Maxx Dempsey
The First Conceit
Eve discovered Adam had already bit the apple. He had eaten
the whole thing. This was the first lie man told woman.
The surprise on his face at the taste of her offering was well put-on,
but he had given himself away when he swept her hair
away from her breast before the bite, not after.
And, oh, that apple. The sweet flesh. The give of the skin.
The feeling of teeth sliding in, juice down the throat,
nector on the chin. Beautiful fruit. First love. Splendid glory.
Globe opening like the unfurled world about them. And God in Heaven
borrowing from Pan, sowed mischief in the form of this test.
Adam and Eve’s devotion tested by curiosity sewn
into their muscles like embroidery. Adam smiled with chagrin
when she discovered him, and then he was bold.
He placed his hand on her head like a dog attempting dominance.
And Eve, knowing all that he knew and more, she knelt.
Let him have it, she thought. She had seen his deception
and with it the end. She would watch. And wait.