Page 23 of Bound to Him

“He also had a gambling problem. It was easy to hide because the casinos he frequented were close by. There were no big gaps in his day to indicate he was spending more and more time gambling instead of working. And, he was old-fashioned enough to want my mother to stay home with me and my twin sisters. He ran the finances, giving her an allowance. She never even looked at the bank account, so she couldn’t see money going out in larger amounts than it was coming in.” He stopped, finding it hard to let the words out.

“Until he died,” Sebastian prompted.

Parker nodded. “Until then. My mother went to work immediately—two jobs to keep us in our home and to put food on the table. She’d thought he had a life insurance policy, but he’d borrowed against it, so there was nothing left to pay out.” His breath hitched as he added, “He even drained the college funds he’d set up for all of us.”

Opening his eyes, he turned his head to look Sebastian in the eyes. “I got a job right away, too. It wasn’t enough. It was never going to be, no matter how hard my mother and I tried. We were going to lose the house. Everything, really. My sisters’ lives…” He shook his head. “I had to do something to give them all a chance.”

Sebastian tapped his finger against Parker’s lips. “I thought it was something like this. You’re too young to have buried yourself in debt of this magnitude already. And I’m sorry, even though I am delighted to have you here.” He replaced his finger with his lips for a soft kiss. “Tell you what…never mind about brunch with my parents tomorrow. Go visit your mother and sisters. You can bring them presents. I’ll give you some cash before I leave. How does that sound?”

Words failed him for long seconds. Then he managed to squeak out a, “Thank you, Master,” before he buried himself against Sebastian’s chest. Perhaps it was the longing for someone to understand and support him. Perhaps it was because he hadn’t shed many tears at his father’s death. Too many secrets had jumped out of the shadows before they’d even had a chance to wake him with the proper custom. Love and grief had been overwhelmed with anger and resentment. Now, as he huddled in the embrace of the man who had saved his family, Parker couldn’t hold back. He let the tears come and wept until there was nothing more in him. The crying jag left him even more limp. He drifted off to sleep still safe in his master’s embrace.

Chapter Seven

“Your reacquaintance with Williard seems to be going well.”

Sebastian turned his head to the left to answer his mother. Because it was raining, they were eating in the small, family dining room. It sat eight people instead of the forty that the formal dining room had capacity to hold. The table was still long enough that he had to crane his neck from left to right and back again when eating with just his parents. They always sat at either end and placed him in the middle. The experience was like watching a tennis match.

“I like him. He’s good company.” He said nothing more. His mother’s observation had an agenda, but he’d be damned if he made it easy for her to satisfy it.

His father joined in, forcing Sebastian to face him or risk being called out for rudeness. “We thought you’d hit it off. You have so much in common.”

Sebastian gave a tight smile. “Yes, we’re both of an age, rich and single.” He shrugged as he speared a piece of asparagus. “It’s surprising we haven’t eloped to Vegas already.”

His mother tsked. “Really, Sebastian, we’re only thinking of your future. You have responsibilities to your family legacy.”

“I am aware.” Sebastian tossed back some water to give his mouth something to do other than antagonize his parents. Putting the glass down, he leaped back into the conversation with as much restraint as he could manage. “Will is going back to London in a few weeks. Long distance relationships—which frankly I wouldn’t characterize my friendship with Will as—are difficult, even when one has a private plane at his disposal.”

His father sat back from his meal and picked up his Bloody Mary. “Plenty of couples live apart. He’s not over there permanently. His parents expect he’ll return here to take over completely within the next few years.” He drank deeply before continuing. “And you have your slave to…keep you company.”

Sebastian’s mother made a disapproving noise at the back of her throat.

“Come on, Gloria. There’s no reason we can’t speak frankly with our grown son.” Putting his glass down, his father placed his forearms onto the table and leaned toward Sebastian. “All I’m saying is that you can marry Will and not remain celibate. Sex with a slave doesn’t count as being unfaithful.”

“I’m not sure Will would see it that way. I’m not sure I would, come to it.” His appetite gone, Sebastian sat back and gestured toward one of the servers. “I’d like a beer, please.”

“Yes, sir.” The man took Sebastian’s plate away.

His father waved his hand. “Maybe Will would enjoy the…company of that boy, as well.”

“That’s it!” His mother stood from the table, forcing her husband and son to do the same out of ingrained social rules. “I’ll leave it to you boys to discuss these vulgar matters.” She glared at Sebastian. “I want a wedding and grandchildren. I don’t care what else you do. It’s not much to ask for, given that you’re already thirty-three. It’s time to settle down.” With that, she sailed out of the room as only Gloria Endicott could.

Sebastian and his father sat once more. Then the beer arrived. Sebastian took a good long pull of it. “So, Dad, you were saying that Will and I should share Parker. Do you mean one at a time, or are you picturing a three-way…” He gave him a pointed look over the rim of his glass.

His father sat back again. “You’re not going to chase me off the way you did your mother by being vulgar.”

“I wasn’t the one who brought this particular topic to the table.” He shifted so that his chair angled toward his father to give his neck a break. “Look, Dad. I get that it’s important to you that I marry and produce the next generation, but honest to God, this matchmaking stuff is too much. When the time is right, I’ll find my husband myself.”

“What exactly are you looking for, Sebastian? Some glorious love affair?”

Sebastian frowned, not sure how to answer that. “I suppose so. Isn’t that the goal in twenty-first century America—to marry someone you love? Isn’t that what the fight for marriage equality was all about?”

His father squirmed a bit. “You know your mother and I are fine with your being gay, and we’re glad you can get legally married. But life isn’t like one of those Hallmark movies. It’s enough for a couple to have similar backgrounds and to be with someone whose company you enjoy.” He tossed his head. “You have to be attracted to them, too, naturally.”

“In other words, I should settle for something like what you and Mom have?” He shook his head with a frown. “I think I want more than that.”

He was forming the idea in his mind as he spoke. The expectation of falling in love and getting married had always been there in the back of his head. Much like keeping an eye on the competition and making sure to always diversify one’s portfolio. It just was. Not a burning desire, though. That’s why he’d bought Parker, after all. He could get the sex he wanted without worrying about the emotional strings until he met the right guy to marry. He was pretty sure he’d know it when it happened.

Even as he thought it, he remembered what it was like to hold the boy as he’d wept over his family’s troubles and how he’d come to give himself to a strange man. It had been heartbreaking to feel the shudders and tears as Parker had cried himself to sleep. And there was nothing that said he had to offer such comfort to his slave, either. He could have banished Parker from his bed until he’d pulled himself together. He’d been so moved by it all that embracing the boy and providing a physical and emotional anchor had come to him naturally. His reaction was mystifying. He wasn’t in a relationship with Parker. It was a business arrangement, one he hoped Parker was enjoying. Not that it was necessary, but he thought his slave was a natural submissive and getting as much pleasure out of the games Sebastian played as he did. He thought that was the case. Then again, Parker had to submit to them even if he didn’t. He had no choice. Yet, wasn’t it a matter of human decency that Sebastian should succor him as much as use him?

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