Poem About Infidelity

He double-checks
His lipstickless collar.
The plane’s descent

Ends with a swig
Of his eight dollar beer-
Like a cool rain

Easing his mind
In a neck-deep quicksand.
Like words in Braille

He checks his shirt
Buttons for alignment.
Did I say I

Watched a movie
Or went to bed early?
Driving home slowly,

He lights a cigarette
To extinguished her scent;
He shakes his guilt,

Looking himself over
Methodically in each car mirror.
Spotting his bride

Through bay windows,
He shuffles up the drive.
Would souvenirs

Or daffodils
Have been too suspicious?
They prep for bed

As he mentions
How much he missed his wife.
His pants, pockets

Now empty, find
Their way to the hamper.
He brushes the
Taste of beer and
Tar out of his dried mouth.
She straightens up his

Now cluttered nightstand-
A half-opened matchbook.
She sees a lone

Match remaining,
Mary, room 312.
Vertigo Lounge.