winter. Just yesterday, the three men and Michonne had finished setting up a second row the spear-fence about fifteen feet further outwards from the first one Daryl had built. The tedious task had taken them eight long days, but the security of the second layer was necessary should a large herd run through.

Beth had taken on the task of making their daily meals, and keeping inventory of their supplies. With the occasional supply run or hunting trip with Daryl, she was quite content with how things turned out. Her companions weren't treating her like a fragile doll—though in the beginning, Daryl practically smothered her with this rugged-over-protective ways until he finally gave up.

Three weeks passed since she had woken up from her coma, it was now mid-December. For the first week, events that had passed haunted her in her dreams. Father Stokes, Randy, walkers… of her turning into a walker. The nightmares had progressed to a point where she couldn't sleep for more than an hour at a time. Such stress eventually took a toll on her body to the point where she could barely get out of bed without falling over. It had caused a great deal of stress on Daryl and the others as well. The only one who could comfort her or wake her up was Daryl. The others didn't get much sleep with her screaming every few hours.

That was when Daryl had said 'Fuck it,' and had begun sleeping in her bed—holding her in his masculine arms every night since then. And she loved every moment of it. She never questioned Daryl's intentions when he told her to scoot over on the bed. She knew he would never hurt her—or any other woman for that fact, in such a way.

Daryl usually fell asleep as soon as he closed his eyes; exhausted from the day's work. There were a couple of nights where he would uncharacteristically hold small talk with her. They spoke of random things—from what they missed about the old world to what their plans were for the next morning. Their conversations would never last long before Daryl fell asleep from sheer exhaustion; even still, she could feel Daryl opening himself to her with each passing day.

She wouldn't describe herself as the most intuitive person around, though she knew without a doubt that he felt something for her. Ever since that Thanksgiving night, she couldn't keep her mind off of him. Well, her mind was preoccupied with his presence even before then, though now it was much more difficult for her to think of anything else but him.

Call her a childish teenager with rampant, uncontrolled hormones or something – recently, she has been wishing Daryl would just take her into his arms and ravish her while they were in bed together. The very thought brought a heated blush over her face, spreading as far down to her collarbones. She wouldn't know too much about sex, except for what the school taught them in their sex-education course. And… her blush darkened, and what she and her friends would watch on those porn videos.

Yes, church-going, girl-next-door Beth Greene did in fact dabble in the dark sultriness of porn videos. It had only been one time—maybe twice. Maybe. Each time however, Beth would shy away from the videos and force herself to think of other things while her friends watched on with wide, observant eyes. So while she wasn't totally ignorant of sexual coupling between men and women, she hadn't experienced it firsthand. Though with the vivid dreams she has, one would think otherwise.

"Beth?"

She jumped at the sound of her enigma's sweet baritone voice. "Yes?" she whispered, breathless at the thought that she was caught staring out into space as she finished drying the dishes.

She kept her eyes down casted, and willed her hands to stop trembling as she continued her task.

"You okay? Y'er face is flushed, feelin' sick at all?" He stopped her hands from fumbling with the drying cloth and took a step closer to her. He bent closer to her and touched his forehead with hers.

In an instant, her sky blue eyes locked onto his lips when his scent of forest and sunshine tickled her senses. She tried to say she was fine, but her words came out jumbled and rushed.

The corner of his lips twitched, "What'sa matter, Beth?"

Beth cursed inwardly, damn man was teasing her. The last time he kissed her, the day before Thanksgiving, he left her yearning for more. She knew he held himself back, just as he was guarding himself from her now. No matter how much of himself he opened to her, he was always guarded with her. And Beth was determined to weasel her way into his heart and claim him completely—one way or another. Although now… it was difficult for her to do anything but stare at his lips with hunger.

His grin widened, thinning his warm lips from the stretch of his skin. "Are you sure?" he asked, bringing his lips closer to hers.

Numbly, Beth nodded her head with jerky movements as their foreheads remained touching.

His lips claimed hers as soon as she nodded her consent, air rushed into her lungs from her sudden gasp as his brushed his warm lips to hers. Her eyes fluttered closed at the sensations he awoken within her. Her fingers went numb; and her knees were growing weak with need. He continued to brush his lips against hers, until she realized he would not go further. This would be the fourth time he kissed her… ever. Just like the other three, he was guarded and offered little but a brief brush of his lips against hers.

Damned be, she needed more. So much more. With a frustrated moan, Beth dared to part her lips and run her tongue against the soft skin of his bottom lip. She suckled his spicy flesh in between her lips until he throatily moaned into their kiss—she felt his resolve weaken. Bolder now, Beth inched closer to him, pressing her small breasts against his chest, her hands abandoned the plate and rag that was now wedged between them and gripped his vest until her knuckles glowed white. She continued to suckle his bottom lip; her warm tongue caressed the soft flesh in her hot mouth.

