She started this, locking eyes with mine
from across the bar, even if just for a moment.
She wants this. She wants me.
I can almost feel the rough surface
of the barricade she’s built,
forged from the mistakes
of past lovers. Fools may be deferred,
but I know it’s just an act for the game we play.

She didn’t invite me home with her.
I am not concerned. She’s just expanding
the chase. Like a fox fearing the ferocious
teeth of an enclosing hound, she’s excited
by the thought of being trapped.
I excite her.
Like a predator approaching their prize,
I wait nearby. Anxious. Aroused. Afraid.

She seems reluctant, but the screams solidify
what I already knew. This is her fantasy.
Her flesh is warm, contradicting the cool
night air. She shudders at my touch, tears
swelling in her eyes. She wants this.
My body pulses,
moving to the rhythm of her heart,
fast at first, then fading with the falling
stars, until the cries of the crickets
are all that remain.