Page 10 of Shy Girls Can’t Date Celebrities (Shy Girls Sweet Romances #6)

A mixture of adrenaline and heightened concern courses through me. He was just doubled over in agonizing pain. He shouldn’t be getting up just because I can’t keep it together.

“Are you sure you’re okay moving away from the bed?” I ask. “I mean, you were just in so much pain.”

“Nothing new, Joze.” He pulls his arms around me. “But can you help me walk over to the couch? I’m feeling a little shaky.”

“Are you sure about this? Because we can just...”

“ Joze ,” he cuts me off with the most adorable smile. “It’s chill. Have you seen this view?”

I smile, helping him walk over to the sitting area. “It is pretty magnificent. ”

“How the heck do I afford this? It’s insane.”

“I met your financial manager,” I say as we round the couch. “He must be making good investments for you.”

Wyatt furrows his brow as we plonk down on the couch. “I don’t know if I’ve met him.”

“His name is Martin,” I reply. “Or, maybe that was his last name.”

Wyatt shrugs it off. “There’s been a lot of people visiting me who say they’re on my team . It’s hard to keep track of them all.”

“I guess they’re all working in the background. They want to keep promoting you while keeping your recuperation upbeat in the press.”

“The press?” Wyatt asks. “Do people really care about me being in the hospital?”

I nod emphatically. “Absolutely. So many of us were eagerly awaiting your next movie. Plus, your condition has been so secretive. The fact online commentators had so much to speculate on has kept you in the news cycle.”

Wyatt blows out a hard breath. “Maybe that’s why it’s a secret. So people do talk.”

I nod in agreement, remembering Lexy used the tactic downstairs with Harriet.

“Have people at home been gossiping about me?”

“The walls of Ashworth Academy hold a lot of gossip. But, generally, people gush about how such a big star came from our school.”

Wyatt frowns, disbelievingly. “Do the Ashworth kids still go to school there? How does anyone care about me when fr-freaking billionaires roam the halls?”

I gesture at the view. “Umm, you’re not doing too badly yourself.”

Wyatt laughs, rubbing his forehead. “I guess.”

“By the way,” I pat the seat cushion, “this couch is ridiculously comfy.”

He sinks into the seat beside me. “I know. Beats a hospital bed, that’s for sure.”

“There’s this really plush sofa in my hotel suite,” I tell him. “I can’t imagine how the penthouse is decked out.”

He grins, clutching my hand. “You’ll have to check it out with me.”

With bashful nerves, my hand trembles in his. “We’ll be practically neighbors.”

He leans in, whispering in a breathy tone, “I can’t stop picturing us in your treehouse.”

My pulse accelerates as my memory floods with images.

“You remember?” he asks softly. “How we...”

My chest constricts around my swelling heart. “Umm, how we... kissed?”

Wyatt silently chuckles, pink highlighting the sides of his face.

I look away, stealing a moment to settle my racing heart.

“Things with us...” He pauses, until my gaze slips back in his direction. “They were heating up.”

“Mm-hmm.”

He sits back, but the intensity in his eye contact never wanes. “I don’t remember how it ended. Or if it ended?”

I exhale slowly, my shoulders slouching forward as every timid cell in my body frazzles.

“It feels like we’ve never been apart,” he says, running a hand over his hair. “Well, to me, anyway.”

I rub the tightness from my chest and clear my throat. “But we have been apart.”

He shifts nervously.

“I mean,” I continue quickly, “I’ve been watching everything you’ve been doing. But, seeing you now... It feels like the same you I’ve always known.”

He grins, rubbing a circle on my hand.

Beep, beep .

I slip my hand into the pocket of my dress. “That’s my phone. It might be my mom.”

“Is she back at the hotel?”

“No, she and dad had to work. Plus, there’s the twins. Long story short, I came solo.”

“Wow, that’s brave of you.”

I smile, unlocking my phone. “I was coming to see you. Well worth the anxiety.”

It’s a text from Kylie. “Are you with Wyatt? We need visual proof!”

I cup a hand around my eyes and sigh. “Kylie and her boyfriend are pestering me about getting a photo with you.”

“Kylie has a boyfriend?”

I nod. “They’re cute together, despite the toxic start to their relationship.”

“Sounds like there’s a story there.”

Beep, beep.

There’s another text from her, wanting updates and selfies.

Can I even send her a photo? I mean, I’ve signed a document, promising not to spread information about Wyatt.

Did that include photos? Dang it. I should’ve read the NDA.

Kylie would never share the photo, but who knows who else could see it and share it with the wrong people.

“Kylie wants a photo of us.” I lift my phone on camera mode and frame myself with part of his shoulder and ear. “I’ll just hide your face.”

I snap the photo and Wyatt says, “Hang on. Take it again.”

As my hand presses against the shutter button, Wyatt leans in and kisses my cheek, perfectly captured in the frame.

I giggle, lowering my phone. “Well, I’m definitely not sharing that one.”

