Bought By Him #2
By Alycia Taylor
Chapter One
Kip
I kept checking my watch wondering what was taking Grace so long. There certainly was a very good chance that she decided to jump ship. Maybe I had given her too much all at once. I just didn’t want there to be any confusion between us. The situation we were in was odd to begin with, not something that even I had dealt with before. Maybe I was handling it all wrong. I just felt that we should be on the same page before any mistakes were made.
I did not want to continue with my dinner as it would be rude for me to finish without her but my stomach was grumbling. Where was she? My guidelines couldn’t be that frightening, could they? It was probably the sex; she was a virgin after all. I could have eased her into that area but again I was just trying to get things out in the open.
I sighed with relief when I saw her arrive back in the room. She didn’t look at me however which wasn’t exactly good news.
“Is everything okay?”
She looked up at me and I couldn’t read her expression. “Yes, thank you.”
I waited while she took a few bites of her meal again and seemed to relax a bit. I mimicked her and continued eating. I still needed to talk to her but allowing her to finish her dinner would be adequate.
When dessert was served I decided to try talking to her again. If she excused herself once again I would have to lay off and realize that I was overwhelming her too much. I had no interest in scaring the girl.
“Grace, I still wanted to talk to you about the guidelines, I didn’t quite finish when you excused yourself to go to the washroom.”
She looked up at me with surprise. “There’s more.”
I almost laughed but thought better of it. “Yes, I’m afraid so. I apologize if this is all overwhelming but I think it’s best for our future if we know what is expected.”
“Yes, I guess so. I just thought that I was getting married, I didn’t expect there to be so many rules.”
“Don’t think of them as rules Grace. I will be your husband, I want you to feel free but I’m very much in the public eye. There are expectations even for me.”
“Okay, so what else is there?”
“You must only go out when you are with me. I don’t want you going out alone.”
“Ever?” She took a long gulp of the wine before her, finishing off the glass. She quickly poured another one as my eyebrows raised. This clearly was not going as smoothly as I thought.
She looked at me again, “So, I’m a prisoner whenever you don’t want me with you or you happen to go on a business trip. I can’t just come and go as I please?”
“Grace…”
“No, it’s fine. I’m just realizing that I really am property to you.”
I was speechless and I just stared at her as she looked at me, her gaze unwavering. I hadn’t thought about it like that at all. Had I really just purchased the girl to make her a slave inside my home? I was only trying to look out for my best interests. The thought of her going out in public and doing something wrong terrified me. I didn’t want her to do anything in public without me that would screw up my chances for running for governor. But was that really fair? I would never do that with a girlfriend, so why did I think it was okay to do it to Grace? Because I paid for her? God, I was really starting to sound like a scumbag. I had no idea what I was doing and I wondered how wise it had been for me to buy Grace in the first place.
“I’m sorry grace. I certainly don’t think of you as property, you’re a human being and you deserve to be treated with respect. It’s just I don’t want you to do anything in public that could screw things up for me. I need you for a certain reason and I don’t want that screwed up in--”
She interrupted me by saying, “what exactly do you need me for?”
I sighed; I just didn’t want to get into it with her. I didn’t even know how much she would understand and I had already upset her enough as it was. “Look, that’s nothing you need to worry about right now. Our marriage together is the most important thing and I promise you that you will be well taken care of. I may have been too hasty in saying you can’t go out alone. How about for now we can say that it’s open for negotiation. We will discuss it again whenever you want to.”
She nodded and went back to sipping her wine. Yes, the marriage certainly was the most important thing for me. Running for governor was a huge deal for me and I worried that she could screw that up without even realizing she was doing so. The wife of a governor had to also behave a certain way. I guess I could just tell her the truth but she already seemed upset that I didn’t want her for traditional means; I didn’t want to start arguing with her already. I would have to be more lenient in letting her go off on her own at times. I didn’t want her to feel as if she was a prisoner. That wasn’t fair for anyone. Maybe I could have one of the staff or even have my assistant take her out every now and then. That way she could still be watched without any worries. Yes, that was certainly doable.
Until I knew for sure whether I was going to run for governor there was no need to go into any specifics with Grace. She would know when the time is right and would understand what her role was by then. If I chose to not run for governor I would need to consider getting a divorce from grace so that I could go back to living the kind of life that I wanted. Decisions certainly needed to be made.
“There are also plenty of things that you can do in the house to keep yourself occupied, and anything that is not here can be brought in. Do you like to read?”
Her eyes lit up. “Very much, yes.”
“Excellent. Did you know that we have a library? It’s housed with enough books to last you for many years. If there is something specific you like to read, I will have Marcus bring you in anything you want.”
“I had no idea that there was a library and I thought I had investigated the whole house.”
“You will love it, I’m sure.”
