by Jenika Snow
She had her arms around my neck, her nails pricking my skin. I hissed, loving the pain. It brought my pleasure higher.
I started moving in and out of her slowly, trying to pace myself when all I wanted to do was pound the fuck out of her. I felt how wet she’d become for me, and heard her breathing change. She was right here with me. I really fucked her then.
In and out.
Sweat started to coat my skin, my heart raced, and my balls were drawn up tight. I wanted to come so badly, but I didn’t want this to end. I wanted it to last forever. I pushed in deep.
“Oh God,” she whispered, her voice slightly broken up by her pleasure.
I stared into her face, watching the display of what she felt moving across it. I pushed into her once more and stilled, feeling my muscles relax and contract. I could feel the clench and release of her inner muscles around me, her pussy milking me for my cum.
“I’m going to get off.” I gritted my teeth, the words no more than a harsh whisper.
I reached between us, needing her to climax for me once more, needing her to show me how good she felt. I started rubbing her clit.
Back and forth.
Harder. Faster.
I felt her tense beneath me, and then she was tossing her head back, her neck straining, this low cry leaving her. The fact that she was coming for me, that I could see that ecstasy written across her face, had my self-control slipping.
Only when she relaxed did I slow my actions.
“Don’t stop, Xavier. Never stop,” she whispered.
“Never.”
And then I started to really pump in and out of her, filling her up with my cock, making her mine. Fuck, I couldn’t control myself.
“You feel so fucking good.” And then I felt my orgasm rise. Just before I came inside of her, filling her up with my cum, I pulled out. I grabbed my cock and stroked my hand over my length, my balls drawn up, my need violent. The pleasure consumed me, took over until I was its slave. I breathed out slowly as my orgasm washed through me.
Groaning deeply, I forced my eyes to stay open as I came. I felt like a dirty bastard as I watched my cum spill from the tip of my cock and cover her belly. Watching that made my pleasure skyrocket, had me gasping for breath, my high increasing.
When I was sated, I sagged and breathed out, my chest rising and falling harshly, sweat covering my body. I couldn’t help but stare at her and what I’d done to her. Possessiveness and a feeling of being territorial when it came to Claire washed through me. I lifted my gaze to her face. “I want you as mine, Claire. Always.” I wasn’t going to apologize for saying the words, for knowing they sounded brutish, demanding. She was mine whether she really understood that or not.
“I want that.” The way she said it, and her expression, told me hearing those words come out of her mouth shocked her a little.
Pride and pleasure slammed into me, and I couldn’t help the sound of raw need that came from me. It was territorial. “Good, because you’re mine. I couldn’t let you go even if I wanted to. Having you in my life has changed me, made me feel alive.” Sappy words, maybe, for a man like me to say, but they were true, and I didn’t want to pretend or hide how I felt. I wanted Claire to know that to me she was the world, and I’d move heaven and earth just to make sure she was happy.
Claire
I was exhausted, so tired I didn’t even know if I could have lifted my arms or legs. But I liked that. A smile covered my face, one that was content, sated, and that wouldn’t leave. For hours Xavier and I had been in this bed, our limbs tangled together, our bodies sweaty from making love. Although it hadn’t been slow and gentle, sweet and romantic that whole time. It had been fast and frantic, hard and passionate. I liked it all ways with Xavier. He knew how to touch me to make me go off like a bomb.
He’d made me climax more times than I could even count. And still I knew I’d never get enough.
“Are you okay?” he asked, his voice thick with the arousal we’d just shared.
“Yes,” I whispered, even my throat too tired to work properly. I felt this incredible sensation that encompassed every inch of me. I shifted so I could look into his face. The silence stretched on for long seconds. “What happens now?” I was tense after asking that, not sure exactly what would happen.
He was silent for a long while, but it wasn’t uncomfortable. I could see he was trying to think carefully, figure out what he was going to actually say, perhaps. But he kept me close, so close I didn’t need a blanket to keep me warm. His body was enough.
“We start our lives together, if that’s what you want.” He pulled back and looked at me. “Because I want that, Claire. I want that really fucking badly.”
My heart jumped into my throat. “I want that, Xavier.” And I did. How strange that in such a short amount of time I could find myself so consumed by this man, my savior and my future. He’d rescued me from a fate, a future worse than death. He made me realize I was strong in my own right, that the fear I let wash through me could be controlled, shaped into what I wanted.
I realized because I was with him, that deep within me I had power. I had strength that could overcome anything that was in my way. I’d just needed that nudge, that push in the right direction to realize that I wasn’t alone in this fucked-up world.
I was whole because of the man in my arms, and God, it felt so good.
7
Claire
I looked at the papers strewn across Xavier’s desk. Over the years he’d bought so many women off the auction block it was staggering. And although our society didn’t care if he had hundreds for a harem, I couldn’t believe that humans would allow such a brutal practice of selling and keeping other humans as if they were pets.
No, the shock is gone. I know what kind of people run this world now.
“You’ve saved all of these women?” I looked over at him, knowing my eyes were wide, unable to help the surprise that was no doubt clearly written across my face.
