At that moment, Hera felt both happiness and sadness overpowering her heart and mind simultaneously. She was pleased and relieved that she found him innocent but felt sorry and guilty for doubting his innocence.

Overwhelmed with emotions, Hera leapt forward, throwing herself at him. Hunter was surprised by Hera’s sudden action and didn’t have the time to brace himself against the impact of the force, and they both tumbled down from the stone bench.

“What the fuck is wrong with you, Hera Hunter?” Hunter groaned, lifting himself off the grassy ground with Hera still glued to his torso. Hera giggled while he scowled in concern. Without wasting another second, she plastered her lips to his and kissed him.

“Oh, for heaven’s sake, can you stop taking advantage of the situation and harassing my mouth?” Hunter pulled back, scowling at her while the latter giggled. “You were whining about not getting enough of my lips,” Hera offered as her reason, grinning goofily at him.

“I was also whining about how unfair, selfish and meanie you are,” Hunter snapped, but there was no bite to it. “Anyway, does it mean you are done with that talking now?” he asked. Hera bit her lip, trying to stop grinning and batted her guilty lashes at him. Hunter scoffed with a shake of his head. “That’s what I thought,” he muttered under his breath and lifted Hera off his lap, guiding her to sit on the ground.

“Since you’re allowed to make and break your own rules, I’m adding a new one to the list,” Hunter said, scooting backwards to find a comfortable position to sit. He leaned his back against the tree trunk and stretched his legs straight. “Next time you come to me with this ‘we need to talk’ phrase, I want you naked in front of me,” he declared shamelessly. Hera’s jaw dropped in disbelief.

Fixing him with a dirty look, Hera moved to sit in front of him and slapped his chest with the back of her hand. “Get your dirty mind out of the gutter,” she scolded._.

“What? It’s only fair if we both get what we desire and deserve in exchange,” Hunter argued, getting another slap on his hand. He scowled, wiggling his pointer finger in response. Hera narrowed her eyes, daring him to defy her. They glared at each other until Hera gave up and sighed in exasperation.

“What if I show you after we finish this conversation,” Hera said, winking at him. Hunter frowned in confusion at first and then raised his eyebrows in surprise when his brain grasped the meaning behind her words.

‘Did she mean I get what I want in exchange after this talk?’

Hunter’s eyes widened in disbelief at what she insinuated before a pleased smirk graced his lips.

“Alright, Goddess, let’s get done with this quickly then,” Hunter said excitedly. Hera smiled and shook her head at his delighted face.

“Doesn’t it bother you?” Hera asked. Hunter didn’t understand and frowned. “What? Seeing you naked?” he asked. “Why would it bother me, Goddess? It would be my dream come true,” he admitted, grinning like a wolf while she scowled in annoyance. “Not that, you idiot. Clara accused you of such a major crime, and you didn’t look offended one bit,” Hera clarified.

Hunter’s expression grew serious when he took her hand and gestured for her to come closer. Hera didn’t resist and willingly complied, sitting beside him, imitating his posture.

Hunter shrugged indifferently before answering her question. “It’s human nature, Goddess. When someone hurts our loved ones or the people we care about, it’s natural for us to hate that person. I hurt her brother. Of course, she would want revenge,” Hunter stated, sounding too calm as if they were discussing his favourite subject, Maths.

Hera looked at him and marvelled at his thoughtfulness.

She wondered why he couldn’t control his anger and avoid fighting people in the first place instead of hurting them when he knew so much about human nature and valued relationships. His violent personality troubled her, and she wanted to ask him about it but decided to save that question for later.

“And besides, it doesn’t matter what others say or think about me. I don’t care until you trust me,” Hunter confessed. Meanwhile, Hera’s heart burned with guilt and shame. She didn’t trust him enough to fight off Clara’s unjust claim against him.

Hera’s eyes watered again, and she swallowed the lump in her throat. Leaning into him, she planted a quick dry-mouthed kiss on his lips, wrapping her arms around his middle. Hunter wound his arm around her shoulder, pulling her more into his embrace. A slow smile worked its way across his face as Hera rested her head on his chest.

