Reborn Deceit

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

Rose

Rose brought her car to a rolling stop in the Nikolaidis manor driveway. Work had been a drag, just like every other day. Glancing at the clock on the dashboard of her piece-of-junk old Volkswagen, the time read five in the evening. It felt like it should have been at least five hours past that.

Rose had barley slept last night. She was giddy from her friendship-makeup with Carter, but also anxious from her run-in with Luca. She still had no idea what that guy wanted, or why he kept appearing when she least expected him to.

As promised, she had a body guard at all times today. Mira had hung out with her at the bookstore until about two in the afternoon when she had to leave for a photoshoot with a new client. Her photography business was really starting to take off, and Rose was proud of her for that. Taking Miras place, Felix had waltzed through the door shortly after Mira left, his outgoing personality a happy relief to Rose. His jokes and happy personality were the perfect distraction.

Stifling a yawn with her hand, Rose watched as Felix pulled in the driveway behind her, slipping his car into one of the bays of their garage. Rose was going to need coffee if she was going to stay awake for her training session with Damaian.

Just the sound of his name in her head made Roses heart stutter. She couldn't help but think about what Caius and Carter had told her. Did Damian really like her? And was it his idea to keep her guarded and protected?

Shaking herself from her thoughts, Rose stepped out of her car, gym bag in hand with the clothes she was going to wear after her heavy workout. Felix walked up beside her, slipping an arm through hers as they walked up the stairs together. Felix was about to open the front door, but before he could touch the handle, it swung open.

Rose, expecting Mira on the other side of the wooden door, was ready with a sarcastic remark about maid service, when the words get stuck in her throat. Why is everyone involved with this family so damn handsome?

Standing in front of Felix and Rose was a man that she had never seen before. His ash brown hair was brushed up, clearly held in place by a little bit of gel. His face was clean shaven, showing of the sharp lines of his jaw. His brown eyes regarded Rose before looking at Felix, a smile slipping onto his face. With one hand in the front pocket of his ripped jeans, and the other bracing himself against the edge of the door, the intruder seemed perfectly at ease in the large home.

"Hey, dude."

"Aiden?" Felix's words were laced with disbelief, yet a matching smile had slipped onto his face. "What the hell are you doing here?" The two guys embraced each other in one of those weird man hugs, where they try to act like slapping each other really hard on the back in a really manly way takes away from the fact that the hug itself was still pretty feminine. When the two pulled away, Aiden's eyes slipped back to Rose.

"I heard there was a newbie Guardian in desperate need of some training. So I decided to offer my assistance."

Rose looked back and forth between Felix and this so-called Aiden, waiting for an introduction or an explanation, honestly either one would have worked. When nothing was said, Rose decided to take matters into her own hands.

Sticking her hand out towards Aiden, Rose waited for him to grab it. When he did she gave it a soft shake. "I'm Rose."

Aiden smiled at her, letting his hand fall back to his side. "I know who you are. I'm Aiden Kratos."

Rose glanced between Felix and Aiden again. "Kratos?"

Felix laughed. "Aiden's my cousin."

Rose nodded in what was supposed to look like understanding, when in reality her brain was swirling from this new Guardian. Until this moment, Rose had somehow told herself that the only members of the Guardian race where the people who lived in this house. It wasn't her fault, really, since her posse had been hiding her from the world.