Chapter 1
Three Days After Catalina’s Escape
The Human Realm
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Brent Goswin thrust into the woman beneath him harder, groaning at the way her pussy clamped down on his cock. She was so fucking tight, and the soft noises she made aroused him to no end.
He loved fucking her. Cat was always in the right frame of mind, always ready, and always responsive to his touch. It made everything easier and made him feel in control.
There was nothing worse, in his mind, than a female who was distracted while they were having sex. If, after a bit of foreplay, she still wasn’t into it, that was her problem and not his. She should be fully focused on him, on what was happening between them. That was when he knew she was truly invested in the relationship.
Cat never disappointed him. She moaned at exactly the right moments, pressed into him when he moved, and got off most of the time without complaint. She was always focused on him when they were fucking, and that was what he liked most about her.
Cat was hot, impossibly hot, and pregnant or not, it didn’t matter. He didn’t care about responsibility. He didn’t want kids; he never had, and he never would, but there was something thrilling about her, something addictive in the way she surrendered so completely to him.
Of course, she wasn’t his girlfriend. He had no intention of being with her long-term. But she offered him her body freely, and he wasn’t about to refuse. That was all that mattered. She wanted to escape her life, and he wanted to enjoy her while he could. Everyone had their roles, and he was in his perfectly.
He remembered the day he’d picked her up like it had happened yesterday. He hadn’t thought, hadn’t planned; he’d just reacted. They’d met a week or so earlier at his job when she’d been brought in for a DNA test. She’d flirted shamelessly, and he’d given her his number without hesitation, though he truly hadn’t expected to hear from her again. But later, she’d texted, and that’s when he started learning about her life and the mess of a relationship she was in.
Her husband was abusive, she’d said. He was possessive and violent, the kind of man who thought he could control her. Brent felt a surge of anger on her behalf. He hated men who treated women like that. He hated men who thought they could dictate a woman’s life. He had to help her. He was the only one who could. He wanted to save her, protect her, and make sure she got away from someone so cruel and vicious.
He truly didn’t understand why anyone would want to hurt someone as pretty and sweet as Cat. How anyone could be so cruel. He knew her husband was a big man. She needed to be protected.
She’d asked to meet him at a coffee shop near his place, her voice shaky over the phone. When she’d arrived, she’d looked small and fragile, and something in him snapped. He’d held her in his arms without thinking. Her face had pressed against his chest, her sobs filling his ears as he’d held her against him. When she’d finally stopped crying and lifted her face towards him, Brent had kissed her before he could stop himself. She’d looked surprised, maybe even a little startled, but she didn’t push him away. That small hesitation, that moment of shock, was exactly what made it irresistible.
When she’d suggested leaving and going somewhere more private, he hadn’t hesitated. He’d taken her back to his apartment, and the rest had followed naturally. Cat was everything he wanted in a woman. She’d let him take control, she’d matched his intensity, and she’d responded to his touch. He loved the way she melted under him, the way her body answered without question.
It thrilled him that she was pregnant; it shouldn’t have, but it did. It made her rounder and softer, and she swore it made her hornier.
There was something inherently possessive in knowing she was his in that moment, that she existed for him to take, to use as he pleased. He told himself it wasn’t about control. It was about desire. Desire was natural. Desire was mutual, and she wanted him as much as he wanted her.
And yet, even as he pounded into her now with relentless intensity, part of him thrilled at every little thing, every gasp, every moan, and every tremble. It was all proof that he was right. That she was his to please, his to hold, and his to protect. He didn’t need love. He didn’t need commitment. He just needed this. Her willing body, her submission to his every desire, and her dependence on him. And he had it. For now.
After they’d fucked three times at their initial meeting, she had confessed something that had set his blood boiling. She was almost positive the baby wasn’t her husband’s, and if she was right, he would probably beat her until she lost it.
Brent had clenched his fists just thinking about it. How could any man have the right to lay a hand on a woman that way? He hated violence. He hated men who thought they could control someone else’s life, and he hated seeing someone he cared about in danger. He had encouraged Cat to leave her husband, to get out before it was too late, and he killed her, but she’d hesitated. She wasn’t sure she could. That had made him angrier than ever, not at her, but at the man she’d married.
Then she had asked him to send her the DNA results directly so she could know the truth and make a plan to leave before her husband found out. Rationally, Brent knew he shouldn’t have agreed. He wasn’t supposed to involve himself this deeply, not like this. But he had. For her safety, he told himself. She trusted him, and he wasn’t about to let her down.
Sure enough, when the results arrived, the baby wasn’t her husband’s. Brent had felt a mixture of relief and fury. Relief that she was safe, and fury at the thought of what could have happened to her if her husband found out. He sent the results straight to her, feeling like he was doing exactly what a protector should do.
After that, he’d wondered if he’d see her again. He didn’t think he would. It would be better if he didn’t, but then she’d texted him a few days later.
She’d finally gotten brave enough to leave her husband, and Brent had felt a surge of pride. She’d trusted him, and he had delivered. He had gone to pick her up, and seeing her again, teary-eyed and deflated, made him feel needed in a way that was almost intoxicating. She was relying on him, and he liked that. Liked being the one she could turn to, the one she could lean on, the one who could keep her safe.
Back at his apartment, he had told her she could stay there for now. She had thanked him in the way that only Cat could. She’d dropped to her knees right there and pulled out his cock. Brent had been surprised for a second, but only for a second. He would never, in a million years, turn down that kind of gratitude, especially from beautiful Cat. He had let her lick and suck him for a while, letting her pleasure him until he decided it was time to take control. He preferred it that way, and it would do her well to remember that.
So, he had grabbed her and held her still while he’d fucked her mouth, thrusting in harshly, the way he liked it, and she hadn’t resisted. Not even a little.
Tears had streamed down her face, but she hadn’t pulled back. She had let him use her, and that was exactly what Brent wanted. Proof that she trusted him, that she relied on him, that she needed him in ways no one else could provide. She’d been docile, allowing him to do what he wanted.
He had decided right then and there that she could stay for a while, and so far, it had worked out perfectly.
He told himself it wasn’t about dominance. It wasn’t about control. It was about keeping her safe. About giving her comfort. About being the one person who would protect her when the world was threatening to crush her. And, of course, it didn’t hurt that she was willing, eager, and more than capable of making him feel wanted in every way imaginable.
