Chapter 1

My name was Catherine Alden, and ever since I was young, I had that enviable, perfect hourglass figure everyone coveted.

Back in school, countless boys had stared at my ample chest, taunting me and calling me "Sexy Cat".

After marriage, I became the perfect young wife who turned every man's head on the street.

However, my husband, Frederick Shaw, had turned out to be all show and no substance. In less than six months of marriage, he left me alone in an empty bed while jet-setting around the world for business.

They said a woman felt loneliness most acutely after turning 25.

Every night, I could only curl up under the covers, pressing my thighs together to control the urge. When I failed, I would lift my skirt and slowly explore myself.

After that fleeting pleasure, I would gaze at the ceiling, letting tears of longing and frustration fall.

It was never enough. Nothing I did could satisfy me. I craved a fierce man to pin me beneath him as he claimed me. I wanted a man who could truly fill me, body and soul.

The thought burned inside me, and no toy could ever satisfy me again. However, everything shifted the moment I arrived at my fitness class.

My new coach was a six-foot-tall college student with broad shoulders and a narrow waist.

When I walked in, he was lifting a barbell, showing off every defined muscle. His arms looked strong enough to lift me effortlessly.

The entire gym seemed charged with raw masculinity. All the restlessness I had been barely holding back flared up again. I almost couldn't stop myself from rushing over and straddling his lap right then and there.

My eyes drifted down to the space between his legs, and my breath caught. It was larger than I expected. If I were to be with him, would I be stretched to my limit?

"Are you here to work out? Come on in. Your regular coach is off today, so I'm filling in. I'm Samuel Wolfe."

His words snapped me out of my thoughts. I lowered my flushed face, trying to hide the thoughts I'd just had about his young, toned body.

"Oh, okay."

"Alright, let's get started. First, sit on this exercise ball, and we'll do a few warm-up moves."

Samuel brought the ball over. I sat down, following his gesture, but my poor balance made me wobble all over the place. With a sudden lurch forward, I crashed into his firm chest.

The scent of his masculinity hit me immediately. I hadn't been this near a man in ages, and suddenly, every part of me thrummed with anticipation.

"Be careful."

Fearing I would stumble, Samuel reached out to steady my waist. His strong hands enclosed my slender frame, and when they brushed against the sides of my chest, tingling heat shot through me.

I felt completely at his mercy, as if a single misstep could make me melt right into his arms.

"Next, engage your core and lean over this exercise ball."

He was completely focused on the exercise, unaware that his touch had already ignited my body and left my cheeks burning with heat.