Michonne hugged herself after tossing her jean jacket on. She watched him closely as he adjusted his belt.
"You are not touching me during the next forty eight hours." She announced.
Rick scoffed with a wicked glint in his eye, "Dream on, darling."
His blue eyes sucked her in like always. She moved to him and brought her hands up to his collar, "Sex doesn't really solve any of our problems."
She was straightening his collar as he held his breath nervously, "We have problems now?"
Michonne stepped back, "Well let's see, we live in totally different cities-"
"You can work from here. Even Andre likes it here."
"Our kids-"
"They'll be fine. They like each other already."
She chuckled at him, "Oh and the best part, your wife."
"Soon to be ex-wife." He corrected.
"Who will have a meltdown soon as she hears about this," She tried her best to be level headed, "Rick, I like us. I like being with you. I feel connected to you, but we both know how wrong this has been since the start. We don't really have good foundation to build on."
"Then we'll make a foundation," Rick insisted as he took her hands in his.
"It's not that simple," She pulled away, "You've been with Lori for almost twenty years. You know her routine, you don't get it yet and you don't grasp what a change for you it will be when you separate. I'm not going to be your experiment at a new life. I can't leave Atlanta. My company is doubling it's networth next year and it's a huge deal for me and Sasha. I have my calender full. I'm not like this is in my regular life. I can't go out and fuck around in the woods when I need to be at the office. If I'm not in the office, I'm with Andre. "
He knew Michonne was right in a sense that what this was far from a normal relationship, but it didn't scare him for some reason.
"I'm not saying you should drop everything," Rick let out a heavy sigh, "I'm saying, we could figure something out. I know we could."
She wanted to let go of her doubts, but it was difficult. There were so many pieces to their puzzle, their jobs, their kids, their houses, their friends and family. A lot of moving parts and ways to fail.
"What about Lori?" She asked nervously, she didn't usually feel insecure about possible previous partners, but this was different.
"What about her?" He closed the distance and reached up to caress her cheek.
She looked up at him, "Are you sure," she breathed in at the feel of his rough hands, "You don't want to fix things with her?"
His hand moved slowly down to the side of her neck. Her strong pulse raced under her skin as his hands caressed every detail of her flesh.
"If I wanted to fix things I wouldn't be here," He said quietly, locking eyes with her, "I told you, you are everything."
The way the words rolled out his mouth, all smooth and raspy made her want to combust right there and then, "You too."
Michonne didn't know how she found the courage to say it, but she did. The pull was too strong. Years of isolation had ended soon as she laid her eyes on him.
He grabbed onto her as passionately as he had before and kissed her. His heart beat so hard in his chest when she returned the kiss.
Yep, not touching her was out of the question, he thought.
The moment was cut short as his radio activated, "Calling all units. We've got a 10-16 at Woodmont road. Back up needed, suspect is armed and dangerous."
It took him a fraction of a second to straighten his back and answer, "Copy. 10 minutes out. Grimes, over."
"I've gotta go," He squeezed her hand quickly before rushing to his car, "You still at Hershels?"
"Yeah." She nodded, confused over what she had heard. She hadn't experienced worry over his work before, but this simple radio call changed that. Michonne felt uneasy.
"Don't worry about it," Rick could see it in her face and smiled, "I'll see you after my shift is done."
"Sure." She tried her best to reel her mind in and look unbothered.
He closed the door and left with his lights and siren blaring, leaving her stuck with her own thoughts and worries.
Carl could sense the mood in their household. After everybody left, complete silence took over. His mom was cleaning like a maniac which meant she was not okay. She had never been the Suzy homemaker type.
She was organizating their bookshelf in the living room and humming along some song he didn't recognize.
He surprised her when he appeared next to her.
"Didn't you want to stay over at Enids tonight?" She asked as her eyes stayed focused on the books she was organizing.
"I figured you would want some company."
Lori smiled at him, her first born was her greatest accomplishment. She handed him a couple of books and sighed, "Where is Judith?"
