A Dirty Martini
written by: Jill Sharon Kimmelman
Morning
displaced files
heaving stacks of mail
vermillion-kissed cigarette butts overflowing
square crystal ashtrays
scribbled-on-liquor-soaked-cocktail napkins
An avalanche of pink paper messages
atop yesterday’s neat stack
what to do with all these things
now that her heady scent was everywhere?
There was barely room for one martini glass
deep delphinium blue with three olives
on a crystal stick
He had never known such powerful thirst
words like slake and slay danced in his head
confusing him
Mocking his efforts to offer himself to her
it was quite clear she did not need his help
She had climbed atop his desk
here she perched last night’s
laughing
irresistible
sleepy dance hall girl
Shredding the satin ribbons of her dancing shoes
twirling beads of amber and topaz
decorating her chest
Perhaps
if he squinted he might see her better
was she fair or dark
a sleek cap of auburn hair, emerald eyes
He thought her lovely
a pose of something distant like a wish
She had not existed before the first martini
he drank the third martini from her shoe
draining every precious drop of gin
from that inviting blue glass
Chanting her name again and again
whispering reverently the song
of his new mantra
What must he look like so early on this
the morning of his longest night?
He said her name again and again
a sing-song tonic that made him cry out
He needed to find a way to keep her
all to himself
he could write his name across her thigh
scribble a bit of a heart behind her knee
cover her in a fortress of liquor-soaked
scribbled-upon-cocktail napkins
an entire box gone to obliterate her presence
Or keep her hidden beneath his desk
Now he wonders what shall I do
how do I begin one more time?
- Blintzes to Savor - December 7, 2024
- In Sweet Repose - September 1, 2023
- Raging at Nature’s Fangs - April 13, 2023