“I wish I could have helped more.” His voice was deep, genuinely remorseful.
I shook my head. “You did more than anyone else I know, Xavier.” I moved over to him and cupped his cheek, the scruff under my palm scratching, yet also slightly smooth. “You’re a good man, and that’s why I love you.” I let the words hang between us, my heart in my throat, the feeling that I’d fallen so hard for this man consuming me. “I love you so much, even more because of the honest, kind person you really are.” He looked intimidating, with his sheer size and the ink that covered his arms and chest, but he wasn’t corrupt. He said he’d claimed me, that I was his, that he couldn’t let me go. Well, I didn’t want to be let go. I wanted to be with him in every way. The very idea of not having him in my life, of him setting me up someplace safe, where I wouldn’t know if I’d ever see him again, was frightening.
And it had only taken this short time for me to feel that, to let it take hold and not let go.
He pulled me onto his lap and just held me. I felt the air heat, felt my body do the same. Before I knew what was happening, Xavier growled low in his throat, twisted me around so my legs were on either side of his thighs, my pussy right over his hard cock, and wrapped his hand loosely around my throat. I was breathing hard, heavy, staring into his eyes and knowing what was to come.
I anticipated being with him, having him dominate me, touch me … make me know I was the only one for him. We became frantic in that moment. He tore away my pants and panties, then stood and pulled the fly of his jeans down. He had his cock pulled out, stroking it from root to tip before moving closer to me and placing the head at my entrance. I couldn’t breathe, couldn’t think.
And then he pushed all those inches into me, making me cry out, having me feel that stretch and burn only he could cause within me. I held on as he fucked me, tunneling in and out, his balls slapping against my bottom, my wetness making his thrusts fluid. And before I knew what was happening, he was coming, filling me up, causing me to go over the edge with him.
The seconds moved by where all I felt was pleasure, all I could see was flashing lights. And then my high dissipated and Xavier was holding me. He was whispering sweet words to me, ones I couldn’t make out because they were so low, but ones I knew came from the heart.
“You’re mine, Claire, and there is no one and nothing that will ever take you from me.” He stroked my hair, and I rested my head on his chest, hearing his heart beating. “I love you,” he whispered.
There was no other place I’d rather be.
Xavier helped me out of the back of the car and immediately took my hand. I stared up at the two-story cabin nestled deep in the woods. On the way up here he’d told me a little history about the place, how he owned a few hundred acres out here in the middle of nowhere, how he used this property to make sure the women he bought were safe and went undetected.
I looked between him and the cabin, feeling my love for him grow so much more. He’d made it his life’s work to buy women off the auction block for the sole purpose of setting them free. In a world where women were treated as a commodity, an item that could be sold and purchased, Xavier was changing things. And I wanted to be there to help him.
I wanted to be a face these women saw, so they knew that they were safe, that they could come and talk to me, that I was a light in a beacon of darkness. I could relate to them, had experienced what they had.
I desperately wanted to help.
We made our way up to the porch and immediately the door opened, showing us two women standing on the other side. One of them looked timid, partially hiding behind the woman in front. The shy one looked young, no more than maybe eighteen years old. The woman in front was older, maybe in her twenties or thirties, experience etched on her. But when they saw Xavier, smiles lit up their faces. It was clear they trusted him.
Marcus, the driver who’d brought us up here and a trusted employee who’d helped Xavier orchestrate all of this, came up behind us with a few canvas bags in hand. There were many more in the back of the car, filled with food and water, toiletries and clothing.
Even though this world was unforgiving and dark, and these women would never be able to live in a society which deemed them as nothing more than property, out here they were making a life for themselves. They didn’t have to worry about somebody finding them, taking them, selling them off. They truly were free.
We made our way up the steps and onto the porch. The older of the two women smiled at me, and as I looked into her eyes I could see she had gone through much in her life. Most likely she’d been taken just like I had, but she’d survived, grown stronger. I smiled at the younger woman. I didn’t know how long she’d been here, but she was clearly still trying to get on her feet, trying to accept everything that was going on around her.
I turned and looked at Xavier. I didn’t know what to say, how to properly express my emotions. But words were not needed. He pulled me in and kissed the top of my head, holding me tightly. We were a team now. I wanted to help, wanted to be there. This wasn’t an easy fix, but all we could do was take one step at a time, put one foot in front the other, and hope for the best.
Because hope was very strong and it had power. We had power.
Epilogue One
Claire
One year later
I was calm, collected. I had to be. Acting scared, nervous, or any other emotion right now wouldn’t do anyone any good. In fact, it could ruin everything.
For the last year I’d been waiting to do this with Xavier, prepared for whatever happened, ready for anything. And although I seemed relaxed on the outside, deep inside I was frightened of how all of this would play out.
I leaned back against the seat of the limousine, the scent of leather surrounding me, the air chilled. Snow covered the ground, giving the seemingly hellish land I lived in this otherworldly glow. If I didn’t know what kind of world this was, the kind of society that surrounded me, I could look at the picturesque mountains, the snow-covered trees, and think this was an ideal land. But I knew better. This was a wasteland of twisted humans.
