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“Plus,” Mitch continues, “I think we can actually swing this in your favor.”
“In my favor?” I’m not sure I like him referring to my pregnancy as something that can be swung, but again, that’s his job. And I did ask for his help.
“Don’t get your hopes up. But you just signed with Nike for a series of ads about being a strong female athlete. And what’s stronger than a powerful woman at the prime of her career choosing to have her baby and her career? I think the public will eat it up—a woman choosing to have it all, and then working to make it happen? Instead of ruining your career, this could make it.”
“My career’s on the snow.”
“Believe me, I am well aware of that. And when you can get back on it, you are going to tear it up. But until that happens, a campaign like this can keep you relevant. It can help you gain fans, make you a household name so that when you do get back on your board, a lot more people will be watching. And the more people you have watching—”
“—the more money my endorsement is worth.”
“Bingo.”
It’s a good plan, a solid one. But then Mitch never puts together anything that isn’t solid. Still, I’m not sure how I feel about exploiting my baby like this.
When I mention my concerns to Mitch, though, he promises me the last thing he has in mind is exploi
ting me—or my baby.
“I think a campaign like this is important, Cam. Women need to see other women being strong, being fit, taking care of themselves and their children.”
“Women do that every day.”
I mean, not my mom, but a lot of women.
“I know that. And how often do they get praised for it? How often are they looked up to for it? Not enough. If Nike goes for this, you’re in a position to change all that. And not just you, I’m sure there are other female athletes who’ve faced the same situation.”
“Not many. I Googled it and couldn’t find much of anything.”
“Just because you couldn’t find it, doesn’t mean it isn’t happening. It just means it gets covered up, or those women’s agents didn’t do a good enough job protecting them so they ended up losing out on their endorsements. You could be the face—and the case—that changes all that.”
When he puts it like that, it doesn’t feel as much like exploitation as it does a feminist issue that needs to be addressed. Still—
“Can I think about it?”
“Of course. Take as much time as you’d like. In the meantime, can I reach out to Nike, see what they think of the idea? If their marketing people don’t like it, then there’s nothing to think about.”
“And if they do like it?”
“If they do like it, then there’s room for us to negotiate—from a position of power. And if you want to walk away, then we still can. But it can’t hurt to ask. Okay?”
“Yeah. Okay.”
“Good. With your permission, I’ll also contact your other endorsements, let them know what’s going on. Get the ball rolling. I mean, if you’ve definitely made the decision to have the baby.”
His words hang between us, and I think seriously about them—about what they mean to me, to my career, to Luc. And then I think about the folder I kicked under the bed, the folder I don’t even want to look at let alone think about. If I were sick, it’d be different. If I couldn’t take care of the baby or if I couldn’t support it, it’d be a different story. But that isn’t the case and so for me, there really is only one option.
I open my mouth, then, and say the only thing that feels right, the only thing I can say and still look myself in the mirror.
“Yes. I’m keeping the baby.”
Chapter 18
Luc
“Let’s stomp this shit!” Z calls as he races up the mountain to the top of the jump we’ve spent the last five hours building. It’s a monster thing, absolutely huge, with a gradual slope into one of the steepest inclines we’ve ever built. It’s a serious jump meant to do serious tricks on and if it were any other day I’d be dying to try it out—dying to get my board on the fresh pow and just barge this thing until I’m so cold, my nuts are in danger of falling off.
But it isn’t just any day. It’s two days after I found out Cam was pregnant, two days after I found out that her snowboarding dreams for this year are pretty much dead in the water. Two days when I’ve texted her numerous times only to be ignored again and again.
