I do not own "Forever" TV show or any of its characters.
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"Ohhh, nooo," Jo groaned along with the stadium crowd as the female skater lost her footing after the Throw Jump. "I kind of expected that, though," she said, crossing her arms. "That's one of the hardest jumps to nail." She looked at Henry, expecting him to agree with her. Instead, he remained silent, slightly frowning as if considering something.
"What?"
"His grip was off," he noted. "Her back was to his face when he threw her away from him."
"Wha - ?" Jo asked, distracted. A smile suddenly broke out on her face as she applauded along with the cheering crowd as the male skater tossed his female partner in the air above him and she expertly twirled her body, dropping back into his capable arms.
"Oh, good. They nailed that." She turned her smile to Henry and brought her lips together blowing out a "Whew!"
Henry nodded approvingly as he finished applauding. "His grip was much better that time."
"And what would you know about Olympic-style figure skating?" Jo asked cynically.
"Well, I know something about lift and thrust." His eyes followed the skating pair as they sailed across the ice and whirled around, over, and under each other. He caught Jo glaring disapprovingly at him, her mouth ajar. He shook his head, realizing that she had placed his statement into the wrong category.
"Her back should not have been facing him," he repeated, then looked at her, his eyebrows raised. He punched his fist forward several times with his thumb raised as he continued. "The optimal position for her would be sideways to him. When he throws her (he grunted as he demonstrated by suddenly pushing his arms outward), it would give more lift to her as she spins, allowing more space and time between her landing on the ice."
Jo had uncrossed her arms when she thought she'd heard an unseemly statement fall from the ME's mouth, but crossed them again after his explanation, grateful to learn that she was mistaken.
"Hah. Why am I not surprised, Henry?" she scoffed. "Sounds like you should have coached them on how to properly execute that Throw Jump. I dunno, maybe put up an instructional video on YouTube. Any other tips, Coach Morgan?" she asked, raising an eyebrow at him.
"Well, let's see," he mused, crossing his arms. "It helps that her partner would have strong but gentle hands. The larger, the better. And that she would have a tiny waist. The tinier, the better. Although his hands should actually rest where her hips meet her waist. His fingers firmly gripping near the top of her derriere." He uncrossed his arms and held his hands up, fingers spread as if gripping something.
Jo's eyes dropped to his hands. His large ... gentle-looking ... hands. Her heart stilled when she imagined them gripping her own tiny waist. Of course, she'd be facing him straight on -
"It's best that his fingers do not touch, so that he can effectively dig into her flesh. Giving him more leverage on his release." He instantly regretted that last statement, but couldn't help but slide his eyes over to see Jo's reaction.
Jo felt her breath catch in her throat when he'd said "dig into her flesh". Her breath came out in a quiet rush at his last words, though. She swallowed and turned her head away from him, suddenly interested in the large screen displaying the talents of the latest competing couple.
"These, um, women skaters have strong, muscular bodies," she began, managing to keep her voice even. "It isn't as if the success of their routine depended solely upon the guy's strength."
"Quite correct, Detective," he enthusiastically agreed. "Both partners must actively participate so that their physical movements achieve the desired result." Again, he realized the double entendre in his words and quickly turned to face her and set the record straight. Although he had to admit that the thought of his hands gripping her tiny waist with the feel of her strong, muscular body working in tandem with his was not a totally unpleasant one. The gentleman in him shook the thought out of his head but not before he noticed the blush on her cheeks and how hard she was trying to avoid eye contact with him.
"Look, Jo, I sincerely apologize if anything I've said has caused you to feel embarrassed or insulted. It was not my intention, I can assure you," he told her.
Jo heard the sincerity in his voice and, goodness, he was looking at her with those puppy dog eyes. How could a man be so annoying one moment and so damn charming the next? But she would admit to nothing. Refused to let him know just how much his words and he, himself affected her at times. They were crime-solving partners; friends. That's all. She turned a calmed, smiling face to him and asked, "What makes you think anything you've said has embarrassed or insulted me? You're just you being you, Henry."
He half-frowned, half-smiled. "By that you mean that I was displaying my - "
"Arrogance," she finished his thought for him.
His half-smile faded, leaving a deeper frown. "I was going to say knowledge ... in this particular area." He wondered why people sought out his opinion but invariably grew annoyed when he gladly shared it with them.
Jo, sensing that he was now nursing hurt feelings, softened her attitude towards him. She shoulder bumped him a few times, smiling at him until his frown melted into his own smile.
"We good?" she asked.
He smiled, dipping his head to the side. "We're good. And I promise no more armchair critiques of these talented figure skaters."
Jo pressed her lips into a genuine smile, nodding.
"Oh, that's too bad, young man," a woman's crackly voice sounded behind them.
Their eyebrows flew up and their smiles dropped as they turned to see a grey-haired woman in her early 80's sitting behind them with a big grin on her face.
"I haven't been this entertained by words since I read Fifty Shades of Grey."
They looked from her, then to each other, then away from each other, fighting to contain their laughter.
"Take my advice, girlie," the woman continued, winking at Jo. "Hunk like this wants to grip ya anywhere, let him!"
Notes:
After watching more than one failed Throw Jump, one of the commentators mentioned something about how important it was for the guy to have the right grip on his partner's waist. So the story grew out of that.
Figure skating terms gleaned from wiki pedia