Dream of an Ebony Prince

"There's my adorable prince again." Natasha sat underneath the hair dryer speaking to her best friend Laverne about the love of her life. Exhilarating shivers raced up and down her spine.

"He is fine, Natasha." Laverne agreed. She rolled her eyes and seductively ran her tongue over her lower lip. "I wonder what he'd look like in a more intimate setting? Like under dim lights in my bedroom."

"Hey, he's mine! Remember that girlfriend and get your mind out of the gutter." Natasha said, threatening her girlfriend with bodily harm before she tore a photo from the magazine.

"Hey, I'm only teasing you, so put your bug eyes back in your head."

"You better be."

Natasha realized her friend knew her threats were futile, because there wasn't much she could do trapped in a salon chair. They were smack in the midst of getting elaborate hair styles after deciding to make drastic changes.

"We're both out of our minds but you definitely crossed over the threshold of insanity with your obsession. Marie, that hurt!" Laverne squealed and rubbed her sore head, squirming around in her chair wishing evil thoughts on her hair dresser.

"If that hurts you, you can forget me getting that style. My head's way too sensitive." She laughed and carefully folded the photo of David Graham, slipping it into her purse after gazing at his eyes one more time wishing they were gazing into hers.

"Hush up! If David ever rang your doorbell you'd probably slam the door right on his face and faint dead on the floor." Laverne continued to taunt. "You're still looking for an ebony prince. Let me be the first to tell you there ain't one. And it's certainly not anyone who's got his face plastered all over magazines."

"You're wrong. There's one and his name's David Graham. Just you wait and see. My dreams are gonna come true, maybe even tonight." She felt confident, believing he'd notice her tonight, especially with her wavy, burgundy tinted hair.

"Sure he'll notice you from all the other thousands of screaming females, all with styled burgundy hair." Laverne sarcastically sneered.

It really didn't matter what Laverne thought anyway because Natasha knew David was everything she ever desired in a man. Every CD and video he'd released and every photo and poster she could possibly get her hands on, were part of a sacred shrine in her apartment. She bought tickets to every concert, desperately praying he'd notice her sitting out there in the dark. She imagined his eyes capturing hers as he strolled over and grasped her hand to lead her up to his stage.

"Hey, it's your turn Natasha." Laverne said, interrupting her friend's day-dream.

"I'm coming. Hey, that looks great on you."

Unfortunately the entire process turned out to be somewhat tortuous, leaving Natasha with a headache after she was finally finished. Call it woman's intuition but she sensed tonight was going to be different, so she tried to annoy the throbbing pain.

That night she viewed her flawless reflection in the mirror, and thought she looked unusually stunning. Dressed in an off the shoulder, form fitting black dress, she vamped around, admiring the way her hair bounced. She wore a lacy black thong, saved in anticipation of this particular evening and reveled in the sensation of fine lace softly grazing her skin. Tiny goose bumps popped up on her arms.

Earlier that afternoon she'd warned Laverne, "If I get the chance to be with David tonight, don't expect me to go home with you girl." Friendship only went so far she thought as she impatiently waited curbside for her friend.

"Hey, don't forget what I said before." She warned Laverne again.

"Yeah, keep on dreaming. You're really expecting something spectacular to happen tonight?" Laverne swept her eyes over her friend's sexy attire. "Come on, you're twenty-seven years old, drop dead gorgeous, and all the brothers break their neck staring at you. So why don't you stop chasing your dead-end dream and give one of those drooling men a chance?"

"Who's dreaming? You'll see." She answered with slight annoyance. Leaning forward she slipped David's latest CD in without hesitation.

"Hey obsessive, we're gonna hear him in less than an hour. Do we really have to...and it's my car!"

"Shut it, Laverne!" She snapped, grabbing her friend's hand before she could eject the CD.

They had prime third row seats slightly off center stage, but Natasha still didn't feel they were close enough. She scanned the crowd, noticing they were surrounded by a sea of women. Her shoulders drooped a little, realizing she was once again a needle in a haystack.

"Oh, he'll really notice you tonight." Laverne smirked, gazed around the arena.

"I can only hope." She replied, feeling a slight sinking feeling in her gut, but rather quickly she found herself soaring amongst the clouds.

