Page 26 of A Certain Step
Willa tried to hold hers in. “Oh, mate, what happened?” she asked Declan.
Sam’s laugh was so wildly infectious that even Declan stopped pouting to have a hoot over the incident. He pointed down to the black leather pants on his person, then to Sam. “This idiot bet that I couldn’t squat in these, and I did…”
“I caught the whole thing on camera, too. Thank heavens we weren’t live,” Naomi added.
Sam was still clutching his stomach and roaring. “I can’t breathe. The damn confidence he had.”
“But you have an extra pair, don’t you?” Ethan inquired.
“Bro, these aren’t for the show. They’re mine,” Declan answered.
The sea of laughter spread throughout the hallway. “Sam is going to lose his voice before the show even starts,” Christian noted from the doorway of his dressing room.
“Why would you buy leather pants?” Sam questioned, still snorting so hard that his whole face looked like it was doused with blush. “I didn’t even notice he was wearing them until he stood up to show them off for Naomi’s video. He was so proud.”
“Because they looked epic. Don’t be jealous,” Declan replied.
“Jealous? I pity my future self who’ll probably never experience something funnier in his life. Goddamn, please don’t ever change, mate.”
Thirty minutes to showtime was called from the speakers.
They all dispersed, laughter simmering to quiet giggles.
Willa turned back to Ethan, who was already in his first costume and ready to go—high-waisted trousers, jet-black tailcoat, a muslin shirt unbuttoned, chest hair peering through. OnMidnights at Pemberley,Darcy only wore a cravat once in the entire production, during Jane and Bingley’s wedding. In the gaudy, glistering corners of the fictional estate, his clothing was almost as loose as everyone else’s.
She smoothed her fingers against his lapels, taking note of the velvety texture that was absent from the Boston shows. “I’m obsessed with this new tailcoat. It’s so much nicer than the first one. The audience is going to lose their minds.”
He smiled shyly. God, it was adorable. Ethan was a perfectionist through and through, so she knew how much he appreciated statements like this.
“Thanks, Wills. You’re good for my ego.”
She huffed. “Please, if you ever get an ego, I’d celebrate it. Your humility is more intimidating.”
He chuckled. “Go get ready. I’m going to hound Declan about those pants some more.”
She smiled and then bounced away to her dressing room. Willa sat down and drew closer to the mirror to finish the last step in her routine, adding the lipstick all the women wore. It was a brilliantly universal shade of red, which miraculously did something stunning for each of their different skin tones. And its name, “Midnight Dance,” was a coincidentally delightful bonus.
Willa then started with the base of her costume, three pairs of skin-colored pantyhose to make her legs appear nude, and then the first bodysuit: an enchanting scarlet piece adorned with crystals. Afterward, she put on a massive jeweled necklace, her most prominent accessory in the show, for the slower, more tamed dance movements.
Sahar had begun vocal warmups, as had a few other cast members, their different voices spreading through the corridors. She stood for a few beats, stretching her legs before putting on her shoes.
Willa was gearing up to head out, waiting for the ten-minute mark to get called.
Sahar turned to her. “Break a leg, sister.”
“You too, beauty,” she returned.
Willa, Innila, and Laura Tiu were meant to go on before the rest of the cast. The production’s pre-show would keep audience members engaged while everyone took their seats, with Christian and Bradley standing by the doors as though to guard the entrance.
She strode past Ethan’s dressing room, then a few others, and up the stairs toward the stage’s right side, where she would enter from.
It was an underrated part of the show Willa especially appreciated because she could easily catch people watching and pointing, waiting to see how their favorite Austen story would come to life with the twist Jeffrey and Greta Henderson created.
It made the entire experience that much more immersive.
She stepped out when the time was called, a slow sauntering walk with a champagne glass in her hand.
She spun once, twice, stopped, and took a sip. She walked toward the doors and eyed Christian and Bradley. Willa, Laura, and Innila then spun around each other, clinked their glasses together, and turned again, ending up on opposite sides from where they had entered.
