As soon as Mary regained consciousness, she shoots into a sitting position. The abrupt movement and sudden bright lights caused her head to throb painfully. She grimaced and covered her eyes.

"Shit," she grumbled.

"Careful," her mate whispered next to her.

Slowly, she opened her eyes. Letting the light in ever so slowly to prevent shooting pain.

"You hit your head pretty hard." Ryker sounded worried and upset.

When she could finally open her eyes, she looked around the plain medical room. A small beach painting hung on the wall, but it looked so out of place. Her eyes wandered from one side of the room to the other side.

There she saw that her mate was sitting on an adjacent bed. Mary looked down her body and noticed that she was wearing matching hospital gowns. Then Mary felt a sharp pain on right temple. She groaned and gently touched the bandage that wrapped around her head.

"Are you okay? Are you feeling pain? Should I call the doctor to look you over? Mary, answer me, baby." Ryker was getting riled up by the second.

"I'm fine." She lifted her head. "It just hurts a little."

Her injuries were minor compared to Ryker. She looked Ryker over. He didn't look so bad. Although, his skin was a little paler than usual and his eyes had dark circles underneath.

"Are you okay?" she asked him, remember how injured he was during the challenge. Mary shoved away her blanket, moved her feet over the edge of the bed before standing up. The room spun.

"What are you doing?" She heard Ryker moving before he moved to stand in front of her. His firm hands took hold of her shoulders and urged her back into her bed.

"No, no, no. I'm fine. Go to back to bed."

Instead of listening to Mary, Ryker crawled into bed next to Mary. She scooted back a little to allow Ryker to join her on the tiny hospital bed. The bed squeaked under their weight. Mary was half afraid the bed will collapse, but when it didn't she settled further into Ryker's side.

It was a little crazy. She stepped out of her pack to find love and discover herself. Then landed herself in an Alpha's lap—a very possessive and loving Alpha. Underneath her, she could hear his heartbeat. Slow and melodious. It comforted her like nothing else.

Ryker's free hand moved up to the side of her face. He threaded his fingers into her hair. The feel of his fingers against her skin made her eyes fluttered closed. A soft sigh escaping her lips.

She realized that she has fallen so deeply in love with Ryker that there was no way she could reverse what she was feeling. Their mate bond was unique, but the fear that coursed through her when she saw how hard he fought—how much he was bleeding. Her heart clenched in her chest.

"I thought I was going to lose you," she whispered in a pained voice.

His arms tightened around her, and he pressed his lips against her forehead.

"I'm right here."

He was. That was what mattered.

There was a knock at the door before the door slid open. Mary felt Ryker's head lifted. He was looking toward the door.

"Good morning," a feminine voice greeted.

Mary wanted to see, but Ryker held her face close to his body. It seemed she wasn't the only one feeling this way. The need to be close to each other. To hold and savor their warm bodies pressed against each other.

"Here, let me help you guys."

"We got it." Mary fought against Ryker's firm grip and turned her head toward the familiar voices.

Her heart felt a huge weight lifted when she saw that Gary and Abraham were ok. Granted, they still had a few bruises and pale, they looked alive and awake.

She laughed in relief and happiness.

"You guys are okay," she said.

Abraham and Gary walked over to sit on the hospital sofa. Both collapsed onto the bed. They were still wearing their hospital gowns. Abraham still had an IV line hooked up to his arm. He put most of his weight onto it to keep himself upright.

Once the two settled, they chuckled while looking at Ryker and Mary.

"Kind of funny, you know," Abraham smirked.

"What?" Ryker questioned his brother. Ryker remained impassive and unreadable in front of them, but Mary knew that he was happy to see his brother.

Abraham waved his hands between them.

"We are all in the hospital. Injured."

Gary chuckled again and nodded his agreement.

"What happened?" Ryker asked. "How did you two get injured?"

"It was Bruno. That damn bastard. We thought he was coming with reinforcement, but he attacked us. We were outnumbered and weak at that point. He was there to finish us off," Abraham growled. The flash of anger that appeared in his hazel eyes was something that Mary doesn't see often. In the short time that she had been with Abraham, he has always had warm and welcoming eyes.

"It was my fault." Mary glanced at Ryker. She could still see he felt guilty.

Abraham shook his head immediately.

