Three Witches #1: Magnus and Magnolia

Chapter 41 (Magnolia): The Brake

Copyright © 2024 by GroveltoHEA

Magnus was a man on a mission, and it wasn't necessarily to win me back because that wasn't what I was feeling from him. It wasn't to gain my forgiveness, either. It wasn't to atone for what he'd done.

He was here to care for me.

There was no doubt in my mind that he wanted me back, he wanted my forgiveness, he wanted to atone. He just wasn't here for that now. In the two months since we'd come back from Rosemary and Boone's, he began showing up to the shop three times a day. Had I told him there was no hope for us and I was never getting back with him, he would have still shown up.

Sometimes being able to sense people's emotions was a handy skill to have, draining though it was.

He'd be in the alley behind my store when I drove up in the morning. He'd already been to one of his sites, I knew, both from his slightly dirty T-shirt and because his crews started at seven. I didn't come to the store until nine fifteen to prepare for opening the doors at ten o'clock, so that gave him a chance to start his day and to come check on me. 

When I pulled to a stop each morning, he'd open the back door of my car and whistle. Cody would fly to his hand , Mink would jump out of the car once Magnus freed him from his doggy seat belt and we'd all walk inside. Then Magnus would begin setting up the complicated coffee and espresso machine, sweeping the floor in case anything had been missed the previous night and making sure all the displays were neat. 

Cody would either fly to the perch that sat next to the checkout counter or sit on Magnus's shoulder as he moved around the store. The morning after we'd brought Cody and Mink home from the shelter, Magnus had walked in with a big bag of materials.

"Was reading up on how to make a bird perch last night, what the best wood was and proper dimensions and I cut all the pieces last night, so this shouldn't take too long to put together."

It hadn't. He'd assembled the pieces and Cody had flown to it, preening and looking around as if he owned the place. Mink had stayed by the man's side, and when Magnus finished, he swept up, put the tools away and gave Mink a few head pats.

"Didn't forget you, buddy," he said. Together, they walked out to Magnus's truck and returned with an extra-large dog bed.

"Where do you want this?" he asked me. "Your office?"

"Yes, please," I said. "I was so excited with settling them into their new home last night that I didn't even think of a bed for the store today. Thank you."

"How'd it go?"

I smiled, thinking about last night's chaos. "Cody flew all over the place and I think her favorite spot is going to be the lampshade in the living room, and Mink claimed the overstuffed chair, probably so he could keep an eye on Cody."

He'd laughed at the picture I'd described and predicted Cody would rule the roost in less than a week.

After his morning visit, I'd see him again around one in the afternoon. Magnus would show up with our sandwiches and we'd have lunch together either at the picnic table in the alley or in my office.

After lunch, Magnus would leave and he'd return half an hour before my store closed at seven. He'd tidy up around the store with me, clean the coffee machine and see me safely to my car, along with Mink and Cody.

He never tried anything, but he did always take my hands in his every time he saw me.

"Boone told me you can draw strength and energy from me," he said. "So I'm here to offer it to you morning, noon and night."

"Doesn't that take from yours, though?" I asked, wondering why Rosemary never mentioned this to me.

"Not according to Boone."

"Hmm," was my brilliant response as I made a mental note to talk with  Rosemary about it the next time we spoke.

"Oh," she said and then got quiet when I asked her. "I didn't realize Boone got into that level of detail with Magnus."

"Is there a reason he shouldn't have? Is it illegal in the fae world or something? A flag on the play?"

Rosemary laughed at me. "Oh, witch, I do love you. And that's the crux of it right there. Love."

"Well, I already know that Magnus loves me, so why is that a secret?"

"It's not. It's just the circumstances under which he can offer you his strength and energy are very specific, and the witch doesn't usually find out until much later in the reconciliation process why she can and has been drawing from a particular man."

"And what is that? That he's gone through the Three Trials to prove himself?"

"Not really, although it is kind of related because it all points to the same thing."

"How so?"

"The only man you can draw from has to love you more than his own life. That's it. That simple. Love, as you know, is its own magical force and it's only where there's tremendous love that you can benefit from it."

The next afternoon, Magnus and I sat on the top of the picnic table as we ate lunch, my thigh brushing his.

"You didn't tell me about the condition that allows me to pull strength and energy from you." 

He turned his head toward me, surprised and blushing just a bit.

"I thought you knew."

"I don't know everything quite yet, Magnus. I'm still learning."

"We both are, witch."

"I'm just --" My voice trailed off.

"You're just not there yet," he finished for me calmly. "You may never be, Noli, and I know that. That's not why I'm here, to get something out of this."

"Then why are you here?"

His hand went to the back of my head and he leaned closer, gently holding my head in place. My eyes widened.

"Don't worry, witch, I'm not going to try to kiss you."

I won't say if his assurance disappointed me or not.

"I'm here to help you."

His eyes were glittering with the truth of his words.

"I'm here to be near you, to protect you if needed."

His face came closer to mine.

"I'm here because I'm grateful you let me breathe the same air as you."

Oh, my. He moved until our lips were almost touching.

"But most of all, Noli, I'm here to be your friend and support right now. I figure that other than Rosemary, there aren't a lot of people you can talk to about being a witch. So if you want to talk about it, day or night, I'll listen."

"Thank you," I said softly. "You know, this doesn't feel very much like a friendly distance."

"No, it doesn't," he agreed. "But I won't get any closer. Ever. Unless you want to close that last inch between us, this is as friendly as we'll get."

I'm leaving it up to you, Noli.

I understood. The next move was mine. Magnus had pushed as much as he was going to. But right now, I liked where we were. Seeing him three times a day. Going on the back of his bike for rides. Walking Mink. Having lunches. Teaching Cody some new words. Taking his call every night so he could tell me to sleep well, witch. Talking all the time, finding our way back to laughter and compatibility slowly.

It was a safer way to proceed by leaving anything physical out of it. It was what I needed, and he'd known that and had given it to me without complaint. I never sensed any restlessness or impatience in him.

As the months passed and the seasons changed, I realized I was falling in love with Magnus in a way I hadn't the first time. Maybe it was because he'd changed. Maybe it was because both of us had changed. Whatever the reason, we had our past pain that was shaping who we were now. 

It was the brake that kept us from hurtling down a hill out of control.