The lights dimmed and a deep voice did an introduction that throbbed through the sound system. One blinding white spotlight appeared on the stage to reveal a man sitting on a stool holding a guitar. David Graham, her ebony prince, looked beyond majestic. He always gave his audience a full three hours of entertainment for their ticket price. Thunderous applause filled the theatre vibrating off the ceiling. Closing her eyes Natasha melted into her seat, listening to his first soulful tones.

"He has such a great voice...but even better, that hot bod of his." Laverne squealed in her ear.

"Shh!"

She could hardly breathe, so emotionally involved was she in the music as his rich bass voice swelled to embrace the theatre. His voice captivated her, blocking out the raging sounds of the crowd. She believed he was singing directly to her.

Finally she opened her eyes to devour the magnificent man seated on the stage, immaculately dressed in a tailored black shirt under an open white jacket. Crisp black pants hugged the contours of his slim hips and taut muscular legs. Hardly anyone dressed for stage appearance anymore, but David was unique. His hair was a mass of wavy curls, adorning a chiseled face with an irresistible dimpled chin, extremely masculine, with a hint of five o'clock shadow. A sign of gentleness issued from soft lips, urging you to reach out and caress them.

"Natasha, can I interrupt your fantasies?" Laverne hissed.

"What?" She kept her eyes glued to David's figure but listened with one ear over resurging waves of screams from adoring fans.

"Are you gonna go with me to Raptures next week? The tickets..."

"You know I planned to go see David's concert upstate next week." She thought it was slightly nervy to bother her with a question. "Shh! Let's talk later."

Soon David started to sing his, "searching song." House lights came up, casting the auditorium with golden rays from the heavens. David stepped off the stage and strolled through the audience, searching for one lucky lady to dance onstage with him and be wrapped in his arms. Of course he was surrounded by body guards for his own safety, because the overly enthusiastic female crowd would tear him apart with bare hands. Natasha stood there patiently, just waiting and praying she'd be selected to be his special lady this time.

"Here he goes. Let's see what dog he picks this time." Laverne said with a snort, jabbing her friend sharply in the side.

The high pitched squeals of the crowd drowned out his voice but Natasha already knew the words by heart. They were imprinted on her soul. She started to sing softly. "Come to me, my special lady. Let's move real slow, my special lady. Tonight you'll be mine..."

Laverne continued her taunts. "He's coming closer, here's your chance to knock out your competition. I can just read tomorrow's headlines. Insane love starved woman assaults singer."

Natasha ignored her friend's sarcasm, frowning when Daniel's guards moved right past her row to go further up the aisle. Disappointed her racing heartbeat slowed. She flopped back down into her chair.

"Well, maybe next time girl." Laverne said, placing her arm around her friend to express genuine concern.

Suddenly the entourage of guards returned with David standing in the center. They slowed down and paused near their row. One massively built guard glanced down the row and grimaced. He turned back around and whispered with vividly displayed emotion in David's ear.

"Hey, they look like they're having a disagreement." Natasha said.

The guard shrugged and turned back around. He gestured with one hand down the row. Approximately thirty women leaped over each other struggling to be the first to get to the aisle, only to be quickly sent back to their seats.

"Natasha...I don't believe my eyes. I think he's... he's pointing at you girl!" Laverne screeched.

As Natasha stared up the row in disbelief, she met a pair of mysterious dark eyes gazing straight back at her. Time stopped, her heartbeat skipped and her feet froze in place. Her butt felt glued to her seat until she felt a hard shove from behind.

"Get up!" Laverne said, giving her another rough shove.

Natasha's heart started pounding in her throat. She tried to swallow but my throat felt like it was on fire. She was hyperventilating as her feet glided forward under their own power, until she stood next to one of David's guards. He smiled down warmly at her, firmly grasped her waist and escorted her up to the stage steps past boisterous, disappointed fans.

Leaning over, he whispered, "You're a lucky lady tonight. Just follow David's lead and you'll do fine. Relax, you're...beautiful. Afterwards you'll head backstage and wait for him. I'll be waiting back there too. Now here you go, just remember I'll come for you afterwards." He assisted her up the last step to her, "dream come true."

She turned back, managing to gasp, "Thanks." Now she stood on stage, straight ahead in all his glory was David Graham, her ebony prince, waiting for her. His gaze sent icy shivers racing down her spine, and she trembled until a gently push in her back from the guard sent her stumbling towards David. She thought she could pick out Laverne's screams of excitement over all the others.

