"Cuter'n you, too," she answers, swatting at his hand, but she's still smiling and she doesn't mean that at all. The kitten might be small and fuzzy and when she meows, it is awfully cute, but Beth's not sure anything is cute enough for her to like it better than Daryl.

"But I'm a better conversationalist than she is," she points out, arching her neck to press a kiss against his shoulder, then his jaw. "And you know she's not gonna contribute even a penny to rent."