Her face fell. “Skating?”
We’ve had this conversation before.
He planted his hands on his hips. “A public session isnotfor doing big jumps like double Axels. There are too many safety hazards and liabilities out there. What if a kid darts in front of you when you’re taking off for a jump and you don’t see them or can’t stop in time?”
She tilted her head back and stared at the ceiling for a split second. “What do you want me to do? Skate before public or during? I’ve tried both options, and apparently neither works for you.” She locked eyes with him. “I’m in a catch twenty-two. Help me out. What should I be doing?”
“Skate in the morning freestyle session,” he stated matter-of-factly.
Frankie groaned. He made the solution sound so simple. “I thought you didn’t want anyone but your students in those sessions.”
“I changed my mind.” He shrugged. “If you’re going toactuallypractice, it’s the best time for you to be on the ice. I cap the number of skaters on the morning ice at twelve. Unlike the public session, my students are all experienced and are trained to give the jumping skater or the skater running a program the right of way.”
I could skate before Dad wakes up. This could work. It just means no more sleeping in.“What time would I be able to stop by?”
“Between four and eight,” he offered.
Frankie nodded slowly. “What’s the catch?”
“Why would there be a catch?” He fidgeted. “You did me a favor, and now I’m trying to be nice and do you a good turn. Karma. It’s a real thing.”
“Okay.”
He lifted his chin and gestured to the ice. “I haven’t seen a delayed double Axel in a long time. It’s nice.”
“Thank you.” She smiled brightly.
“You were a show skater?” He leaned casually against the door frame.
“With Dreams on Ice.”
He appraised her in a new light. “Did you skate as a principal skater or in the ensemble?”
He should know this. Didn’t he read my resume?Heat seared her cheeks.Maybe he didn’t read it. After all, Jack is the one who hired me.
“Principal.”
“And have you ever done pairs?”
“Yes, up to the junior level.”
“Interesting.” He stroked his jaw. Before she could ask just what he meant by that, he turned and started to walk away. “See you Friday morning.” He waved.
CHAPTER 7
I shouldn’t be nervous. It’s just another freestyle session,Frankie thought to herself. She’d arrived at the rink at five on Friday morning. Watching skaters through the glass windows of the lobby, she recognized Charlie and the two coaches from the afternoon session where she’d worked with Richelle. All three coaches were bundled up in multiple layers for warmth. Metal thermoses, likely filled with coffee, were balanced on the edge of the boards between the water bottles and boxes of tissues belonging to the students.
The morning session had eight skaters on the ice. As she joined the group and stroked around the perimeter, she gave a nod of acknowledgment to her fellow coaches. Zipping up her puffer vest all the way to the top, she rubbed her forearms and picked up some speed, willing some warmth to return to her body. She despised not being able to feel her toes.
Appraising the skaters at the session, she noted that many were beginning the journey of learning their triple jumps. She recognized the protective shorts filled with padding to protect their hips and bottoms on the falls they were likely to take along the way.
Mental note to me—find my own padding and bring it with me for the day I manage to work up the courage to try flips and Lutzes.
For this session, Frankie decided to spend the first half on spins and devote the second half to jumps. If her jumps weren’t there today, she’d move on to footwork.
Finding a patch of space in the center, she took a deep left outside edge windup entry into a spin combination. It was one of her favorite sequences when she’d performed as Belle. She’d expended a lot of effort to get the turn out of her leg and arch of her back just right on the layback. It wasn’t a spin position she came by naturally. She’d never been a singles skater.
About halfway through the skate, as she was taking a drink of water between jumps, she heard Charlie holler at her, “Hey, Coach Frankie, can I borrow you for a moment?”
