All Chapters of While Marrying Mr. Steele: Chapter 11 - Chapter 20

(Ethan POV) The door slamming behind me echoed down the hallway as I wheeled my chair into my bedroom. Awave of rage washed through me, and I could feel my heart pounding in my ears. I should have just left it alone, I should have left that accursed photograph alone, and let her deal with whatever curiosity she had aroused.No, she had seen it. She had seen him. Ryan. One boundary I had been afraid all along that he would cross.My brother's smiling face haunted my mind every day, but the eyes of another—above all, Amelia's—made the weight of that guilt absolutely unbearable.She is confused.I reached my door, grasping the handle firmly in my hand and pushing it open with resolve. My chair's wheels stalled momentarily on the carpet before rolling free, pulling me deeper into the surrounding darkness.I closed my door behind me and leaned forward again, resting my elbows on my thighs. Shallow, rapid breaths spilled from my lips as I struggled to compose myself.Why was she so infuri

(Amelia’s POV)Some ghosts don't bind you with chains but haunt you in your mind and sometimes on a page with ink.I never thought I’d find anything interesting in Ethan’s study. The room was too pristine, too calculated—like everything in his life. But after days of being cooped up, I needed something to do, and if I spent one more second doom-scrolling on my phone, I’d lose my mind.The shelves were lined with weighty tomes, most that lay unopened. Some had gilded trim, but others smelled of leather and old books; still, nothing about them felt personal. No photos from boyhood, no worn notebooks—nothing that disclosed anything about Ethan Blackwood other than his carefully constructed facade. The room was quiet, except for the soft crunch of paper as I sorted through the books and papers stacked high on the mahogany desk. Light filtered through the thick curtains, sending warm golden angles across the lines of bookshelves. Ethan had hardly set foot in this room since I came, and i

“I didn’t expect you to stay,” Ethan said, voice low as the faint morning light crept into the room.“I didn’t expect you to ask me,” I replied, fingers drawing idle circles on his chest..He made a soft noise, a tune that hovered halfway between a sigh and laughter. “You're making it sound like I don't have one.”"I think so," I answered. "You've just stashed it away somewhere in here."“Maybe I did.” His hand shifted slightly, brushing mine. “Last night… I didn’t plan it.”Neither did I.He was quiet for a while. I didn't pressure him to talk. I knew that silence from Ethan wasn't nothing; it was his defense."I keep thinking about Ryan every day," he eventually admitted.I blinked. It wasn’t the first time I’d heard his name. But it was the first time Ethan had brought him up voluntarily."What's been on your mind?" I asked quietly."That I should be the one to die," he went on, his tone unshakeable. "He had such a promising future ahead. I was responsible for all of the unrest."“

Amelia's PovI stood in her hospital room, cradling this sheaf of white lilies in my hands too tightly. I was hit by the acrid smell typical in hospitals first, followed by the gentle humming of machines, before I spotted her—my mother—lying still between too many pillows. Her face was whiter than usual. Her hair that she so lovingly styled was flat on her face and disheveled. A nurse nodded courteously at me before she quietly disappeared, leaving us alone."Hello, Mum," I whispered, trying to keep my tone even as I set down the flowers on the window.She lay still. Her eyes were closed, but even though machines told me she was still alive, it still unsettled me that she appeared so vulnerable. As if she could disappear in an instant if I blinked.I sat next to her bed, holding her hand in mine and curling my fingers over her own. She didn't squeeze back. She never did now."I've been all right," I answered quietly, gazing at her face. "I'm doing my best. The job's been tough. Ethan

– Amelia's Pov I hadn't told Ethan about the kiss.Not because I was confused, not because I was covering for Jared. I wasn't. Jared's behavior was inappropriate and uncalled for. But I didn't want to sabotage what Ethan and I had started to develop, not when he was finally being open with me. Not when he was working so hard.I avoided Jared. I avoided him in messages. I avoided letting our paths cross. I went so far as to switch where I ate lunch, just to be safe. But still, I couldn’t shake this nagging sensation that he was still there. Watching.I tried to brush it aside as I strode down the hallway of the hospital. The walls were too white, the lighting too harsh. My clothes carried with them a faint whiff of the disinfectant. My feet felt leaden as I went towards my mother's door, and I inhaled before entering.She slept, her face tilted to one side, an oxygen tube resting across her cheek. Her face was more gaunt than I remembered. Fragile. I sat next to her, watching her ches