Total pages in book: 75
Estimated words: 73002 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 365(@200wpm)___ 292(@250wpm)___ 243(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 73002 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 365(@200wpm)___ 292(@250wpm)___ 243(@300wpm)
“He’s almost our age, Thea. He is taking advantage of our boy. We can fix this.”
“There is nothing to fix, Benedict. Nothing. Matty is Matty. You can’t fix that,” she insisted. “The sooner you realize that, the better off you’ll be.”
“I don’t agree,” he shot back, and she rolled her eyes. Wells was starting to worry they’d get stuck that way like his own mother had always warned him.
“And also, his age has nothing to do with it. You may want to be closer in age to this sweet man, but that AARP card in your wallet says different.”
“Thea!”
“I’m just saying!” she spat back. “He’s a good boy!”
Wells probably should have stayed out of it, he was on thin ice already, but he found himself speaking anyway. “I, um, I want to apologize. The situation you found Matty and me in and the disrespect I showed toward you wasn’t right. I wish Matty had been able to tell you on his own, not for you to see it.”
Thea looked at Benedict expectantly, but he wouldn’t even look at her or Wells. “He’s speaking to you,” she said.
“I don’t care,” he said simply, shaking his head.
But that didn’t stop Wells. “When I was younger, a teenager, my father walked in on me kissing my boyfriend at the time. He was livid and felt the same way you do. He kept telling me to stop being gay and be a man. He did that for years, and our relationship was strained because of it. It took me intending to marry another man, and for my father to see how unhappy I was without Matty, for him to truly realize that I am who I am. When Matty walked into my wedding and stopped it, begging me to take him back, my father said that was the moment he knew that love was love—no matter gender or sexual orientation. Matty loves me. And I love him, more than I can ever describe.”
Thea glanced over at Benedict as he looked at the table. Clearing his throat, Wells went on, “It took almost fifteen years for my father and me to have a relationship again. The reason I’m here, talking to you both, is because he raised me to be a good man. An honorable one. I never should have disrespected you, but I was mad and hurt. I was worried for Matty because I knew how nervous he was to tell you. He didn’t want what happened to happen. He wanted to sit down, like we are now. And I feel you should give him that chance. You don’t want what happened with my dad to happen with you and Matty.”
Thea nodded. “Benny, it’s no secret that your relationship with our children is strained anyway. You were never home to be there for them.”
He looked up at Thea. “I did my best. I had to support this family—”
She held up her hand. “It’s in the past. What matters now is the future.”
But he ignored her, looking at Wells, his eyes full of such hatred. “You are aware I could ruin your career. One call and you’d be sent to the minors.”
Wells nodded slowly. “Yes, sir. I do know that. But like I said, my father raised me to be an honorable man. For that to happen, I had to come here, explain myself and my intentions with Matty. I don’t want anything but happiness and a complete and good life for him. I love him. Very much.”
“It’s disgusting,” Benedict said, looking away.
Thea cleared her throat. “He won’t do that to your career. I’ll make sure of it.”
Wells shrugged. “Even if he did, I wouldn’t leave Matty. I don’t want a career or any success if I don’t have someone to share it with.”
Thea beamed as Benedict slowly shook his head. But before anyone could say another word, Wells’s attention was brought to the screen where Matty was standing at a podium. “What the hell?” he gasped, and Benedict looked over, as did Thea, as a news flash ran along the bottom of the screen.
Matthew Haverbrooke of the Rangers, son of the NHL commissioner, comes out as gay.
“Holy shit,” Wells muttered as Benedict turned red, reaching for the remote to turn it up.
“I stand before you, with my team and my organization behind me, to say that I am a proud gay man. I’ve hidden it for years, and I’m no longer willing to do that. I have been blackmailed and ridiculed for my choice, but I refuse to allow anyone to let me feel like less than I am. I am a good hockey player, I love my family, and I love my boyfriend. I want the world to know that I won’t stop playing the game I love because of who I love. I want the world to know that, no matter what, I will be me. This wasn’t easy, but I won’t stand in the dark when I know I can have a life out in the open where I can be happy. I want to thank my team for their support. My teammates are class acts. My organization has supported me since I asked for this conference last night. I want to thank the fans because I know they’ll support me.” He paused, inhaling deeply as Wells’s heart pounded in his chest. “I want to thank my family for their love and support. But most of all, I have to thank my partner, Wells Lemiere, who has been beside me through this and who has been the most supportive man I know. He is the reason I am who I am today. And I’m so grateful for him.”