Page 3 of Bound to Him

“Yes, ma’am.” It occurred to him that anyone buying another human being should be embarrassed. But the rich didn’t seem to care about anything except themselves. He was going to live in their world for five years, yet doubted he would ever be able to understand them.

“Good, I’ll see you then. And, Parker? You are the very best client I’ve ever had.” The agent ended the call before he could respond.

And what would he have said anyway? You’re welcome. I’m so glad my father left me and my family with crushing debt we knew nothing about that forces me to sell my body to keep the family home and put food on the table.

As he shoved his phone in his back pocket, his mother came out of the kitchen, wiping her hands on a dish towel. Knowing she’d worked a nightshift and hadn’t even gone to sleep yet bucked him up a great deal. He was doing this for her and his sisters. Whatever happened to him didn’t matter. His pretty face and body were earning enough to ease her worries and make her life easier.

“So soon?” she asked in a low voice, laced with anguish.

He forced a smile to his lips. “Yup. Ms. Alverez said I’d sell quickly and she was right.” He went to his mother and put his hands on her shoulders. “Please don’t worry. There are lots of legal protections and I’m going to be living with a really rich guy.”

His mother’s expression turned extra grim. “A man?”

Parker stepped back. “That’s right. I’m not surprised, actually. Lots of guys have hit on me. More than girls, actually. I’m fine with it.” This at least wasn’t a lie. He was attracted to both men and women and, given that he was still a virgin, he was open to whatever experience he might have. While he’d never tell his mother, he’d agreed to kink, too, mostly because it paid even more. But also because the idea of it intrigued him. Maybe this would all turn out to be a marvelous adventure.

That’s what he told himself, anyway. He had to believe it or he might change his mind. He could. The law said a debt slave had the right to end the contract at any time. The problem was he’d then owe the agency everything that had been passed onto the creditors from what had been paid for him, plus the commission they’d lost out on. There was no way he’d put his family in a worse position than they already were.

“It’s going to be okay, Mom. I’m glad to be leaving before the girls come home from their after-school stuff, too. Saying goodbye is hard and they don’t really understand why I have to do this.”

His mother wrung her hands. “I should have explained everything to them. We could move somewhere else. They’ll adapt to a new school and new friends. I can get a second job, too. We’ll manage.”

Parker had seen all the zeros at the end of the amount of debt they were in. If his mother and he took up a hundred jobs, they still wouldn’t dig out. The girls deserved stability and an opportunity to go to college without incurring even more debt. His dream of doing so was dead for at least the next five years, but they still had a chance.

“Mom! I’m doing this. Please let it go. This is not your fault.”

“I should have kept better track of what your father was doing.”

“You wanted to stay home with us, and he was the kind of old-fashioned guy who wanted you to. He was never going to tell you about finances anyway. He believed it was a husband’s job to take care of that. And now he’s gone and it’s my responsibility to take care of the family. I want to, Mom. You can switch to an easier day job and spend more time with the girls like you should.

“I promise, I’ll be okay. And I’ll try to call and visit as much as I can.” Even as he said the words, he wondered if his new master would permit him to do so at all. The plain truth was, he was facing an unknown future. Pushing the growing fear aside, he went up to his room to pick out what he was going to wear to meet the man who’d bought him off the internet.

* * * *

The agent had been right. Somerville wasn’t far from downtown Boston as the crow flew, but traffic was its usual snarl. He was glad to not be the one driving. The added stress would have made his head explode. Instead, he zoned out until they pulled into a building on Federal Street. It was one of the tall commercial properties where big businesses kept multiple floors in order to rake in the obscene amount of cash that made people like his new master able to buy him. Sebastian Endicott. He’d recognized the name the moment Alvarez had said it. It was an old family that hadn’t rested on trust funds through the generations. Each one added to the family fortune, Sebastian included. Parker had wanted to major in business, so he’d kept up with financial news. He couldn’t quite work up an image of his master, however. Not that it mattered. The man could be as homely as a hedge fence and Parker would still look at him with adoring eyes. That was part of his job, he’d been told. People wanted the illusion of a consensual relationship rather than a transactional one.

The agent had a valet park the car and the man at the concierge desk accompanied them up to the highest floor in the building. Alverez kept her hand clasped around Parker’s arm, as if she feared he might bolt if she didn’t. He was willing to bet others had. No one wanted to be enslaved and the instinct for self-preservation was probably stronger than the fear of financial disaster for most people. As the elevator went up, Parker’s stomach dropped. He had to wipe sweaty palms on his slacks and close his lips to keep from hyperventilating. This is happening. This is really happening. The ride ended quickly and the doors slid open to an opulent reception area.

A pretty man not much older than Parker’s eighteen years, impeccably dressed and with slicked back dark hair, stepped forward. “Ms. Alveraz? I’m Enrico, Mr. Endicott’s personal assistant. He wishes me to convey his appreciation to you. I’ll take over from here.”

Before Parker could even muster up a goodbye to the agent, the man replaced Alverez’s hand with his own, holding Parker more firmly and leading him away at a brisk pace. As he looked back, the elevator doors closed, removing the agent’s surprised face from his sight. There was no time to regret the abrupt parting as people everywhere—walking past and poking their heads from their work station walls—stared at him as he walked the gauntlet beside Enrico.

“Are you a debt slave, too?” he dared to ask.

Enrico flicked him a disdainful look. “Hardly. I went to Bentley.”

A stab of envy shot through him. That had been his first choice of college. He’d never even had a chance to apply given his father’s death in his senior year of high school. Not that a degree meant one didn’t have to worry about servitude. Student debt was one of the main reasons why people ended up selling themselves.

They reached the very end of the hallway, large windows looking out onto Boston Harbor. He didn’t have to be told that the wooden double doors in front of him led to Endicott’s office. He steeled his spine as Enrico gave a perfunctory knock before opening the doors and leading him inside.

Parker could only gape at the sumptuously appointed space, distracted by the scene from his own fate. It was like something out of a television show, filled with dark wood furniture and brass fixtures. The entire back wall was a window. Sunlight sparkling on the water was visible even at a distance. The carpet and upholstery on the furniture were colors of deep blue and silver. And the office was bigger than the first floor of his family’s little house in Somerville. He was so taken by his surroundings that he failed to notice the man coming toward him until he was right in front of him.

Now, he knew that he’d never seen a clear picture of Sebastian Endicott. There was no way he would have forgotten the man. Over six feet tall, broad shouldered but lean like a swimmer, his owner had a head of thick dark hair cut to appear casually windblown. And his hazel eyes bore into his with an almost wolfish delight as he smiled at Parker with bright, white teeth.

“Hello, Parker. I’m your new master and we’re going to have such fun.”

Chapter Two

With a flick of his hand, Sebastian dismissed Enrico. The assistant closed the office doors with his usual quiet efficiency, leaving Sebastian alone with his new acquisition. He’d expected to have mixed feelings upon meeting the boy, be awkward even. From the moment he’d sent the payment through to the agency, there had been doubts and a bit of recrimination. Who was he to buy another human being? It was an outrageous thing to do. And yet, now, as he stood looking at Parker Jameson in the flesh, all he could think was that he’d made the best decision of his life.

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