The room was spinning. That’s the first thing I remember being aware of, that morning after Grayson and I had two rounds of awesome sex in his adorable house.

Nausea roiled in my stomach. I opened one eye, testing the waters. How much did I drink last night? I remembered the two bottles of wine, but Grayson drank his share, and we didn’t finish the second bottle.

The bed was empty, and Grayson’s side was cold.

Frowning, I moved to get up and was shocked by how sick I felt. Running for the guest bathroom, I almost didn’t make it. I emptied the contents of my stomach into the toilet. Spitting in disgust, I looked at the remains of last night’s dinner with Charlie in dismay.

I leaned back, weak as a kitten. I was sweating, too.

I heard a door slam in the distance, and then a long pause as Grayson made his way through the house in the early morning light. I knew he was probably looking for me.

“Lucy?” Grayson called my name after he went to the bedroom and found it empty.

“In here.” Crap. I flushed the toilet in a hurry and tried to push to my feet. I had to sink back down on the closed toilet because my legs were shaking so hard.

Grayson stuck his head in the open door. “Ready for breakfast, angel?”

I took in his appearance as he took in mine. Grayson looked sexier than ever. He was wearing running shorts and shoes, and nothing else. He had a sheen of sweat over his well-defined chest that told me he had gone for a run while I had been sleeping.

And then there was me. I was naked and not in a sexy way. My hair was sticking straight up, and I hadn’t brushed my teeth after my puke fest minutes before.

I started crying at the unfairness of it all.

“Lucy? What’s wrong?” Alarmed, Grayson came to my side and cupped my face in his hands. He was gentle.

“I puked, and I look like hell, and my teeth are fuzzy. And you look delicious.” I cried some more. “It’s not fair.”

“You’re sick?” He chuckled a little as my crazy words sunk in. “Baby, your face is on fire.”

He frowned as he laid a hand on my forehead. “You ARE sick. Poor thing.”

Grayson rummaged around under the sink, coming up with a toothbrush still in the package, and a washcloth. He ran cold water over the cloth and rested it against my face.

“Here. This is what my mom always did when I was sick. Do you feel like brushing your teeth?” He helped me stand up, and supported me while I brushed my teeth with care. I was little afraid I would puke again.

So far, so good.

“I need to pee. Can you step out for a minute?” I didn’t think my feverish face would allow me to blush, but it did.

“We had wild sex in the hot tub last night, and then really got to know each other on the bed. I think I can handle a little pee, don’t you?” He raised the lid on the toilet and motioned me over.

He waited with one raised eyebrow until I gave up and sat down. I peed, looking anywhere but at Grayson. Fuck my life.

He helped me over to the sink to wash my hands, and then he scooped me up in his arms. He seemed to like carrying me. This wasn’t the first time I had felt weak in the knees around Grayson, but for once it didn’t seem to be because of his smoking hot body. Grateful, I laid my head on his shoulder as he took me back to bed. He tucked me in and left the room for a long moment.

I sighed and studied the ceiling, clutching the wet washcloth to my forehead. I finally have incredible sex, the best sex ever, and then I humiliate myself by throwing up the next morning. I grabbed my phone and sent an email to my professors, apologizing for missing classes today. This was a loser day all around.

Grayson came back in the room with a tray of food. “I picked up some bagels and cream cheese while I was out.”

He set the tray in front of me. In addition to the bagels, there were some fresh strawberries and a tall glass of orange juice. I picked up the juice and took a cautious sip.

“Thanks.” I cleared my raw throat. “I don’t know if I want to eat just yet, but this orange juice hits the spot.”

Grayson had put on quite a breakfast spread. I was touched by his thoughtfulness.

“Would you rather have some dry toast, or some scrambled eggs maybe?” Grayson sat down on the side of the bed, looking worried and unsure of what he should do next.

“I think I need to give it a minute before I try to eat.” I took another cautious sip of juice.

“Why don’t you call your roommate and ask her to pack a bag for you?” Grayson reclined on one elbow. “I’ll go pick it up after I take a shower. You are in no shape to go back to your dorm. You might as well stay here for a day or two.”

I eyed him with a strange mixture of tenderness and suspicion. “I don’t know if you are the sweetest thing ever, or if you are trying to keep me here for condom-free sex later.”

He snorted with laughter. “Both. I want to take care of you. And if you should start to feel better, well...”

I threw a pillow at him, giggling despite my weakened state.

Grayson rolled over on his back, still looking at me. “I’m thinking monkey sex. Me, taking you from behind on the couch. Then later, you, wrapping your legs around my neck while I go down on you again.”

I giggled, but I had to admit his words made me hot, fever aside.

“Let’s see if I can hold a meal down before you start planning marathon sex sessions.” I nibbled at a bagel, but I wasn’t feeling hungry at all.

“Agreed. Now call your roommate. And if you don’t start feeling better real soon, I’m taking you to the doctor.” With that threat he headed for the shower.

***

AS IT TURNED OUT, I wasn’t up for marathon sex at all that day. Pity.

After Grayson went to my dorm to pick up my stuff, I spent the day on his comfortable couch, watching TV with him. He made me soup for lunch, and I handled that okay, but then I needed a two-hour nap. I took it with my head in his lap, and his hands stroked my hair while he watched ESPN.

