“Yeah, I’ve heard that shit before,” he replied before sighing.
“Look, this is the best you’re going to get with your record,” Preston said.
“You came to us,” I reminded Eli. After he left Thailand, we didn’t hear anything from him for months. About two months earlier, he called No Sweat wanting to renegotiate a contract for us to manage him and to get him in the league. Now, his ass wanted to play hardball.
“What about sponsorships?” he asked.
“We told you what it would take to get them on board,” Preston said.
“Two years is too long.” Eli ran his hand through his hair as he paced back and forth.
“We could get sponsors on board sooner,” I said, causing Preston and Eli to stare at me. “If we can get you into an exhibition fight once you turn pro.”
I glanced over at Preston, who didn’t look too happy at the compromise I proposed.
“The exhibition likely won’t pay more than 50K. But, depending on how well you perform, it could set you up for a few lucrative sponsors even before your first official fight.”
Eli’s eyes twinkled. “How much?”
I shrugged before slipping my hands into my pockets. “Not easy to say, but based on our contacts, we could probably do one or two six-figure deals. The benefit is the upfront payout.”
Eli considered this idea while I could feel Preston’s gaze drilling into the side of my face.
“I’ll take it,” Eli said.
“We need to talk,” Preston said before I could reply. “My partner and I,” he said, for emphasis. “You can go back to training.”
“What for?” Eli asked impatiently. “Are we doing this deal or not?”
I glared at him. “My partner said we need to talk. Privately. We’ll get back to you once we’ve conferred.”
Eli pushed out a harsh breath. “Man, don’t jerk me around.” He headed for the door, slamming it behind him.
“What the fuck?” Preston asked, arms stretched wide.
“You saw him,” I explained. “He wants more money.”
“Everybody wants more fucking money. We don’t promise anything before we sign someone.”
“Did you hear me make any promises?” I asked. “I told him the sponsorships are contingent on his performance.”
“At an exhibition we haven’t even set up for him.”
“Yet,” I added.”
Preston’s frown deepened.
“The kid wants money. This is a way we can get him paid sooner while also coming through on our promises as his management.”
“All of it is a bigif.If we can get the exhibition set up. If we can get him into the league. If he even wins the damn fight.”
“I was there in Thailand. I’ve seen every single one of his amateur fights. He has a long career ahead of him. We can get him to where he needs to be for more lucrative deals in the future.”
Sighing, Preston slid his hands into his pockets. We stared at one another from across the table.
“What’s your gut say?” he finally asked.
“My gut says to sign him.”
