Page 33 of Hutch (Minnesota Raptors #2)
He nods and Mom moves back away from her rolls. “Please overlook his manners. He has an appetite that is never satisfied. It’s a good thing he plays hockey with how much the boy eats.”
“I eat healthy,” he defends himself and then shoves an entire buttered roll into his mouth. She ruffles his hair again and returns to the kitchen as Coach comes back in the house. He makes a beeline to the rolls, causing Gretchen to laugh.
“They’re good.” He hands her the bag and then starts to fix himself a plate. “Dig in, girl. Don’t be shy.”
Gretchen helps herself and then lets out a sound of surprise. “This is delicious.”
“It’s the honey butter,” Collin says and pulls the container closer to himself. “Mama Kat makes it herself.”
Gretchen finishes her roll and then sets the plate down so she can open her bag and pulls out a laptop and two manilla file folders.
“Now, Uncle David has given me both your stats for your college career and I contacted your high school coach to get your stats from him. I was hoping he’d have them and he did.
Both your high school and college stats are amazing by the way.
I’m surprised neither of you were approached earlier by teams.”
“I was,” I admit. “But I promised my mother I’d finish college before I did anything. The Raptors have assured me they’d work with me to help me finish school. I’m told the owner is big on education.”
“Barry is. I’ve met him. One of their third line players is a client.”
She reps a Raptor player already? Some of my nervousness calms down.
“I’m Mexican,” Collin says around a mouthful of food. Coach slaps the back of his head and he swallows before continuing. “Sorry. What I was saying is that a Mexican player in hockey is a rarity and looked at last when it comes to getting contracts. I was shocked the Raptors even looked my way.”
“I get it.” Gretchen nods. “I get looked at last a lot because I’m a woman. If you don’t mind my asking, why did you two choose me? Uncle David said he gave you the names of two other agents, both of them male.”
“My girl, Daisy. She got me to put my fears aside and reach out. She made me understand that the underdog will fight harder for the underdog. Being a new player, that’s what me and C are. We’re the underdogs in the fight.”
“Where is that girl?” Coach asks. “I like her.”
“She’s working tonight.”
Gretchen frowns. “Is she someone I will have to worry about? You don’t know how many times I’ve had to deal with gold diggers when it comes to my clients.”
“No, Daisy’s not like that. She doesn’t care that I’m a hockey player. Took me weeks to convince her to give me a chance.”
“You won’t have to worry about her,” Coach adds his own vote of confidence to the conversation. “She got his head out of his ass when I couldn’t. She’s a keeper.”
“Good. Now, you’ve looked at my website, seen my lists of clients and reached out. Do you have any questions for me?”
“Why do you have such a small client list?” I ask. “Is it because you’re a woman and most go with the male agents or is it on purpose? Daisy suggested you might keep it small to give more attention to your clients.”
“It’s a bit of both,” she says and I respect her honesty.
“Would I love to have a large list? Sure, but I work with what I have. When I decide to expand and take on other agents, I’ll actively recruit more, but for the moment, I’m content with the clients I have.
It gives me a chance to get to know them, figure out who they are and that allows me to get them the best deals I can, both in hockey and with sponsorships.
Hockey does not pay nearly as much as the NFL, but with sponsorships, I get my guys damn close to those salaries. ”
Shit. Some of those NFL players make forty million per contract. I’m new. I don’t expect even a tenth of that.
“Do you two have lawyers and accountants to handle your money?”
We both shake our head.
“I can give you the names of several lawyers, but only one accountant I trust to manage your money and invest it properly. Accountants are…”
“Sleazier than lawyers?” Coach suggests when she struggles to find the right word.
“Not all accountants, but when it comes to managing millions of dollars, there are a few who would take advantage of a high profile client. They’re in charge of your money and you need to be able to trust them.
“She’s not wrong boys. My first accountant embezzled and almost left me penniless before I realized what was happening. My team owner helped me sue him and recover most of it, but it was a long drawn out court battle.”
“I didn’t even think of that,” I admit.
Collin shoves another roll in his mouth, eyes wide with shock.
“That’s why you have a good agent,” Gretchen says firmly. “It’s my job to make sure everything is taken care of, from your contracts to your money.”
“What kind of contract do you think we can expect?” I ask hesitantly. “We are new, as you said.”
