Dearest One,
I watch you laughing
Your face shimmers in early winter sunlight
Your beauty draws a crowd
Who wouldn’t want to be with one so radiant?
I sip my coffee
Too afraid to be near you
Too scared that I will reach out
Smooth away a stray hair from your forehead
Or caress your cheek with my hand
I need more than a few moments of your time
I’ve dreamt of lifetimes with you
Whole years lost in your loving arms
Where moments like this
Feel strange with others touching you
Your eyes scan the room and land on mine
I smile; you smile
You cross the room, settling into a chair beside me
I try to listen to your excited chatter
But I cannot resist your lips
So perfectly formed and rosy wet
You lean over and kiss my cheek
Your hands squeezing mine
And then you are off again
You are a social butterfly
That everyone wants to capture
To pin on display
But my heart would break to see you that way
And so, I let you go
Over and over again
©2014, Lori Carlson