Ariadne's Veil

Ariadne smiled, said

You're either ice-cold

Or scalding

Beads of sweat kiss the brow

Every time you look my way
And crystallize to raindrops
When the wind of your gaze shifts direction
You're a devil some days
All curses and seductive sways
And an angel others
When your light eyes fall upon my face
Though maybe a devil then
For enticing me to give in
As I sip the water of your words
To wash down the poison on your lips
Ariadne smiled, led
The way to her bed
She's either flawless
Or entirely broken
To tread behind her is glass at the heel
To sleep without her a thousand labored breaths
And where the sins of the grave keep us quiet
She's a come-hither wave from death
All outbursts and spent rage
And a lover like an overcast day
Who promises rain, delivers only the heat
When her dark eyes circle like vultures
And swallow the ground beneath my feet
Though maybe a lover then
As I spare her hazy intoxications and
Wash down yesterday with a glass of gin

Ariadne lied, dead
At the end of a romance spent
Having been either a potent lover
Or a better actress
Having swallowed the bitter pills of life
By the dozen, that I might come in
And regret, the last words before I left
When she said I love you
And I whispered
"Not yet."