"Hi beauty, what's your name?" David asked. His deep bass voice vibrated close to her ear as he wrapped his arm around her waist and pulled her closer.

"Natasha." She answered. Her voice cracked, experiencing the unbelievable thrill of the sheer proximity of his body, his caress.

"Well Natasha, let's show this crowd how you can move. You can dance?" He asked. Not waiting for a reply he swung her around to face the front of his body as background music surged.

Remarkably she found it easy to follow him because she dreamed of this moment forever, replaying it over and over in her head and even practiced with a broomstick as a partner. They glided smoothly across the stage and when he started to sing she swayed along, leaning into his body. She felt the taut firmness of his chest, the strength in muscular thighs as he guided her. Momentarily closing her eyes she realized the definition of ecstasy, because she felt she died and entered nirvana. This was her moment. Everything and everyone else vanished around her and there were only the two of them floating in rhythm across the stage accompanied by a private orchestra. His intoxicating woodsy scent cologne drifted up her nostrils when she leaned in. She buried her head into his warm neckline.

"Natasha, you're real special. You're my lady." He seductively moaned in her ear, his breath tickling her, caressing her. "I'll see you backstage babe, wait for me please."

"Of course, there's nothing I want more."

Much too soon it ended. He danced her across the stage towards the wings, singing the last lyrics of his romantic ballad. The crowd roared and went wild. Finishing with a tender kiss to her cheek he captured her eyes, giving her a quick wink before slowly dancing away to complete his show.

Standing backstage Natasha's legs went limp. She felt like they were going to collapse beneath her. In fact her entire body felt like one big quivering mass of gelatin because her dream was finally reached. And it was more than she'd ever imagined. Her flesh tingled with erotic sensations, experiencing the lingering remembrance of his caresses. This one dance was only going to be the beginning she imagined. It was going to be the beginning of her revitalized life as she waited in the wings for David's concerts to end. He'd rush off and wrap her in his arms and they'd head home or attend publicity events. She read his eyes, realized he experienced the same miraculous spark flash between them.

"What?" A voice startled her out of her daydreams.

"Natasha, come with me. I'll show you where you can wait. David gets distracted when you stand in the wings." The voice uttered from the guard who had guided her up to the stage.

"All right." She followed reluctantly as he led her weaving through a gawking backstage mob, straight back to a room with David's nameplate on the door beneath a large gold star. "Prince." She gasped and caressed the plate, tracing each letter with a finger.

"What are you mumbling, Miss?"

"Nothing."

He opened the door with a key, holding it open while she cautiously stepped into the room. Her mouth gaped open in amazement.

This was where David immaculately dressed, she thought, inhaling the aroma of his woodsy cologne. Several suits hung along one side of the room, black shirts and white jackets encased in clear vinyl bags. Three black leather guitar cases lay open on top of a long white draped table. Enormous bundles of exotic flowers were arranged around the room with several ice buckets filled with sparkling champagne and bottles of spring water.

"Listen, my name's Carl and I'm David's head guard. Sit down, make yourself comfortable. After the concert he'll come back here with his groupies and before the after party you'll get a chance to be alone, if that's what you really want?"

His voice sounded oddly peculiar. She glanced up at him, observing a pair of intense chestnut eyes studying her. Maybe it was his job to study people, she thought.

"Are you nuts?" She asked. "Of course I want to be alone with him. I can't wait. It's been my longtime dream, I just adore him."

"Fine." He stated crisply and walked away to plop down in a chair. "Whatever. I'll just stay here with you until he gets back. For some reason he wants his ladies to feel protected...while he's on stage."

"If that's your job, but stop glaring at me please. You're making me feel..." She paused. His probing eyes made her feel so uneasy.

"Feel what? I don't understand."

"Understand what?" She crossed her arms tightly over her chest. "Why are you starting to grate on my nerves?"

"Don't have the answer to that, miss. I just don't understand why you ladies follow a star around with all your obsessive behavior. And you, well you're not bad looking in the least. Don't you have a life, a real man?" He asked. His eyes turned dark and intense.

"No, I mean I do...have a life, but no...I love...I mean, I don't have time to. Anyway what's it to you? It's not your business how I live." She felt flustered. He was really rattling her nerves. Who was he anyway to question her affection for David? He was nothing but a hired flunky, she thought. "You know, I could ask you why you're nothing but a bodyguard."

