Page 43 of Broken As Puck

“Yeah, but it wasn’t exactly original.”

She snorts. “Who cares about that? I now have the most gorgeous shot of my boyfriend with a fluffy ginger cat as my screensaver. It’s purr-fect.” She held out her hand. “I’m Regina.”

I shook it, and then Max did too.

Maribel nudged the woman beside her with her elbow. “This is Jane. She’s Austin Harris’s fiancée.”

I flashed Jane a smile. I recognized her, of course. Given the furor after someone leaked an intimate photo of her with Austin, most people who followed the team would know who she was at a glance. It was a shame since the way she ducked her head and hunched her shoulders said she didn’t like attention.

“This handsome gentleman is Simon, who’s dating Amir,” Maribel continued, gesturing to a petite man with round glasses and keen eyes behind them. “And Sadie here is dating Émile Gauthier.”

Sadie, a curvy woman with a nice smile, grinned at me. There was something familiar about her, but I couldn’t quite put my finger on it.

“I’d love to arrange interviews with you all at a future date, if you’re willing,” Max said, withdrawing a bundle of business cards from his pocket. He handed one to each of them.

“There’s no pressure to participate,” I assured them. “Your partners won’t be penalized if you want to protect your privacy.”

Yes, the team had to fully participate in the documentary, but no one could require their loved ones to do the same.

“Thank you,” Jane murmured, lifting her chin and daring to look me in the eyes. “We appreciate that.”

“But I’m excited for it,” Regina added. “We’re going to be famous.”

I laughed. “Maybe not famous, but hopefully, it generates a bit of positive attention.”

And didn’t end with a PR disaster that would see the team shipped off and forced to create new homes for themselves somewhere else.

“It will,” Max assured me. He nodded to the others. “We’ll be in touch.”

With that, he hustled away.

“Sit with us for a while,” Simon said as they returned to their waiting seats.

I pointed to where Max had gone. “I should really⁠—”

“Just a few minutes?” he asked. “So we can get to know you?”

“All right,” I conceded, trying to figure out where to sit. There was a spot beside Simon, but I wasn’t sure it was big enough for me.

He patted it. “Come on.”

Grimacing, I did my best to slot between him and Jane. He shuffled over to make a little more room and I was grateful for that because it would have been awfully embarrassing if my ass didn’t fit.

“Amir mentioned that you’re thinking about organizing a charity game for the Rainbow Sports Alliance,” he said, raising his soft voice to be heard above the excited chatter of a pair of children nearby.

“That’s right.” I was pleased he was leading the conversation and relieved that he’d chosen a topic I could easily discuss. “We don’t have any plans or details yet. I just wanted his thoughts on whether it was a viable idea.”

“He’s very excited about it.” Simon gave an awkward laugh. “We both are. LGBTQ+ athletes often aren’t treated as well and don’t get the same opportunities as their straight counterparts because of the small-minded attitudes still prevalent in the sport. The fact you would champion a cause like that automatically makes you a good person in my eyes, even if it’s primarily designed to be something that makes the team look better.”

My heart squeezed and I blinked rapidly, embarrassed by how emotional his words made me. “I happen to agree, and yes, it’s my job to make the team look better and ensure they do everything the probationary order says, but I’m also in a privileged position where I get to bring ideas to the team’s management, which means I have the opportunity to draw attention to the causes close to my heart, and I’ve maybe taken advantage of that a little bit.”

He beamed. “Someone needs to. I’m glad it’s you—especially if it means that more queer athletes get access to high-level training.”

On my other side, Jane leaned closer. “How is your job going overall? Are any of the players giving you trouble?”

“Not all of them love giving up so much of their privacy, but I wouldn’t say anyone has caused problems. Most of them know it’s necessary, even if a few like to mouth off to make themselves feel better about it.”

Jane’s eyes narrowed. “Like whom?”