“If you kiss me one more time in the middle of our talk, the buttons on your top will come off one by one. Remember the new rule?” Hunter asked, teasing her. Hera smiled, patting his heart with her palm. “Calm down, will you?” she commanded, and Hunter could hear the smile in her tone.

She sighed, relaxing in his arms.

“She also accused Eric of the same,” Hera revealed and instantly felt how Hunter’s shoulders stiffened. When Hera lifted her head to look at him, anger flashed through his eyes.

“Goddess, please tell me you didn’t ask him about it,” Hunter couldn’t hide the discontent in his voice.

Hera shook her head frantically. “Of course not,” she was quick to offer. “I know Eric would never do something so low as to mistreat or harass a girl, let alone touch her without consent. I trust him,” Hera announced without any hesitation in her voice. Hunter’s stance visibly relaxed after her reason.

“This is why I didn’t want you to stay friends with her. I knew she would poison your thoughts with her toxicity,” Hunter said, irritation coating his tone. Hera nodded her agreement and revealed how Clara only blamed Eric because she knew Hera wouldn’t believe it if she directly accused Hunter. Hunter listened while Hera shared every bit of her conversation with Clara.

Suddenly, he frowned, seeming lost in thoughts for a few seconds. His eyebrows squinted before his eyes narrowed angrily. The clam quickly vanished, and Hunter sat upright, staring at Hera.

“Wait, wait, you didn’t ask Eric because you trust him, but you asked me,” Hunter said, leaving his sentence unfinished, and Hera’s anxious heart missed a beat, nervous and scared at the sudden change in his demeanour. She knew what was coming when Hunter paused. Hera understood what he wanted to say without him voicing it.

She watched him with her pleading eyes, wordlessly apologising for distrusting him.

Hunter’s lips twitched into a slow smile, a bitter one. Hera hated how his eyes brimmed with hurt, and she despised herself more because she instilled that pain in his beautiful eyes.

Hunter scoffed, and a sarcastic chuckle followed. He shook his head in warning when Hera tried to speak, a string of apologies desperate to rush out of her mouth.

“You believed her, didn’t you?” Hunter stated more than asked. “You don’t trust me,” he added as an afterthought and paused as if struggling to stomach that bitter thought. “You believed I’m capable of committing that heinous crime,” he said more to himself, his voice nothing more than a whisper and tone filled with utter disbelief.

He tore his eyes off her and looked away as if he couldn’t stand the sight of her. Hera was quick to grab his hands, afraid he would leave her. She was relieved when he didn’t pull away from her touch. She grasped his hands tightly by enfolding her own around them and brought them to her chest, hugging.

“Hunter,” she called softly, “I’m sorry I doubted your innocence, but I was confused. Clara sounded so convincing I couldn’t dismiss her claim and almost believed her,” Hera admitted, expressing how sorry she was for hurting him and begging him to forgive her.

“I can’t believe you believed I could rape a girl.” Ignoring Hera’s cry of apologies, Hunter carried on expressing his dissatisfaction. He tried to jerk his hands away from her, but Hera held onto them tightly.

“Please try to understand my point of view, Hunter,” Hera pleaded. “You were so mad that day and Clara said you would do anything when you are angry, and I couldn’t disagree because it’s true,” she said everything in one go, desperately trying to make him understand her reasoning.

“Yeah, right, it’s my second nature to rape a girl when I’m angry,” Hunter stated sarcastically. Hera didn’t miss the hurt lacing his voice. His eyes still showcased anger. He pulled his hand away from her and got up to change his position, sitting straight. Hera noticed how his hands clutched the edges of the stone bench on either side of his thighs tight enough to turn his knuckles white.

Hera sighed in frustration, annoyed that she failed to convey her viewpoint and make him comprehend her situation.

“Come on, Hunter, stop guilt-tripping me and think from my perspective for once,” Hera whined in annoyance. “I couldn’t oppose her because you and I both know you don’t think and act impulsively when you lose your temper. How could I overlook or ignore it when Clara stated the obvious?” she yelled, throwing her hands in the air. Hunter refused to look her way, and Hera knew he was struggling to tame his anger.

Wrapping her hands around the crook of his arm, Hera hugged his arm and rested her head on his shoulder.

“I know I hurt you, and I’m truly sorry,” she admitted in a softer tone.