"Relax, I'm not gonna ask you anymore questions. Sit down; your dream guy will be here soon." He put his feet up in another chair and remained silent, but his eyes continued to study her until the hallway started to vibrate with noise. He stood up quickly. "Geez, the concerts over already. Well I hope your dream will be worth it."

There wasn't even time for her to reply. She only had a moment to glance at his disturbing eyes before he opened the door. David was finally here. Their toxic conversation vanished quickly from her thoughts.

"Hey babe, I'll be right with you. Just gotta sign a few..." David said. He spun around; not finishing his sentence because a swarm of giggling young females dressed in scantily clad outfits rushed into the room and surrounded him, followed by photographer's frantically flashing their cameras.

Natasha stood way back in a corner out of camera range, smoothing down her modest dress in comparison. She watched as David showered kisses on the giddy fans and signed autographs for over two hours. He was real smooth, so dedicated to his fans. A trait she admired after reading about it numerous times. His fans acted like a bunch of raving lunatics as they swooned all over him. She shrugged off their actions along with his returned gropes, realizing he was forced to flirt back in order to maintain his image.

Sitting down, she pinched herself, still not believing her good fortune at being selected over all of them. She even felt slight regal, especially when David glanced her way over their heads and gave her a sneaked wink. Perched on the edge of the chair she straightened her posture and attempted to hold back her impatient enthusiasm. She was so ready for the backstage grope session to be over.

In a few minutes she'd be able to share with him everything regarding how she truly felt, after so many silent years of adoration. He'd understand and realize she was different than any other woman he'd ever encountered. He'd wrap her in his arms and she'd savor his caresses, inhale his intoxicating scent, while they quietly shared plans regarding their future. For a moment Laverne crossed her mind, wondering what she was thinking out front, and came to the conclusion she probably was texting their friends, letting them know the scoop. Soon she'd be able to introduce David to her. She couldn't wait until she saw her face to face so she could relay the entire night's adventures, knowing she'd be livid with jealousy but deliriously thrilled for her.

"It's about time girl!" Natasha sputtered with excitement, glancing around quickly to se if anyone noticed her outburst.

Finally David's dressing room door opened and she met Carl's eyes before he shifted his away. He had to bodily carry some of the screaming non-compliant fans out, the ones who refused to leave. He even had to call for assistance and several other equally built security guards entered the room. When the room was finally cleared, he bellowed, "See you in the limo, David." He nodded towards Natasha before closing the door, catching her eyes for a second.

She was slightly puzzled, noting his eyes were sadly downcast, but David made a quick beeline over wearing a sensational smile, immediately placing her in a swirling trance with her heart erratically racing. Now she had time to convince him she was different, ready to be his princess, his lady, his greatest fan.

"Did you enjoy our dance, babe? I mean, Natasha. That's your name right?" He asked, grabbing her around the waist and firmly yanking her against his broad chest.

He didn't give her a chance to reply because her breath was swiftly taken away with his secure grasp. A feather couldn't fit between them.

"My voice was a little hoarse tonight but I don't think anyone noticed. Do you?"

"No!" She confirmed, thrilled he was requesting her opinion. "No." She repeated again. "You're great, such a smooth dancer too. I mean, it was so easy to follow...your lead." She stuttered, sensing her face flush with heat. She buried her head into the warmth of his chest and relished in exquisite sensations when his fingertips caressed her hair.

Abruptly he shoved her away, giving her an annoyed glance. "What's that in your hair? You got some funky hairweave?" His eyes squinted, peering closer.

"No, I mean yes. I did it for..." She attempted a complicated explanation, wanting to impress him.

He cut her off. "Doesn't matter really, don't waste your words on me pretty girl. I prefer my woman natural, but you'll do fine. Now get back over here, baby." He gave a low growl and another of his seductive winks. A sparkling smile replaced his frown, revealing cosmetically enhanced white veneers.

Her heart soared seeing his vibrant smile. He held her close, gentle tilting her head back before planting a soft kiss. It was everything she imagined, so unbelievably soft, even when it became more forceful. As their passionate kiss lingered, he waltzed her safely over to a plush lounge chair and pulled her down onto his lap, continuing their kiss. After several minutes she pulled back to catch her breath, realizing what her friends meant when they said they saw fireworks after a kiss. She just experienced her best Fourth of July ever.

