He was gone with no warning
He was gone without a word
He was gone in the morning
He was early as a bird
He came back to bed at midnight
And I asked him where he'd been
But I couldn't find the lamplight
And his face I'd never seen
Was he lovely, was he too young?
Was he ugly as a sin?
Doesn't he know I don't care
As long as I can be with him?
My sisters told me he was a monster
And I had no words to defend
I must believe that he's a good man
But I have never met his friends
If I could just take up off his blanket
I could see him in his skin
I don't mean it as a prank
But I must know more about him
Is he a cutthroat, or a philanderer?
Is he ashamed to show his face?
Shouldn't I wonder at who he is, then
The man I take in my embrace?
I hid an oil lamp at my bedside
And waited for him to get back
When we made love, still swathed in shadow
Well, he left marks upon my neck
His voice was calming as a creek bed
His hands were softer than a breeze
I'd put my fingers in his curls
That gathered like the tops of trees
When he fell asleep beside me
I felt I'd settle all my doubts
But looking on him brought a flood
To what before had been a drought
He was gone with no warning
He was gone without a word