As I touch the spot where the warmth from his kiss lingers, he whispers, “It feels like yesterday when I last kissed you.”

“Umm...” it comes out of me shakily as I hesitate to respond .

Yes, he’s the Wyatt I remember, but he’s also a freaking movie star.

Wyatt frowns, pulling back. “But you must have a boyfriend.”

Unintentionally, I laugh out loud.

He blinks, apprehensively grinning at me. “What?”

I press a hand to my lips, settling my laughter. “Umm, sorry. It’s just me, having a boyfriend. It’s laughable.”

His brow raises in surprise. “How is it? Look at you. You were pretty before, but you’re drop-dead-gorgeous now.”

My chin drops as all my muscles seize. Wyatt Hayes thinks I’m gorgeous.

Sure, a few years ago, I might have bought it. But now? I’ve seen him with popstars on his arm and kissing super model-esque actresses in movies.

He scoops a hand into my curls and cups his hand behind my neck. “You’re really single?”

“Yes,” I whisper, breathless. “I’ve never been on a real date.”

His teeth graze his bottom lip as he smiles. “Really?”

I blush and nod.

Whoa. He’s so freaking close.

“A lot has happened to you since we last saw each other,” I whisper, searching his lips that have been on other girls’ lips.

His hand runs down my shoulder and he collects my hands in his. “What we have isn’t in the past tense.”

I shiver and feel my stomach flip. “But we haven’t stayed in contact.”

“I was obviously an idiot,” he replies. “It’s a mountain of a mistake I need to make up for.”

“I never expected to be back in your life. You’re bigger than whatever was between us.”

“Josie, I care more about fixing our relationship than fixing my memory. ”

I shake my head. “Don’t say that.”

“It’s true.”

“You need to get better.”

“And then what? Never see you again? Nuh-uh, not happening.”

“But, if you don’t...”

Wyatt clutches my hands tighter. “Jo-Josie. Can you just let me w-work on making this up to you?”

I shiver with a wave of goosebumps, slumping forward. “But you... Okay.”

“Wyatt?”

I sit back, air caught in my lungs, surprised by the intrusion.

Dr. Fincher blinks at us, holding his clipboard, and then breaks into a self-conscious chuckle.

“Oh, I’m sorry,” he says, flustered, “I didn’t mean to interrupt.”

Wyatt clears his throat, sitting back with space between us. “It’s okay.”

The doctor approaches the couch, tapping his clipboard. “I just wanted to check in, Wyatt. Liza was saying you were experiencing stronger pain.”

“It’s not as bad now,” Wyatt replies, sitting back on the couch.

“Scale?”

“Felt like a nine, but, I dunno, maybe it’s at a four.”

Happy surprise brightens Dr. Fincher’s face. “Wow, that’s a big drop.”

I pivot between them. “What does this mean?”

“Wyatt rates his pain level out of ten,” Dr. Fincher explains. “Ten is the highest level of pain on the scale.”

“Wow, four’s not so bad,” I say with glee.

Wyatt chews his lips, his eyes dancing over me.

“Maybe you had a distraction from the pain?” Dr. Fincher suggests with a knowing smile .

Wyatt clears his throat, embarrassment tweaking his facial muscles. “Mmm. Yeah.”

“And how was physical therapy this morning?”

“Savanna had me walking with the bars,” Wyatt replies, “but I also tried walking on my own.”

Dr. Fincher nods. “Good. And the cards? Do you feel like you’re getting a better handle on them?”

Wyatt’s head tilts to the side as he sighs. “I’m still not very good at it. Sometimes I can’t work out what see-sequence the numbers sh-should go in. Erhm, other times I have trouble pi-picking up the cards.”

“The dexterity will come. Does the numbness still come and go?”

Wyatt nods. “I don’t have it all the time.”

“Good. I’m confident it should be eradicated, but we’ll keep monitoring it,” Dr. Fincher replies. “I know it can be frustrating to relearn all these basic movements, but stay positive. You’ve got this.”

“Thanks, doc,” Wyatt says with a small smile.

Dr. Fincher tilts his head, studying Wyatt with care. “I’m still concerned about what caused your memory loss. If you’ve suffered severe emotional shock, I don’t want you returning to your life and becoming triggered.”

“I, I need to go,” Wyatt says with urgency. “Besides, I’ll still see that psych, psych... therapist? Right?”

Dr. Fincher nods. “Right.”

“So I’ll be leaving soon?”

Dr. Fincher glances at me and then returns to Wyatt. “Yes, we will just have to perform a few tests before your release. The administration staff already has a list of appointments with your physical therapist, psychologist, and speech therapist. You’re staying in the city for a while, correct?”

“Yeah, there’s a hotel booked for me.”

“Good. Of course, you can fly back for future appointments. But I feel it’s important for you to initially stay close to the clinic as we monitor your release. We want you moving forward, not relapsing.”

“How could he relapse?” I blurt.