“And what did they do last night?” Charlie leaned an elbow on the table.
“Another wine tasting and painting thing. Dad looked like he’d done some type of finger painting. He’s gifted in many things, but when it comes to art, he’s artistically challenged.”
Charlie and Leslie laughed even harder.
Frankie had missed having friends to hang out with again. She shut herself away when she moved here. Getting out was good for her.
I wonder if Charlie has finally told Leslie about us skating together. He promised me he’d do it soon. I’ll ask him about it later.
CHAPTER 16
Six Weeks Later
Frankie and Charlie held their opening pose on the ice. Their backs were facing away from one another, one knee bent, the other out to the side. The fast, opening chords of their long program music played out over the rink’s speaker system from the classic Audrey Hepburn filmMy Fair Lady.
“Five, six, seven, eight . . .” Frankie counted, patting her hand against her thigh.
Popping up from their opening stances, they grasped hands and performed a set of back crossovers diagonally across the ice. Setting up for a split twist, Frankie felt Charlie’s hands take hold of her waist and thrust her up into the air simultaneously as she tapped her toe pick into the ice.
She held her hands over her head as she rotated two times around. If done correctly, Charlie would catch her and gently assist her into a gliding position. Unfortunately, this was one element where they still hadn’t quite figured out their timing. She came down with a thud, and Charlie wrapped his arms around her and steadied her.
At least it wasn’t a crash this time. She’d call that a victory.
For their program layout, they’d both agreed the smartest move would be if they stuck to getting the elements that required the largest amount of energy out of the way first. By the one-and-a-half-minute mark, they could also check off their jumps.
Catching their breaths, they marked where the placement of their lasso lift and death spiral would go just as the music slowed and transitioned from the film’s overture to “Wouldn’t It Be Lovely.”
It was Frankie’s favorite section of the program so far. They used large gestures and facial expressions to portray Professor Henry Higgins and his love interest Eliza Doolittle. As she’d discovered, Charlie had another hidden talent—he was an excellent choreographer.
They attacked their footwork sequence, throw double Lutz, and side-by-side spins, and the music changed one final time to the music from the song “I Could’ve Danced All Night.” Their program would eventually end with back-to-back press lifts and a final pairs spin.
The audience is going to be on their feet once we work out the lift entrance and exits,Frankie thought as the program came to a close.I already have chills thinking about it.
The music ended. They bent over at the waist, breathing hard.
“That twist was a hot mess. You’re not getting enough height,” Charlie wheezed. “I’m still not pushing you far enough into the air.”
“It could also be that I’m picking in for the twist too far back.” Frankie shrugged. “Don’t blame yourself. It takes two to skate. When Gemma gets in, maybe she can watch it and give us her thoughts?” She patted his shoulder. “I still can’t believe how much progress we’ve made.”
“It is pretty amazing, isn’t it?” He stood straight. “Now if I could make it through without being so winded.”
“You and me both.” They exchanged laughs.
Joking aside, they decided to spend the last few minutes performing one more run-through sans the twist.
Skating over to the sound system, Frankie tapped her rink card against the reader. A beep sounded. “Francesca Tomlinson and Charlie Welch,” a computerized voice said.
She rushed over to join Charlie at the center of the ice.
* * *
“How exhausted are you from the double run-throughs?” Charlie asked her with a calculating look later that morning, after the last of their students had departed. They’d taken off their skates and were stretching and warming up their muscles in the rink’s ballet studio.
She sat with her legs crossed on top of her purple yoga mat. “Not enough to skip out on our afternoon training session, if that’s what you’re implying.”
“No, it’s nothing like that.” Charlie dipped his chin. “I was hoping we could start off-ice lifts today. It wouldn’t be anything too fancy; I just want us to start getting comfortable with the basics.”
Frankie regarded him carefully. She’d been eagerly waiting for this moment. This was two months ahead of where she’d thought they’d be. Up until this point, Charlie had been cautious with their skill progressions. Lifts were the last element they needed to have a full program.
