“Yes.”
“Do you like it here?”
He raised his gaze to meet mine and lowered it again. He had started to worry the hem of his T-shirt. “Y-yes?”
Yeah, that wasn’t a shining endorsement for their relationship.
“Tell me three things you like about your relationship with Master Carl?” I decided to go easy.
I would’ve expected a boy to smile, but instead, Bear gnawed on his bottom lip and seemed worried.
“I like it when I can sleep in on Sunday mornings,” he finally said quietly. “Never had that before, really.” The last bit came out as an almost-whisper, and I wondered what it meant.
I let him think. Eventually he added his second thing, “I like being able to do my work after I’m done with chores.” Then, a bit faster this time, he said, “And I like it when I’ve been good and I get to watch TV before I go to bed.”
None of what he’d listed had anything to do with the kink relationship they had, at least not directly. That was worrying as hell.
“What do you like to watch?”
It was the first time the corner of his mouth curled up a little. “Disney movies and cartoons.”
I couldn’t help but to smile. “I watched a lot of Disney as a kid. My older sister was obsessed.” Guided by some instinct, I lifted my hand to the side of my mouth and theatrically whispered, “Gaston is a jerk.”
The small giggle that escaped Bear startled him. He closed his mouth again and looked at me, wide-eyed. Before he could apologize—and I was certain that he would—I asked my next question.
“Now could you tell me three things youdon’tlike about your relationship?”
Bear took in a deep breath and let it out. He seemed weary, suddenly.
“I don’t like the latex,” he started, which made me wince internally.
Latex was Carl’s major kink. The fact that Bear so openly told me he didn’t like it made it sound like Carl hadn’t told him how much that meant to him.
“I don’t like being sent to my room when I’ve been bad.”
I could see a tiny lip wobble, and started to hate Carl in that instant. I waited again.
“I don’t like the pain.” He glanced up at me again. “N-not in a way I thought I would, anyway.”
I nodded slowly, thoughtfully, keeping my emotions hidden. “So, you’re new to the lifestyle?”
“I, uh, I dabbled in my late teens and then had a sort of a thing with a boyfriend in college, but yeah, this is my first contract.”
“When was your contract checked last?”
Bear blinked at me again. “Uh… it’s going to be checked at the three-month mark?”
Jesus fucking Christ.
“Okay, so, this is the important question, Bear. You need to be really honest with me, okay?” At his solemn, if a little hesitant nod, I rubbed my hand over my mouth. “Are you happy here? Is this what you expected?”
He dropped his gaze and I could see his shoulders shake. I heard a sniffle, then a small sound that seemed like an aborted wail.
Again, purely on instinct, I got to my feet slowly, reached over and grabbed his cat. I pushed it into his lap, and he wrapped his arms around it like a little kid.
I returned to my chair. “I need words, Bear. Otherwise, I can’t help you.”
“B-but the contract—”
