by Mark Yakich

The three words
He wants from his lover

Are not I love you,
But Do it again.

And when his penis
Dies inside her,

It won’t be
Like the bouquet

Of cut flowers
He’s brought her.

But she’ll keep
Trying to make

Arrangements
To stay—first with him

And, later, with
Flowers long gone.

Mark Yakich’s most recent poetry collection is The Importance of Peeling Potatoes in Ukraine. He lives in New Orleans.

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