Page 82 of A Certain Step
Palming both sides of his face, Willa blocked his mind from the descent it was moving toward.
“Ethan, you’re one of the most hardworking men I know. I’ve watched you grow so much from our very first rehearsal to the show we just had a few hours ago. And my memory might be shit, but my observations are not. How you take care of your voice, listen to your body, and do everything you can to understand the character is no small feat, babe. There’s no reason for you to have a copy ofPride and Prejudiceby your bedside table these days, but I know you keep it, as well as the e-book in your phone, so you can look over things, just in case you might catch something new.”
She paused, tracing the corners of his eyes. “It’s natural that missing him would hit now, especially because this is the first show that he wasn’t able to see. Your grief is also pretty new still. I know he was your biggest fan, and I know my words might not be enough, but I’m here to remind you to take a breath. Feel the sadness if that’s what you need. Let me be here for you, but don’t you dare doubt how fiercely proud he would be of everything you do.”
If he hadn’t already known that he loved Willa, how she always understood every ache and elation and frustration inside of him would’ve cemented his adoration in place.
The fact that he never needed to hide any part of him from her.
Her sincerity. Her goodness. Her passion.
“You’re the best, you know that?” Ethan said.
Willa placed a kiss on his forehead.
“Youare,”she emphasized, then stood up and stepped out of his room, presumably to take her mug back to the kitchen. Tulip galloped out after her.
“Stay strong, Wills. Don’t give her more treats no matter how hard she tries to convince you that she’s a starving cat,” he called out.
Her laugh came in the distance, but he heard it still.
“Did the vet seriously say Tulip needs to lose weight? I thought you were joking,” she asked, walking back in.
He hadn’t been joking. Ethan took Tulip for her yearly check-up yesterday morning and learned that his long-haired orange ball of fur was now thirteen pounds.
Ethan bobbed his head up and down. “It’s not the biggest deal according to the vet, but I told him I’m incapable of saying no to her, so he said we should opt out of giving her too much after she’s had her dinner.”
Tulip hadn’t returned with Willa. “She knew you were talking shit, and now she’s going to stay in the living room.”
“See, you’re stronger than I am. I would’ve given in,” Ethan noted.
Smiling, Willa plopped herself right next to him on his bed and swung her legs over his.
He settled one arm on her back and placed his other hand on top of her thigh.
“It’s her little meows that get you. She’s the quietest cat until she wants food, and suddenly, we get all these adorable sounds.”
With a low laugh, he ran his fingers up and through Willa’s hair, seizing her mouth in a kiss. He didn’t want to talk about his cat anymore.No offense, Tulip.
Willa kissed him back.
When they paused, Ethan watched her eyes flick to his hand resting on her thighs. She brought hers on top of his, then glided her fingers gently across his knuckles. They stayed like that momentarily, hands brushing intentionally against one another.
Nothing in his life had been as easy as loving Willa. And he wanted to tell her, right here at this moment, even if, to some degree, it felt like it’d be too soon. He wondered if it would scare her away, but since they’d gotten together, Willa had been even more open with him than before. Except he still couldn’t believe it—would he ever?
Looking up into her gaze, he realized he’d been staring. Ethan drew his fingertips up to her cheek.
“What?” she asked.
“Just thinking about you.”
“Oh?”
“I think that even when we’re in our fifties, I’m going to look at you and still question how you’re mine.”
The brightest, most earnest smile rose along her lips, dimples out and eyes beaming. Tracing her lips along Ethan’s cheekbone, she drew lower and kissed his mouth again. Slow and sweet and promising. Parting, she rested her head along the slope of his shoulder.
Words left his lips before he could think them through. “I don’t know if you’ll remember this, but I called you on your birthday back when we were in Boston.”
