So, by some miracle, I have posted 2 chapters in one day - so if you've just landed here, catch up on the previous one first.

This one picks up right where the last left off...

Chapter 35 - For all the nights

Single-mindedly focused on catching up to Tahlia, Daryl strode for the exit but caught sight of Amber chatting with Frankie and Justin in front of a sculpture, and on a whim, he veered over to her, unconcerned that he was bulldozing into the middle of their conversation.

"You answer my phone on Saturday?" he demanded, eyes ablaze.

Face opening in shock at the sudden interruption, Amber stared up at him, frozen in silence.

"You talk to Tahlia?"

Regaining her composure, Amber straightened and her expression turned defiant, but still she said nothing.

Daryl glowered at her. "You make her think somethin's goin' on between us?"

His tone was so severe, so frosty, that a heavy wave of remorse washed over her and her face crumpled.

"I'm sorry, Daryl! I'm so sorry. I shouldn't have done it, I was just so-"

But that was all the confirmation Daryl needed, and whatever else she was, he didn't care; didn't even care to give her anything more than a reproachful shake of his head before he spun on his heel and made for the door.

Things morphed and shifted in his head – Tahlia's behavior made total sense now that he had discovered this huge misunderstanding, and that meant maybe he hadn't been wrong to kiss her after all. He would find her and make it right.

After the brightly lit gallery, Daryl's eyes took a moment to adjust to the dusk, and he paused on the steps as he gazed along the treelined street, scanning the moving figures on the sidewalk.

There. She was near the end of the block attempting to hail a cab.

"Tahly!" he called, jogging towards her. "Hey!"

Glancing over her shoulder to see Daryl fast approaching, Tahlia intensified her cab-hailing efforts – she didn't have the energy to hash this out with him anymore tonight.

"Tahly! Wait." Daryl skidded to a stop next to her. "Need to talk to ya. It ain't what you think."

Mercifully for Tahlia, a taxi pulled up alongside and she quickly opened the back door. "I don't want to do this right now, Daryl. I just want to go home."

But Daryl slammed the door shut again and kept his hand on the frame so she couldn't reopen it.

"It ain't what you think." he repeated, and Tahlia puffed out a weary sigh as she turned to face him.

"What isn't?"

"Dunno what Amber said to ya, but it ain't true." Daryl's breath was silver wisps in the twilight as he gazed at Tahlia earnestly. "Was never with her. Not like that."

"Lady!" the taxi driver called out his window. "You getting in or not?"

"Naw, she ain't. Get outta here, man." growled Daryl, smacking his hand on the door, and with a colorful curse and screeching wheels, the driver sped off into the night.

"Oh, but…" Tahlia turned her head to follow the taillights of the cab wistfully. "That was my ride." Then she startled, flicking her attention back to Daryl as he grabbed her wrist.

"Listen." Daryl implored, quickly letting go of her arm again as he realized how tight his grip was, abashedly relocating his hands to his pockets. "We were all at Fox's on Saturday - you can ask Merle and Andie. I was with 'em all night. I left my shit at the table and Amber must'a answered my phone when I was gone, and I didn't know. Didn't know you'd even called 'til just now. Whatever she said, it was all bullshit."

A light misty rain had begun to fall, tiny shimmering beads clinging to their hair, their clothes, glinting iridescent under the streetlights.

"What?" Tahlia blinked in confusion. "Why would she do that?"

"Maybe coz she was pissed at me. We'd just had words. 'Bout you."

"About me?"

"Yeah. 'Bout how I…" Daryl trailed off, then puffed out a sharp breath. "Damn, Tahly, so you been avoidin' me this whole time coz you thought I was with her? You really think that after Friday night I'd go and do somethin' like that?"

It was still all sinking in, what Daryl was telling her, and Tahlia nodded faintly. "Well, she was pretty convincing. So… you're saying you didn't sleep with Amber?"

"Hell no."

"Or… or kiss her?"

"Nope. Nothin'."

"Or… anyone else?" asked Tahlia in a small voice.

"Naw." Tentatively, Daryl reached for Tahlia's hand. "There ain't been no one since you."

"This weekend." Tahlia specified carefully.

"Ever."

Letting out a short, dismissive laugh, Tahlia shook her head. "Come on, Daryl. We both know that's just not true."

The raindrops were falling with a little more purpose now, and Daryl glanced up at the crowding clouds in the blackening sky.

"Shit. Sky's really gonna open up soon. We should go."