"David, I've dreamed of this moment for years. You kiss incredibly well. You're not thinking I'm being too forward? I mean, I feel like I..." Her chest heaved with unabashed excitement.

His voice sounded hoarse when he interrupted her. "Listen, we don't have much time. You know I've got this party." He lowered his head, nuzzling near her low cut neckline, his lips barely grazing her flesh.

Natasha gasped, "I...know there's the party to go to.

Shivers of pleasure like nothing she'd ever experienced before washed over her. She wasn't a prude and had no qualms towards making out on a first date, but readily agreed they should slow it down. Basically it was the first time they've met, even though she felt like she'd known him for years because she'd followed his career. There just wasn't time enough now to get to know each other better. He had his obligations and she understood. Being a star was difficult when it came to maintaining any sense of normalcy, especially in a relationship, she thought. She was prepared to take the chance, make it easy on him, even if it meant she couldn't reveal a twinge of jealousy towards his overly friendly groupies.

Tonight she couldn't wait to walk alongside him into the party, wearing her much practiced smile, posing when paparazzi camera's flashed. She imagined they'd be considered a dazzling pair, appearing in the latest gossip rags with captions explaining she was David Graham's latest lady, his final lady. Everything was turning into a big blur as she felt things fall in place quickly. Her heart couldn't feel any fuller. Suddenly her dreams splintered into a million pieces when his murmured comment filtered through her obsessive thoughts.

"I'm sorry; I didn't hear what you said. Could you repeat...what you just said?" Her voice trembled.

"I said we don't have much time left, so get to it." He slurred his words, pushing down on her head.

"Get to what?" She leaped off his lap and stood in front of him with her trembling hands on her hips.

"Oh don't start playing games with me now. We both know why you stayed behind. And I got a party I gotta get to, so don't act like, miss shy, all of a sudden." He smirked and grabbed her arms, swiftly yanking her back onto his lap.

This time she wasn't compliant, feeling utterly flabbergasted, horribly heartbroken. Still she dared to ask, "The party. Aren't we going to the party together?"

"Listen babe, I can't drag you along. You're a smart girl, so you must know I've got an image with my female fans. I'm a sex symbol, no strings and definitely no girlfriend attachment. So listen, are we gonna get down or not?" His once silky vibrant tone sounded harsh and cold.

"I know all about your image. I followed your career through the years, every concert, every CD and video, every photo and poster, and every magazine article. I've saved everything, every one of your ticket stubs. I know all there is about you. You believe in romance. You're a handsome prince, one I died to meet." Her voice went up several octaves as she stared down into his stormy eyes, eyes she adored for so long. Tears welled up and she struggled to hold them back. Reaching out she held his chiseled chin in her hand for a moment. "You're...everything to me. I believed you were special, and I was special to you. Can't you understand that?"

He sneered, "Right, you're special, whatever you want to hear. Now are you gonna perform something special, or not?"

David's voice dripped with sarcasm, not a hint of the passionate tones she heard throughout the years. He clutched her dress hem, attempting to tug it up.

"Stop" Natasha grabbed her dress hem back.

"Hey, this is your chance to fulfill your fantasies. Now stop your sniffling and your yapping, and let's get it on. We're both adults here. I only got fifteen minutes so this is going to have to be a real quick one. I'm your man, your star, your prince or whoever else you want to call me. I'm telling you this'll be something you'll remember, and you can put that in your scrap book." He gave her a haughty sneer, mimicking her passionate declaration of love.

Natasha flipped out and impulsively slapped his startled face. "Listen here, Mr. David Graham, I'm not one of your groupies. I cared for you more than you'd ever know. Now get your sweaty paws off me!"

"Oh, so you like it rough, that's fine with me. Come here."

Natasha attempted to maintain some sense of dignity as she stormed to the door, opening it and rushing out before forcefully slamming it shut behind her. She crumbled to the carpet in a fetal position, breaking down into gut wrenching sobs, not even caring if he was still on the other side. No-one else seemed to be around. Even though she realized she should leave she couldn't because waves of anguish choked her. A boulder was slammed onto her chest and it hurt. She trembled with grief.

She felt like a fool, living years in her warped delusions. Turning away so many other men after judging them, comparing them to the impossible qualities she believed David had. So many times she brushed their rude comments aside, when they called her a cold fish or an uppity insane broad. Now here she was sprawled on a dirty carpet after saving herself from a spoiled, egotistical, sex crazed singer. She didn't understand how she'd been so blind. Peering through blurred eyes up at his nameplate she struggled off the floor, totally blind sighted when the door crashed open.

