Red Velvet Memories
****
The kitchen staff knew, though Claire didn't say anything. Walking in her office, it sat, dusted with sprinkles, a single unlit candle stuck in buttercream frosting. It looks—stark: a stroke of white and red against the dark teak.
Claire regrets requesting it, the lone cupcake now makes her ill.
"Special occasion?" Boyd asks, standing across the threshold.
"My birthday." Perhaps. Someone's birthday.
"A cause to celebrate." He brushes past, offering her the plate. In three bites it's gone, and she smiles for the first time that day as he gently wipes a dash of frosting from her nose.