"Kicking Negans ass in a video game," He chuckled and said carefully, "I think she is avoiding you and dad right now."
She was silent for a moment and then turned her head to look at him, "I'm sorry."
He was surprised by her apology, "Why? It's not your fault alone."
"I lied to you about Shane," Lori felt her chest tighten as she talked about him, "I should have been honest. I was selfish and scared."
Carl could see the sorrow etched on her face, "It's okay mom. I get it."
His comforting words opened up a floodgate that she wasn't able to control. With tears in her eyes, she looked at him, "I, I didn't want our family to end up like this."
He hated how broken she was by it, "Did you talk to dad? Are we gonna move?"
The questions were valid, but everything was so fresh and this all happened quickly, there was no answers. Since Rick told her about the kiss with Michonne it was like a tidal wave, it destroyed the illusion she lived in and she was left without a lifejacket. Now, she felt like she was lost at sea and couldn't find anything to hold on to.
"Judith is not the only one avoiding me," Lori said, defeated, "Your father is not exactly forthcoming with how he feels."
"Dad likes her, " Carl didn't know if it was the right thing to do, but he wanted her to know he knew, "but he feels bad about it. I don't think he meant to hurt anybody."
She swallowed, "Did he talk about her?"
"No," He didn't want any issues between his parents, "I mean not directly, but I have eyes and ears."
"You've seen them together?" Lori turned to look at him, irritation rising to the surface.
"Not like that ," He told her cautiously, "I just saw the way they looked at each other at the party. I guess they talked because he was all quiet afterwards and wanted to leave."
"If she had any common sense she hopefully turned him down." She grumbled as she slammed a book into the bookshelf.
"I don't know." He shrugged.
"We will try to handle this without getting you and Judith in the middle," Lori explained as she calmed down, "But eventually when we make moves towards our new lives I hope you two live with me."
"You think dad is gonna let that happen?"
"It's not up to your dad. He can't change his schedule at work, but I can. It's the best solution."
Carl didn't particularly feel any sort of way over the subject, "I guess so."
"But I promise, I will try to talk to him and maybe we can sort this out without much of a hassle."
He admired her optimism, but had a gut feeling it wasn't going to be that easy.
"Mom," he wanted to speak his truth, "You and dad have been miserable for a long time. Ever since I can remember I knew you were just being together because that's all you knew. If me and Judith were not here there is no way, you would even be together."
Lori shook her head, "I was with your father because I wanted to. Not because I needed to."
"Maybe," Carl shrugged and handed her a book, "But I think you were happier when Shane was around. You know I'm right."
"Well he is gone," She took the book and placed it on the shelf with annoyance, "I'm trying my best here Carl. It's not easy to be the laughingstock of the whole town."
"Nobody would know if Lucille didn't go around spreading it."
"I had nothing to do with it."
He didn't know if she was honest, but hoped that she wasn't lying. They kept cleaning the bookshelf in silence when Lori pulled a picture frame from the back and got lost in it. He glanced at the old wedding photo of his parents and took it from her.
"I'd like to keep this." Carl said quietly.
Lori smiled sadly at her son.
She felt silly. She kept staring at her phone as she battled all the intrusive thoughts that came to her. Of course, she found Rick and allowed her feelings to run free and now he was probably dead in a ditch somewhere.
The quiet house was killing her slowly. She wasn't used to lounging around without anything to do. Soon as the doorbell rang she felt relief.
Michonne practically ran to her door and opened it.
Connie grinned widely with a bottle of wine and a pizza.
"Thank God." Michonne signed and said aloud, "I didn't mean to interrupt you and Daryl, but I really need to talk."
Connie nodded and signed back, "I'm always here. Just a little hangover this time."
Michonne felt nervous as she pulled two glasses and poured them wine. Connie was quick to notice the change in her demeanor. She was so good when it came to details and her friend was looking like a little kid who got caught doing something naughty.
