I sat in a lounge chair smoking a cigarette. The heat was draining what little intelligence I had and I was wishing more than anything I hadn't driven over the mountain into the valley. I was wishing I had stayed in my home town, near the coastal breezes. I could see two dogs rough housing in the distance. The black one bit on the ear of the chocolate colored dog and growled. I wondered how a fur-covered animal could feel comfortable in this terrible heat. I continued to sit there and work on my cigarette. It felt like I was suffocating, inhaling the smoke in that heat.

I heard the door next to me open before I looked over to it. Out stepped a man whose whole walk oozed sensuality. He sat in the lounge chair directly in front of me and set down his bottle of booze as he reached for his cigarettes. His hair looked as though it had been kissed by the waters of life. It flowed in dark waves down to his shoulders, touching lightly the open flannel he wore. The flannel perfectly curtained his hairless chest. He was thin like a child, but sat back with the confidence of a man who has seen more life than any god. He looked directly into my eyes when he introduced himself as Arch. His eyes were the color of cherry oak and framed by eyelashes that women spend hours curling and painting with mascara to try to get.

He took a swig of some clear booze before he lit the cigarette in his hand. My eyes could not leave this manchild. I watched his hands as he brought the cigarette to his lips repeatedly. They were the hands of a pianist with lips that reminded me of Jim Morrison. He looked at me and in true poetic style told me his views on religion. He told me that we create our faith, that heaven and hell will only exist if we truly believe it will.

I asked him what happened to someone who believed in nothing. He said, "They have strength, more strength than others because they put that faith in themselves." I said nothing. I just nodded, taking in his brilliance, feeling like a student listening to a master. Out walked the friend I had come to see, the one whom I had loved with all of my heart mere months ago. He walked between Arch and I. I did not even stand to give him a hug, but looked directly across from me at this man. My friend sat a few seats down from me and when he spoke, I barely listened, I barely responded. My eyes were riveted on Arch as he took another swig of his alcohol. He made it look so romantic to be loosing oneself to drunkenness. I do not believe that love exists unless it happens at first sight. When I left that evening, I knew that I loved this person. I knew just by the look in his eyes, by the tone of his voice, by the ease in who he was. And I knew that nothing would stop me from having him, not even himself. As he slept, I placed two long stem roses so close to his face that I nearly brushed the smooth skin I so wanted to touch. He woke when the roses hit the pillow and his eyes fixed right on mine. I smiled and walked out of the room with all the sex I could muster. After he woke, he sat in a thickly padded green rocking chair while I laid on a futon with a blanket covering the legs that my night gown neglected to cover. He talked to me about all manner of things, things that were important to him, that I hung onto as gospel.

He told me of the legacy of his name, that the person with the name Arch was the head of the family clan although he had been distanced from it. He told me that he was an old soul as Pisces tend to be. When he told me of the Akashic record, explained to me that it is all the knowledge of the world stored, as if I had never heard of it, I knew that he was perfect for me. We found ourselves in the hot tub with rum and coke as the late hours of the night approached. I looked up at the night sky, at each star staring back at me and I wished on every one of them. I watched Arch tear off the pants he had stepped in the hot tub with and throw them to the side of the hot tub. They landed with a sloshing noise and he sat across from me wearing a pair of boxers that the water had already done their work on. I saw this as a sign of his comfort with me and yanked off the T-shirt I had worn into the tub and had fought with to make cover my body. I was left naked, with nothing to hide. The cool air of evening tugged at my nipples as the rest of my body gave way to the heat of the water. Arch's eyes met mine and implored me to come closer to him. They were like the eyes of a dog, begging his master for a bite. And so I fed him. I hopped out of the hot tub and walked around to where he sat. I placed my hands on his bare shoulder, feeling the smooth, soft skin. I began to rub at his neck, to knead with my fingers at the tight spots. I rubbed at the sides of his neck and the hollow between his head and his neck. Small moans escaped him as he wiggled his back a little. I reached my hand down onto his shoulders again and kneaded the muscle between the crest of his shoulder and his neck. His head fell lightly back. And the wet tips of his hair tickled my fingers. With boldness, I ran my hand down the front of his chest. His hand landed on top of mine. He grabbed my hand lightly and turned around to face me. His eyes met mine as he pulled me close and himself up. His lips landed on mine and startled my heart. I eagerly accepted his kiss, praying this would not be the only one. He looked up at me as our lips parted, his hands reaching for me, and asked me to get back into the water with him. I obliged him with my grin and slid right on in. He looked like a gypsy to me, like a wandering and mystical being. I pressed my lips to his again and our tounges fought. I grabbed at his back, gripping at smooth surface, digging my nails in. I tried to pull him closer though our bodies were already snugly pressed together. His lips ran down the side of my face, down my neck and found their way to my breast. He suckled it like a child and I ran my hands along his soft hair and along the smooth skin on his cheeks and chin. He kissed my lips again and I reached underneath his hair and grasped his neck. My mouth kissed lightly on his neck. He whispered, “bite.” I nibbled. I took tiny pieces of his skin in my teeth and lightly pierced them, just tugging a little. He whispered, “harder.” I opened my mouth wide like that of a vampire before he strikes and took a hug bite of his flesh. I put a little bit of pressure on his neck and heard him moan lightly. I put even more pressure, and he moaned louder, grabbing at my back and raising his hips. I worked my way down his body, nibbling at his shoulders, at his hairless chest at his stomach.