Page 29 of A Midlife Vanishing Trick

Her best friend heaved a sigh. “It’s already happened, so there’s no point trying to dissuade you now. Besides, heisyour husband. But you need to be careful anyway. You don’t want to get hurt again like the last time.” Celine said nothing for the next few seconds. “And then there’s that man you mentioned, Jonah or something.”

Johan.

Allison swallowed as the troubled expression on Stanley’s face flashed through her mind. Last night, after their lovemaking, Stanley had told her even more about Johan. The man was plain evil. There had been no attacks since the slaughtered cows yesterday, and as the hours went by, she’d found herselfwondering just what Johan might be up to, what he was planning.

She’d considered reporting the matter to the police. The slaughtered cows should be interesting enough for law enforcement. But what could she tell them? That a man from a magical dimension found his way onto Reyes Ranch and threatened their lives? What were the odds she wouldn’t find herself in a padded room wearing a straitjacket?

“I’ll be careful, Celine,” she assured her friend.

“You’d better be,” Celine said. “If it were up to me, you wouldn’t even be in that town right now. You’ve had more than your fair share of pain. I’d ask you to come to the city, but you already turned that offer down, and my guess is you’re not taking me up on it anytime soon.”

“You guessed correctly.” Allison sighed. Her friend was right. Things might’ve been resolved with Stanley now, but there was still another problem on their hands. Johan was after Stanley. By association, she was in danger as well. What was it Stanley had called him? A Collector. A marauder. He didn’t strike Allison as the kind of man who cared how many people were hurt as long as he got what he wanted.

And what he wanted now was Stanley’s life.

The women continued talking for the next few minutes, and then Celine hung up, saying she had some other business to attend to. Allison got up, walked over to the bedroom window, and stared out at the grassy field. The setting sun cast an orange hue on the ground. There wasn’t much movement in sight besides a few animals being slowly herded back to the barns by the cowhands.

It was then that she laid eyes on a horse and rider racing across the plains. The rider was bare-chested and blond-haired, muscles rippling as the horse galloped west of the barns. She watched the contours of his back with fascination. How long hadStanley been riding Betsy? An hour? Two? He never seemed to tire of it. It was no surprise he’d been riding a horse when he disappeared four years ago.

It was great to have him back. No,greatdidn’t quite describe the warm, fluttery feeling in her chest as she watched him. Her mind flashed back to yesterday’s lovemaking. They’d made love a couple more times in this bedroom before falling asleep and once again this morning before he left the house.

The memories flooded her mind like images on a projector screen: Stanley’s full arousal throbbing against her crotch ... Stanley’s head buried between her legs. Four years of being stranded on Frost Mountain hadn’t dimmed his skills one bit. The man was still a lover to the core. And when he’d filledhercore, sending her over the edge of ecstasy with his powerful thrusts, she couldn’t have been more grateful to have him back.

A smile tugged at her lips. Things seemed to be returning to normal.

But how long would this normalcy last? Anxiety flickered in her chest as she gazed at him. What were the odds that he wouldn’t disappear again?

She brushed the thought aside. It was a valid fear, she knew. Still, it was better to enjoy what she had now. She loved him. That hadn’t changed, not at all. She doubted it ever would.

She realized she hadn’t had anything to eat in hours. Between her excitement about having Stanley back in the house and her tiredness from all their lovemaking, she’d skipped lunch. Stanley had been outside since early morning, working in the barn and riding Betsy. He hadn’t come back to the house, so Allison guessed he wasn’t yet hungry. That was probably another side effect of being stuck on Frost Mountain. Maybe he’d had to go days without eating.

The thought made her shudder. She’d struggled to keep the horror from her face as he narrated his ordeal on the mountain.From crashing onto the mountain on his horse to being shoved into what he thought was a bottomless pit, he’d clearly been through hell. And Allison knew words hadn’t done justice to the extent he’d suffered. To think he’d been trapped in such a terrible place for so long ...

At least he’s back, she thought.And alive.

With a sigh, she left the bedroom and headed downstairs into the kitchen, pulling out a jar of cold water from the fridge. She poured herself a glass, and only after she’d taken a couple of sips did she hear the footsteps behind her.

“Finally taking a break from that horse, are you, Stanley?” she asked without looking at him. “I was starting to wonder whether you’d come back in at all today.”

No doubt, he’d come in here for a drink, like her. The last time he’d done that, just yesterday, the sexual tension had been impossible to ignore. She drew a breath, her nipples hardening as the delicious memory of Stanley gazing at her with those sexy blue eyes crossed her mind.

There was no response. She could still hear him moving behind her, drawing closer.

“I’m sure you’re probably tired,” she said, turning around to face him, “but maybe you and I could—”

She froze with a gasp, and the glass slipped from her fingers and shattered to the floor.

“Wh-who ... who are you?” she demanded.

The man stepped closer. He was tall and had a bushy red beard that reminded her somewhat of Stanley’s when he’d first returned from Frost Mountain. The man had on a dark hoodie over sweatpants and sneakers, like he’d just come in from an evening jog. A pair of grey eyes gazed back at her, studying her with what looked like surprise and then curiosity.

Her pulse pounded in her ears. She’d never seen this man before, and Stanley hadn’t told her what he looked like either, but she instantly knew beyond a shadow of a doubt who he was.

She opened her mouth to scream. He moved then, quick as lightning and a rough hand clamped down over her mouth. The other hand rose slowly. As she watched, gleaming claws extended from his fingertips.

She gazed wide-eyed at him, shuddering all over.

Johan grinned at her, revealing a mouthful of yellowed teeth.

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