Page 76 of Thin Ice

I want to roll my eyes, but I don’t. “It sounds easy, but take it seriously. Think beyond just physical attributes, and don’t stop your eye contact or your breathing. You can even slowly rock together in this position. The goal is to feel both emotional and physical intimacy.”

I move to the couch and sit so I can see them both. They aren’t too far away from me here, and I know they can see me out of their peripheral vision if they please.

“Noah, why don’t you start?”

He nods, his hands flexing on the globes of Quinn’s round ass. She’s wearing stretchy black yoga pants today, the fabric worn enough that you can see through it if the light hits it right. It makes up for her not wearing a dress or short little shorts today.

“I like how committed you are to making our marriage work,” Noah begins, drawing my attention rightfully back to their faces. “Your dedication is admirable, and it takes a strong person to deal with me and get me to come to a place like this. Only you could have done that, Sunshine.”

Quinn smiles warmly at his answer and gently squeezes her legs around him.

“Good,” I say quietly. “Now you, Quinn.”

“You say that I’m dedicated, but you’re the most dedicated person I know. You work harder than anyone I’ve ever met. You spend hours not only on the ice to become a better athlete but also in the gym to make sure your body is strong. You eat boiled chicken, for god’s sake. That’s dedication.”

I don’t know if they realize it, but they’ve gently started to rock together.

“You allow people to be themselves,” Noah says next. “You have never once judged me for who I am or all the crazy shit I do—like eating boiled chicken.”

Quinn smiles. “I might judge you a little for that.”

Noah laughs, and even though it’s sweet, I steer them back on track. “Affirmations only.”

Noah presses his lips together, eyes sparkling with mirth. I imagine if he said something, it would be along the lines of Look who’s in trouble with the teacher now.

Quinn’s cheeks pinken, but she continues. “I love your resilience. Even if something is difficult, you find a way to push through. You always do.”

Noah looks at her like he’s not sure if that is a good trait to have, but he dips his chin in thanks anyway. “I love how much you care,” he says. “I love that you care so much about people that I don’t think deserve it, me included, sometimes. You’re the type of person who would give someone the last dollar you have in your wallet; it’s just who you are.”

Quinn gets closer to Noah, their breaths mingling as she holds herself tighter to him.

“I love your laugh,” she says next. “I’ve missed hearing it.”

“What about his laugh do you love?” I ask before Noah can speak, wanting her to go deeper.

“It reminds me of the boy I fell in love with. Every time you laugh, it takes me back to nights in your dorm room watching movies that had one-star ratings.”

My breath hitches, and I’m thrown into memories of Noah and I doing the exact same thing. Our laughter rang so loud through the halls that our RA had to come yell at us to keep it down and go to bed.

“Something happened there,” Quinn says, not to me, but to Noah. And she’s correct—Noah’s shoulders are tense, and his breathing is off.

“What’s wrong?” she asks.

“Nothing’s wrong,” Noah replies too quickly.

“Be honest with her,” I urge him. This isn’t part of the exercise, but I told them we’d go with the flow, and I feel like this is one of those moments.

Noah pauses, still looking at Quinn. Eventually, his breathing evens out, and he answers.

“Watching one-star movies to laugh at them was something Beck and I used to do.”

Quinn doesn’t respond at first. Her blue eyes remain trained on Noah’s, but a moment later, she’s moving off his lap.

“Quinn—” Noah attempts to pull her back to him. “Please don’t be upset.”

She presses her hands against his chest. “I’m not. But please, let me go.”

He loosens his grip, and she stands from the ground, placing her hands on her hips, eyes tracking between me and her husband.