Trigger warning: This story features characters that deal with past abuse and trauma.
*NOT 100% non-erotic BUT THERE IS VERY LITTLE SEXY STUFF*
This story is a slow burn. So, if that's not your cup of tea, please try one of my other stories!
All characters are 18 years old or older. Please feel free to leave comments or suggestions! Thank you for reading and enjoy!
*****
He wiped the icy snow from his beard roughly with one sleeve and hiked on. His feet ached. His stomach was rumbling with hunger and his back was sore from carrying the supplies such a long distance. The wind howled at his back. He could hear small branches and twigs snapping.
The young woman followed behind him carefully placing her feet in the prints he had made. The snow was not very deep yet, but it would not be long until it was too much to travel. It had come early this year. Her feet ached. She couldn't remember the last time she'd felt snow. Even in the freezing temperature, even as the sweat made her uncomfortably hot and cold at once, she never said a word. This man was willing to treat her well. She would not give him a reason to let her go. She would not allow herself to be discovered by her former masters. She would never belong to anyone again. This man offered safety, shelter, and knowledge. She would stay here as long as she could, knowing that it was hard to come by such a combination.
He counted himself lucky that he had not run into anyone yet. Henry found it difficult to believe. Even on his easiest trips, he had encountered some people outside of town. Vigilantly, he kept an eye out for anyone lurking behind trees or in other hiding places. Even in the beginning of a storm, you could never be too safe. The woods were among the easiest places for criminals to hide. In the town, they wouldn't be able to get away with stealing or harming others. In the woods, criminals had free reign.
Henry had chosen his cabin carefully. He knew how dangerous a place this could be. But he also knew the kind of freedom and simplicity that could be found in the depths of the forest. His cabin was difficult to find through the thicket of trees and kudzu that seemed to engulf everything around him. The leaves and brambles made for excellent camouflage.
It was dark when he approached the cabin. The tin roof had been lightly dusted in snow. The mixture of leaves and ice crunched underfoot as they walked up the hill towards his home. Slowly he opened the door. The room was cold from the storm and Henry immediately went to start a fire.
"Please, go ahead and put those things away," he said to the girl as she closed the door.
Nodding she went to follow his orders. In the kitchen she could hear the fire begin to crackle. She was dying to be in front of its warmth. When she came back into the living room, she saw him sitting on the couch. She noticed that he was wearing a different shirt and pants. His wet clothes were hung up by the fireplace.
"You should change into some warm clothes," he said standing up to give her the items, "Give me your other ones and I'll dry them with mine."
She hesitated before taking the clothes. She nodded in thanks. Slowly she began to disrobe. The image of her naked breasts startled Henry who had not known that she was naked. He turned his eyes away in order to maintain her privacy, but she seemed completely unphased by her nakedness.
Still naked, she turned his face to hers. He could tell now that her expression was one of bewilderment. She nodded and ran her hand along the outside of the garment, smoothing down any wrinkles. She smiled one of her rare smiles as if she were trying to reassure him that his gift meant a great deal to her.
Henry forced his eyes to the ceiling with great difficulty. He had caught a glimpse of her erect nipple, light brown against her pail, freckled skin. She was young and naive. Perhaps it was innocence that made her so unaware of how her delicate frame and soft, supple curves could spark desire into his thoughts. He thought not. The way in which he found her suggested that she had seen her share of violence. Without looking he quickly fastened the cloak to cover her. He had been the one to find her in the woods. This poor, sweet girl needed his help; he would not treat her as prey.
"I didn't mean in front of me. Go. Put some clothes on. I don't want to see you undressed in this house. Is that clear?"
When he looked down at her, he saw that she was confused. There were tears brimming in her eyes, but all too quickly she nodded and turned away. He could hear her footsteps upstairs. Leaning back into the armchair, he wondered if he had spoken too harshly.
Upstairs she fumbled with the new clothes he'd given her, a shirt and pants. She'd hung the cloak up and closed the bedroom door. She had always been trained to wear as little clothing as possible around men, especially men that were to be respected. Why had he seemed so offended at her display of loyalty? She was unsure of what to do next, but she put on the clothes as he had told her and came back downstairs.
When she came back into the living room, she was wearing As she worked, her thoughts began to trail off to the room upstairs. The thought made her feel sick to her stomach. It was true that she did not know what happened there, but she could easily have guessed.
In her mind, something awful had happened in that room. Thoughts drew her back to her own past and the terrible things that she had endured with her many previous owners. But she had never had an owner like Henry. He was different from the rest. Perhaps it was because he was not formally her owner. Technically, she was still owned by her most recent buyer. But after trying to run away he had treated her even more violently and left her to die. That was when Henry found her. He had taken her in and fed her and asked for nothing in return. He had given her a bed and clothes and asked for no favors from her. She was desperate to show her gratefulness to him. And there was one thing that no man had ever refused her.
There he was. Lying on the couch, collapsed from exhaustion. His legs were spread out, his head leaned back in a way that allowed his mouth to hang open in sleep. She would have laughed at his appearance if she did not admire him so. Instead, she knelt before him, as she had done for countless others.
Her slender hands reached up to unzip his jeans. She began to kiss his shaft over his underwear, feeling as it got harder. A soft moan escaped him. She kept going. She began to use her hand to massage his balls as she kissed a trail from his belly to the hem of his underwear. He moaned again. This time his eyes fluttered open, somewhat confused.
She felt him jerk back sharply, yelling an obscenity. He zipped up his pants and buttoned them. As he stood he picked her up by the arm and sat her down on the couch roughly. Startled by his quick movements, she sat motionless before him.
"What the Hell do you think you're doing?"
