“Why not?”
“Because I’m the reason they broke up.”
“How is it your fault?”
“I kissed Trey,” she said softly. “And now he won’t talk to me.”
“Is he angry?”
Ava shrugged. “I think he’s confused.”
“Because he’s gay? Or because he likes you, and he’s not sure how to deal with that?”
“Maybe.”
“Ava?”
She looked up at the doctor.
“It sounds to me like Magnus and Trey are very important to you.”
“They are.”
“You said that Magnus won’t kiss you because he’s in a relationship with someone else. Only they aren’t in a relationship anymore.”
Ava nodded.
“This has me wondering. Do you think Magnus doesn’t kiss you because he’s looking out for you?”
Ava considered that for a moment, and then it dawned on her. “He’s scared of me.”
Dr. Briggs’s smile returned. “I’m not sure he’s scaredofyou, but maybe he’s concernedforyou. You said it yourself, he’s been taking care of you, and you’ve known him for a long time. Did he know Harrison?”
Ava nodded. “They were never formally introduced, but they knew about the other. And then Harrison tried to frame Magnus for my murder. Only I wasn’t dead.”
Dr. Briggs’s expression shifted, but before she could go downthatpath, Ava tacked on, “But I’m not ready to talk about that.”
“Okay. You mentioned that you would see Magnus when you needed a friend.”
“I knew he’d be there for me.”
“So Magnus was aware of what you were going through with Harrison?”
Ava nodded. “He tried to get me to leave him. I wanted to. I really did. But Harrison used my mom against me. I couldn’t leave. He said he’d kill her if I did.”
“Have you talked to Magnus about what happened? About how he felt when he was looking for you?”
Ava frowned. “No.”
“Maybe you should. It might help if you understood what he experienced during that time. It sounds like he might be taking things slow because he doesn’t want to scare you.”
“Magnus is the one person I trust most in this world,” she countered. “He’ll never hurt me.”
“I didn’t say he would. I’m saying he might be worried that you’re not ready for a real relationship with him.”
Ava shook her head. “No. It’s because I’m the one who broke him and Trey up. I’m the reason Trey left. And now Magnus is just dealing with that loss.”
“You take the blame for a lot of things, Ava.”
