she washed off all her make up
with the hose from the garden
as the radar sun sank below
Nelson hill

i watched her dance and strip
in my bedroom
like a ballerina behind a smoking gun
she asked if i liked what i saw
and i said nothing

instead i sat in front of her burning
an awkward leaf of paper between
my busted lips
while her hips in the mirror
got the best of me

and then all at once
like a building's collapse
i confessed:
don't release me until it's over
this is the first time i've loved you.



that night
we sank to new depths
beneath
the warm molasses midnight moon
lying on the cold kitchen tile
of my father's house
barely speaking.