COLD WAR GAMES
I will keep you warm in the cold, cold war
even though you are a Montague and I am KGB.
Hang on to this rose while I holster my PPK.
Now put on this latex dress, I’ll get the Cabernet.
Let’s pillow-talk Renaissance painting, architecture,
and your country’s key military infrastructure.
Have a drink, tell me about that place you’re from.
I was trained in the brothels of St. Petersburg,
trained by the best in the amorous arts.
I was also trained by the Stasi in the arts of torture,
but I wouldn’t want to bore you, lover.
Just slip into this bathrobe while I defenestrate
this M15 spook—don’t look, close your eyes
and think of wherever it is you’re from.
“O Romeo!”—I am tired of hearing my name
exhaled by an Octopussy of exotic secretaries.
My heart is probably made of solid gold.
In the world of counter-counter-espionage
there is no room for emotional growth.
I cut hearts with diamonds for king and country.
Pick a card. Any card. It looks like I’ve won.
This poem is featured in my forthcoming collection Dawn of the Algorithm, published by Inkshares and out in bookshops real and virtual on May 30th, 2015.
Pre-order your copy here:
http://www.dawnofthealgorithm.com
Yann Rousselot 
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