Canyon Shadows by Harper Vonna

flushed, and her mouth fell open. The hand gripping her breast tightened.
    Never mind nails digging into flesh. Never mind the darkness beyond. Most of all, never mind yesterday.
    Yesterday.
    “No, damn it,” she hissed. Furious at herself for letting thought come between herself and satisfaction, she caught her throbbing clit between two knowing fingers. So swollen. So ready. Sensitive beyond belief.
    Randy little thing, aren’t you. Just like I thought you’d be.
    Shocked by the unspoken comment, she struggled to see where it was coming from.
    You know who I am.
    “What are you doing here?” she stupidly asked.
    You called. I came.
    Maco, touching her, understanding her needs, his calloused fingers on her intimate flesh, strong and easy by turn, rubbing and caressing, wanting nothing in life except to bring her to climax.
    Climax!
    Powering through her in a rage, shaking her so she thought she might pass out, forcing a cry into the night air.
    “Yes!” Her sex cramped, relaxed, cramped again. “Yes!”
    Don’t quit yet. Ride the sensation for all it’s worth.
    Past questioning anything, she willed her mind to stop functioning. Her body danced; hot blood raced through her veins.
     
    “You’ve never shucked corn? How’d you get this far in life without knowing that critical task?”
    Looking up at Aunt Robynn, Shari started to shrug only to stop because the gesture caused her oversized T-shirt to slide off her shoulder. Her aunt was sitting in a massive wooden rocking chair on a porch while Shari sat cross-legged on the ground. The shirt was so big it covered her down past her knees. One moment there was nothing in her lap. The next it was full of ears of corn.
    “Watch me now,” Aunt Robynn informed her. “It’s really very easy, even for your small hands.”
    They were small, all right, child-sized. She had no breasts and her hair was in braids. Only mildly interested in how that had happened, she watched as her aunt showed her how to strip down the green leaf-like sections. The tassels stuck to her hand and pulling took most of her strength, but it was worth it. The yellow corn was large and fat.
    “There you go, girl. I knew you could do it.”
    Shari was going to ask how much corn they’d need for dinner. Instead, “Who all will we be feeding?” came out.
    At the question, her aunt suddenly went from being in her thirties to looking a hundred. Wrinkles exploded on her face and most of her hair fell out, leaving only a little gray.
    “He’s coming,” she said, and started rocking.
    “He’s already here,” a masculine voice added before Shari could think of a response.
    Looking toward the driveway, she noticed a pair of black slacks–encased legs heading her way. Forgetting the corn, she jumped to her feet and tried to scramble up the stairs so she could stand beside her aunt, only the stairs disappeared.
    “Going somewhere, girlie?” slacks-man asked.
    “You aren’t supposed to be here!” Her voice was high and childish.
    “Why not?”
    “Because you’re dead.”
    Aunt Robynn laughed at that. Growing more scared by the moment, Shari debated whether she could jump high enough to get onto the porch.
    “I know what you’re thinking,” slacks-man said. “I always know what you’re thinking.”
    “You can’t,” she insisted. Her bladder was so full she knew she was going to wet herself. “You’re dead.”
    “Do I look like I’ve died?”
    Slacks-man was so tall she couldn’t see his head, which was lost in the clouds. She hated him looming over her like that.
    “I saw you die.” Leaning down, she grabbed an ear of corn and threw it at the clouds. “This isn’t right.”
    “Who did you see die, little girl? Are you sure who you’re talking to?”
    That stopped her. She’d thought she’d known but now she wasn’t sure. It could have been one of two men.
    “Tell me.” Tears burned her cheeks.
    “I can’t. You have to figure it out. I’ll tell you what. Here’s a