He still had Tahlia's hand in his, so started off at a decent pace down the street, and Tahlia let herself be towed along, suddenly choked with emotion as her beliefs about the weekend unraveled and restitched themselves in her head. She still didn't know what the kiss meant, if it meant anything at all, but that didn't seem to matter much right now - she was too flooded with relief that he hadn't been careless like she'd thought; too filled with blooming happiness that they were already sliding back into easy familiarity because God, she had missed him, and the volume of it all made her want to cry. And maybe she did a little, but he didn't need to know that. She'd blame her wet cheeks on the rain.

Then Daryl bundled her into his truck before jumping into the driver's side and firing up the engine. Pulling out onto the street, he glanced over at her, picking up where they'd left off.

"And it is true."

Turning in her seat to face him, Tahlia wiped at her face and lightly swatted his arm. "Don't mess with me. I'm very vulnerable right now."

"Ain't messin' with ya. 'Sides from that one fuckin' mistake of a night with Amber ages ago when I was meant to be takin' ya to your work thing – and that only happened coz I thought you were doin' the same thing with Shane - there ain't been nothin' with no one since I met you."

Tahlia fixed him with a disbelieving look. "Are we even talking about the same thing here? Because I could name a handful of other girls that you've been with, and that's not even including all the ones you don't tell me about."

"Ain't no others. Put your seatbelt on."

"Dixon!" expressed Tahlia disapprovingly because it was a weird thing to try and lie about given how they used to tease each other about this kind of thing. Knowing now that he hadn't been with anyone since their kiss was enough - she didn't care about whatever he'd done before, and she certainly didn't want him to try and deny any of it for her benefit. "We've had conversations about them. Or have you conveniently forgotten about all that, too, hmm?"

"Belt up. I mean it. We're drivin'."

With a frustrated grunt, Tahlia quickly buckled her seatbelt then turned back to him. "Daryl."

"What?"

"Don't 'what' me! Why are you trying to make it seem like I'm crazy?"

Glancing sideways at her, a crooked smile quirked his lips. "Sometimes you are kinda crazy."

Still only just recovering from what he'd told her about Amber, Tahlia certainly wasn't in the mood to be trifled with on this subject, so she punched him in the thigh and arched a brow. "You want me to go through them? Because I'll go through them. Right, let's see – well, apart from all the ones I don't know about –"

"Ain't nothin' I do that you don't know about. And when would I even have time for 'all of these ones', huh?" interrupted Daryl with a pointed look. "All I do is work and hang out with you."

Not to be deterred, Tahlia barreled on. "Apart from the ones I don't know about, there was Nat, who you have history with. We bumped into her that night we went to see Alden's band."

Daryl shook his head. "Nope. She has history with Merle. They dated for like, 5 years. I just didn't tell ya that case Andie got all bent outta shape."

Tahlia wrinkled her nose. "You slept with Merle's ex?"

"Naw! Just gave her a ride home."

"You told me you slept with her."

"Did not." argued Daryl easily. "You asked me if I took her home, and I did. Dropped her right to her door."

"Oh my God, Daryl – you know what I meant by that!" exclaimed Tahlia, punching him again. "You seriously didn't hook up with her?"

"How many times you want me to say it?"

Narrowing her eyes in disbelief, Tahlia shook her head. "Ok, then… what about that supermodel from the trade show? Um… Vanessa?"

Vanessa. Daryl chuckled. He'd forgotten all about her. "Nope. Not her, neither."

"But Dwight said -"

"Shouldn't listen to everythin' Dwight says, y'know. Sometimes he's full of shit."

Perplexed, Tahlia turned her attention to the sharp splatters of rain on the windscreen as she took a moment to try and digest this, then suddenly, she raised a finger in the air. "Ah! What about your mystery girl? The one from Frankie's party whose name you've still never told me. You were real into her."

A small smile played on Daryl's lips. "I still am."

Ignoring the shard of dismay that spiked through her with his words, Tahlia tilted her chin in the air triumphantly. She had him on this one.

"Well, her, then. You definitely told me you slept with her."

"Ain't never said that." replied Daryl mysteriously, sneaking a side glance Tahlia's way while simultaneously trying to quash the wave of nervousness cresting inside him at what he was about to tell her. "You asked me if she'd spent the night and, I said yes coz, y'know… you had, by that time."

Tahlia swallowed drily, the meaning of his words slow to dawn. "What?"

"Remember?" he asked softly. "That night you stayed over after watching Halloween?"

"I remember." said Tahlia faintly, the memory of Daryl's bed and tangled limbs and body heat crashing back to the forefront of her mind. "Um… you're… you're saying that your mystery girl is…?"

