Page 42 of A Certain Step (Midnights at Pemberley #1)

ETHAN

H e heard Willa call out his name, but everything was muffled. Had he been dreaming of her? Was last night even real?

“Ethan,” he caught again. Her voice shuddered. He forced his eyes open, vision blurrier than usual as he tried to wake up fully.

Turning his head to face her side of the bed, he spotted Willa propped up and visibly upset about something as she looked at her phone. He jerked up and moved closer to her.

His hands flew to cup her face. “Wills, what happened? What is it?” His voice laced with drowsy concern.

She handed her phone to him. He could make out the lights from last night and the figures of the two of them. He reached against his bedside table, grabbed his glasses, and put them on.

Shit.

It was them—specifically, him. His body angled toward Willa, his hand on her face, essentially glued to her.

Blurry and from a distance, it looked far more intimate than the moment had been.

It was on the stupidly frustrating anonymous gossip site he loathed, which consistently used “sources” to dish out exclusives on celebrities.

The caption read: Watched these two all night at Sam and Priya Butler’s show yesterday. Can’t even believe I caught this shot. They say they’re best friends, but there’s clearly something more going on here. I can confirm that’s Midnights at Pemberley’s Ethan Everett sitting beside Willa Davidian .

Tears stained her pretty brown eyes, the happiness from last night eclipsed by anxiety and defeat. And it was all his fault. One little slip that he didn’t even think was a big deal. One small, thoughtless move.

“Willa—” he tried to say, but she broke down instantly.

He reached for her and wrapped her securely in his arms, trying to soothe her with strokes along her back.

“I’m so sorry,” he repeated over and over.

Christ, what had they been saying about them?

Her? Had the cruelty already begun that this was her immediate response, or was she merely that scared of all that could transpire?

“I just wanted more time with us,” she cried, her voice strangled.

“No one can take any of that away. No matter what they say or who knows. We’re still us, Wills.”

He felt her head shake against his shoulder. “Everything changes now. All of it.”

He wanted to ask her to elaborate, to dig into all the things that were freaking her out, but he gathered now wasn’t the time. This moment wasn’t it. There’d be time to talk, hopefully later in the day.

She ripped herself from his arms and leaned back against the headboard, trying to catch her breath.

He noticed Tulip’s little head look toward them from the footboard bench, and then she jumped on the bed and spread out next to Willa.

Whoever said cats were affectionless never had one.

They might not like attention as much as dogs, but they could sense discomfort and try to fix it in their own way.

She tried to make biscuits against her side of the blanket, gaining Willa’s attention.

“How’d you even see this? I thought you had your notifications disabled.”

She released a quiet sniffle. “My agent left a voicemail. And then Sahar texted me to tell me to just ignore the internet entirely, but I obviously didn’t listen and went searching.”

“Wills…”

“Please don’t finish that sentence. I know it’s my own doing, but it’s our personal lives. I couldn’t stay shielded from it forever.”

He didn’t say anything.

Ethan’s phone rang suddenly, with Sam’s name on the caller ID. He debated answering, letting the silence stretch between him and Willa instead, then opted to pick up.

“Hey, man,” he said.

“Mate, I’m so sorry. I just saw the picture. Priya and I can’t figure out who was sitting at that angle. They must’ve been fans. We didn’t really recognize any regulars.”

“You’re fine. It’s not your fault.”

“I know, but I feel like shit. I know you guys wanted to keep it private. It shouldn’t have gone out like this.”

Ethan swallowed a lump in his throat. “Yeah, it’s not ideal.”

“Is Willa okay?” he asked.

Ethan’s head spun. “No, not really,” he replied.

“Shit, man. I’m so sorry. Are you with her at least?”

He took a breath. “I am, yeah.”

“Good. I’ll let you go then. Let me know if you need anything. Whatever it is. Me or Priya. We have both your backs. Please try not to let it ruin a day off.”

“Thanks, Sam. Will do.”

He hung up the phone as Willa got up off the bed. “I need water. Do you want any?”

Inaudibly, he declined.