But Xavier and I were working to correct that, even if what we did only helped a little. Even if we could only save one woman from the fate that was hell on earth, it was worth it.
I glanced over at the man I loved, the man who had saved me just a year ago. Time had moved so fast, and it was crazy to think that in that short amount of time he and I were now working together. Not only were we committed to each other, our relationship stronger than ever, but I wasn’t just sitting home being a vessel for him.
That thought had me lifting my hand and placing it on my slightly rounded belly. I was pregnant with his child, something we both wanted, had both dreamed about. But even though I’d always wanted babies, envisioned myself being a mother, I’d been too afraid to even hope that I could have that life, could be more than just an incubator.
And then I’d found Xavier—or more so, he’d found me.
He smiled at me, his gaze lowering to my belly. I could see the love on his face, the possessiveness in the way he held himself when I was near. We’d fought about me coming along with him today, but in the end I’d won out, if only for this time. I knew that I couldn’t risk the child that grew inside of me, and because of that this would be the only time I came with him to the auction block, albeit I’d stay in the car. I could help back at the house, make the women feel comfortable. This was the first auction Xavier had been to since he’d purchased me, and that was the main reason I wanted to be here.
I wanted to be in this car when they brought out the female Xavier had purchased today. I wanted to be here to reassure her, to let her know that she was safe, protected. What we did, we did in secrecy, and although it was dangerous, punishable by death, I would never have changed it for anything.
And then the back door opened. I straightened, knowing the woman would come into the vehicle any second. Xavier moved over next to me, took my hand in his, his touch possessive, territorial. We waited only a second before the young brunette slipped in the back of the car. She had wide eyes, and the fear came from her like a slap to the face. Once the door was shut, the silence became deafening, the air thick. She glanced between Xavier and me, and saw the confusion on her face.
She was also frightened. I could see the way she tugged at her dress, the wide-eyed look that covered her face, and the rise and fall of her chest as she breathed rapidly.
“I’m Claire and this is Xavier, my husband.” The car started driving after I’d revealed all of that. Truth was, our marriage wasn’t legal, but it was real nonetheless. The fucked-up society we lived in didn’t allow for a man to have a legal marriage with a female he’d purchased off the auction block. But Xavier and I had our own private, intimate ceremony, one where we’d had the trusted servants of the estate there as our “friends and family,” and a day I’ll never forget. I even had a ring, an old-as-time symbol of our connection.
I placed a hand protectively on my belly again, a habit that was something I’d never be able to break. Smiling at the woman came easily, genuinely. I wanted to make her feel at ease even though I’d been in her shoes not that long ago.
“Married?” she said softly, that confusion still lacing her voice.
I nodded and showed her my ring. For the next five minutes I explained how I’d been just like her, how Xavier wasn’t like other men. I told her how he’d saved me, protected me, that this was what he did … helped women in need. I could see her start to relax with each passing minute. And then Xavier reached out and took the bracelet off her wrist. I heard the deep exhale of breath leave her. The memory of how I’d felt when he’d done that slammed into me. I remember it had been like this weight lifted from my shoulders.
“You’re safe,” I said again, smiling and moving over to sit on the seat beside her. She shifted so she was facing me, and then she started crying and embraced me. I knew they were tears of happiness, that she was relieved that she wouldn’t be a slave to whatever needs and d
esires a fucked-up owner had for her.
I knew she realized she’d actually have a life.
I looked over at Xavier, feeling tears start to build in my eyes as well. The happiness I saw in his face was real, honest. He did this because he knew that’s what had to be done, because he was a good man, a wonderful husband, and he’d be a fantastic father.
This world might be hell, but at least I had a man who loved me unconditionally and would fight to make sure others had a chance of surviving.
Epilogue Two
Xavier
Two years later
Two years I’d been living in a world where my wife and daughter consumed my every waking thought. For two years I’d made sure they were protected, looked after, and that no harm came to them. And until the day I died, took my last breath, I’d ensure that they never had a doubt in their mind who loved them.
Wealth and materialistic things didn’t compare to the love of a good woman, and hearing the laughter of your child. And I had that tenfold.
I looked over at Claire, who held our daughter. Rosie had fallen asleep in my wife’s arms, but Claire refused to move, fearing she’d wake the toddler. But I also knew it was because she liked holding our daughter. I didn’t blame her. I did too.
She smiled down at the baby. That lit up my entire fucking world.
Over the last couple of years we’d worked on freeing other women. I made sure Claire stayed in the background, for her own safety and that of our daughter. No one aside from my most trusted employees even knew about our daughter. Although I was considered one of the elite, and therefore my offspring was safe from the female auctions, I didn’t want to risk it, didn’t want to take any chances. She was more precious than rubies to me. Both of them were.
And I wanted more children, a houseful of them. I wanted little girls who looked like my Claire, and little boys who knew what this world was, how to survive, how to help those less fortunate. I wanted forever with the woman I loved more than life itself. Claire lifted her head and stared at me, smiling sweetly.