Page 13 of A Certain Step
He stretched out his hands to lock his fingers with Willa’s.Were other friends like this? Did they touch each other this freely?
She was like gravity sometimes. No matter how hard he tried to fight, hecouldn’t prevent the steps his body took to be near her.
“Come over tonight after rehearsals for Chinese andPeaky Blinders?” he suggested.
“Can we do tomorrow instead? Prissy little prick is being extra shitty to Sahar. We’re going out with the girls tonight.”
He nodded. “Yeah, of course. Is she okay?”
“We’ll make sure she is,” Willa answered, determination present in her voice.
Ethan pulled her closer to him with his hands entangled in hers, rocking her back and forth. “You really mean what you said about the choreography?”
Willa squeezed his hands, leaning forward into the space between them. “Would I ever lie to you?”
“No, but you could be sparing my feelings, settling for mediocre.”
“I wouldn’t. I’d offer to work with you if I thought you needed more training, but you’re doing great. You’re in your head about it. Get out.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
She smiled and released her fingers from his, pushing herself up on the stage with a swift and easy hop. Ethan turned to face her, swinging his legs back onto the stage. Willa placed her hands in front of his, and he took them again, all sorts of emotions coursing through his veins.
She tugged him up, released her grip, and bumped her hip against his.
Ethan enfolded his arms around her waist and spun her, prompting a low, startled giggle to rush out of her. Deftly, he swung her over his shoulder and carried her to the position she’d have to be in for the next number.
Moving like this was never seamless for Ethan. He had rhythm and could learn a dance routine with enough practice, but someoneas talented as Willa made it easier for him to try more impromptu steps. Months of practicing and standing in with her while she made up dances for fun improved his form spectacularly. Or, maybe her body was meant to be in motion with his.
It almost felt instinctual in a way he only ever mastered with his voice and acting. Spinning someone else felt awkward if he had not rehearsed it.
She bowed dramatically. “Thanks for the lift. The effort it would have taken to walk this distance felt monumental.”
Ethan shook his head and laughed, stepping into the wings where he’d have the complete view of her during “Forbidden Corridors”—the most erotic part of the show. He shouldn’t watch. The last few rehearsals proved he was too enraptured to make it through the entire thing without growing hard.
He should turn away. But God help him, watching Willa lunge against a ladder, move, and twist through the space occupying the very reason for the show’s title was one of the hottest things he’d ever seen. It wasn’t until he understood the depth of his feelings that everything that happened in this number ripped him to shreds from the inside.
Ethan would give his whole being to be on the receiving end of each move. He would treasure her facial expressions while standing in front of her, instead of watching from behind. He berated himself for it. He shouldn’t be thinking these thoughts about his best friend.
He turned away as she lay on the ground, hands splayed across her breasts. He knew what would come next. She’d thrust her hips and move her hands lower and lower to where his gaze shouldn’t follow. In a few beats, Miles would join as her partner in the number. He had to look away.
Thank heavens, Darcy was nowhere to be found in this scene, so Ethan could avoid this number altogether during live performances. He mostly did during the tryouts, but even seeing Willa quickly run by him in the leather cut-out leotard was enough to make him lose his mind.
He took deep, steady breaths, forcing his mind to trail elsewhere. He thought of the boiled chicken he had to feed his cat two nights ago for her stomach, trying to recall the foul smell he couldn’t stand. He focused his attention on the larger-than-normal rat that nearly had a staring contest with him this morning at the subway station. Mushy vegetables, soggy fries, feathers of any kind, sounds at the dentist, the smell of apple cider vinegar, people who chewed loudly, slow walkers…
The worst things were far better than thinking about Willa in leather. Willa and her pretty eyes and her wildly brilliant laugh and all the ways he could love her.
Focus. What is wrong with you?
Declan made his way into the wings with him, leaning back against the opposite side of the wall. Part of “Forbidden Corridors” meant that Elizabeth would catch Wickham with two women here, learning that he wasn’t who he said he was. He’d run out of the scene when it happened, reappearing only after the off-stage marriage with Lydia.
“I don’t know how the hell the ensemble pulls through this entire number. They’re such legends. I feel like I’m dying every time,” he joked breathlessly.
Ethan snorted a laugh. “What blows my mind is how flexible they are.”
What blows my mind is how flexible she is.He kept that thought to himself.
Declan agreed, still heaving.
