One Night In Paris

One Night in Paris
I watched you patiently
Scratch your initials
Along the edges of my heart.
Carving each one from ash
Scarlet flame, pitted by a knife;
You left them there.
You took wave-worn chips of abalone,
And placed them against my skin.
Breathe, you said
As you kissed each breast.
You made my nervous system
Vibrate like a violin.
Leaving me prone to heartbreak,
You left my own love words
Lodged in my aching throat.
Later I rushed quickly away,
Fearful because I wanted to stay.
I've been walking now for months,
Fighting the urge to return.
I wrote your name
On a curl of paper and burned it.
The heart you etched
Has completely shattered.
The letters you carved
Still wake me up at night,
I think I can hear the rasp
Of you whispering my name.
I remember the lovemaking
And I want to call
But I am afraid another girl,
Has already erased any words
I might have left behind.
Still I long desperately to return
To that one wild night in Paris.
I lay a hand on my chest
Trying to smooth away the initials
That are burning through my flesh.

Copyright © Dee Edgett
A Book Of Romance and Longing (fundraiser)