When Her Death Couldn't Break Him (Cecilia and Nathaniel) novel Chapter 1966

Chapter 1966 A Mess
Denise stared at him, utterly baffled. “Why are you standing out here like that? Aren't you freezing?”

At the sound of her voice, Magnus slowly lifted his head. His face was pale, his body stiff from the cold, and his eyes filled with misery. “You're finally back.”

If she'd come any later, he might've frozen right there on her doorstep.

Without asking any questions, Denise hurried to unlock the door.

Magnus trailed in right behind her and immediately collapsed onto the bed, wrapping himself tightly in the blanket as he shivered and sneezed repeatedly.

“You could've told me the door locks automatically,” he complained between sneezes. “I just stepped out for a stroll, and when I came back, I was locked out.”

“Aren't most doors like that?” Denise asked, genuinely baffled. “How do you not even know this?”

Magnus scowled. “Of course not!”

Sighing at his pitiful state, Denise pulled out the food she'd brought home. “You must be starving. I'll heat this up and we'll eat in a bit.”

Magnus' stomach growled in response. The moment he heard there was food, his face lit up with joy.

Carrying the leftovers, Denise stepped out onto the balcony to use the induction cooker, only to stop dead in her tracks. Sitting on the stove was a pot filled with a sticky, overcooked mess of pasta. Dirty dishes were piled nearby, and more soggy pasta was visible in the trash.

“Magnus!” she shouted, voice sharp with fury.

“What?” he called back, confused.

“Get over here!” Denise barked.

Still wrapped in the blanket, Magnus reluctantly dragged himself out of bed and shuffled over with a look of annoyance. “What is it now?”

“Did you do all this?” Denise demanded.

Magnus nodded earnestly, not even trying to hide it. “Yeah. I don't know why, but the pasta I make just doesn't taste like yours, so... I didn't eat it.”

“You cooked the whole packet?”

“Yeah. It didn't look like much dry, but once it boiled, there was a ton,” he said, as if it were the most reasonable thing in the world.

Denise was on the verge of losing it. How has this man even survived this long?

As she watched, Denise frowned. “These don't look very clean... You did use laundry detergent, right?”

Magnus blinked. “What's that?”

Denise stared at him in stunned silence, then sighed. And so began another round of lessons—this time, in how to do laundry properly.

As she ate, Denise muttered, “I regret agreeing to fifty. Starting tomorrow, once you're making money, you have to pay me seventy a day.”

Seventy was still a laughable sum for someone like Magnus.

“All right, all right,” he said, waving it off without much thought.

After a satisfying meal, Denise was too exhausted to deal with anything else. She left the dishes to Magnus and went to freshen up.

“Just remember,” she warned, pointing a finger at him. “Never come in while I'm in the bathroom. No peeking. Got it?”