"This shower came out of nowhere and it's still so bright and sunny out," Michonne said, flipping on the wipers and decreasing the speed as she steered the RV down the rain-battered country road. Fresh from their getaway, she and Rick were an hour away from home, and she couldn't wait to see Carl and Judith. She'd really missed them. "I hope it's not rainy the rest of the way."

"Uh-huh," Rick muttered, reaching over and stroking her knee.

Michonne smiled, her attention to the wet road momentarily distracted by Rick's intense, penetrating gaze and his creeping hand moving along her inner thigh. She sighed softly. "What are you doing?"

"Thinking about all the stuff and thangs we did with our few more days," he answered with a broad grin. Swiveling the passenger seat in her direction, Rick reached for her hand and dusted it with tender kisses. "Thank you."

"No thanks needed." Details of the last three days played like an erotic video montage in her mind's eye, the soft rub of the wipers against the windshield an interesting accompaniment to the sweet memories they'd made in this RV. Those few horrifying moments when she'd believed she had lost him continued to haunt her, but it also made her relish all the more every second that they spent together and reinforced how much she loved him. Giving him, them, a few more days to just be, before returning to a search for more guns and the ensuing fight ahead, wasn't asking too much at all. She'd needed this as much he did. After thinking she'd lost him, she needed it more. The last seventy-two hours had brought an abundance of what she needed and was willing to give. Her smile grew and cheeks warmed with every recalled moment: the feel of him inside her, the taste of him on her lips, and the emotion in his soulful voice when he whispered how much he loved her. Michonne's toes curled. Rick was the most incredible lover, so generous and considerate. They'd definitely had an amazing time. "It was my pleasure."

"Oh, no, the pleasure was all mine." Concentrating on driving got progressively harder as his hand continued its journey upward, getting just close enough to tease her, before retreating in the opposite direction and starting all over again. "I mean that sincerely." He gave her leg a sensual squeeze. "We need a little more for the road."

"For the road?"

"Um-hmm." Rick stood, showing just how anxious he was for more. "Stop driving," he directed, removing his duty belt loaded with weapons and tossing it into the vacated chair, before untucking his shirt and loosening the buttons.

Her heart pounded thunderously. "Rick?" She glanced from him to the road and back again.

The look in his dazzling baby blues hinted at all the pleasures he had in mind. His raised an eyebrow and nodded eagerly. "C'mon, Michonne." He moved behind her, trailing feather-soft kisses on her neck. "Stop driving, baby."

If not for the wet road and steady rain, she would've slammed on the breaks, bringing the RV to a screeching halt. When Rick gave her the look, she was totally disarmed, but the look and the bossy bedroom voice coupled with neck kisses was the equivalent of a lit match on dry kindling. She was on fire for him, and the liquid heat pooling the meeting of her thighs only served as an accelerant. A little more for the road was a definite go.

Somehow keeping her wits, Michonne brought the slow-moving vehicle to a stop, turned off the engine, and turned the chair and all her attention to Rick. He had the most beautiful lips, and he knew how to use them. She pressed her knees together, her growing arousal almost too much to bear with thoughts of how skilled he was with those lips and dangerous tongue. Trailing her fingers against his sculpted pecs, she pushed the shirt off his shoulders and watched it drop to the floor. Rick leaned forward and she closed her eyes, anticipating his fiery kiss that would set them on their explosive path to pleasure. One second passed, then two, yet she was still awaiting that kiss. She opened her eyes to see him staring out the window. "What are you looking at?" Michonne asked, feeling a little curious and a lot horny.

He held up a finger and reached for his gun. "Stay right there," he said, before pulling on his shirt and rushing out the side door.

Rick glanced at the bulge in his jeans as he took off into the surrounding woods. The warm summer rain was cooling on his skin, but nothing could chill the fire his Michonne burned in him. Completely sprung, he couldn't get enough of her. He'd gotten plenty the last three days, but the more he got, the more he wanted and needed. His erection throbbed almost painfully. He wanted and needed her now, but determination to get what she wanted took precedence over his raging hard-on. He continued into the woods, a man on a mission. This time there would be no failure. He would get this done for her.

Michonne's offer of a few more days had been the best surprise. Hearing the sixty-three guns they'd found wasn't enough for those garbage-loving pod people was a load of shit he wasn't expecting, but when Jadis asked that he return the cat he'd given Michonne, he could've shot that woman on the spot, needing their numbers for an army be damned. Even thinking about it now still made him seethe. But his white hot anger dissipated when Michonne said he'd he be getting a few more days. A few more days of them being alone together, enjoying their love, being in love, and making a whole lot of love. An activity they would be deep in middle of at this moment if he wasn't thick in the woods in the pouring rain. The snap of twigs straight ahead propelled him further along. Being in this location wasn't without merit. He raised his gun and fired a silenced shot, hitting the desired target.