"So, you've changed your mind. Don't worry, just come back on in and wipe those stupid tears away. I've already forgiven you for your childish behavior so I guess I can be cordial for a few more minutes." He leaned over, placed his hands around her waist and bodily picked her up, carrying her kicking and screaming back into the room. Kicking the door shut he quickly managed to lock it.

"You're the one who's insane. What did I ever see in you? Put me down and get your filthy paws off me! I swear I'll press charges if you touch me again." She screamed, struggling against him. Uncontrollable hot blinding tears streamed down her cheeks.

"Oh grow up foolish woman. You knew what you wanted when you waited around here for hours, so stop being a darn tease. Stop that crying and just give it up. You'll get your worth of dreams to remember the rest of your life, I told you that before. Plenty of babes out there would've died to be in here but I chose you. So remember this lady is your lucky night." He chuckled, forcefully gripping her firmly against his body. His eyes blazed at her and he reached around her, ripping one dress strap, half exposing the front of her body.

"Let me go!" Natasha screamed at the top of her lungs straight into his face.

She struggled helplessly, attempting to free herself from his clammy hands roaming over and under her dress. Stark panic set in when she realized she could be at his mercy. No-one was near enough to hear her screams because everyone had been dismissed. She continued twisting and kicking, fighting against him, shuddering over what was happening. Carl dragged her over to a lounger and threw her down, quickly straddling her body in one swift move. He gripped both of her hands in one of his, holding them over her head. She screamed forcefully, her voice cracking, twisting her body as much as she could with his heavy weight. Nothing seemed to slow down his advances.

"Stop! Help! Stop!" She croaked, rapidly losing her voice. Panicked, she realized no-one could possible hear her if her voice was quickly fading. Her bizarre obsession placed her in this situation because of her own stupidity, but she knew she didn't deserve to be assaulted. "Stop." She pleaded with her voice in a barely audible gasp. David's heavy breathing was drowning it out. His burly body was crushing her chest, slowly suffocating her, making her lungs burn.

"Come on, just relax, you'll enjoy it." He groaned, struggling to yank her dress over her hips.

"Please...stop."

Spittle dripped from his lips onto her face. She felt his hand crudely grab her between her thighs as the splintering sound of a door being kicked open startled them both. Natasha gasped, unable to form any audible words.

"Get your carcass off of her David! I'm warning you. Let her go now!" Carl bellowed. His voice thundered across the room as he rushed towards them.

"Oh forget it. I was just fooling with her. This tease doesn't know what she wants. Take, "Miss Dreamer," home to her, "Cinderella," castle." He abruptly released her and leaped off. Grabbing her around her waist he shoved her roughly into Carl's arms. "Oh, and give her one of my autographed pictures. You know the one that's signed, all my love." He cackled, "And if you think you're even going to say one word about anything that happened in here babe, think again. No-one will believe you. Remember you came to my show and waited in here on your own free will, knowing you were going to be alone with me. They'll say you asked for it and you were nothing but another annoying groupie. I'm the star remember that, your prince."

"Shut your mouth David! Get the heck out of here, unless you want to be singing through wired jaws!" Carl gruffly growled, his eyes flaming with rage. "Maybe I should punch your lights out anyway. And this time charges are going to be filed and they'll stick, because I'm gonna be her witness, you moron!"

"Oh yeah, you'll just be a disgruntled fired employee if I have anything to say about it, so go ahead and try. You know you need this job." David sneered, storming out the door chuckling.

Carl wanted to leap for David's throat but his arms were filled holding Natasha up, literally.

His arms were a real assistance because Natasha's legs felt like rubber. It'd be her luck to trip over her feet and fall flat on her face, even if she knew she probably deserved it for acting like a blind fool. Laverne was her best friend and she had tried to alert her to her strange obsession numerous times but she just didn't listen. Now she felt totally embarrassed, ashamed. She avoided Carl's eyes but noticed his lips were grimly clinched.

Taking several deep breaths, she finally managed to gasp, "Could you...please call a cab...for me?" She wished she could fade into the wall, though his arms around her eased her high level of tension. Her romantic dream was shattered but she felt a sense of pure relief slowly wash over her.