They were stopped at a red light, and Daryl reached out and tugged gently on a lock of Tahlia's hair, his eyes twinkling. "You really ain't that smart."

"What?" she said again, squeezing her eyes shut. "What?! But how…? You made me think that… Pull over. Pull over, now."

Back in the flow of traffic, Daryl glanced at her warily. "We're nearly at your place."

"Daryl! Pull over. You can't just be casually telling me all this with half your concentration on the road!"

"Alright, alright."

Daryl guided the truck to the side of the road and killed the engine, his heart knocking hard with apprehension because he was just realizing how fucked up all that sounded; wishing he had held some of it back for another time, like many years from now when it might seem kind of funny, instead of dumping it all on her before they'd even got off the starting blocks. Still gripping the wheel, he stole a glance at Tahlia, who was now unsettlingly silent and staring blankly at the dashboard, her hands together in prayer, index fingers pressed firmly against her lips.

"You mad?"

"No." Tahlia assured him quietly. "I'm not mad. Not at all. It's just a lot to take in, and I'm just trying to…" Trailing off for a moment, she looked up at him, baffled. "You were talking about me?"

Dropping his hands to his lap, Daryl gave an apologetic one-shouldered shrug of affirmation.

"How long? How long have you felt like this?"

A blush rose on Daryl's cheeks and he picked intently at the skin on his left thumb as he muttered, "Reckon maybe always, I guess. In one way or another."

Tahlia felt light-headed, bloodless, a vacuous hologram of herself. With every admission he was rewriting their history, casting their time together in a different light - a hue that was shimmering, wondrous, yes; but in this moment, to her, it was also near incomprehensible as to how it could be real.

"But… why didn't you just say something?"

There must've been a firm, logical reason underpinning the answer to that question, but for the life of him, Daryl couldn't find it anywhere to grab hold of and offer to her now.

And Tahlia didn't wait for him to try before tripping straight into her next question. "And if you felt like that, why would you make up all that other stuff about being with other women?"

"Ain't made nothin' up!" professed Daryl earnestly, emphatically. "Ain't never lied to ya, you just never asked the right questions."

"The right…? God, Daryl, semantics."

Puffing out a long breath, Tahlia ran a hand through her hair, trying to cast her mind back to those old, dusty conversations about other women, and actually, she couldn't recall him ever explicitly saying he'd done anything with anyone – the best she could dredge up was instances of him being tight-lipped and cagey while she pressed him for information. And since she'd long given up the pretense that she wanted him to date, find a girlfriend, they hadn't even discussed their personal lives in months. Tahlia herself had nothing going on in that department since Alden, and she'd always just assumed that Daryl was quite possibly having one night stands here and there but he just didn't tell her about any of them out of consideration for her feelings – and she'd never asked for the same reason. But now, he'd flipped all that on its head, and when she lined it up and pieced it together, it seemed like it was entirely, startlingly plausible.

But she still had questions, and she pressed her fingers to her temple. "But why would you even want me to think you had something going on with other women when you didn't?"

Daryl sniffed and shrugged, peering out the window for a moment. It didn't feel like this was going very well. "Cover, I guess. You were with Alden, so…"

Considering that for a moment, Tahlia then slowly shook her head. "No. No, when you first mentioned your 'mystery girl', I hadn't even met Alden yet. And even after that, over all this time, you seemed pretty clear that friendship was as far as this would ever go."

Daryl wasn't sure how he'd made such a mess of this. When he'd left the gallery to go after Tahlia, everything had seemed so simple in that moment – he'd tell her there was a misunderstanding, and then they'd be fixed. But instead, he'd ended up digging this deep hole for himself and his steadily sinking heart. Although, with every shovelful he was unearthing secrets long concealed, buried in the very foundations of their friendship, and he figured that if he aired out the lot, they'd be able to rebuild and create something even stronger.

Wasn't much left to tell her, anyway.

So he let out a long breath he hadn't realized he was holding, and released his lip from between his teeth. "Yeah, coz I thought that was the best thing for us. Uh, so, a while back, Merle figured out how I was feelin'-"

"Merle knows?!"

"Uh-huh. Knew even 'fore I did. And he convinced me that it'd be a bad idea to do anythin' 'bout it. Said that coz of…" Daryl cleared his throat awkwardly, "Coz of my track record, that after a night I'd lose interest in ya and end up hurtin' ya. And I didn't want to wreck all this," he gestured between them, "So thought it was best that we stayed friends. Then by the time I realized Merle didn't know what the fuck he was talkin' about, you were with Alden, and after that, Brooks happened and I just wanted to help you through all that without makin' it more complicated."

