Page 55 of Hot for the Hockey Player
I knew this was the segue into discussingotherteammates, and I was ready for it.
“Woodman has been really stepping up his game since your sudden departure.Twelve goals in the last six games, fifteen assists.The headlines say he’s on fire.”
I chuckled and smiled.“He’s always been fire.Roman is a fantastic player, and I’m so happy for him and his growing success.”
“Some say there’s murmurs about him getting traded to Detroit.Do you think he’s upped his game with the Storm to prove his value with the hopes that they’ll keep him?”
“If the owners of the team make the mistake of trading Roman, he’s just going to take any team he gets traded to all the way to the playoffs, and possibly the Cup.They’d be fools to get rid of him, and if Roman is upping his game to make a point, then I support him one hundred percent.”
Jasmine nodded.“I think they’d be fools to trade him right now—or at all—too.”
We spoke a bit more about the night of my injury and how my team has been managing without me.They’d had a few wins, but more losses than a normal season with me on the starting lineup, despite how well Roman was playing.
“Now, I’m hoping we can address the elephant in the room,” she said, her smile small, and hopeful.
“You mean Henderson and that his misogyny has finally been brought to light?”I asked, not mincing words.
Her dark, perfectly shaped brows lifted.“Uh … yeah.So you knew of his indiscretions then?”
“No,” I corrected.“I know of the atmosphere in the locker room, and the way a lot of players talk about and treat women.So the convictions against Kyle came as no surprise, but I was never aware ofwhathe’s specifically been charged with.Had I known, I’d have turned him in myself, ages ago.And I apologize to the women who were silenced and only now came forward.I believe you and I stand with you.”
“Wow.Uh … how do you plan to handle the backlash you’re clearly going to face going against a teammate like this?Isn’t there acode?A brotherhood?”
“Isn’t there ahuman code?A code of ethics?A code of right and wrong, and standing up for people who have been wronged to those who are oppressing and hurting them?Why should we protect a predator just because we skate around the ice with them?If he, or any of my teammates, killed someone, I wouldn’t help hide the body.”I snorted.“Unless Roman killed Kyle because he was being a predatory prick.Then I’d absolutely help him.”
Her eyes went wide at my candid response.But I wasn’t going to hold back here.I’d take the backlash and deal with it.This predator protection was bullshit, and it needed to stop.We weren’t gods.We weren’t kings.We weren’t immune to the consequences of our actions just because we made millions pushing a little black puck around with sticks in front of thousands of people.
“If I knewanyof my teammates did what Kyle has been charged with, I would have turned them in, and offered to pay for the victim’s legal fees.”
“Are you saying …”
I nodded.“Yes.To the women who have come forward already, if you can’t pay your legal fees for this, I will.Kyle Henderson is a predator, and he deserves to be held accountable for his actions.”
She blew out a breath.“I definitely wasn’t expecting that.”
Lifting one shoulder, I sat back against the couch in the cabin.“I’ve always been an advocate.But I … yesterday, I met the friends of a young friend of mine.I guess ‘friends’ is a loose term because he’s from a small town and doesn’t really get topickwho he hangs out with.But he asked me to come to the school to meet these kids.And the way they spoke about the girls in their class, about one of their teachers …” I shook my head.“These are fourteen and fifteen-year-old boys, and it was honestly disgusting to hear.”
Jasmine’s head bobbed.
“I’d never heard of Germaine Pratt—” Her face contorted to one of contempt.“I’d never heard of him until my friend mentioned that his classmates listen to his podcast.I listened to one episode last night, just to see what it was all about, and I was sick to my stomach by the end.”
“It’s brainwashing,” she added.
“It absolutely is.This ‘high value male bullshit’ is … it’s garbage.It’s oppressive and degrading to women.It’s setting boys—men—up for failure and loneliness with this unrealistic and outdated expectation of what a relationship should be like.Saying that women should ‘submit’ to their man is absolutely ridiculous.”I tipped my head side-to-side.“Unless that’sherkink.I’m not kink shaming.So please, BDSM community, don’t come after me.If both parties have agreed to a Dom-sub relationship, then you do you.But that community is built on a foundation of respect and trust.What Pratt is spouting is anything but.”
“You know our listeners are going to be going crazy thinking you’re part of the BDSM community now,” she teased, lightening the mood.
“Anything to increase your number of listeners.”I winked.
“So, just to recap, you stand by the women accusing Kyle Henderson, are offering to cover their legal fees if they need it,” I nodded, “and you are openly condemning Kyle, and Germaine Pratt?”
“I am.”
“And the league?Because they’re refusing to condemn Henderson and the press conference this morning regarding his suspension continued to use the term ‘allegedly,’ indicating that they were mere accusations and he had yet to be charged.When the truth is, he was let out on bail last night, and is waiting for a trial date to be set.”
I swallowed the growing lump of nerves at the back of my throat.“If the league won’t come out of the dark ages and stand up for women, and hold their attackers accountable—regardless of if those attackers are cash cows or not—then I condemn the NHL as well.”
Jasmine’s brows nearly met her hairline.“All right then.”
