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The wedding day.

Serena was up at dawn, pulling Adrian from the bed.

But Adrian woke up wrong. His head throbbed. His skin was hot. He was running a fever.

"Serena —" He caught her arm. "I don't feel well. Is there any way we could push the ceremony back a few hours?"

Serena was already fielding congratulatory messages on her phone and didn't look up.

"Oh. Just drink some water. The guests are arriving soon — I need you at your best, not making excuses." She flashed him a distracted smile. "Don't be nervous, darling. This is the most important day of my life. I need my groom to be magnificent."

Adrian stared at her.

There had been a time when the sound of him coughing once would have sent Serena into immediate, disproportionate anxiety. But now, with a real fever, she wasn't even looking at him.

He couldn't dwell on it. Serena's family had already begun to arrive. He took two paracetamol tablets and let himself be delivered to the hotel.