This time I see the shark in her smile. She picks up the manilla folders and waves them at us.
“Armed with these stats, I’ll get you millions.
The Raptors are building a quality team and the owner understands that cost money.
I think I gave his manager an ulcer when I negotiated Klause Kitring’s deal. ”
My mind stutters at the name. Klause is from Sweden and a damn good player. He’s also been in the NHL for five years, so I understand his ten million dollar deal. I don’t think Collin and I can get that much.
“As I said they’re rebuilding. They traded or paid out contracts on a lot of players who weren’t performing.
Your and Collin’s stats are better than most of the players they have outside of their new first line lineup.
I promise if you sign with me, I’ll get you what you deserve.
I may not look it, but when it comes to business, I’m Hell on wheels. ”
Coach laughs. “Gretchen is true to her word. I wouldn’t have recommended her otherwise. I was hoping you two would choose her.”
“Why did you call me? I know you said Daisy convinced you, but what did you see that you didn’t see with the other two agents?”
“I didn’t like the first guy at all. No offense, Coach.”
“None taken.”
“The second name, I was good with, but he recently joined an agency that is…sketchy. He might be a good agent, but I don’t trust his bosses.”
Gretchen nods. “Always look out for your bottom line. It’s your job as much as mine. Am I going to have to worry about bad press and headlines?”
“What do you mean?”
“Drinking, partying, womanizing. Last week, one of my clients landed in the tabloids with scandalizing photos. His team’s PR and I are trying to sort it, but it’s a nightmare. I need to know how much of a handful you two are going to be.”
“We don’t drink during the season. Coach cured me of that. We both party, but we’re both aware of our public appearance as well. We’re not going to do anything to cause our contracts to be pulled or canceled.”
“You’d be surprised at how many times I’ve heard that and then you get your first check and all that goes out the window. People come into real money for the first time in their lives and it can go to their head.”
“Not us.” Collin set his plate down. “It’s because we’ve never really had money that we’re not going to blow it. The most I’ll spend is on an immigration lawyer to bring my family back from Mexico. They were deported when I started playing for MSU.”
“I’m pitching in to help with the lawyer for his parents. C is a brother to me. Mom accepted him into our lives no questions asked and we’ve been his family while his is not here.”
Gretchen smiles. “That’s good to know. Are there any potential problems that you can think of I need to know about?”
Collin looks to me and we both think of asswipe.
“What is it?” Gretchen asks. “I know that look.”
“My girl’s ex. He’s beat the shit out of her and now he’s calling again.”
“Did she press charges? Is there a police report? Who’s her ex?”
“Her ex is Joseph Ayers.”
She takes a deep breath and lets it out slowly. “The same Ayers who just declared for the draft?”
I nod.
“Tell me what happened.”
“She found out he cheated and broke up with him. He didn’t want to accept it and beat her to within an inch of her life. She was in the hospital for weeks. His uncle was the town sheriff and between him and others, convinced her not to press charges and ruin asswipe’s life.”
“Excuse me?” Her eyes go hard.
“And there was the threat from Joseph himself. He told her if she didn’t drop it, he’d do to her sick and dying grandmother what he did to her and he’d get away with it.
Given that everyone was pressuring her, she believed him, so no charges were filed.
He was supposed to stay away from her, but since declaring for the draft, he’s started calling. ”
“Is there any way to prove what happened to her if there’s no police report?”
“She has the photos the hospital took.”
“That’s something at least. I’ll make a note of it and look into Ayers. I want you to stay the hell away from him and let me handle it if something comes up. You call me right away and I’d like to meet Daisy before I go back to LA to deal with the mess out there.”
“Do you live in LA?” I ask. “I didn’t pay attention to where the business was located. Too nervous.”
“I’m based here in Minnesota. It’s my home, but I fly all over the country. I don’t need to be in LA or New York to get the same job done as others.”
“I respect that. My dream team was the Raptors so I could stay in my hometown near my mom.” I glance over to where she’s kneading bread.
“She sacrificed everything for me. Worked three jobs to cover my gear and get me into the best hockey camps in the country. The one thing I am going to do is buy my mother a new house. Not some grand mansion. That’s not her.
Just something small in a better neighborhood. ”
“You sound like a good son and good man, Jonathan.”
“What about me?” Collin pouts.