I frowned at him from behind Nate. “Hard pass.”
“Okay, I’ll text you when Neil and Hailey get here and we can finalize the flow of the rest of the week. I think Mel and Kim have worked out a rough game plan.”
“Might be nice if you looped me in,” I grumbled.
Ben skated closer to me. “We thought it would be best to workaround your current schedule and slot us in wherever it’s least annoying. Don’t worry, you can swap out anything you don’t like.”
“Oh trust me, I will.”
Nate was swiveling between us with wide eyes because it probably seemed like I was being mean to his hero. I faked a smile for his benefit.
“Nate, have fun and be careful, okay? This guy likes to go really fast.” I pointed at Ben, and he winked at me in response.
“Iknow,” Nate replied, still awestruck. “Me too.”
I skated back to the players’ box to grab my things then headed for the locker room. Zoey was on her way out.
“Aren’t you supposed to be lifting right now?” she asked me.
We knew each other’s schedules by heart.
“I’ll give you one guess why I’m just finishing up,” I smirked.
Zoey brightened despite my negative tone. “He’shere? Still?”
“Oh yes, giving a speed-skating lesson to an admirer. Do you know Nate?”
“Of course, he’s the cutest. And a real daredevil.” She paused. “Ben’s working with him? I can guarantee that means he’s going to switch sports now.”
I’d never considered that what was unfolding on the ice could redirect a young skater’s entire career. Getting a free lesson from a three-time Olympian would probably rewire Nate’s brain, and before long he’d be less worried about his jump height and more focused on speed-induced adrenaline.
“Would it be weird if I introduced myself to Ben?” Zoey asked.
“Not at all. Just remember whose team you’re on,” I joked, but not really.
Because I knew firsthand that no one was immune to the many charms of Magic Martino.
Chapter Nine
I couldn’t deny it. My left ankle was aching. I’d tried mind-over-mattering the pain as usual, and I’d already downed more than the suggested maximum daily amount of Advil, but the throb radiating up the front of my thigh was unmistakable. It didn’t help that I’d lifted heavy at the rink gym, with a focus on my quads. I texted my massage therapist to see if she could slip me in the next morning.
Hours later I was back at the rink to meet with Mel, Ben, and his two-person crew. As much as I wasn’t excited about doing the show, Iwasa little bummed that I didn’t even merit a full team to cover my story. Especially since Ben didn’t seem like he’d put much effort into his research. I was sort of hoping for a producer sitting just out of his sight line when the cameras were rolling, who could rein him in when he went rogue or supply supporting details when he lost the thread.
Hopefully the people who did the editing onThe Scorecould make up for any of Ben’s shortcomings, because how exactly was he qualified to bring my story to life? He wasn’t even a real reporter.
I walked into the observation room above the ice to find everyone already chatting.
“The woman of the hour,” Ben said when he saw me. “Quinn,please meet Neil Pappas and Hailey Burkhart, our shadows for the next week.”
I shook hands with Neil first, a tall skinny guy in a black knit cap, two sleeves of tattoos, and black-rimmed glasses, then Hailey, a petite blonde with a pixie cut in jeans and a black Western-style chambray shirt.
I was shocked by how young they were. Was my comeback being handled by an all-newbie team?
“Big fan,” Hailey said as we shook hands. “I’m so excited to be with you throughout this journey.”
I managed to give her a smile even though I didn’t love the sentiment. Ben and Co. weren’t going to bewithme with me for the run-up to Italy. We had a week carved out of my insane schedule to get the primary footage for the show, and then they’d be doing standard coverage of everything and everyone once the Games began.
I switched on my public persona. “Agreed, this is going to be fun!”
