Guardian

"You should leave if she wants you to" 

Hera peeked at the man who came to her rescue. His face is hidden under the cloak of darkness, but his well-built physic is not. He is wearing a t-shirt and jeans. His shirt is hugging to his torso like a second skin. He is tall and his body is toned. A sense of familiarity hit her hard when she looked at him as if she has known him her entire life. Her mother's face popped into her mind. She stumbled a step back. Her own heart began to pound harder, and she felt like her mother is back.

Cedric on the other hand turned to see the person who dared to interrupt him in the middle after he composed himself from his initial fear.

"This is between us. Who are you? How dare you interrupt us in the middle?" he demanded the stranger angrily. He erased the distance between himself and the stranger with the intention intimidated him. But Matteo took a step forward, revealing his sharp handsome features. 

Cedric came to a dead stop when he came face to face with Matteo. He doesn't know who Matteo is, but his uncle does. So he didn't recognize him. But the anger in Matteo's eyes made him feel scared and unsettled.

Matteo ignored Cedric who is visibly pale and looked scared. He walked past Cedric and walked closer to Hera, who is watching him with a myriad of emotions playing on her face.

"Hello Hera, I am your mother's friend and now your guardian" he lied smoothly.

His deep authoritative voice and the statement that he issued with confidence snapped her gaze to meet his. Apart from the initial emotional turmoil, she didn't experience anything else when her gaze took in his handsome features.

Matteo observed her keenly. He is used to women falling all over themselves to please him. Especially teenagers who tend to behave immaturely. But to his surprise, apart from her initial surprise, she is composed as if she is not affected by a handsome face. He would have been impressed and tried his luck with her in the past. But now, he is not interested in women. At least,t not now. 

"I am sorry. But as far as I know, my mom doesn't have any friends. Nice try. You should leave too" she replied curtly.

Matteo came prepared to face this kind of response from her. He learned that she is more mature than most kids her age. So he produced duplicate papers with her mother's signature forged on them.

"You can read for yourself," he said and handed the papers to her.

Hera took the papers and began to read the content. It is read that he is her mother's friend who will be her guardian if something happens to her mother. He will also help her with the trust fund which her mother saved for her when Hera was a little girl. She recognized her mother's signature in the end.

She is confused her. As far as she knows, her mother never had any friends. But these papers are telling otherwise.

"I.." she doesn't have any words to speak about the sudden changes in her life.

Matteo took the papers back from her. He is here to help her from Cedric. He will do that and then leave. He can arrange bodyguards for her, but she helped him, so he came in person.

"No problem, you take your time. But I have to stay here until we deal with your trust fund and the necessary documents. Then, I will leave" he lied again.

Her mind is a web of confusion. Silently she moved aside and allowed him inside. 

Cedric looked at the scene with anger and frustration. He thought he can do anything now that she is alone. But now, she has a new guardian. 

The next morning, Hera woke up feeling tired. She couldn't sleep a wink until the wee hours of the morning. Then, she dreamed about her mother. She dreamed that her mother came back to protect her from men like Cedric. Hera hugged her and begged her to stay with her. But her mother left, leaving her alone. 

Hera rubbed her eyes. When she remembered that now she is sharing her house with a man, her body was jolted with awareness.

"Damn, is he telling the truth? But the papers looked like they are real. Is he the one who paid the house mortgage? I need to ask him" she decided.

She rushed with her morning routine. She showered and dressed in a pair of blue faded jeans that has seen better days and a white shirt. She finger-combed her waist-length wet hair and picked up her school bag. By the time she came out of her room, she found him sipping coffee while typing something on his expensive laptop. He is sitting at their dining table. That table looks small to his tall frame.

Last night she was so shocked, that she didn't show him around the house or even offered water. But now, looking at how comfortable he is, he must have figured everything out. 

'Is he using the other bedroom until he stays here ' she wondered. Suddenly she felt like a stranger in her own home.

"Hi" she greeted hesitantly. She doesn't know who he is, but now they are forced to live together.

Matteo didn't bother to look at her thought. The project he is working on has reached a point where it needs his maximum attention. Moreover, he can guess what she might want to know.

"Yes, I paid the mortgage. I ordered groceries. You should quit your part-time jobs. Concentrate on your studies" he declared, which irked Hera.

"What?" she asked with a hint of anger. She is not an aggressive person by nature. But she tends to get angry and defensive when she comes across men like Cedric. 

Matteo sighed and looked up at her. She is looking at him with a hint of anger, which he found cute, but did not let show on his face.

"Listen, kid..." he is forced to stop when she scowled at him.

"Kid? Do I look like a kid to you? I am eighteen" she stressed the last part.

He snorted sarcastically.

"Exactly, you are a decade younger than me. So you are still a kid. But that's not important here. As your guardian, you are my responsibility until you graduate. Quit your jobs and here is your allowance for this month" he placed thousand dollars on the table for her to pick up. But she didn't.

She looked at the money with resentment. 

"Do I look like a charity case for you? You came last night and started to control my life this morning? What do you think of yourself?" she snapped at him.

Just then Nova entered the house through the open door way and stumbled upon the conversation. He is shocked to hear Hera's words.

'Oh, dear God. Does she have a death wish? How is still standing there when he is clearly angry? Is she blind? The anger in his eyes is scaring me from here. But she is standing face to face with him and even dare to argue with him?' he thought to himself.

Matteo is angry at her tone. But he is strangely pleased with the courage she is showing which almost none of his men has. Every one of them is on edge in his presence, which he cannot blame. But now, for a split second, he felt like his old self. When he was carefree and everyone used to feel comfortable around him. But now, the furnace of anger and betrayal is constantly burning inside him. It changed him.

When she turned to leave, he caught her wrist to stop her. He stood up calmly and picked up the money from the table. 

Hera glared at him and tried to pull her hand free from his iron-clad hold. But he pulled her closer, which made her stumble a little and fell on him. She placed her hand over his chest to right herself. But when she heard the rhythm of his heart, which is so soothing like her mother's lullaby, she relaxed instantly. 

She pulled away from him with confusion. She was angry to the point that she wanted to scoop his eyeballs out. But now, she is calm.

'What the hell is this? ' she wondered. 

"I don't think you are a charity case, and neither am I trying to control your life. I am just doing what your mother wanted to do for you. She would want you to live happily without stressing yourself so much. This money is yours. Your trust fund. It will be transferred into your account soon. Until then, use this" he explained.