She sipped her wine looking suddenly intrigued. I was glad that there was something that could at least put a smile on her face. I was starting to feel like the Beast from the Disney movie.
“I will also make sure that we go on many excursions so that you don’t get cabin fever. You will have your own computer, so you can research anything you want to do or have on there. We have a pool, hot tub, a massage therapist, as well as a movie theatre in the house for you to use at any time.”
“Yes, I’m aware. Thank you.”
She went back to her dessert and I watched her for a moment. I was starting to think that I was going to have my hands full with this one.
Chapter Two
Grace
I was glad that Kip was finished with the guidelines. It was exhausting just thinking about them, never mind having to go through them all in real life. I had thought coming back from the bathroom I would be able to relax but if anything he just put me on edge again. I didn’t understand why there had to be rules in the first place. Why couldn’t we just live together like normal people and move towards a life together? I couldn’t imagine what situation he would specifically need me for or why he thought I would somehow screw it all up. I had no intention of screwing anything up. I probably had more to lose in that situation that he did. The last thing I would do is to screw up my current situation. It was absurd. He was so vague about everything also; wouldn’t it be better for me to know what he was scared of me screwing up? That way I could work towards avoiding that situation myself? I didn’t understand Kip for the most part and that was starting to worry me.
I couldn’t believe that there was a chance I would not be able to leave the grounds. What on earth was I going to do with myself? I would surely start to go crazy. It was still a hell of a lot better th
an living with my parents but I had longed for freedom. I had even hoped that I could go to university but that was clearly never going to happen. The weight of that knowledge almost put me into a depression. I continued eating my dessert, not really tasting it. I would have liked to return to my bedroom to think about what I had done with my life. Yes I had escaped my parents but in some ways I was just in a different kind of prison.
We were just finishing eating when one of the staff came in and went straight to Kip. He whispered into his ear and Kip immediately put his napkin down.
“Excuse me Grace; I have to run out for a bit. The next two weeks are going to be busy ones for me so please do as you please until then.”
Two weeks?! I groaned inwardly as I wondered what I was going to do with myself for that long. There was only so much relaxing that one could do. I wished that I could explore San Francisco and see what it was all about. Maybe I should start hoping for a divorce before we even had the chance to get married.
“That’s a long time Kip. Shouldn’t we be getting to know each other better?”
“Maybe in time Grace, but for now I have to go. I have stuff to do.”
I watched him leave thinking he was one of the most mysterious men that I had ever known. Not that I knew a lot of men, but he seemed nothing like any of the ones I did know. His whole life was one big secret, at least to me. He didn’t seem to be willing to open up to me at all and I wondered why. Because you are property Grace, that’s all you will ever be. Maybe that was true. There was a chance that I was not getting the fairy tale that I wanted.
I looked around at the elegant and magnanimous dining room and wondered again how he had got so rich? He was a pretty young guy to have so much money. I wondered what it was like to be him, to not have a worry in the world.
Why did he want to marry me? It was not for need of companionship that was for sure. He had just returned home today and yet he would be gone again for two more weeks. Yes, it certainly wasn’t that. He also wasn’t searching for love. So what did he want me for, I was determined to find out. I wasn’t sure whether I should be offended by the whole thing or not. Then I had to remind myself that he did purchase me after all. It’s not like we had fallen in love and he proposed to me. I was there for a purpose and I just wished that I knew what that was. Not that I supposed it really mattered. Either way, I still had a much better life with Kip than I used to have in Indonesia with my parents. Living a pampered life was hardly something to complain about. I just thought that I would have more freedom.
I could probably get used to the rules even if one of them is having sex with him anytime, anywhere, and any way that he wanted. I still couldn’t imagine what he meant or what sex would be like with kip but it was all part of marriage. It’s not like I would never have sex. I had two weeks at least to prepare myself for it. I just wished that the two weeks were being spent getting to know him better.
The next two weeks passed by slowly. Kip called a few times to check in with me but aside from that I didn’t see him at all. I had spent a lot of time online exploring San Francisco from afar. I wanted to see what the city had to offer if I ever did get to venture out of the house. I also looked into the University and found a degree in fashion design that I ached to take. I had never had the money for clothing of my own but I remembered looking at magazines in the grocery store and wishing that I could touch all the nice dresses. I never had anything brand new. I had been living in hand me downs until the agency had purchased me clothes for my meeting with Kip. The thought of learning how to make designer wear and to have a clothing line of my own just seemed like a dream come true. I wondered how easily it would be to convince Kip to allow me to attend school. How much trouble could I really get into anyways? I would be in classes all day.
Aside from that I spent a lot of time reading beside the pool and swimming. I had looked through the entire library feeling like crying every time that I went in there; it was just so beautiful. I had spent hours in there just browsing; I had been like a little kid in a candy store. I had been to the massage therapist daily…like why not right? What else did I have to do?
