We’re alone again, together, my twisted fingers where they shouldn’t be.

We have no excuse but desire--to sharpen translucent memories, ten years faded.

Clothed, she has as plain a body as I’ve ever seen--indistinguishable from the dresses she seems to wear year-round. But with the cotton-print gathered at her feet, revealing skin so beautifully dark that she appears in silhouette, I feel the blood creep to my cheeks.

“You’ve seen me naked before.”

I lean in to her, press my left blush against her chest.

She says, “We could leave them. We could never go back.” I look up, gauge her sincerity.

She brings her free hand to her lips, mouths the gold band from her finger. The gesture overcomes me; I ejaculate through her committed grip. And as this faithless reality flickers past, my love curls back her tongue and swallows.