He said “May I kiss you?”
She laughed – as he was afraid she would –
and he thought, “I should not have asked.
A real man would not request.
A real man wouldn’t wait.
A real man would have risked, would have dared
would have been prepared for the consequences
of delay.

A real man would know the answer to the question
before laughter could provide all the answer he could need.”

He bowed his head,
unwilling to speak again.
What happened next
was less anticipated.

“I am pleased,” she said, “that you such a gentleman.
That is the sort of man I am looking for.”

She smiled and gave him a greater look
a deeper look
a more appreciative lock.
“I will think on that you have asked,”
she told him, “if,”
she continued, “you buy me another drink.”

He did.
He did often.
and she found herself
eventually
laughing on the other side of her face.