Only once did she feel loved by a man on what we might callthe wash of the cellular level
No—; twice—; the second only occurring to her nowin the act of reckoning and revision of that reckoning.
Why, she sees, it didn’t occurto her from the start isshe could not receive it;
and, as much as she tried,as prudent as it would have been,as full of his warmth her night still would be,neither could she return it.
Only once did she feel loved by a man on what we might callthe wash of the cellular leveland return it the same,
rejection possible only in practice, not in spirit,which is why other women were of no true threat;
even if he seduced themor they, him—
which she knew had happened,which was likely happening right now—
it would be of…
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The American Poetry Review (Digital) - 1 Issue, May/June 2022