God, he felt horrible. Her eyes were so dejected, gone to a place he couldn’t reach. He didn’t want to spend their day off like this. He didn’t want her agency robbed of her because of one stupid little thing he did.

Willa returned to the room with a glass of water in her hand, set it down, and then walked to the bathroom.

He felt sharp stabs of pain every time he looked at her, unsure of what to do or how to handle the situation.

He opened Instagram to check if any comments would’ve bothered her, scrolling through his notifications first.

Ethan had followed ethaneverettdaily way back when, and they’d posted a story.

He really hoped it wasn’t the picture. He clicked on it, seeing white writing against a black background.

It read: “ Out of respect for Ethan’s personal life, which he’s always been very private about, we will not be sharing the photo currently circulating unless something comes directly from him.

Frankly, it’s appalling how quickly some of you jumped to make assumptions about something we know little about.

Ethan, along with all the other cast members, are entitled to their privacy. Thanks.”

He’d met the two women who ran the account a few times, and they were both always respectful. He was thankful for fans like them in his corner, so he sent them a short message for the post: “Appreciate this a lot. Thank you both ??.”

Willa came back into the room, muffled a whimper, and sat beside him.

He took her hand in his and held onto it. “How can I make this better? Please tell me what to do.”

She sighed heavily, apprehension thick in the sound. “There’s nothing you can do.”

“We can deny it.”

“Yeah, and then if we make things public at some point, they’ll know we lied. It’s all just a mess. What’s done is done.”

His mind held on to the word if and marinated there. She said if, not when. Was she still unsure about what they were doing? Was she not certain of whether she wanted this in the long run?

“You said ‘if,’” he blurted, his voice sounding small and despondent.

She squared her eyebrows and stared at him with confusion. “What?”

“You said if we make things public, not when. Are you…are you still unsure about us?”

She blinked rapidly. “No. I’m sorry. I’m just angry. I wasn’t being precise with my words when I have ‘she’ll fuck him to the top,’ playing on a loop in my mind.”

His ears burned, and flames shot through him. His voice came out more intense than he wanted it to. “Did someone say that about you?”

She didn’t say a thing.

“Willa…” he called out.

She shut her eyes, biting the inside of her cheek. “You’re asking me as if you’re going to do something about it. You literally can’t. Everyone would advise against it. PR advises against it. So, what’s the point?”

“I don’t give a shit what anyone tells me to do. I’m not letting comments like that slide.” He felt feral. His lungs burned. The pit of his stomach churned with acidity. He knew that some people were a bit too much, but were they truly that low and vile?

He grabbed his phone again, remembering that he was meant to browse through the comments on the gossip page’s post .

If this is true, they’re hot as hell. I ship it.

I knew it! I knew it! I knew it! Their chemistry is too hot for it be platonic.

Once again, I’m asking if Ethan Everett can fight. I’d do anything for Willa.

Ew, one of the background whores? Unexpected from him.

You realize they’re actors, right? Also, wtf. Who talks like this? Get over yourself.

And that ladies and gentlemen is how she’ll fuck her way to the top.

What does he see in her?

Should’ve known he’d get with a girl like this. This production has changed him. I can’t call myself a fan anymore.

This is what I’ve been saying for months. I’ve been a fan for years, and his behavior lately has been so off. He’s out partying more, barely does stage door, and now he’s with someone who’s clearly a horrible influence.

Okay, first some of you need to calm down. It’s not like he was gonna be with you anyway. Second, if you zoom in, it looks like he’s saying something??

Naw, I was there (I didn’t take the photo), but they were v close.

What is wrong with some of y’all?!! They’re adorable. Willa is the sweetest. If this is true, then I’m happy for them.

Some of these comments, my goodness. You people need to relax I’m happy for them.

This is weirdly hot???? Would love to have been a fly on a wall. The way his hand is just covering her whole face? I’m here for it.

The only thing she has going for her is a good body. The rest is so bland.

He looked over at Willa, one pearly-painted fingernail in her mouth as she mindlessly petted Tulip with her other hand. Christ, he felt sick.

She seemed so far away from him now, inches away but untouchable—fully armored, nowhere near the unbarricaded woman from last night.