Grayson stuck close by my side but was never annoying. He made sure he anticipated all of my needs, and I enjoyed having someone take care of me. He was on his second night off in a row, and we watched HGTV all day together without worrying about our schedules.

I even made a list of some projects Grayson wanted to try at his house. He was inspired by our TV marathon and kept talking about future project ideas.

At one point we got tired of lying on the couch, but I didn’t feel like doing anything but resting. Grayson came up with an out-of-the-box solution. He left the room and came back with two sheets, and stood over me, smiling.

“What’s with that look?” I was half-wary, half-amused.

“Let’s build a sheet fort.” Grayson was the picture of little boy eagerness. His gray eyes shone brightly, and he kept grinning.

“A what?” Maybe Grayson had caught my virus, and now he was the one running a fever.

“A sheet fort. Didn’t you do this as a kid?” Grayson started rearranging the furniture and even brought in chairs from the kitchen table. He draped the sheets over the chairs and left an opening so we could see the television from one end.

I had a flashback to my dad building me a fort similar to this one when I was about three. I filled it with my stuffed animal friends, and my dad and I had a tea party with tiny sandwiches and cookies.

The memory combined with Grayson’s eagerness made me smile.

Grayson brought out an oversized piece of foam. “I use this as a mattress of sorts when I go camping with my friends.”

He put the foam down to serve as our padding, and then he piled pillows from his bed on top of that. He made a tray of cheese and crackers, and we crawled into the pillow and sheet fort together.

The fort gave us a little respite from the strong daylight, and I prepared to take another much-needed nap.

We spent the rest of the afternoon in our fort, watching mindless television and cuddling. I dozed off and on, and so did Grayson.

By dinner, I was well enough to scramble some eggs while he made toast, and we ate sitting at his breakfast nook. Afterwards, I took a long bubble bath, and Grayson kept coming up with reasons to check on me.

“Do you have soap in here? I thought I was running out.” He stuck his head in the bathroom door.

“Yes, there’s a brand new bar. I’m fine.” He left, and I went back to soaking with my eyes closed.

A few minutes later, Grayson was back. “Do you need a towel? I’m not sure if there are any clean ones in here.”

“There’s a whole stack of clean towels on the vanity.” I didn’t even bother opening my eyes this time.

A few minutes later, there he was again. “Do you need anything, baby? Anything at all? Just tell me what you need and I will get it.”

“Grayson.” I kept my eyes closed.

“Yes? What do you need?” He was so eager to please.

“Do you want to join me in the bath?” I sat up, and soapy water ran down my breasts.

Grayson’s eyes followed every wet trail. “Yes, I definitely want to join you.”

He had his shirt off before he finished speaking.

I scooted up so he could sit behind me. It reminded me of the hot tub the night before, although we were more crowded in the bathtub. We squeezed in together, and Grayson helped me wash my hair. He gave me a gentle shoulder and scalp massage, and I was in heaven.

Grayson’s erection was noticeable between us, but he never made a sexual move. He simply focused on taking care of me, much as he had all day long. He made me feel cherished, and I was so happy in spite of being sick.

After our shared bath, we sat side by side on the couch again. He did paperwork on his laptop, and I caught up on my homework assignments after emailing a classmate about what I had missed that day.

I wanted this day to never end, but I started feeling guilty about being in his way. I didn’t want Grayson to ever get tired of having me around.

Closing my laptop, I looked over at him. “Grayson.”

“Hmm.” He was tapping away at the keyboard, distracted by his work.

“Are you ready to take me home?” I sat up, wondering where my shoes were. Did I even bring them in from the backyard the night before? I couldn’t remember.

That got his attention. “No. I’m sure as shit not ready to take you home.” He resumed his typing with his jaw clenched in frustration.

“I can’t just stay here.” I put my laptop on the table and shifted on the couch.

“Yes, you can.” Still typing. He didn’t even look at me.

“Grayson.” I made my tone firm and decisive.

“Lucy.” His tone matched mine. His fingers never paused on his keyboard.

“I’m going to get in your way here.” I stood up and started gathering our dirty dishes from earlier in the day.

“I’ll get that. You rest.” Grayson put his laptop next to mine and tried to take the dishes from me.

“I’ve got it.” There was a stubborn tilt to my chin.

He ignored me and took the bowls right out of my hands. I stomped my foot like an angry child and followed him into the kitchen. I stood there at a loss for what to do next, and I crossed my arms across my chest.

Grayson started loading the dishwasher, and then he added detergent and turned it on. “I want you to stay.”

“That’s sweet, but I don’t want to get on your nerves.” I was standing firm on this, even though I had to lean against the counter because my legs were still a little weak.

Grayson crossed the room and wrapped his arms around my waist. “What’s getting on my nerves is you wanting to leave. Are you tired of me already?”

“No.” I started laughing. As if I could ever get tired of this magnificent man. I wish. It would make my life easier.

I snuggled into his warm embrace.

“Then stay.” He kissed my forehead. Gentle and sweet Grayson was back. “I think your fever is gone.”

I yawned. I was exhausted, despite my day of doing next to nothing.

Grayson lifted me in his arms. “Let’s go to bed and get some more sleep.”

So that’s what we did.