Ten
Gareth
As I suspected, Riley went to Oscar for help.
The witch was one of the newest residents of Greyhaven, having joined us only a few weeks ago.
He had appeared one day in early fall with a duffel bag of clothes and his familiar.
Like most of our people, he had a story of his life outside our wards.
One filled with betrayal, though, for a change, he was one of the perpetrators, not an innocent victim.
Many voiced concerns about allowing the witch to stay, and for that, I didn’t blame them. However, I voted for him to remain. From what I could tell, he was remorseful about his actions. He’d lost his home, his family, and what friends he’d had. All the man wanted was a fresh start somewhere safe.
No place was perfect. Not even Greyhaven with all its lofty ideals.
Oscar didn’t feel like any of those. He was a witch, for a start.
His well of magic was on the lower side.
Sufficient for his needs, yet weak enough that global domination was off the cards.
His explanations weren’t hollow justifications for his actions.
He showed genuine remorse. So I believed his actions had stemmed from desperation and loving the wrong person.
So far, Oscar hadn’t done a thing to make me doubt my decision. He’d found himself a job using his skills, had moved out of the temporary cabins into a small apartment closer to the library, and he’d barely used his magic.
It took Riley some time to approach the conversation about his curse or to ask Oscar to help, but the first thing Oscar did when Riley asked was text to ask for permission.
Oscar
Riley asked me for help. Am I okay to try?
Since I knew Riley and Oscar were in the library thanks to our gossip network, I wasted no time in replying.
Gareth:
Meet me inside the magic shop. You can help Riley, but there’s something we need to discuss quickly.
Oscar:
***
I didn’t reply to the witch. Maybe that was rude, yet I couldn’t find it in me to care.
I was growing impatient. All I wanted was a chance to convince Riley that being my mate wasn’t the worst thing in the world.
I wanted to prove to him that I could be everything he needed.
My magic, my heart, my everything was his when he was ready to give me a chance.
With the aversion spell broken, I hoped I’d at least get enough time with him to talk about my research and what that meant for us.
When Oscar entered the shop, Riley was behind him. I had enough presence of mind to hide in the back until Riley’s sneezing fit sent him back outside. The windows had a one-way spell for privacy, so he couldn’t hear or see anything we said from the street.
The witch roamed the store, likely filling time until my arrival.
“Hi Oscar,” I greeted him, stepping out from the back area. The warlock who ran the store had taken a break to give us time to chat.
Oscar startled, then calmed when he saw it was me. “Hey. Everything okay? You were kinda vague in your message. Am I allowed to help Riley?” he asked anxiously.
“Of course,” I immediately soothed him. “It’s just… Did you see the magic on him? Did you know there are two curses?”
“Two? What?” Oscar looked horrified.
I quickly went about explaining the layers of magic on Riley and the aversion curse. Oscar’s face fell when he realized he wouldn’t be powerful enough to break the wandering curse, but he was grateful for my help in getting rid of the aversion curse.
“So, once I break this, you can speak to Riley without him wanting to run away?”
“Well, hopefully. Depends on how deep his trauma runs. He’s probably got a good reason for avoiding warlocks in the first place. I think the aversion curse just helped push his fight-or-flight buttons.”
“True. I hope it’s enough to get him to talk to you. I hate seeing him looking so lost and lonely.”
“You’ve been a good friend to him. I hope you’ll continue to be friends, no matter what happens between me and Riley.”
“Do you mean that?”
“Of course. Let me walk you through this spell. I won’t make Riley wait outside in the cold for too much longer.”
Thanks to his magical training in his former coven, Oscar picked up the spell quickly. I taught him how to scan people for magic, something he hadn’t learned before. He was so grateful to me and confident he could strip at least one curse from my mate.
When he left the store, he had a lightness in his step he’d never had before in Greyhaven. He walked straight over to Riley, some of his prior apprehension returning.
From the store window, I watched Oscar break the first barrier to my mate.
The store owner returned just as I saw the tension leave Riley’s face. I knew Oscar was eager to get us together in the same room, but I wasn’t sure if it was right to push.
With my hearing amplified, I listened to their conversation. Riley made a face when Oscar offered to help him find a warlock.
“Now?”
“Yeah, why not?”
Riley scrubbed a hand over his face. “What if—”
“The spell worked, Riley.”
“I want to test it, but…”
Oscar’s stomach chose that moment to let out a growl that had to be obscenely loud to Riley’s shifter hearing.
My mate let out a laugh. “How about I make you dinner as a thank you?”
“You don’t have to do that!” Oscar protested.
“I was actually planning on getting some groceries while we were in this part of town. You’d be doing me a favor if you ate with me. I really didn’t want to spend another night on my own. Friends do that, right? Have dinner together?”
Oscar blushed a deep red, obvious even at this distance. His golden-blond hair shone in the waning light. “I… uh…”
“It’s not a date or anything,” Riley said in a soft voice.
He gave a humorless chuckle. “Obviously. Rumors are you have a mate. I just don’t want to make anyone angry. Things are strained enough here as it is.”
