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.