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I throw off the covers and sit up, but the room spins, black dots pop up in front of my eyes, and my stomach roils. I grip my head in both hands and groan.
Noah chuckles. "Did I miss a party here last night?"
I open one eye and peer at him. "I don't drink. Something else is wrong."
He puts the back of his hand to my forehead. "You don't feel hot. What are your symptoms?"
I swallow and my throat burns. "I think it's just a head cold or allergies. Give me a minute to get dressed and I'll be good to go." I've had head colds before and exercising has helped ease my congestion and made me feel better. Besides, I can't miss another day of training for the trail race.
Noah puts a hand on my shoulder, preventing me from getting out of bed. "What are your symptoms?"
I shrug him off. "A sore throat and a stuffy head. Nothing that should keep me from working out."
"Why don't you take it easy today? Stay in bed and rest up. Drink lots of fluids and feed that cold."
The idea sounds so wonderful, I almost moan aloud and fall back into bed. "I've relaxed enough because of my knee. I don't need to waste more time being lazy."
"Lazy." Noah snorts. "Your knee is hurting because you've been over training. You are the farthest thing from lazy there is. You've probably got this cold from pushing yourself too hard."
I shove the covers off and get out of bed. The hardwood floor is cold beneath my bare feet, but I ignore it. "I'm a certified fitness instructor. I know what I'm doing."
"Yeah, well, I'm a certified MD, and I say you're pushing yourself too hard. I hate to do this, but as your doctor, I'm going to have to order you to stay in bed today."
I snort. "Too bad that order isn't enforceable."
He gets to his feet. "Unfortunately, I have meetings all day, so I can't tie you to the bed and watch over you, but I know someone who might be able to."
I ignore him and shuck off the yoga pants I slept in. I'm not wearing anything underneath them, but as a doctor, it's nothing Noah hasn't seen before.
"Jesus," he says. "You could have warned me."
I look over my shoulder, hoping he's leaving the room, but he's just turned his back on me, phone to his ear.
With a shrug, I dig through my dresser and find a pair of jogging pants. It takes more energy than I'd anticipated to pull them on, so I decide to leave on the sports bra and tank I'm already wearing.
"Hey, Asher," Noah says.
I gasp and cross the room to grab the phone from Noah, but everything is blurry around the edges and Noah easily evades me.
"Yeah, Clover's being a stubborn ass. She's sick and insisting on working out, can you—"
That's all I hear before I grab my running shoes from the closet and head for the front porch. I sit on the top step and pull them on, but it feels so good to sit, I rest there for a second.
It's possible I fall asleep a little, because my eyes pop open when footsteps sound behind me on the porch. "Asher's on his way," Noah says. "You should go back to bed."
I get to my feet and spin to face him. Luckily, he catches my elbow before I topple backward down the stairs. "Why did you call Asher? He's the enemy." I don't want him to be the enemy. I want him to kiss me. But that's not reality, as he so helpfully pointed out.
"Because he's the only guy I know who's big enough to sit on you to keep you here and also willing to do it." Noah crosses his arms over his chest. "Plus, your sisters are all out for the day and Grant and Henry are working, so Asher's my only option."
I jerk free of Noah's grasp. "He'll have to catch me first." I intend to spin and jog down the stairs, but that spinning thing makes me dizzy. Again. I mostly stumble down the stairs, but I don't fall, damn it.
I take off at a steady jog down the driveway.
"I don't think catching you will be a problem for him."
I jog until I'm out of sight of the house, then I stop, just for a little rest, and lean over, hands on my knees, as I catch my breath.
***
