I made sure that Charlie was settled, cracked my neck, and looked at the names on the document in front of me. It was important to know who I was talking with. I wanted to be present, and I wanted to let them know that they could trust me. I had no desire to shove them back into the closet, and I would find sponsors who embraced their authenticity. I also wanted to offer them the services of my lawyer about the comments on the news the other night.
It didn’t matter who I was meeting with. I always approached business professionally, and I had heard the agent that currently represented them wanted them to back off from being a couple because it was ‘hard enough to get past the gay thing.’ Initially, I wasn’t sure if I would even offer to sign them, but now, knowing how their agents treated them, there was no doubt. Even though these guys were not as high profile as my existing clients, I felt they needed to be protected since there was still too much homophobic behavior in professional sports.
Using Zoom, I called them. They joined from separate parts of the house. I told them I didn’t want to force them to pretend they weren’t who they were and that I understood what it was like to deal with prejudices because of your sexual preferences.
I told the story about why I started Hot Shots in the first place. The company I was working for didn’t want a gay agent.
No athlete would collaborate with me if they knew I ‘liked to suck dick’ were the words my boss put in an email when he found out I wasn’t straight like the rest of his team. The money I got from suing them was what I used to start Hot Shots.
Since I was now one of the top two agencies, if not the top in the country, it was evident that he had been mistaken. I ran into a few uncomfortable athletes, but they liked how I did business and got them sponsorships that other agents couldn’t. Once they got their first endorsement check, any discomfort seemed to vanish. All my clients weren’t queer. I got respected for how I did business regardless of my sexuality and represented most of the top athletes in the country. Those who found it an issue worked with someone else.
Liam and Connor liked what I had to say. They didn't want to travel with training camp right around the corner. I needed to go to Canada and visit a resort there, and this could be an excellent opportunity to sign them and pitch a few ideas to the ski resort looking for athletes. They lived about halfway between home and the resort. They asked if they could talk about it and then call me back. I, of course, agreed.
Liam and Connor called back, and both wanted to sign up with Hot Shots. I would buy them out of their current contract by reminding their agent that he was already touching a line about his opinion on their relationship. It will cost me about one hundred thousand or so. If he gave me trouble, I might have to let the media know about his agency’s stance on queer athletes.
I asked if we could meet next Wednesday to do the paperwork. They agreed, and I reminded them they were separate people and one might get jobs, the other doesn’t. I didn’t want to mislead them that everything would be just the two of them.
I emailed Cecelia and asked to have contracts printed and a welcome package prepared for the two new members of my roster. I planned to visit them, sign the documents, and then go to Canada to do business with the ski resort and a few other potential companies that wanted high-profile spokespersons.
I pulled files that I wanted to give to Forest. Whenever I heard about a possible client, I started a folder. As I learned more, I would either build the folder and pursue them or decide they weren’t the right fit. The people in the folders I pulled would be fantastic to work with, but I only had time for so many athletes. These individuals had started to get noticed in their professional sport. It would start an incredible roster if he signed any of them. He would have to keep the guys he already had, but now he wanted the bigger fish. His timing couldn’t be better. It allowed Hot Shots to grow, but I didn’t have to be available to do it since I was carving out time for Aaron.
I heard the elevator doors open. “Where are you, little brother?” I listened to my refrigerator open, and then he walked around the corner holding a bottle of water out to me, then opened one for himself.
He sat there and looked at me. I looked back. I knew from experience that this could go on for hours. He knew I had things that didn’t relate to being a sports agent that I was dying to spill to my sibling. I wasn’t closer to one brother than the other. I would share whatever was going on with any of them. Usually, after a ‘private’ conversation, the family gossip train would head out of the station, and everyone would know within hours.
I took a swig of water and leaned back in my chair. Forest blinked at me, then leaned forward and rested his elbows on his knees.
“For fucks sake. Yes. I know we all thought it was never going to happen. This whole thing surprised me, but we had the best weekend, Forest. He is a good person. Is it too soon to tell him? Maybe it’s just the incredible sex and not something more, but even the sex seems different. You probably didn’t want to know that part, but you asked, so you get it all. Now that you mention it, there was a connection between us before the mind-blowing orgasms. You know, other thanthat guy in college, I never spent more than hours with a guy. Now, I can’t get enough of him. I want to be with him, and I don’t even care if we are having sex. Do you know we didn’t do anything until after our dinner on Friday? I know it is hard to believe, right? When I saw him for the first time, I wanted to jump him. Then he touched my butt.”
Forest held up his hand. “River, breathe. Yes, we could all tell. I don’t think it’s too soon to tell him if that’s how you feel, but only you can decide. For what it's worth, though, we all think he feels the same way about you. Now I need to think of kittens or something to get your sex life out of my head.”
My heart did that floppy flutter maneuver, and I looked down. “Really?”
“He is totally into you. We saw how he made sure you wanted for nothing, watched for you when you were across the room, and got little hearts in his eyes when talking about you. He has strong feelings.” He gave me a happy smile. “We like him. Even more so, we like the person you are when you are with him. You are happy, confident, and interactive. You are a great guy, but you always seemed a little dull. It seems that Aaron has made you all shiny.”
I looked at Forest. “I think you are right. Now, let’s get some business done.”
“That sounds good to me. I’m excited about changing my life.”
“Alright, if you are sure, then we will do this. You know what I expect when you are representing Hot Shots. People first, money second.” I handed him the folders. “These are athletes that I think have potential. I haven’t approached them. That’s up to you. I would recommend looking at every type of athletic endeavor out there to see what people catch your eye and who people are talking about. Those are the people you will want to have signed on with you. I will always be around if you need any help. When do you want to start?”
“I would like to start at once. I have about seven weeks of vacation with my current job. I will request two weeks of vacation and give notice once approved. I will be working half days for Hot Shots as of tomorrow. In theory, I will be starting full-time with Hot Shots next Monday.”
“You aren’t kidding. You have been thinking about this and are ready to move to something else?”
“I have been unhappy for a while. I appreciate you giving me this chance. I promise I won’t let you down.”
“I have no doubt you will be very successful.”
We decided he would work from his home office. I ordered a new laptop and upgraded his phone plan. He already had all the other things for Hot Shots since he was working for me. We were both excited for this opportunity.
“So. I should have said this sooner, but I was afraid to bring it up since you are the expert. I want to ask you about someone I might like to contact for my roster.”
I grinned. “You have already scouted someone?”
“I did. I think it was the catalyst for me to come to you.” He pushed the folder over to me.
I opened it up. There were articles and pictures of a woman. She was a snowboarder and was the first to do a unique jump thing. She won three silvers and gold at the Olympics and was the national champion this year. There were pictures of her lifting weights, and it looked like she was into cross-fit training. There were stories from newspapers and magazines. It was set up like the folders I made for my current clients.
