Chapter 66
i like music
Cal
“We want the community to get to know you,” the redhead Scarlett is saying. “Let them connect with you. As the new guy on the team, we have a unique opportunity to build some excitement around a position that doesn’t get as much love as some of the others.”
“Perhaps not here, but in Montreal, the goalie position was highly valued,” I explain.
“It is valued,” Scarlett says, “but we have two of the top scorers in the league at center forward and right wing. Evan and Boris are legends, and Georg, Tyler, and Viktor are highly recognizable figures on defense, as well.”
“Then Emanuel Legace must not have been very dynamic.”
“He was—is—a really great guy. Despite the fact he’s headed for the Hall of Fame in time—everyone with even half a hockey brain knows that,” she says sharply.
I recognize that tone. I can be oblivious, but I do know when someone has had enough of me.
“I didn’t mean to offend you.” Given I’m aware that I come across as being cold, speaking coldly at times, I gentle my voice.
It’s never my intent to be unnecessarily rude, but according to my mom, I can come off that way.
“You didn’t, it’s just that Manny almost died in that car accident. It was really hard to see him lose his career on top of it.” Sadness has replaced her sharp tone.
I don’t have a lot to say about that.
“And furthermore, you seem like a guy who would know the stats of his competitors, so surely you’ve seen what he did when he was here?”
I shrug. “I didn’t say he wasn’t effective; I said he wasn’t dynamic. I meant no offense. Some players are steady but don’t have the fan base.”
She rolls her eyes and shakes her head. “Trust me, Manny has a loyal fan base in this city. You’ll find this out for yourself without any need for me to try and convince you,” she says in an annoyed tone that tells me she’s done being polite regarding critique of the former goalie for the Crush. Got it.
I can tell Scarlett thinks I’m arguing to argue, and I suppose I am. It’s something Emily accuses me of doing all the time. I hold up my hands in mock surrender and give her my attention, ready to move on.
“So, tell me about you, Calum—”
“It’s Cal,” I correct.
“Cal, then. Tell me about you. What do you do for fun?”
“Playing hockey is fun.”
“Well, that’s a given. But what about when you’re not playing hockey? Surely you have some hobbies that don’t require ice skates?”
“I like music. Specifically, I like to listen to live music.”
“Oh, cool, any particular type?”
“Rock, mostly. And I play the guitar. Just for fun, not in a band or anything.”
“That I can use, sir,” Scarlett says with renewed interest. “In fact, the program director for Children’s Services Las Vegas was just in to meet with the Crush Foundation team, and she pitched them on the idea of a new music workshop for the kids there.
We’re working on a plan to get you guys out in the community a bit more, and we want you to make an impact and have fun at the same time.
Maybe this one would be a good fit for you? ”
“A music program for kids?” I mull the idea over in my head, not sure I’m the best choice for making a good impact on kids, but maybe…
“Yep.” She nods her head vigorously, her long red curls bouncing with the movement. “I’m thinking we could give them a check to help pay for new instruments and then you could go in and teach guitar lessons once a week or something?”
I scratch my head and think about it for a second.
Community service is very much a part of being a high-profile athlete, and I don’t mind getting involved if it’s something that is less about the athlete and more about what the kids need.
I idolized Mario LeBlanc when I was a young player, not only for his skill on the ice, but also how generously he pledged his support to Montreal Children’s Hospital.
I remember he made a huge impression on me growing up.
Could I help kids in this way? I guess it could be kind of fun to teach kids how to play.
“Sure. I’ll give it a shot. Count me in. ”
“No argument?”
“Nope. It sounds fun.”
“Okay, great!” Scarlett claps her hands together. “I’ll set something up so you can go over there and plan things out with them. We’ll figure out a time to get some video or photos to use for the PR.”
“Fine. Anything else?”
“Yep, I need you to go on down to the photography studio to get some pictures taken for marketing. They’ll want you in uniform for most of them.”
“Helmet?” I ask.
“For a few maybe, but with a head as pretty as yours, I’d say we’ll want that front and center in the bulk of the pics.”
She’s grinning, but I can’t tell if she really likes my looks or if she’s joking. I stare at her, trying to figure it out, and she grins even wider.