"It finally happened didn't it?" She signed with a questioning look as she took a seat in her kitchen table.
Michonne placed the glasses on the table and tossed the pizza box in the middle, "Yeah, it did."
Connie wasn't surprised. She knew what was coming since Las Vegas. She, of course didn't like the fact that he was married and looked at her friend with such intensity. She had told Daryl weeks ago that they wouldn't be able to contain themselves much longer. He kind of laughed her off and told her Rick would never have the balls to do anything about it. Not with a woman like Michonne. They bet on it and now he owed her a proper foot massage.
"What's wrong?" She asked, noticing the lost look on her face.
Michonne took a big gulp from her wine, "Am I acting like an idiot? I mean I'm out here without my son and risking it all for a man who I met while he was married."
Connie leaned back in her chair and signed, "I got married to a complete stranger. I might be the wrong person to ask."
She laughed, maybe they were both idiots.
"Are you happy?" Michonne asked even though she already knew the answer.
The smile that formed on her lips and the nod indicated just that.
"Maybe you need to give yourself a break," Connie tried her best to ease her doubts, "Andre is happy, he has everything he needs. Your company is stable and you can easily take some time off. Just show up in court and do what you do. It's not always life and death Michonne, life works out eventually."
As she took in Connies advice her phone vibrated.
Cowboy: Just a heads up, still alive. So you're stuck with me.
The message brought a smile on her face and it felt like she could breath again. She had never expected herself to react so strongly. She felt vulnerable. She was struggling with giving into this emotionally. That was the hard part. Sex was easy. Sex was desire and lust at this point. She had given her body to him and nothing about it scared her. The part that terrified her was this. Actually caring and emotionally investing in him. She had confessed to him in the heat of the moment that he was everything and it opened a door to a new world.
"Michonne," Connie leaned closer and looked into her eyes as she signed, "Just let go. Let life happen for you."
She looked at the message once more and drank her wine with a smile. This cowboy was indeed everything.
Rick tucked away his phone after sending her the message. He ran a hand over his tired face and yawned. It had been an eventful twenty four hours. His head was spinning, but in the best possible way.
"You think we should take them to a shelter?" Aaron asked him as they looked at the blonde woman who was literally shaking in her boots and hugging her youngest son.
"We did that the last time and she didn't learn anything." Scott, the darker man grumbled next to them.
"Yeah, well this time he was threatening to chop her up. Maybe she finally gets it." Aaron argued, he always wanted to believe the goodness in people. It was his weakness and strenght when it came to this job.
Rick was still rubbing his face and yawned again.
"Sheriff," Scott chuckled, "You alright?"
"Yeah, yeah," Rick cleared his throat and nodded at the men, "I'll talk to her. You guys finish up the paper work on that piece of shit."
The men did as they were told and returned to their jobs. He sighed deeply, he was so frustrated and done with Jessie and Pete Anderson.
She stood up as he approached, hugging herself, "You'll make sure he is not out tonight right?"
Rick looked over her shoulder at the two boys and did his best to keep it neutral.
"Let's talk in my office." He showed her the way and she followed.
"Look," He wanted to be direct soon as the door closed and her children weren't listening, "You need to keep those kids safe. This is the third time in six months Jessie. I can't do anything about it if you won't press charges. You play dumb soon as we get there and us taking him in for the night to sleep it off is not a solution."
She frowned," It's only when he drinks. Pete would never hurt the boys."
"I can't risk it," Rick said firmly, "I talked with the county social worker again. They are going to be more involved now."
The blonde was upset over the news, "It's not going to fix anything. He will get angrier and more upset. He told me he would take the boys from me if I said a word to anybody."
"I know someone who could help you," He wanted to genuinely help her, "She is a lawyer. Specialized in these sorts of things and I know she would do everything in her power to help you and the boys to move on."
She looked startled at the thought of going up against her abusive husband, "No, I'm sorry I can't do that."
