The Coldest Man in the Room Melted Only for Me novel Chapter 425

"She's different."

"How is she different?" Sure, Riley was beautiful, but there were plenty of stunning women in Statenbury. She was successful in her career, but compared to the female CEOs running massive corporations, she naturally fell short.

Franklin truly couldn't see what made her so incredibly special.

Was it precisely because she was divorced, a mother, and his brother's ex-wife?

Did the boss have a thing for the forbidden thrill of dating a mature woman?

If so, his tastes were seriously intense.

"She's different in every way," Sebastian said, heading toward his bedroom.

Franklin stubbornly followed him, probing further. "Do you just find the taboo exciting?"

Sebastian stopped and rapped his knuckles hard against Franklin's head. "What kind of nonsense is going through your brain?"

"Then what is it?" This was a rare opportunity to ask, and Franklin wasn't backing down until he got an answer.

"She was my first love." She was his light. She was his salvation.

Franklin stood frozen in shock. First love?

When did that happen?

Why didn't he know about it?

Sebastian had enlisted in the military at twenty-two. They had known each other since then, and Franklin had never seen him show interest in any woman. In fact, his total lack of interest had once made them suspect he didn't like women at all.

As Sebastian reached his door, Franklin blurted out, "When was this?"

"Fifteen years ago." The door shut behind him.

Perhaps the snow had dredged up the buried past, because that night, Sebastian's dreams were flooded with fragments of his memories.

At fifteen, he had tracked down Riley's middle school, watching from afar as she walked out of the building, silently memorizing vocabulary words.

She had been bathed in sunlight, her eyes bright, radiating a dazzling brilliance. Meanwhile, he hid in the shadows, feeling like a rat in the gutter, entirely unworthy of even introducing himself as a friend.

At sixteen, when she was in eighth grade, he sat in her school cafeteria, positioned rows behind her, watching her animatedly discuss a math test with her friends.

On the day of her high school entrance exams, he hid among the chaotic crowd of parents. He watched her walk into the testing center completely alone, without a single family member to support her, yet her spine was ramrod straight.

His heart had ached for her, but he was also overwhelmingly proud of her fierce resilience.

He fought tooth and nail to transform himself, growing stronger while silently accompanying her from the shadows. He dreamed of the day he would reclaim his rightful place in the St. John family, take back everything, and finally stand proudly before her.

At twenty-two, he enlisted in the military. Before leaving, he checked on her one last time. She was a college sophomore, renowned as a brilliant, untouchable academic star whose sole focus was her studies.