Page 52

A notebook sat open next to him. The pen cupped in the crease of the spine.

He picked it up and started writing.

I didn’t look at what he wrote, turning to the food instead. I reached for the red strawberry and lifted it to my lips. Teeth carved through sweetness. Juice ran down my lips as I bit harder. I captured the trail with my fingers, then licked, chewing before I swallowed.

“God, that’s so good.” I murmured.

The next target was even bigger. I grabbed the berry and bit. Slices of pears. Apples. A pile of small blueberries that were deliciously sweet. A twitch came at the corner of his mouth as I funnelled them into my open mouth. I didn’t even care what I looked like. It wasn’t as though he could see anyway.

He didn’t reach for food right away. Scribbling in his notebook before taking another draw of his coffee. I scanned what else there was. Four tiny cupcakes waited. One chocolate. Another vanilla. One that looked like a carrot cake and the next some kind of citrus. I picked up the chocolate first, peeled away the paper and bit. A moan erupted from the back of my throat. One that sounded more animal than human.

He reached for the slice of meat on his own plate. But the food wasn’t his focus. Whatever he wrote down occupied his distant stare. I sipped my tea, washing down the vanilla cupcake and turned to the plate full of different types of cheese, dried fruits and nuts.

But this cheese was different from his. Softer and brown. I grabbed the small knife and cut off a small edge. Lifted it. Sniffed. Then spread it on a cracker and took a small bite.

“Oh, God.” I gurgled, scanned for a napkin. “What is that?”

The twitch at his mouth spread.

He leaned forward and slid a napkin half hidden underneath the plate in front of him my way.

“That was patē.”

“That was disgusting.” I shuddered, emptying what was in my mouth into the tissue and scrunched it in my hand.

Tea washed the taste away.

“More?” He motioned to the remainder of the display.

I plucked raisins and cashews, plopping them into my mouth. “You were gone before. Did you go into the city?”

The faint smirk died.

“Yes.” He answered coldly.

“If I’d known I could’ve come with you.”

A darkness moved across his stare. “If there is something you need…”

Freedom.

Answers.

To understand you.

How about that?

The words filled my mind. But they stayed there.

“No.” I murmured. “No, there’s nothing I need.”

I drank in silence, draining the rest of my tea and placed the empty cup back down.

“Thank you for the afternoon tea.”

One nod was all he gave. He didn’t even look up when I rose still clutching the dirty napkin in my hand.

I stopped when I got to the doorway. My voice fragile. “And for the book.”