A rumble vibrated deep from within his chest, and he pulled back from their kiss. His hands snaked to her waist and held her firmly in place, his steel blue-grey eyes penetrated her soul as he gaze deeply into her own eyes. He didn't utter a single word. Instead, he held her gaze and her body close to his. Her eyes inadvertently trailed down to his lips when she tasted him in her mouth. She swiped her bottom lip with her tongue, savoring his unique taste.

His eyes locked onto her lips once more, and with a heady growl he crushed her body even closer to his, his hard arousal pressing against her lower side of her stomach. She gasped in response; the black pupils of her eyes nearly consumed the sky blue color of her irises.

Beth moaned unabashedly when he claimed her lips again, this time with fervor and unabated hunger. His moist, hot tongue thrusted into her mouth at her mouth, his shaved stubbles of facial hair prickled against her soft skin as he deepened their kiss. She could feel his hardness strain against the fabric of his jeans as it pulsed and twitched against her stomach. He pushed against her then, her soft backside pressed against the kitchen counter, her body trapped between it and his lean body.

Her body tingled anew when his warm hand cupped the side of her right breast and gave a gentle squeeze. Desperate for more, Beth pressed against him even harder, and battled his tongue with hers. She earned a throaty moan from Daryl, and him grinding his hard erection against her frame. If she didn't know any better, she would think her body was on fire from the way it sizzled under his impassioned kiss.

His hands abandoned their previous posts and slipped under the hem of her sweater, relishing the coolness of his hands against her fiery skin. His hands trailed their way upwards, slowly and unhurried to reach their destination. The muscles in her abdomen clenched deliciously against his rough hands, her own aroused flesh grew moist and achy. Without a doubt in her mind, she wanted him to take her then and there. Screw what the others would think.

"Daryl, hurry—," a voice boomed from the outside right before the front door swung open, and into the kitchen, strolled Rick.

She vaguely felt the way Daryl's spine stiffened and then immediately leaped away from her. The cloth and the plate that was wedged between them fell and shattered into sharp shards over the linoleum floor.

Beth's face flushed as red as Daryl's at the prospect of being 'caught' red-handed.

She heard Rick shift on his feet uncomfortable with the scene he just witnessed first-hand, and then cleared his throat. "So Daryl," he began, his all-knowing eyes darting between her and Daryl. "How 'bout those empty bags?"

Daryl swallowed thickly and nodded, still avoiding Rick's dark gaze. "Yeah, gimme a minute. I'll take them out there here in a sec."

"Alright then, hurry up. It's cold as hell out there," he insinuated the words 'hurry up' as a father would his baby girl's boyfriend before he gotten an ear full and probably a shotgun aimed at his crouch. Beth winced at his tone, and once again winced as Rick stormed out the front door.

"Shit," Daryl hissed and ran his hand through his hair.

Beth knew her face was still flushed and red, her lips swollen and pink from his passionate kiss, but it didn't matter to her. A small twitch of her lips formed before it broke out into a full faced smile. A small giggle escaped her lips as she squatted to the floor to pick up the shards of the broken plate.

"Let me get'em," Daryl followed suit and picked up the larger pieces and tossed them into the trashcan before pulling the broom and dustpan from the side of the refrigerator. The cleanup was quick and silent; no other words were exchanged between the two.

All the while, Beth smiled to herself.

"What's so damn funny? I think Rick's 'bout to kick my ass," Daryl grumbled as he pulled the plastic bags from one of the bottom cabinets, as he was supposed to do, so she assumed.

Beth laughed, "You think so? You can handle him, can't you?"

Daryl shot her a grouchy glare before he finally relented and chuckled. She held still when he walked over to her, his free hand brushing her cheek, his steel blue eyes searching deeply into hers.

"Yer gonna be the death of me," he whispered, his breath fanning against her face. His eyes shone brightly with tender affection, despite his semiserious-stern tone.

She leaned into his caress, her heart and mood basked in his rare show of affection. Quickly, she arched onto the tip of her toes and brushed her well-kissed lips against his briefly. She pulled back with a mischievous twinkle in her eyes and tapped his nose with her finger.

"Not unless Rick gets to you first," she laughed and quickly disappeared up the stairs, leaving Daryl dumbfounded in the kitchen.

/

JR – in the light of things, I thought they deserved a scene with a 'real' kiss. So… roughly… 6 weeks since chapter 13, and 7 weeks since S4:13. In the 3 weeks after Beth woke up, she and Daryl bonded, of course. Hence, why they're more comfortable with each other.

I think I remember the plan for this story, so here's to hoping I finish this soon! And maybe sometime soon, I'll go back to the previous chapters and fix my spell/writing mistakes.

Thanks for reading, please review and stay tuned for the next chapter!