As she was scrambling to leave the room Rick pulled a piece of paper where he wrote Michonnes number and name down. He shoved it in her hand, "Think about it. Do something before one of you gets killed."
Jessie took the paper and hurried towards her sons.
He took a seat in his creaky chair and tossed his head back, he hadn't been this tired in a long time. He would never change it for the world though because the previous night was worth every goddamn yawn. Rick couldn't think about her. He would lose focus completely if he thought about her.
Her beautiful face, her tight body, her coconut scented skin, her skin on his skin...
"Rick?"
He quickly opened his eyes and almost fell from his chair, "Lori?"
Lori closed the door to his office and pointed towards the hallway, "Jessie and Pete again?"
"I can't talk about it."
She was surprised by his dry answer, but brushed it off, "You have a minute?"
"Are the kids okay?" He avoided her eyes and focused on the papers in front of him.
"They are fine, it's not that," She took a seat on the opposite side of the table, "I wanted to talk about us."
Rick swallowed nervously and raised his gaze to meet hers, "What?"
Lori tucked her hair behind her ears, "I wanted to ask if we could still continue therapy together."
He was shocked and froze at her words. It came out of left field.
"I don't know what to say."
"I know we can't continue like this," She explained, "I just think it would be healthy to have someone help us when we decide to move apart. I know yesterday what I said to you was uncalled for. I'm sorry for that. I didn't mean to blame you or make you feel guilty when I have made the same mistakes myself."
He tried his best to hide his reaction and nodded," I guess it's not the worst idea."
"Good," She sighed in relief, "I don't want us to hate each other."
Rick didn't have the energy to listen to her ramble over the same things over and over again, but he knew he didn't have a choice.
"Lori," He didn't want her to get the wrong impression, "I will work with you every step of the way for the kids and for all of us, but I don't want you to think this will end up fixing us. That's not on the cards anymore. Remember? we agreed it's not healthy."
Lori stared back, eyes wide and confused.
"How can you know that?" She insisted, getting all of a sudden more emotional, "We managed to work it out last time."
"You don't even want this," Rick snapped back, "I know it's scary. We've been together since we were kids ourselves, but what's the point if you don't even want to be with me?"
"I never said that," She felt pathetic, but couldn't stop herself, "It's you who doesn't want to be with me. Don't you dare make this about me when you were the one who gave up. You didn't even try to fight for us."
"Jesus Christ," He wanted to rip his hair out, "Lori, you are in love with Shane. Get it? Why the fuck was I supposed to fight when there was nothing left to fight for?"
"You are the one who out of nowhere decided to trade for the younger hotter model!" She was being dramatic now and knew it, "It's like nothing else matters in your life since you met her."
Rick got up, pointed his finger at her accusingly, "You are the one who left the kids without a word!"
He could tell their yelling was heard by the whole office.
She got up and snarled, "Forget about it Rick! Go fuck yourself and that stupid bitch of yours! Have a nice life!"
His office door was shut with a loud bang.
He couldn't fathom what caused her outburst. She wanted to go back to pretending and being together like nothing had happened. He was not going to let that happen anymore. Rick was done being safe and content with his life when there was a possibility for so much more.
Michonne hugged her pillow. The rest of the day had been surprisingly nice. After Connie left she had a long bath and ate the rest of the pizza while just lounging and watching tv. It felt like it had been years since she did that. Usually she would open her email or read up on her cases. Now she didn't and it felt liberating. She missed her little peanut, but he couldn't sit still for a videocall to even talk to her. He was too busy with Coco.
She went to sleep with a peaceful atmosphere. Her body had been tired. Rick had really taken the juices out of her. Literally.
She tiredly opened her eyes for a second when she felt a hand on the small of her back. As she realized she wasn't alone, her eyes snapped wide open in panic.
"It's me." He realized how scared she must have felt, the romantic gesture being far from a success.
Michonne rubbed the sleep off her eyes and smacked Ricks arm, "How the hell did you get in?"
"I left the backdoor open earlier." He sat on her bed as he was taking off his boots.
