Page 56 of Common Goal
The words were said cheerfully, but Eric couldn’t stop the guilt from creeping in again. “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you sooner, and that I wasn’t brave enough to come out when you did. I should have been standing beside you.”
“You were,” Scott said simply. “You’ve been supporting me since the moment I came out to you. And after I went public, you’ve always been right there with me: going to LGBTQ events, going to the Kingfisher with me. You think I don’t know how much you hate going to bars?”
That made Eric smile. “I like the Kingfisher.”
“Me too. And it’s always nice having teammates join me there. Hell, it was nice havingRozanovthere.”
“WhywasRozanov there, anyway? I never really figured it out.”
“Oh, he wanted to talk to me about his charity. You know, the one he started with Shane Hollander?”
“I still can’t believe that’s a real thing, but yes.”
“They have these summer hockey camps and he asked if I might like to be a coach at one.” Scott laughed. “I could tell it killed him to ask me.”
“Why you? I mean, I know why someone would want you to be a coach at a hockey camp, but why wouldRozanovwant you there?”
“I’m not sure, exactly. But he mentioned that the camps are inclusive. He actually used the wordssafe space, which almost knocked me off my chair. How many hockey players do you know who use that term?”
“You mean in a non-mocking way? Very few.”
“Right. So they want the staff to be diverse. I wouldn’t even be the only gay guy, because they have Ryan Price helping out.”
“I keep forgetting he’s gay.”
“I heard he has a great boyfriend. A musician. I’m happy for him.”
“That’s good to hear.”
“And Hollander is coaching too, of course,” Scott continued, then laughed. “So Rozanov might be the only straight instructor. I mean, possibly straight. I don’t actually know.”
Eric nodded, then realized what Scott had just said. “Wait. Shane Hollander isn’t straight?”
Scott stared at him. “He’s gay. You didn’t know that?”
“Did he come out? Why isn’t everyone talking about that?” Eric was never one for gossip, and was usually the last to know everything, but this seemed like something that Scott would have mentioned to him.
“He came out to his friends and teammates a year or so ago. And he reached out to me, which was nice. But I thought most of the league knew by now. He doesn’t mind people knowing, but he doesn’t want to come out in a big public way.”
“You mean he doesn’t want to kiss his boyfriend on live television after winning the Stanley Cup?” Eric teased.
Scott flushed. “Exactly. Anyway, I told Rozanov I’d like to help, but this summer will be busy with the wedding and the honeymoon, and the other obligations I already have.”
“Maybe next year.”
“That’s what I said. I’m sure Kip would enjoy a week or two in Montreal. That’s where one of the camps is.”
“It seems like a good charity,” Eric said. “I was reading that they already provided the funds for a huge renovation of a youth home in Montreal.”
“It’s impressive,” Scott agreed. “I’ve been thinking about starting my own charity, but maybe I should talk to Rozanov and Hollander about joining forces with them.”
Rozanov and Hollander. The two rivals’ names still sounded weird next to each other. “Who knew Rozanov had such a big heart?” Eric said.
Scott smiled. “I had a hunch. I think he might secretly be a big softy.”
“He does a damn good job of hiding it.”
“He sure does. Anyway, why are we talking about Ilya Rozanov? I’d rather talk about you.”