"Oh." breathed Tahlia, still rearranging the last year of her life in her head (God, it looked so much shinier this way). "Oh. And then… Friday."

The kiss.

"Been wantin' to do that for a long time." admitted Daryl softly. "Couldn't wait no longer."

The rhythmic drumming of the rain on the roof filled the long silence between them and Tahlia looked all floaty, spaced out, like she was somewhere else entirely, so at a loss for anything else to say, Daryl turned the keys and the truck growled to life.

"Gonna get us back on the road 'fore we get sideswiped sittin' here." he said decisively, blasting the air-con to demist the windscreen. "Gonna get you home."

Visibility was poor and Daryl's focus was all out in front as he peered into the storm and concentrated on not crashing into the car in front, so when Tahlia suddenly spoke, he startled.

"Sooo," she ventured slowly, all the tension evaporated from her voice now, that usual playful lilt coloring the edges of her words, "I seem to remember you saying that your mystery girl was a total sweetheart and the prettiest at Frankie's party."

Biting back his smile and the fizzing relief that bubbled up with it, Daryl shot her a knowing look. "Told ya I ain't never lied to ya."

Tahlia's smile wasn't so easy to disguise - it was a warm, glowing thing that spread over her whole body and lit her up like a Christmas tree. Recovered from the initial bewilderment of Daryl's unexpected revelations - though it would still be some time before she fully processed it all - right now Tahlia just felt effervescent, and, dropping her head back onto the headrest, she reached out a placed a hand on Daryl's thigh, squeezing lightly and that made him glow, too.

Given the intensity of the rain, the closest parking spot he could find still seemed miles away from her apartment door, and they both stared out at the battering deluge, Daryl's hand wrapped around Tahlia's now, until eventually he said,

"I don't got no umbrella."

"We'll just have to make a run for it."

The suggestion that they move into the backseat and wait out the storm was on the tip of Daryl's tongue and it was so tempting to voice, his body heating up at the thought alone, but slow, he instructed himself firmly, take it slow and do it right.

"'Kay." he said decisively, grabbing the door handle. "I'm gonna go round to your side then use my jacket to cover us. Ready?"

Whether she was or wasn't, Daryl didn't wait to hear, and in a flash was out of the truck and tugging Tahlia's door open, so she scrambled down next to him, grabbed a fistful of the back of his shirt and pressed herself against his side as he held his jacket up over their heads.

The sheeting rain had driven everyone off the streets and there wasn't another soul in sight as they jogged up the sidewalk, bumping together awkwardly with the jacket doing little to protect them from the onslaught, and as they veered onto the path leading to Tahlia's door, she let out a little squeal as her foot suddenly skidded out from under her on a slippery paving stone. In his haste to try and catch her, Daryl dropped the jacket and missed Tahlia anyway, and she landed on her ass with a thud and a splash in a puddle.

"Shit, Tahls – you ok?" asked Daryl, forehead creased in concern as he quickly scooped her up and set her back on her feet.

"Goddammit!" gasped Tahlia, rubbing her hip, then squeezed the fabric of her pants. "Oh my God, I'm soaked."

Snatching his jacket up from the same puddle Tahlia had just risen from, Daryl attempted to wrap it around her shoulders, but it was even more drenched than she was, and laughing, she shoved away his efforts.

"I don't think that's going to help." she remarked lightly, and then, with a smile still on her face and rivulets of rain running crooked paths over her skin, she wiped her hair back from her forehead and stepped in closer and slid her hands up over his shoulders and stood on her tiptoes to bring their heads closer together and fireworks burst in Daryl's belly because he knew what was about to come next.

So, she kissed him, soft and slow, like it was the easiest, most natural thing in the world.

Because it was. Thought Daryl as he wrapped his arms around her. It was.

And there, haloed under the golden glow of the streetlight with the violet clouds tipping their contents upon them in great splashes, and the sound of nothing but the cadent patter on the path, they melted into one another for the second time, and not for the last.

Eventually they eased apart, and Tahlia smiled again, or maybe she had never stopped, and Daryl couldn't help but match it as he took her hand and, unhurried now, they made their way up to her apartment.

"Really coming down out there." remarked Tahlia cheerily - and unnecessarily, as they were both sodden by the time she closed the door behind them. Dragging her arms out of her wet blazer, she dropped it on the floor and headed down the hall. "Let me get a couple of towels."

