--excerpt--

We had met at the beginning of the third week in June. It was the day after my mother’s birthday and the rain had fallen, leaving the sky red and bursting with energy long into the night.
And that is where we met, at a bar called red sky. He introduced himself and I smiled out of surprise and satisfaction that he’d been able to speak without spewing sexual tension all over the bar floor.
We talked and gestured and laughed and when it was time for me to leave, I stayed to be with him and know him.
He was tall and dark brown skinned. And older. Smart in a powerful way. Intelligent and consciously present for every sound I made. Compelling and in reach.
When he kissed my cheek goodnight, I felt complete, like we had already conquered the beginning and could now move towards the meat of the middle.