"You came out in this downpour to kill a deer?"

"Michonne." Rick turned with a groan. He'd wanted to surprise her with bagging this four-point buck. "You were supposed to stay in the RV."

"We were about to make love when you snatched up your gun and went racing out in a rainstorm." She returned her wielded sword to the scabbard, and like magic, the rain subsided dramatically. "Once the shock wore off, I realized I couldn't not follow you."

"I'm sorry for rushing off, but when I was about to kiss you, a small herd of deer leapt across the road. I owed you a deer, so I had to get my dear a deer."

"In the rain?"

Rick shrugged. "Rain, snow, sleet, a forest fire, it doesn't matter," he said, making his way over. "Anything you want is everything I need, because you are everything to me." He brushed a soft kiss to her lips, and held her hands to his heart. "You support me, you call me on my shit, and when I lose my way, you're the beacon that guides me home. Whatever I need, whenever I need it, be it sage words or knock to the head, there you are. And your way with Carl and Judith…" Joy filled his heart. Like him, his children thought she hung the moon, too. "I can never do enough for you, Michonne, not for all you give and have given me." The light but constant raindrops seemed like diamonds falling from the vibrant sunshiny sky, making her look even more like the goddess he knew she was. His knuckles grazed gently against her cheek. "And you're just so beautiful, you take my breath away."

"Rick."

He looked down at the tiny puddles forming around his feet, struck by the potent doses of woeful inadequacy that crept up in him sometimes. It made him feel like a schoolboy presenting a wilted wildflower to the prettiest girl in class. But without fail, the girl would accept that flower like it was the most perfect rose ever grown. That's what Michonne did for him. "To simply say 'I love you' isn't - it's not enough."

"Hey." She cupped his cheek and their gazes met. "It's more than enough, Rick. It's everything." She pecked his lips. "I wish you saw yourself like I see you." She chuckled softly, mirthfully. "But, then, that would make you extremely vain. And I mean very."

Rick belly laughed. "I'm going to take that as compliment."

"It is the highest compliment. You're so handsome." She raked her fingers through his beard. "But not only that, you are such a decent man, Rick, with so many amazing qualities. What I give you is merely a reflection of what you give me." She sighed deeply as a hint of sadness flickered in her brown eyes. "When I lost Andre, I lost everything. I lost myself."

"I know," he said with a little nod, sliding a finger again her rain-splattered cheek. Their first night together, Michonne told him all about her son and her boyfriend, Mike. He'd long ago deduced she'd lost a child, and hearing the details was incredibly heartbreaking, yet her resilience left him even more in awe of her. "I'm sorry you had to go through all that alone."

"I was broken, Rick. My faith, my trust, my heart, all broken. Then, I looked up one day, and there you were, the glue that would patch up and make new all those shattered pieces." She placed a soft kiss on his bandaged hand and closed it between hers. "You were the bridge that led me back to myself. You've given me two children that I couldn't love more if I'd brought them into this world, and you've given me you. A man I love with all my heart, and who I would follow to the ends of the earth."

"With everything we're about to face, you might be doing just that."

"I am willing and ready."

"Forever?"

"Forever," she said with a kiss filled with love, promise, and devotion. "We're the ones who live, Rick." She pressed her forehead to his. "We're going to win."

"I have you, Michonne." Rick's chest puffed with pride and happiness as he drew her closer in his arms. "I've already won." He softly kissed her lips, and just as quickly as the rain started, it stopped. And with the clearing weather, came astounding clarity. "You just married me, you know?"

"What?"

"Think about it. What was said and done here. We didn't exchange rings, but that's a formality I can easily fix. We've been husband and wife for a while now: we're in love, we live together, sleep together, parent children together, lead a community together, but today, just now, we got married. Even the angels above cried tears of happiness for us. I love you so. Tell me I'm not off base, Mrs. Grimes?"

"Mrs. Grimes?" Michonne gasped. "Oh, my…" She shook her head. "No, no, you're not off base." She released a long, slow breath. Rick grinned. He'd never been happier in his life. "Mrs. Grimes!" She jumped into his arms. "I love the sound of that," she said, holding him tightly and shooting an immediate flow of blood to one specific location. A deep moan rumbled in Rick's throat. Her gaze met his, leaving no doubt of her awareness of his enthusiasm. "And I love the feel of that."

"Oh, just wait." Rick swooped her in his arms.

Michonne tapped his shoulder. "What about my deer, dear?" She motioned to the lifeless animal. "We gotta bring in that buck before we get buck wild." She pecked his lips. "I'll help," she said when he lowered her to the ground.

"No, no, I got this." Rick slung the hundred plus-pound deer over his shoulder with ease and took in Michonne's magnificent rearview that looked even more scrumptious from the rain tightening her jeans. He grunted in approval. He was a lucky man. "After our spontaneous wedding, you're going to need all your strength, Wife."

~To be continued~