Back in a moment, she tossed a towel to Daryl as she dried the ends of her hair.

"I don't want to sound like a creep, but," Tahlia grinned and gestured at his wet clothes. "If you take those off, I can throw them in the dryer for you."

Daryl gazed at her, all tousled and damp, her white blouse clinging to her curves, her lips full and flushed from his own; all he wanted in the world right there in front of him.

But he managed to shake his head and say, "Nah. I ain't stayin'."

And after everything tonight, it turned out that those words were the hardest to utter, by far.

Disappointment flashed across Tahlia's face. "Not even for a little while? I could make some tea. We could just talk, wait 'til the rain stops?"

"Think I'm all talked out." And he was, though other things he'd rather be doing with her that didn't require any talking came to mind, but it was too soon for that. They'd both been on an emotional roller coaster today, and though they seemed to have landed in a perfect spot on the same page, before it went any further, he needed to be sure that she was sure.

"I dropped a lot on ya tonight. You should take some time to think it over."

Tahlia arched a brow. "What's there to think about?"

Holding the ends of his towel in his hands, Daryl stepped forward and threw the loop around her, catching the small of her back and dragging her closer until her body was only inches from his, her hands reflexively alighting on his chest, then he dipped his head and pressed his forehead lightly to hers.

"Just sleep on it." he murmured, before pulling back just enough to gaze down at her. "Gimme an answer tomorrow."

"An answer." repeated Tahlia, dazed and breathless just from his proximity. "What's the question?"

Daryl's forehead creased as he drew his brows, a slight tremor in his voice as he replied, "You mine?"

Her pupils dilated and she wavered right there in front of him, like a light breeze might knock her down, and prideful possessiveness mushroomed inside him because he could see in her eyes what her answer was, what it had always been.

Regaining her composure, well, some of it – she'd probably never be in full possession of it around Daryl – Tahlia swallowed drily. After everything he'd told her tonight, she thought she knew what he was asking, but given how many of her past assumptions had turned out to be wrong, it would pay to be sure.

"Like… just for a night?" she asked timidly.

And his eyes flamed with copper-burning intensity, perceptible tension snapping through his body.

"For all the nights."

Tahlia drew in a quivering breath as she gazed up at him, held firm by his fervor alone. His words had voiced her hopes, but there was one thing still playing on her mind.

"But… you don't do relationships."

"Not with no one else, I don't."

"Right." murmured Tahlia, pausing for a steadying moment before quirking her lips and nodding. "Ok, I've thought about it. I'm in."

Lightening, Daryl grinned and smacked her butt, then shoved the towel into her hands and moved to the door. Despite that impish sparkle in her eyes, he knew that she was probably serious, but given her propensity for childlike impulsivity and overexcitement, he still wanted to do the right thing by her and give her a little time to let it all settle in.

"Think about it." he reiterated, and though it took everything he had, he managed to turn away from her and open the door.

"Ok, fine." conceded Tahlia, almost managing a somber tone as she followed him to the door and leaned against the frame. "I'll do some research, make a pro/con list, use a decision matrix and ponder over it carefully all night."

"You do that." smiled Daryl, pausing at the top of the stairs. "Call me tomorrow."

"As long as you're not going to have another girl answer your phone for you."

Daryl's face immediately darkened, the notion that all of this had nearly been derailed still far too fresh in his mind. "I ain't even close to being ready to joke about that yet."

Tahlia grinned. "I wasn't really joking. Wait. Don't I get a goodbye kiss?"

Turning back, Daryl closed the gap between them in two strides and gently caught her chin with his thumb and forefinger, tilting her face up to his as he wrapped his other hand firmly around her hip. Holding her hazy gaze as he slowly leaned in closer, he noted her hitched breath and parted lips with smug satisfaction, then at the last second he changed tack and lightly dragged his cheek across hers, his stubble making her shiver, and rasped lowly in her ear,

"I don't wanna influence your decision."

And though pulling away from her was a special type of agony, her strangled gasp and affronted expression was absolutely worth it, and Daryl chuckled to himself as he started down the stairs.

"Dixon, you tease!" shouted Tahlia, trying her best not to laugh. "I'm not going to call you tomorrow, anymore!"

"Alright. Guess I'll just talk to ya some other time, then." he bantered right back before he disappeared around the corner of the second flight of stairs.

"Fine!"

"Fine. Bye, mystery girl!"

And though she was out of sight now, he could hear her moan loudly, longingly, and he couldn't help but laugh.

Today had turned out to be a very good day. And he already knew that tomorrow would be even better.