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The power of the sneeze overtook him and he stumbled backwards. “My God, that was a big one,” Dylan rasped as he steadied himself. “Maybe now I can finally go back to sleep. But first things first.”

He ducked into the bathroom and I heard him blow his nose. Re-entering the room, he made his way slowly back to the bed and sat down on the edge. He rubbed his eyes with his fist, and then eased himself back under the covers.

“Come here,” Dylan whispered, rolling over to face me. I curled up against him and he began to run his fingers through my hair.

“Ava, do you have any idea of how sexy you are?” he asked me, his breath warm against my neck. “If I wasn't so sick I would ask if I could kiss you.”

His fingers were now trailing down my arm, and I felt myself shiver at his touch. His hand finally came to rest on my breast, and just as it did I heard a sudden intake of air, and Dylan jerked his head away from me.

“Huh-Ishoo! Ishoo!... Ishoo!”

I found myself growing wet at the sound of his sneezes. I knew he wasn't done yet and I turned around to see his face contort into yet another sneeze.

“Huh-Issh!”

“Poor guy,” I said with concern as I stroked his face. Then I did the bravest thing I have ever done. I leaned in closer and kissed his cheek where my fingers had just left. I could feel the heat coming from him, warming my lips. He looked over at me with surprise.

“What are you doing? I don't want you to get sick,” Dylan protested weakly, trying to push me away.

“Just shut up and kiss me already. After spending the night here with you, I’m going to have to take my chances anyway.” I began to kiss his neck, tasting the warmth of his skin on my tongue.

“Ava, are you sure about this?” he questioned, and in response I gently nibbled on his ear.

“I’ll take that as a yes then.” He smiled and then kissed me back.  His tongue ran softly against my lips, and I moved so that I was lying on top of him. He slid his hands down my back, and then pulled my shirt up and off.

For a moment we faced each other naked and then Dylan stopped to yawn and stretch. I could feel his muscular body responding, and then he snuggled into me. He let out another big yawn.

“Ava, I thought that I had the energy for this, but I don't think I do. I want this to be perfect between us.” Apologetically, he smothered yet another yawn. I felt bad because I didn't want him to think that he was letting me down.

“That's ok. Just lying here next to you is good enough for now,” I reassured him. I wanted things to be perfect too, and he definitely wasn't up for this. So I lay there stroking his back and eventually his breathing evened out and he started to snore lightly. I fell asleep soon after, lulled by the sound of his breathing, feeling safe and warm in his arms.

*

When I woke up next it was due to the radio going off. Dylan rolled onto his stomach and buried his head under the pillow. I reached over and turned off the alarm. Dylan continued to snore softly beside me. Deciding to let him sleep a bit longer, I eased myself out of the bed, trying not to disturb him. I made my way to the bathroom. I figured he wouldn't mind if I borrowed some of his shampoo or soap, so I jumped into the shower. As I stood beneath the pulsating stream of water, I thought about what was transpiring between us. It was weird, but I had felt an immediate connection with him. Maybe it was because of all of the stories that Anna had told me, but somehow I felt totally relaxed around him.

I turned off the water and got out of the shower. I dried myself off and threw my hair into a ponytail. Dylan was still sleeping soundly when I got back into the room. I sat on the edge of the bed beside him. A thin sheen of sweat covered his body. I placed a hand on his back and gave him a gentle shake. He was warm, not as bad as last night, but still feverish. He mumbled something and tried to burrow deeper into the bed.

“Come on Dylan, it's time to wake up.”

“ 'M awake,” came a muffled reply. He rolled over and squinted to look up at me.

“Good morning.” He looked damn sexy all mussed up. He had the dark shadow of stubble and his hair was all tousled. I just wanted to crawl right back into the bed with him.

“Morning,” he croaked. He rubbed at his eyes and then sniffed. “Excuse me.” Just then he brought down his hands with a snap and covered his mouth and nose. “Huh-Ishoo!...Ishoo! Huh-Ishoo!” He stopped for a moment and I began to bless him, but he held up a hand to stop me. “Heh-shhooo! Ishoo! Damn it! Huh-Isshhoo!” He pulled off a piece of tissue and blew his nose.

“Eve- Eve- Eve-Ishoo! Every mornig I go through this-Ishhhoooo! Ever sidce I broge my node Huh-shooo!” He showed no signs of letting up. In fact the sneezes seemed to be coming faster and harder. He blew his nose again, and continued to sneeze. He pinched his nose and his head bobbed forward. “God damn!”

He hoisted himself out of the bed, and headed towards the bathroom. His eyes were streaming now, and they were beginning to get puffy. He swiped at a tear that had rolled down his cheek.

“Huh-Ishhhoo!”

When he didn't shut the door to the bathroom, I followed him. I found him sitting on the edge of the bath tub with his head resting in his hands.

“Huh-” the sneeze seemed to leave him but then came on with force, jerking his whole upper body forward. “Huh-shhhoo!”

“Can I get you anything?” I asked as I kneeled down in front of him. He shook his head, but I decided to hand him the box of tissues from the counter anyway. “Are you going to be ok?” This time he nodded. Slowly he seemed to stop sneezing, and finally he gave his nose another blow.

“Man, thad was a bad case. They norbally dod't habben like thad.”

He was so congested, it was hard not to feel sorry for him. He looked beat, probably being woken up in the middle of the night hadn't helped him any.

He sniffed, and then continued, “Ever since I broke my nose, my sinuses act up in the morning, and on top of that my cold isn't good.”

I lifted myself up and kissed him. “I hate to leave you like this, but I have to go. Anna will kill me if I’m late this morning. I will see you later though.”

He stood up after me and went over to the sink to pour himself a glass of water. He took two pills out of a foil package and swallowed them in one. His breath was still ragged and slow. He walked with me to the door. As I was about to leave he grabbed me by the arm and swung me around so that he could kiss me.

“I definitely will see you later,” he said as he let me go, closing the door behind me.

I don't know how long I stood there, breathless at the thought of what had happened and what might still be to come.

The rest of the morning was a blur, what with getting my hair and make-up done, then getting Anna dressed. All the while Natasha glared at me. I filled Anna in on the previous night as I helped her get into her dress and she laughed when I told her the part about Tasha coming up to the room.

Finally it was time for my sister to get married. I hadn't seen Dylan since I left his room that morning and when I caught sight of him as I began to walk down the aisle, he took my breath away. If I thought he was sexy before, he was even more impressive now, immaculate in his tux. He was looking a bit better too, but still not great, and I caught him trying to hide a few yawns during the ceremony. I smiled at him and he looked sheepishly down, when he realised that I had seen him.