“Okay, maybe I did say I hated all jocks and everything having to do with sports or the mention of sports or anything connected to sports. But that was then and this is now. And now sports is a mega-billion-dollar industry and if there’s one thing I know a lot about, it’s sports and athletes.”
He could tell this was something she was not only serious about, but passionate about, so he reined in his initial objections. If there was one thing he knew about Mia, it was that she would never jump into something without thoroughly vetting it. “Okay. Tell me your thought process.”
“If there’s one thing an athlete needs during the course of his career, it’s cohesion. He—or she—is bombarded with contracts and lawyers and social media and marketing. I intend to offer a one-stop shop, if you will. One place where they can be offered not only training before they’re even drafted, but also how to manage every aspect of their career, from legal to financial to public relations to social. And I intend to do it better than anyone else by hiring the best people out there, from agents to lawyers to the best PR people in the sports management game.”
Flynn blinked. “Wow. You really have thought about this.”
“Not only have I thought about it, I’ve been talking to a lot of people who are interested in coming on board. I honestly believe I can do this, Flynn. I might not have the years of experience, but I’ve got the family name, which I never thought I’d use, but if it works to get me in the door, then I’ll use my knowledge after that to get athletes on board.”
He leaned back in his chair and took several large swallows of iced tea. When had his baby sister grown up and become a power player in the world of sports? It was the absolute last thing he’d ever expected.
Mia leaned her forearms on the table. “You’re very quiet and it’s making me nervous.”
“I’m just . . . Wow, Mia. This is huge. Have you talked to Mom and Dad about this yet?”
“I haven’t talked to anyone in the family about this. You’re the first.”
He felt honored that Mia had chosen him to discuss the possibility of a future business with. “This is a big damn deal, Mia. You realize that, right?”
“Of course I do, Flynn. This isn’t me with a notebook drawing hearts and circles and a maybe someday I’ll be a mogul kind of thing. I’m damn serious about this, I’ve done the financial research and I believe I have the skills to make a success of this venture.”
If anyone could do this, it was his sister. “I believe you do, too. Now tell me who you have lined up as players in your company.”
She listed two agents, two attorneys, and a handful of highly successful people in the PR world. And he recognized every name. They were all power players in the industry.
“No shit. All of these people would join your company.”
“Yes.”
“And how did you convince them?”
“By giving them a list of the prospective clients I have who have agreed to come on board. Not to mention who they could bring. Together, we could have one hell of a dynamite company in the first year alone. I’m hardly a dumbass, Flynn. I’ve written one-year, five-year and ten-year business plans.”
Of course she had. For someone who wasn’t even twenty-five years old yet, his sister had the potential to be an ass kicker.
“Where would you set up shop?”
“Here in San Francisco. That’s one of the main reasons I’m here. I do have a meeting set up at Stanford, but I also have other meetings as well. And after this I’ll be flying down to L.A. to meet with some key players in my potential business venture.”
He was stunned. She’d done her homework. This wasn’t a pipe dream for her, a someday kind of thing. This was . . . right now. “Jesus, Mia. I don’t even know what to say.”
She smiled. “Say you support me.”
“Hell, I’ll do more than that. Do you need investors?”
She laughed. “Not yet, but I appreciate it. I have investments from the money Grandpa left me. I intend to use that and I’ll get business loans. I want to do this all on my own.”
“You know Mom and Dad won’t want you to go into debt.”
“And I don’t want this to be a company that Mom and Dad bought for me. I’ll do it my way.”
Argumentative and stubborn, as always. “I think it’s a great idea, Mia. Now you have to tell Mom and Dad.”
“We’ll see how everything goes this trip. It’s not a one hundred percent done deal yet, but I can’t tell you how good it makes me feel that you believe in me.”
“Honey, you could shovel shit for a living or decide your next goal is to win the Nobel Peace Prize and I’d be in your corner. I love you.”
Tears welled in Mia’s eyes. She pushed her chair back, came around and hugged him. “I love you, too, Flynn.”
Having taken all this in was not only a surprise, but the details of it had been more than a little overwhelming. All this time he’d been thinking his baby sister was going to stay in school. He’d always thought maybe she’d go into teaching.
This was anything but teaching.
He knew plans changed, but . . . wow. “Now I need a beer.”
She laughed. “Me, too.”
After lunch they cleaned up the kitchen, then headed to Toronado on Haight Street, one of Flynn’s favorite beer bars. Mia had a Valencia Gold and Flynn had a Blind Pig.