She sat up and fixed her cotton tanktop with a laugh, "Isn't that like a crime?"
Rick smiled and stopped to look at her, the faint morning light that crept into the room made her look even more like a goddess. He couldn't stop himself. He kissed her gently and slowly, processing every detail of her. As he pulled away she looked up at him with her big brown eyes, catching her breath, "Rough night?"
"Lori came by." His voice was low and filled with frustration, "She wants us to see our therapist. I told her I can do it for the kids, so that we can get along better. Well basically she got this idea in her head that it means we can fix this. I told her no, it's not changing anything. Let's just say it went bad after that."
It was too early to think about Lori Grimes. Michonne shook her head," I'm all about keeping it civil, but couples counseling when you're separating sounds like a fucking bad idea."
She didn't like what she was hearing. Clearly, Lori harbored feelings for Rick or it was just too much for her to accept the fact that their lives would continue in different directions. It bothered her deeply.
"She needs some time, but she'll come around." He yawned as he got rid of his uniform.
Rick didn't waste time climbing into bed with her, making himself at home. He groaned in relief when he got his head against a pillow. She sat there, thinking about something. He ran his fingers along her arm, "Is something wrong?"
Michonne looked over at him. Every coherent thought she had disappeared into thin air when their eyes met. She laid back down and nuzzled into his neck, "No, everything is fine."
"You sure?"
"Mmhm."
He pulled her closer so that she could properly snuggle into him.
Comfortable silence took over.
"What's your favorite color?" He mumbled out.
She grinned against his chest, "What kind of question is that?"
"A simple question. Michonne, what's your favorite color?" He repeated tiredly, but wanted to fight sleep for this little moment.
"I guess red." She answered with a yawn, "What about you?"
"I would say yellow," He kept going, "What about your favorite food?"
Michonne laughed, "I guess it's my moms homemade lasagna."
"No way," Rick looked down on her, "I would have said the same thing."
She snorted, "You're just saying it because I said it."
"You will take that back soon as you get to taste my moms lasagna."
The way he casually slipped the idea of meeting his mom made her smile. She moved her long limb over his, rubbing him up and down with her leg.
"Are you trying to distract me?" He twisted himself enough to face her.
She shamelessly pressed closer with her body, "Are you this easily distracted?"
"I just wanted to know your favorite color." Rick laughed and grabbed onto her thigh, hitching it around his hip, "You're the one who is playing dirty."
"I'm done with the pop quiz for now." Michonne could feel the sudden rush of desire again as his fingers danced on her skin, constantly moving and teasing.
He suddenly rolled on top of her and held her gaze, his eyes never breaking contact as he brushed her hair off her face and caressed her cheek, "I want to know you. All of you."
The deep admission was foreign to her. She wasn't sure if anyone in her life had been this honest before, this bare and raw.
She released a held breath, "I don't think it's possible to know all of someone. You're living proof of that. Lori probably thought she knew."
She was sceptical and he didn't like it. Maybe he had his head up in the clouds, but he hadn't been this sure about anything in a long time.
"You don't need to hold back." He was still hovering over her, not giving her a chance to avoid his gaze, "I'm not going to hurt you."
Michonne tensed up, that knot of emotions in her stomach tightening even more. She chewed on the inside of her cheek nervously, a bad habit she had since she was a small girl. He could see the fear and hesitation on her face. She was tough as nails, but she had her own demons.
"I would never let anything hurt you. I mean it."
Her heart might have skipped a beat at his precise words. Words that she really needed to hear. All of her worries and doubts melted away again as she wrapped her arms around him. Rick could sense her need for the hug as she clung to him. He buried his head in her neck and kissed it softly before pulling her into a more comfortable position. Her pretty head rested against his chest and he wrapped his arms around her.
Never in her life had she felt so safe.
Thank you for the love people! Have an amazing week! Mine started off with such good news, I know this is going to be a great week. Positive vibes all around!