You treat me like Aphrodite
Venusian goddess rising
Pearled milky foam
Like clotted cream speckling my dark skin

We tumble 'cross the bedsheets
Hair pooling around me
Tasting each other
Briny saltwater and Earth
Mingling sweat and it-has-been-far-too-long kisses

And I shall never claim another lover
As I have claimed you
And I shall never mount another man
With as much reckless, unbridled
Abandoning as I have you

You treat me like Aphrodite
Shield me from rain
With your oversized coat
Smelling of clean leather and lingering petrichor

You drink from me as if
You were Bacchus
Drunk off my honeyed lips
Like it was fragrant wine

Drink, my love
Drink and be merry
Lay your head on my lap
Let me run my fingers through your
Sunflower-streaked curls
Let me kiss love and loyalty
Into your mouth
Let it be a contract

Love me like Aphrodite

My body became home again recently.
I opened the windows
And the doors
And plant flowers outside.
Tell the others of my home,
Tell them they can find refuge here in me,
Tell them the door is open and the porch light is on,
And the spare key is under the mat.
Tell them I can force him out of their minds
As quickly as he forced himself onto their bodies.
Tell them they owe me no rent
Just keep the door open
And the flowers alive.
Tell them there are contracts and consent forms
For a reason.
Tell them you don’t get tattoos or medicines
Against your will,
Tell them that doesn’t change for a man who desires you.
Even the sun can’t touch me without my permission.
Even the moon doesn’t come until she lets him.
Even God didn’t come until I called.