When I was at my most bored I would then go to the movie theatre room and watch old classics from the black and white era. I loved watching old movies. We didn’t even have a TV back home, so watching movies in general was a real treat for me. The thing about black and whites was all the women looked so glamorous. I couldn’t even imagine looking like that in my wildest dreams.
I was in the movie theatre watching Casablanca when Kip walked in. Startled to see him I sat up in the couch a little straighter. I had been munching on chips and sipping on wine, just chilling out for the evening. I hadn’t expected to see him at all. He sat down on the couch beside me and smiled.
“Hi Kip, I didn’t expect to see you.”
I could tell he was thinking about something but I had no idea what to expect. I hope he wasn’t planning on sex right then. It would feel awfully abrupt since I hadn’t seen him in two weeks.
“We will be heading to Las Vegas tomorrow Grace.”
Las Vegas? My heart fluttered a bit at the thought of leaving the house and going on a trip. I didn’t know much about Las Vegas except that a lot of people went to casinos to gamble. I wondered why Kip wanted to go there.
“Wow, Las Vegas. What are we going to be doing there?”
“I will be showing you off as my new girlfriend for the first time. I want people to get used to seeing you and us so that a marriage doesn’t come as a surprise.”
I nodded, not really understanding his methods but just happy to be getting out of the house.
“People need to really believe in us. Believe that we are a real couple.”
“Aren’t we a real couple?”
He paused, “Yes, yes of course. It’s just that no one had any idea that I would be dating so soon. I’ve been a bachelor for quite some time.”
“I see.”
“So get those lips ready, dear Grace, because we are going to be doing a lot of kissing in front of people.”
I nodded, not liking the idea that people would be watching and possibly taking pictures of us kissing. I wasn’t even used to Kip yet and I had to kiss him in public, in front of people? Yikes.
“We need to make this look as real as possible. So don’t hesitate to wrap your arms around me tightly whenever you want. Think of me as your boyfriend.”
He was really starting to confuse me with the real and not so real boyfriend act. I really had no idea so I was just going to think of him as my boyfriend and hope for the best. I couldn’t really understand why he cared what anyone thought about his relationship. I didn’t understand why we were going through all that work to make things like that appear to be real. What did it matter if people even knew about me or not? I didn’t understand the public world he lived in at all.
“Okay.”
He smiled at me but I couldn’t have been more disappointed. I had thought the whole purpose of him ordering a bride was to find someone that he could fall in love with and marry. I didn’t know what he was up to but I knew for sure that he had no intention of ever loving me and that information hurt more than anything.
“Is everything okay Grace?”
I just nodded, knowing that there wasn’t any point in trying to change his mind or telling him how I felt. He was not interested in falling in love with me and our marriage would just be for show and nothing else. It all seemed so fake and pointless. I would never understand why someone would want something fake when they could have something genuine and real.
The worst part was that I knew nothing about Kip so making things look real was going to take a lot of work and some real skill. Maybe I should consider going to University for acting as I would need those skills for my entire marriage.
He moved in and pulled me forward by my neck catching me by surprise. He kissed me hard on the mouth leaving me breathless. He pulled away and looked into my eyes. He gets up just as quickly an
d started to head out of the room.
“Be ready by 2pm tomorrow Grace.” With that he walked out of the room.
Jesus.
Chapter Three
Kip
The flight to Las Vegas was a long one from California. I was thankful that we were flying first class as it allowed for the opportunity to relax. Grace had read for some time but I spent most of it looking out the window of the plane. She seemed very excited to be travelling again. They had offered us champagne and she sipped on it for a while as she flipped through a fashion magazine.
She giggled at one point and I wondered if she was getting drunk on the champagne. I shook my head in amusement. I wasn’t sure if it was the fact that the trip was long or if Grace was getting drunk but she started peppering me with questions. I didn’t like the fact that she felt the need to ask me for more information.
“So Kip, tell me, how much money do we really have?”
I almost spit the champagne all over her, instead I swallowed it down hard. I couldn’t believe how brazen she was with the questions.
“Billions Grace.” I said curtly.
She giggled again and said, “I don’t even have any idea how much that is.”
I looked out the window hoping the conversation about my money was over.
“If we are going to be married, shouldn’t I know more about you? I know nothing and yet I have to pretend you are my boyfriend.”
“Just pretend I’m whoever you want me to be Grace. You don’t really need to know anything about me in order to pretend to have a boyfriend. Just pretend my favourite color is purple and I really like peas. Who cares?”
She frowned at me and I knew that there was more coming from her.
“Why haven’t we had sex since you made it sound so important a couple of weeks ago?”
Oh god, I was not in any mood to be answering these questions from her. To think I thought I bought myself a quiet church mouse. It just goes to show you that you don’t always get what you pay for.
Bought By Him #2 Page 1