"No cab, I'll see you get home. It's the least I could do."

Slipping his jacket off Carl covered her torn dress, diverting his eyes from her exposed skin. He held her protectively, practically carrying her through the empty hallways as he made his way outside to a stretch silver limousine.

Natasha's legs were still unstable as if she was walking on a ship's deck in a storm.

"Change of plan Ron. David's going another way and I'm taking this one." He spoke to the driver, assisting Natasha into the limo.

"No problem Carl." The driver nodded, giving him an equally grim smile.

Glancing out the back window Natasha glimpsed David jump into another limousine with several screaming female fans. She swiftly settled back into the seat and started to sob. "I'm such a darn fool. I...should explain, you must think I'm..."

"Forget it. Listen, I realized you were different. I've seen you so many times in the audience and I always managed to convince David to choose someone else whenever he glimpsed you. I've got a knack of seeing through people. It helps with my job but unfortunately it didn't help in stopping David's depraved behavior. This time I let my guard down. I couldn't tell you to go back and sit down. Your eyes were so filled with joy over being selected. Do you mind?" Without waiting for an answer Carl placed an arm around her trembling body. "Hey Ron, drive around for awhile."

"No problem." Ron slid the dividing privacy glass up.

"Oh great. Now I'm here lying in another strange man's arms. You really must think I'm some type of crazed female." Her voice cracked when she heard David's voice flood the car. She blanched and swallowed quickly. "Do you mind shutting...?"

"I'm so sorry. Just try to forget him, for now." Hastily he switched the sound system off. "Now tell me where you live. And what have you done with your life so far?"

She shifted in his arms and started to explain, skipping over some of her crazy antics the past year.

After awhile he leaned back and sighed, before gazing straight into her eyes. "You know you seem like a smart woman, have your life on track, all except for your choice of music."

"I can't really say why I fell for something which couldn't be real. It's just that I've had so many experiences with jerks, maybe I just formed my own insane dream for a man." Somehow Carl made it easy for her to share her foolish tale.

"Maybe it's time you allowed a real man a chance to get to know you." He stated it.

"I think you're right about that." Natasha sat quiet for a moment.

"You know I'm going to be right there for you when you're ready to press charges. Maybe we should call someone tonight." He offered an explanation about how he'd grown tired of David's vile escapades and was ashamed he helped cover some of them up.

"You're probably right. I don't think I'll be able to live with myself knowing some other woman could fall into his clutches." She agreed, realizing he definitely was a strong support. "But he said you needed this job? Aren't you worried of losing it?"

"Not in the least, so don't worry about it. I was already planning to leave after this tour because I've got a new position lined up, a security training detail that just happens to be located here." Carl smiled, his eyes beamed. He leaned over and buzzed Ron. "Hey, would you mind taking us to the local police station first?" Holding Natasha closer, he added, "You don't have anything to be worried about or be ashamed about for that matter, Natasha."

The next morning after three hours of sleep, Natasha's non-stop ringing phone woke her up. "Hello." She yawned and stretched, feeling slightly sore muscles. "Hello."

"Well, how did it go girl? I couldn't wait any longer to call you. Hoped you were home already. Go ahead and tell me everything. Was he everything you dreamed of?" Laverne rattled on excitedly.

"Laverne, I think I met an ebony prince. In fact he's calling me later after his orientation meeting. We might go out for a bite to eat. His name's..."

"I already know his name, you fool. And what job orientation? Come on; give the juicy details, all of them." Laverne begged, sounding like she was about to leap out of her skin.

"It's a long story. And I'm trying to tell you if you'd hush up for a minute. His name's Carl King..."

"What the heck are you talking about? Natasha, what?"

Natasha started to fill her friend in when her eyes swept over her bedroom carpet. "You know, I think its better you come home so I can tell you everything. And I need your help to help me clean up."

"Natasha, are you flipping out again?"

"Definitely not this time. It's strange how fate can intervene with your dreams."

"I really don't know what you're talking about."

"Well get over here then, because I said I needed your help. You'll understand when you get here." After hanging up the phone, Natasha sprawled on the bed and stared at her carpet.

The time had come to drift back into reality. For the first time in her life she was really looking forward to it. Her eyes slowly swept over her carpet, covered with shredded posters, photos, magazines, t-shirts, CDs, and other remains of the late David Graham, her fated ebony prince.