(shadow dance)

her fingers so soft on tight flesh
sinuously stroking
the deepest innerworkings
(shadow dance)

his complexities and contradictions
had her wanting more

the deep empty beckoned
erotically entangled in the black,
hollow void stripped bare
of personal desire

mesmerized and aching
the stillness pulling
and engulfing
wet madness
dripping off the edges

union became a searing brand
a cleansing, fiery phoenix
(shadow dance)

***
One of three poems written in response to art for the Poet’s Favorite Tour at the 2014 Seattle Erotic Art Festival