All right, Hunt. Time to tell the world about Beth. God, I'm so lucky. He found her in the crowd, and smiled when he saw John Cooper walking away from their table. She looked shell-shocked from what he could see, and he could imagine that she was fangirling over meeting him.
He reached for his award, shaking hands with the announcer (whose name he couldn't remember), and walking over to the mic to give his acceptance speech.
"Well," he began, keeping his eyes on Beth and avoiding Amanda's side of the room completely. "I never actually sit down and write acceptance speeches, because I feel like it jinxes the whole thing, but here we go. Um, I'd like to thank my Lord and my band and my producer, Ned, and all of my fans. I'd be nothing without all of you guys." He thanked a few more people, then took a deep breath.
"Also, I'd like to thank..." his breath momentarily caught in his throat. You can say it, Hunt. His smile grew wider as he got the word through his lips, "My girlfriend, Bethany James. She's an inspiration to me in more ways than one, and I am so glad to call her mine. Thank you all so much! God bless you!"
He walked off the stage, feeling a pep in his step that had him nearly running down the aisle back to his seat. A spotlight followed him, but he didn't care. Now that the world knew about them, he wasn't going one more minute without kissing that beautiful woman.
Bethany was taken completely by surprise when Hunter's lips met hers, but she returned it almost instantly. When he sat back down, her head was spinning and her cheeks, which had been red since he'd said her name on stage, were about ready to incinerate.
They settled back in to watch the rest of the show, but Beth's head never stopped spinning. The world was looking more and more dizzy by the minute, and her brain seemed to be pulsing against her skull.
The doctors warned you about this, Beth. They said that the dizziness and the headaches might reappear after your concussion. Just try to calm down. The show will be over soon enough.
She sipped her water and ignored the pounding pain, but she was more than glad when the show ended and they were allowed to leave. They passed through the door at an excruciatingly slow pace, and then there were anxious reporters and photographers waiting in droves outside to snap Hunter's picture or shake his hand or ask him how he felt about winning the award.
Hunter kept his smile in place, but he noticed the slight sheen of sweat on Bethany's forehead. She had the tell-tale crease above her right eyebrow that said she was focusing too hard, and her smile lacked her natural warmth. When he finally got a second, he moved closer to her.
"Beth, are you okay?" he asked concernedly. I hope she isn't reacting this way to the announcement.
She shook her head infinitesimally. "I'm not feeling so good, Hunt. It's my head."
His eyes widened. "Because of your concussion?"
She nodded, still smiling for the probing cameras all around them. "I think so. The doctors warned me that I might be dizzy and have bad headaches every once in a while. I'll be fine, Hunt, don't worry about me."
He did worry, though. He worried all the way down the line, even continued worrying as they got into the limo.
"Beth, there's an after party tonight, and I'm supposed to be there. Ned says I need to make a social appearance. I was hoping you'd go with me, but if you don't feel up to it, I understand."
She leaned her head against the back of her seat and sighed. "Hunter, I would do anything for you, but right now I feel positively terrible. I'm so sorry. I just don't think I can." The pain was causing tears to form in her eyes, and Hunter put his arm protectively around her and gave the limo instructions to take him back to their hotel.
"Okay, baby. I'll take you back to the hotel, okay?"
She nodded, resting her head against his shoulder and breathing in the intoxicating scent of him. "Thank you, Hunter."
"Anything for you, Beth."
***************************************************************************
"That's him," she said, pointing to Hunter's retreating back. "Just follow him back to the party, and wait outside till you see me leave. You got that?"
The man just nodded, scratching his scruffy beard. "Got it. I know what I'm doing, lady," he said gruffly. He sauntered off, climbing into his waiting taxi and telling the driver to follow Hunter's limo.
Amanda sighed. This is going to be a long night. This had better work, or Matt is going to have my skin.
Kind of a short chapter, but I feel like the last couple have been unnaturally long, so yeah. Anyway. How about those chickens you guys were counting back in the day when you thought Amanda was gone for good? HA. xD She's back!
Also, fair warning. I will not be updating NEARLY as often, because we're getting down to the crux of the book, and I want to draw out the suspense as much as possible, because I'm evil and also because I'm freakishly busy. But if you're interested, I started a new fanfiction called "Do Me A Favor". (:
Anyway, please like and comment and vote! Tell me what you're thinking! I love your feedback, but mostly I just love that you guys are reading this at all! You are all freaking fantastic, and just...uGH! :D You would ALL be in my acceptance speech if I got an award for this book. Just saying.
God Bless and Happy Reading!
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Secret Love (Hunter Hayes Fanfiction)
Romance"I'm falling for someone who isn't falling for me." "I know exactly how you feel," he answered, leaning down and hugging her tightly. "Do you?" She hugged him back, willing him to know just how much she cared for him. He chuckled. "Yeah, I do." H...
