6. Wild Roses

Third-person point of view

That evening, Leo came to visit Riley again. He brought a big bouquet of wild roses in different colours. This type of bouquet you can't just buy from any flower shop. Those roses looked so fresh and beautiful; the most special thing was they smelled so nice, fresh and lively with a mixture of charm.

Riley took a deep breath, inhaling the smell that was so close to her heart. Her lips curved upward to a slight smile involuntarily. Her whole heart suddenly filled with cheerfulness, evading all her negative emotions since the morning.

"Do you like the flowers?" Leo, who looked extremely exhausted when he first entered the room, now had his eyes twinkling with happiness. The weariness seemed to fade away without leaving a trace. Just one brief smile from Riley could make this mature, powerful man change his mood in an eye blink. It must be the power of a true mate bond when you truly love and care for your mate. Riley sighed in her heart.

"I love the flowers. From where did you buy these? I don't think all these colours and this fragrance are there in the flowers you can buy from a normal shop." Riley knew that fact very well. She loves wild roses. There was a small wood near her house. Since she was young, she has been plucking wild roses there. She really loved the smell, and those flowers at that time could have made young Riley's lonely heart a bit more cheerful. After many years, when she finally had her long-awaited transformation, she discovered the smell of her pheromones was indeed the same fragrance of wild roses. Maybe that's why she loved them so much. She is destined to love them.

"I didn't buy them. I grew them by myself. Before coming here, I went home to pluck them for you." Leo said excitedly.

"Really!!" Riley couldn't hide her surprise.

"You also like wild roses?" her question followed.

" Also? Can you remember how much you loved these flowers?" Leo asked with a voice full of hope.

"Well... I don't remember if I loved them in the past. But as soon as I saw these, I knew I love them so much. Riley regretted using the word 'also'. She must be cautious. Especially when she is with Leo.

"No surprise you know you love them as soon as you see them because you used to love them so much. I just wish you knew you love me so much, too. Because you used to love me more than anything else." Leo sighed. But the next second, he began to talk enthusiastically again.

"I grew wild roses in my garden, all the colours I could find. I even imported some of the species we can't find here. When you got into a coma, I got the best doctors in the world, but none could predict when you would wake up. I was helpless. I didn't even know what I should do anymore. For the first time in my life, I clearly understood there were things I couldn't have no matter how wealthy or powerful I was." 

Riley looked at Leo's carefully crafted, handsome face, which was darkened with the remembrance of his suffering, as her heart filled with despair. He has undoubtedly gone through a lot for his love for his beloved mate. Still, Riley couldn't understand how the talk about wild roses ended up here.

"Seeing you lie on a hospital bed motionless was unbearable. I wanted to do something so that I could get connected to your memories. So I decided to grow your favourite flowers. As a bonus, I could feel the fragrance of your pheromones from them, which could relax my mind and give me the energy to get back on my feet. I used to spend some time in the garden despite my..."

"The fragrance of my pheromones is wild roses?" Riley couldn't even believe what she heard. In addition to all the physical resemblance, this girl had the exact pheromone fragrance as she did... How could such a coincidence exit? Are they really destined to cross their lives like this?

"Of course, love...  Wild Roses...  So refreshing, so lively, and so damn charming. Not too much, not too little, just the right amount that could drive me crazy for you." As Leo looked deeply into Riley's eyes, she knew that every single word he said was honest and the deepest truth. This extremely dominant alpha who rules the business world undoubtedly has gone crazy for his little mate... Riley couldn't help but feel envy again of the owner of the body her soul had inhabited. If she had received half the love and respect from her mates, she would not have left home or faced the tragedy that no one dared to see even in their nightmares.

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Riley had dinner with Leo. Though she could eat by herself, Leo insisted he wanted to feed her. Though Riley couldn't figure out the root cause for the nervousness and reluctance she always felt around Leo, she just let him do as he wished. Knowing how much he has suffered in the past, how could she refuse him? Also, deep down in her heart, Riley felt an irresistible pull towards Leo. Which she couldn't deny.

After dinner, Riley went to bed; until she went to deep slumber, Riley felt Leo's warm palm gently massaging her head. After what happened in the morning and getting to know there was a high chance the Cunningham twins would meet her pretty soon, Riley thought she wouldn't be able to sleep at all. But it seems the wild roses Leo brought and his gentle, caring touch could make Riley actually sleep. Still, even in her dreams, she couldn't help but dream about the past she desperately wanted to escape from.

She was back in high school in her dreams, walking to school dejectedly. Her eyes were red and sore, and her left cheek was purplish-red and swollen too. Her clothes looked neat and clean, but with just one look, anyone could realize they were suitable to be put in the trash bin rather than wearing them. Even her shoes were worn out, and she could easily use them to slide on thin ice on a winter day. But she didn't care about any of these things. Those were the least of her worries. Her mind was totally occupied by what happened last night.