“I’m serious,” she says. “Your appeal to the lady fans is sure to be a thing. Puck bunnies and MILF groups make their feelings known on social media, trust me.”
“It’s not like that for me,” I try to explain.
And it hasn’t been in the past. While attention from females is pretty much a given for any player in the NHL, some get more attention than others based on the effort they put in.
I’ve never put much effort in or been super involved with fans.
It makes me uncomfortable mostly, and I don’t know where to put the emotions, so I’ve only ever done the bare minimum.
Just the required pressers and those team events I couldn’t get out of have been my mainstay all these years.
I have zero public social media and it will likely stay at zero in the future.
So, I have no idea if the bunnies like me or not.
“Not in the usual sense of a bad-boy reputation, no, but you’ve got all the elements going for you.
Single, as in not married or engaged yet.
You’re young and ripped in all the right places, and you’re hot.
I don’t mean that to objectify you, Cal,” she says, putting her hand up.
“I’m just doing my job as director of social media and community liaison for the Vegas Crush.
You’re not in Kansas anymore. This is Vegas, baby.
You’re gonna have plennnnnty of attention from the ladies whether you’re wanting it or not.
And the color of your hair is great. Dark but sporting some caramel highlights.
Do you put those highlights in or are they natural? ”
“I don’t put highlights in my hair,” I answer definitively.
“Lucky. And your eyes? The color is so unusual across the general population. Almost a purply blue. Are those contacts making your striking eyes so very blue, Cal?”
“Um…I do not wear colored contacts either.” I roll my naturally deep blue eyes right back at her.
“I was born with these peepers, and I’m offended you would suggest otherwise, Scarlett.
” I hope she knows I’m just teasing her because I’m not offended in the least. It takes a helluva lot to offend me.
My brain doesn’t work that way. Feelings, emotions, sharing, caring are not really in my wheelhouse of skill sets.
I’ve been told my eyes are unusual my whole life, so it’s not a newsflash or anything.
“Be prepared for ‘Blue Eyes’ to be your new nickname from your female fans, then. Oh, that reminds me…every player on the team has an emoji. On game days, we post the lineup in emojis instead of names on our social media. What do you want yours to be?”
“Well, Lefleur means—‘the flower’ in French, so I guess a flower one will do. I don’t really care which one. You can decide.”
“Ah…perfect. I detect a bit of a French-Canadian accent. Are you fluent in French, Cal?”
“Functionally.” I nod my head. “Not fluent in the truest sense, but I can manage a conversation—due to exposure to the language from my extended family and studying it in school, of course. My grandpa was born and raised in northern Quebec and that’s where the French last name comes from.
My mom’s family emigrated from Scotland so I didn’t grow up speaking French in the home, even though I can make out conversations for the most part.
I don’t love doing a post-game presser in French, but playing in Montreal, it was pretty much a requirement there. ”
She chuckles. “Gotcha. You won’t have to do as many pressers for French media here in Vegas, but there are always requests, as I’m sure you know.
I just want to make sure I have your bio correct.
The fans are going to want to know little details like that about you.
No worries at all. Everything you’ve shared is great.
Let me walk you down and give some direction for the shoot. ”
As we walk to the photography studio, Scarlett asks how the transition to the Crush has been.
“It’s been okay, but I miss home.”
“You grew up in Montreal?”
“Nearby, yes. I played in high school. My parents wanted me to go to MIT because I was really good at math and science, but I got picked up right from high school. Played for Canada in the Olympics at eighteen. I’ve been in Montreal my whole career.”
“So, you miss it?”
“Very much.”
“Your family is still there?”
“They are. And my girlfriend. She’s in school finishing her master’s degree.”
“She’s not coming here?”
“Oh no.”
“Not a fan of Sin City?”
“Not really. But neither am I, and I couldn’t ask her to make a commitment to a city I don’t want to be in.”
“Ah. Yeah, I’d heard that about you, that you were loud about the fact that you didn’t want this trade.
Pretty much everyone knows you don’t want to be here, Cal.
But I’ll give you some advice. If you don’t find a reason to care about being here, it will start to affect your relationship with the team. ”
“A good team will rally for its keeper.”
“That may be true,” she says, “but it doesn’t mean they’ll trust you. And if they don’t trust you, the fans will see it play out on the ice. Never a good thing.”