Page 19 of A Midlife Vanishing Trick

He was one to talk. He’d driven her closer to the edge of sanity.

She wound her arms around his large body, letting her hands explore his broad back, determined to feel every contour, everyinch of him. When Stanley broke the kiss and brought his warm lips to her throat, she dug her fingernails into his back. A moan escaped her, and she wondered what it would feel like to have his lips between her legs, where she throbbed the most—for him.

His breath caressed her skin as he brought his lips to her jawline. He nibbled her earlobe, and she shuddered against him. Suppressing another moan, she brought a hand around his slick torso, letting her fingers explore his body. Her fingers came to rest for a moment on his solid chest, and she thought she felt his heart pounding against her fingertips just before she went lower.

His abs tightened against her fingers. He pulled her closer, crushing his groin against hers. Then, as if reading her thoughts, he ran his hand along her body, down to her thigh, and brought it back up, taking the hem of her dress with it. Her breath faltered in her throat as his tough fingers caressed her soft flesh. Before she knew it, his hand was at her waist, her dress bunched up against his wrist. She inhaled sharply as he slipped his fingers through the waistband of her panties, caressing her folds.

“You’re soaking wet,” he said, a half-smirk on his face. “For me.”

And you’re hard for me,she thought.

His smirk widened. He began to stroke her clit, and a ragged moan escaped her lips. If there wasn’t a wall supporting her back, she might have fallen to the ground already. Stanley continued to pleasure her with his fingers, sending wave after wave of pleasure through her body, and she nearly let out cries of ecstasy as he drove her closer to climax.

“There you go,” he whispered against her ear. “I want you to come for me.”

She wanted to, more than anything. She might have walked into a trap, but she’d be damned if this wasn’t the most pleasurable trap she’d ever encountered. She loved the pleasurethat Stanley gave her, and she loved that it was he who gave it to her.

Simply put, she loved him.

And that was why it had hurt so much when he abandoned her. It was why it had hurt so much when he’d returned.

“Stanley ... stop,” she said.

“What was that, baby?” Stanley sounded lost in the pleasure he was giving her. If he kept that up, she was going to erupt—and loudly. The last thing she needed was for any of the cowhands outside to hear her screams of pleasure and wonder what was going on in the barn.

She grabbed his wrist. “Stop!”

He froze and blinked at her, concern in his eyes. “What’s wrong?”

“I ...” She struggled for the right words, her mind mostly blank from the pleasure he’d filled her with. “I can’t do this.”

He frowned. “I thought you wanted this.”

You have no idea.

She bit her lip. “I do—I mean, I did. But I can’t just pretend the past four years didn’t happen. I’m sorry, Stanley. I shouldn’t have come here.”

She adjusted her dress, feeling her nipples still poking through the front at him. Stanley’s lips were parted, but he didn’t say a word. Allison turned and left the barn, half-expecting him to come after her. He didn’t, and she found herself feeling somewhat grateful for that. Because if he had, she might have gone back to him.

And there was no telling what would happen if she let herself get too close to Stanley Reyes again.

***

“You did ...what?”

Allison resisted the urge to pull the phone away from her ear. Still cringing, she took a deep breath and told Celine everythingthat had happened since she walked into the barn half an hour ago. She stood by her bedroom window, still half-expecting Stanley to emerge from the barn and come to see her.

Nothing like that happened. Had he merely gone back to work?

“What were youthinking,Allison?” Celine asked with an exasperated sigh.

That was exactly the problem. Allisonhadn’treally been thinking. In her right mind, she would’ve known better than to go to see him again. She should’ve taken Celine’s advice and put as much distance between herself and Stanley as possible. Instead, she found herself drawn closer and closer to him, wanting more and more of him.

And she’d gotten that, hadn’t she? The memory of what had happened in the barn prodded her consciousness: Stanley wrapping his big, strong arms around her, Stanley kissing her for all he was worth ... Stanley lifting her dress and caressing her, right where she throbbed the most.

You’re soaking wet for me,he’d said.

Allison swallowed. If she hadn’t put a stop to it, shewouldhave gotten exactly what she wanted, what her body craved so much. But then she’d come to her senses. Letting herself get so close to him was dangerous, among other things.

---