"You don't have to blame yourself. We didn't know that we were feeding a betrayer. None of us knew what was going to happen before it was too late."

After they finished discussing all the details of last night, Abraham and Gary headed back to their room to rest. It would take them a couple of days to feel better. Out of all four of them, Mary sustained fewer injuries. She only hit head against a rock and knocked unconscious. She'll feel better by tomorrow.

They were once again alone.

She scooted closer to his body, ignoring that the bed squeaked its protest again. In some odd way, she had this overwhelming need to mold her body against him. Ryker didn't seem to mind at all. In fact, he held her tighter against his body.

Lifting her head, Mary looked up at her mate, only to find him already looking down at her. The amount of love and affection reflected in his eyes made her heart swell.

Was she dreaming?

Was this really happening?

She never thought that she would be here. To have a male look at her like she was the center of his world, but when she looked at him—she knew. She knew that he loved her.

"I love you." The words slipped past her like nothing.

A soft smile curved on his lips and a twinkle appeared in his eyes.

"I love you too."

Lifting one of her hand, she threaded her fingers through his jet black hair and then moved to cradle one side of his face. His stubble beard ticked her palm. Then she dropped her gaze from his eyes to his perfectly shaped lips.

Damn, staring at his lips stirred a hungry, primal need in her.

He must have seen the direction of her thoughts because his eyes darkened with desire. She leaned forward and pressed her lips against his. The minute their lips touched, she sighed. Mary moved closer, needing more.

She deepened the kiss, and he allowed her to take charge. Taking whatever she wanted from him. She was careful not to touch any of his injuries or lay her body too much over his.

When Ryker couldn't take it any longer, a throaty growl rippled from his chest before his own hand tangled in her hair and he took control. She moaned in happiness. The feeling of his lips against her overpowered her senses.

She knew they couldn't do more than just kiss, but it was just what she needed to calm her nerves. A silent reminder that all of this was real.

When Mary pulled away, she looked back up at him. There was a shine in his hazel eyes. He was thinking about something.

"What are you thinking about?" she asked him openly.

Her fingers moved to drum on his chest to keep herself busy. She liked the feel of his hard body underneath hers.

"How terrified I was to see you in the arms of my enemies," he looked down at her with a little wrinkle between his brows. She moved to smooth it back. "With Lottie, we went through a lot of terrifying situations. I mean, we smuggled goods and did foul deeds. Along the way, someone would always get injured. I've seen Lottie in a similar situation, but the fear that spread through me that night was incomparable to what I felt last night. I felt every inch of my body was being it on fire. Physical pain. My heart tightened and the air in my chest disappeared. I couldn't think or breathe."

"Maybe it's the mate bond..." Mary responded.

He shook his head and leaned down to nuzzle her neck. Breathing in her scent slowly. His entire being shuddered, and she knew that he wasn't kidding. He was afraid that night.

"I didn't love her the way I loved you. Maybe there was a time that it was love, but it could also be the fact that I couldn't face reality. I couldn't accept responsibility. Maybe it was infatuation. I don't know. The only thing I know is that my love for you—it started the night you kissed me at the Mating ball."

"Why? You couldn't even see me." Mary frowned. "People will say that I put a spell on you."

He arched a brow in confusion.

"Ryker, I've always been a wallflower. I've always known that I wasn't a pretty flower. Males don't look at me. I shouldn't have jumped you that night. I seduced you and it wasn't right of me. I was just so frustrated."

One corner of his lips lifted. He moved to smooth back behind her ear.

"You pulled me in with the courage to seek what you wanted. Then little by little, I fell a bit more. It was your love and affection. The way you cared for everyone. Before I knew it, I couldn't let you go. I made excuses to keep you near and grew possessive when others wanted to claim you. I didn't want to lose you."

Mary's heart swell in her chest.

"You didn't put a spell on me. Others might look for a pretty flower, but all I need is my little wallflower. For those who truly want to find the diamond in the rough, all they need to do is look further than what is in front of them. If anything, I'm lucky to have snatched you from because you are one of a kind. My mate. My little wallflower mate."

Ryker kissed her right after. With an amount of ferocity that had her shivering with need. Her heart crying out for him.

This was it.

Her happily after that she was seeking. This was proof that even the plainest, most average female could still be found, loved, and cherished.