‘Hey, come on, cheer up, it’s not your fault. It was just one of those things.’
‘I know, but everyone was in such good spirits and then it all went downhill.’
Guy held out his arms and Libby stepped into them. She hugged him tight.
‘How about I attempt to put a smile back on your face?’
She glanced up at him. ‘And how are you going to do that?’
He nodded towards the rink. ‘I could attempt skating for the second time in my life.’
‘You’d do that for me?’
‘I’ll give it a go for you, but I don’t want to be joining David in A&E,’ he joked.
‘I promise I won’t let anything happen to you!’ Feeling her mood lift, Libby pointed to his feet. ‘Size nine or ten?’
‘Nine,’ Guy confirmed, watching Libby walk over to the skate hut. Soon she was heading back towards him holding up two pairs of skates.
Leaning against the wooden bench Libby slipped her feet into the white, bladed boots, pulled the laces tight and tied them in a double knot. ‘Make sure they’re tight around your ankles; they need support. Trust me.’
‘You sound like you know what you’re talking about.’
Even though skating had been Guy’s suggestion, Libby could see sheer panic written all over his face.
‘I’ll warm up while you lace up your boots.’ She pretended to wobble as she walked towards the ice, and Guy lunged forward to try and steady her, but his mouth fell open as Libby launched herself onto the ice, powering one skate in front of the other.
‘Woah!’ Guy was mesmerised. ‘How did you learn to skate like that?’ he shouted after her but Libby was already on the other side of the rink.
He watched in awe as she moved; he couldn’t take his eyes off her. She was the most beautiful girl he had ever seen.
Libby skated gracefully to the middle of the rink and began to spin on one foot with her other leg extended behind her. Her flexibility was extraordinary. When the spinning slowed Libby took off again around the ice. This time she skated forward slowly, extending her arms to either side. She then bent her left knee, followed by her right.
With the camera still set up Guy began to film, watching as Libby crossed the outer blade with her inside skate, moving effortlessly around the ice. She then began to skate on one leg, swinging the free leg through while jumping in the air, making him gasp. Landing on the toe pick of the opposite leg she stepped back onto the flat blade of the take-off foot, executing the move to perfection. She lapped the ring one last time—this time skating backwards—then stopped in front of Guy at the barrier.
‘I loved every second of that,’ she gushed.
‘You were magnificent. You looked amazing, beautiful, everything was so effortless. Are you sure you aren’t a secret Olympic ice skater posing as a wedding planner?’
Libby laughed as she caught her breath.
‘And where did you learn to skate like that?’ he asked. ‘Professional training, surely? You’re a woman of many talents.’
‘My grandparents used to have the most magnificent house up in the mountains with its own lake that used to freeze solid in the winter. There wasn’t much else to do there during the cold bleak winter days so my dad taught me how to skate.’
‘Time well spent,’ Guy said, approvingly. ‘It’s not very often I’m lost for words but I couldn’t take my eyes off of you. You were breathtaking.’
‘Why thank you,’ she replied, feeling warm jitters as the compliments kept coming. ‘And now it’s my turn not to take my eyes off of you because you were right, we don’t want to spend the rest of the night in A&E. Are you ready? I promise I won’t let anything happen to you.’
The skates felt heavy on his feet and Guy wobbled as he attempted to stand. ‘You made it look so easy.’
‘You can do it! Now, let’s get you on the ice.’ Libby held out her hand and Guy reluctantly placed his in hers. She guided him along the barrier towards her.
‘Are you ready?’ she asked.
‘As ready as I’ll ever be,’ he replied, still looking hesitant.
‘Come on then, let’s see your best Bambi impression.’
