Page 39 of At the Heart of It
Kate cleared her throat. “Certainly the couples we’ve identified have characteristics and interests that maximize their entertainment value.”
“Fair enough,” Jonah said before looking back at Viv. “So what would you recommend for our friends Roger and Abby?”
A flush crept into Viv’s cheeks, and Kate wanted to kiss Jonah for deferring to her. For knowing the right tone to set in casting Viv as the expert. She crossed her fingers that formula would keep working.
“Well,” Viv said. “I think they could benefit from some alone time. Regular date nights, any opportunity where someone could take the kids for the night. Do they have family nearby?”
Amy nodded. “The wife’s parents are both in town and available for sitter duty. We already looked into that possibility, anticipating you might suggest a romantic getaway.”
Someone from the product-placement team piped up from across the table. “Ponderosa Resort in Central Oregon offered to put them up in one of their luxury suites for the weekend. Romantic dinners, sunset horseback riding, the whole nine yards.”
“Got a vacation home over near there.” Chase Whitfield gave a decisive nod. “Ponderosa Resort would be a good pick.”
“That place is amazing,” Kate said, making an effort to avoid Jonah’s eyes. Did he remember that as the site of their imaginary wedding?
“I hear it’s very romantic,” he said. Kate felt his gaze on her, but she refused to look. Her face was burning enough as it was. “Mountain views and little bunny rabbits hopping all around.”
Amy caught Kate’s eye and frowned.
“You okay?” she mouthed.
Kate nodded and picked up a glass of water from the conference room table. She downed it in two gulps, earning herself a baffled look from the props-department girl to whom the glass belonged.
“Sorry,” Kate whispered. “I’ll get you another.”
“A romantic getaway does sound nice,” Viv continued, thankfully unaware that Kate was considering a leap out the window. “A change of scenery could certainly help a couple in crisis, and we could do some on-location filming.”
“I agree,” Amy said. “As an alternate destination, Sunridge Vineyards over in the Willamette Valley has some really nice cabins for?—”
“Or we could order them not to touch each other.”
All eyes swung to Jonah. Amy frowned. “What?”
“No touching.” He set his packet on the table and crossed his ankle over one knee. “At all. Hands off completely. Tell them it’s to preserve the sanctity of the counseling process or some shit like that.”
Amy frowned. “Do we really want to tell a married couple they’re not allowed to have sex?”
“He’s right, actually.” Vivienne folded her hands on the table and glanced at her ex. “In a case like this, what you’d hope to have happen is that the couple will be titillated by the hands-off rule.”
Amy’s eyes widened. “You want them to fail?”
“Not fail, exactly,” Viv said. “The goal is to create a sense of unity from their mutual rebellion.”
“The goal is to get everyone laid,” Jonah added. “Orgasms do wonders for unity, especially if they’re supposed to be off-limits.”
Across the table, Chase banged a hand on the back of the empty chair next to him. “Fucking brilliant,” he said. “Reverse psychology for the win.”
“I agree,” Luke said, and Kate wondered if she should start recording the number of times he uttered the phrase. Was that three or four?
Amy scribbled furiously on her notepad while Kate began mentally sketching out how much of this they could show on television. Obviously they couldn’t follow the couple to bed with cameras, but they’d be miked up outside the bedroom. She’d have to make sure the cameraman captured any suggestive banter beforehand, any discussion of plans for an illicit tryst. And if the conversation didn’t flow the way they needed it to, they could always make it work in editing. Maybe an interview segment with one spouse, and then a cutaway shot with a little frankenbiting, piecing the clips together to make it look like one solid?—
“What about this couple here?” Jonah said. “The third couple on the list. Suzie and Ken. This one sounds pretty toxic. Name calling, finger-pointing, blaming?—”
“At least they’re communicating,” Viv pointed out. “It’s the couples who’ve shut down completely that are harder to help. The ones who aren’t even trying to make themselves understood.”
“There’s a big difference between listening to understand and listening to reply,” Jonah shot back. “Trying to make yourself heard isn’t the same as making an effort to hear someone else.”
Viv tapped her pen on the table and looked at Chase. “I’d suggest an immediate communication workshop. They could benefit from learning NVC.”