Poor Oscar. He had nothing to fear from me.
I wasn’t the type to get revenge. If Riley wanted to be with the witch, I’d just have to deal with it.
Of course it would hurt like hell, but Greyhaven was big enough that I could avoid them until I got over it.
If it was even possible to get over your fated mate rejecting you for another.
Riley stiffened. His anger bled into his tone.
“You know what? I don’t want a warlock as a mate.
I’m allowed to say no. Fate isn’t in control of that.
But that isn’t what this is. I’m also allowed to have friends.
” Anger made his words come out as a hiss.
“And that’s what I want this to be. Friends hanging out, sharing a meal. ”
Oscar let out a genuine laugh, the sound lighter and brighter than any I’d heard from him in the weeks he’d been in town.
“Well, I need a friend. I’m not too proud to admit that.
Back home… I fucked up. Greyhaven is my chance at a fresh start.
I hope we can help you, Riley. I want you to stay in Greyhaven.
Then maybe you can find a way to make it work with Gareth. ”
It felt wrong to keep listening to their conversation now that I was the subject.
“I’m not sure, Oscar. There’s so much in my past—”
“That you can work through once you have the chance to settle somewhere. Where better than here, where your mate is? Do you know how rare fated mates are?” Oscar’s voice only got more passionate as he spoke.
“I’ll think about it.”
Once they started walking, I left the store to follow them from a safe distance. After the last week of nothing, I was desperate for any glimpse I could get of Riley. They stopped next to the grocery store.
“Gonna get something for dinner. Any allergies? Dislikes?”
“Not liver!” Oscar’s face screwed up in a grimace. “Other than that, no. Okay, I’m just gonna pop into this store here. I’ll join you in a minute.” The witch walked towards me. “Did you see?”
“I did! You did so well!” My pride in him filled my voice.
His ears went pink as he blushed. “Thanks. So, are you going to go meet him?”
“Yeah. I can’t wait any longer, but I want it to sort of feel natural.”
“And not like you followed him from the magic store?” Oscar chuckled.
It was my turn to blush. “Yeah. See you inside.”
Riley sensed me almost immediately. I’d just picked up a basket and was hurriedly throwing things I needed into it, trying to look like I’d been here for a while.
He was browsing the aisles, putting stuff into a cart, when his steps paused.
He sniffed then stopped completely while he thought about what to do next. I slowed, letting him decide.
It was more difficult than I thought, watching him choose. I stepped back to give him some space. If he wasn’t ready, then forcing it wouldn’t help.
Though it was hard, I browsed the shelves and tried to act like a normal shopper. It was time to let Riley come to me. I’d engineered the perfect meet cute, but he had to want it.
Rounding a corner, Riley nearly slammed his cart into my legs. “Fuck! Sorry.”
Our eyes met. Riley’s were dark pools. His dark, almost black hair was windswept from his time outside. With a trembling breath, I calmed myself enough to get out a greeting. “Riley! Hi. How are you?”
We stared at each other in silence for a moment. “Um, okay. You?”
Ah, it was awkward, yet utterly perfect. Riley was in front of me, looking mostly calm. At least he wasn’t giving me the impression that he was about to run off again.
We stood just staring at each other. The moment stretched between us, becoming strained until it was broken. “Riley?” We both turned to look at the speaker.
Oscar caught up with us. “Oh, I’ll uh, wait here.”
I smiled at the witch and tried to ease the growing tension between us all. “Just getting some things. I’ve been putting it off all week.” I gave a weak laugh.
Riley looked between us. “I’m making dinner for Oscar as a thank you.”
“A thank you?”
“For helping with the curse,” Riley explained. “Oscar said I was under two curses.”
I nodded. “Yes. I’m hoping things will be much easier for you now.” Using my magic, I scanned him. “I can only see one curse on you now. Do you feel okay?”
A tiny smile flitted about his lips. “Yeah, I’m good.”
“Riley—”
“Yeah?” His eyes never left mine. Was he feeling the pull between us as strongly as I was?
This was my chance. “I’ve been doing some research… on fated mates.”
“Why?” he grimaced when it came out sharply.
I flinched, but forged ahead. “To show you I wouldn’t harm you.
The research proves it. As your fated mate, I can’t harm you with my magic.
” I poured all my hope into my expression.
After days of working on this, I was exhausted, yet here I was at the finish line, in front of Riley, ready to prove it all to him.
He was safe with me. He always would be.
He gasped when the meaning reached him. “Impossible,” he wheezed out.
Riley wanted to believe me. I stood taller, emboldened by his dawning realization. “It’s the truth. If you’ll let me, I can give you all my notes. Where I got the information. Everything. Will you?”
“Will I what?” He looked utterly shocked. Did I glimpse a flicker of my hope mirrored back at me?
“Let me show you that you’re safe from me. Just give me a chance, please,” I begged. If he wanted me to, I’d get on my knees just to prove it.
He looked from my imploring face to Oscar’s. “Let him,” he mouthed urgently. Yeah, I was glad I’d voted for the witch to stay.
“Okay.”