When I Dream of You
an inter-racial romance by Mychael Black & Shayne Carmichael
Phaze
Daniel's life up until now has been hell. Living with an abusive father
who hates what Daniel is has wreaked havoc on Daniel. When Daniel is
attacked by two men for being gay, Karl steps in. After taking Daniel
home to clean his wounds, a relationship develops between the two.
But everything isn't fine. Daniel's father becomes enraged when Daniel tries to move in with his lover.
How can Daniel and Karl find their way in a world where people believe they shouldn't exist?
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Excerpt:
Daniel walked in and stood not too far away from the door. The gym was
packed with people waiting to use several machines and chatting to pass
the time. Most of them were men with towels around their necks, some in
shirts and some not, wearing tight little shorts. There were trainers
scattered throughout as well, most of them with a client. It was a
typical Friday evening, the majority of the men having just got off
work.
When he spotted Karl coming towards the desk, Daniel gave him a
hesitant wave. Thankfully the black eye and bruised mouth had faded to
faint discolorations on his face. Dressed in a pair of loose jeans and
blue t-shirt, he didn't look like the rest of the crowd.
"Well, hi there," Karl said, bypassing the desk entirely as he headed
toward Daniel. With a gentle grip, he tilted Daniel's head up. "Looking
much better. How have you been?"
"Yeah, it's starting to go away. Finally." Looking up at Karl, Daniel
smiled a bit. "I wasn't sure what time you got off, but I hoped you
wouldn't mind a bit of company. Would you?"
Karl smiled and stroked his thumb over Daniel's bottom lip before
letting go. "Sure." Without seeming to give it another thought, he
turned and leaned over the desk. The woman behind it just chuckled as
Karl crossed off his name for the rest of the day. Turning back to
Daniel, he said, "Come on back with me. I need to change, then maybe we
can go grab a bite. You eat yet?"
"No, I haven't, but you don't have to take off work. I can come back later."
Karl just grinned and took Daniel's hand, tugging him back toward the
locker rooms. "I'm one of the owners," he said casually, taking a swig
from his water.
"Oh ... I didn't know that. I guess that's okay then."
"Now you do," Karl said with a wink. "If you don't feel comfortable
chatting while I dress, you're welcome to hang out right here. My
locker's around the corner." As he walked, he tugged his shirt over his
head, back muscles rippling and glistening with sweat.
"Nah, doesn't bother me. I stopped by your place before I came here.
Figured you had to be at work." Daniel followed him, then settled on
the edge of the bench near Karl's locker, watching the flex of muscle
beneath velvety dark skin from the veil of his lashes. "Don't know if
you ever expected me to see me again, though."
"Was kind of hoping I would," Karl said. He unlocked his locker and
pulled out a black gym bag. After digging through it for clean clothes,
he set them on the bench and peeled off his shorts. A black jockstrap
held everything, though it left little to the imagination. "Told you
before: I'm partial to your company. I think Cin misses you, too."
Oh, he wanted to look, badly. But Daniel wouldn't invade Karl's
personal space with blatant staring, so he looked off towards the top
of the lockers. "I think I missed you guys, too. Work has been a bit
hectic, otherwise I would have come to see you sooner."
"I can understand that. Where do you work, anyway?"
"At an attorney's office down on Fremont Street. And no, I'm not a
lawyer, don't want to be one, either. I do office work and research for
my dad." Finally, he glanced back down and stared less than overtly at
Karl dressed in sinfully tight jeans.
Karl caught his gaze and smiled. "So what are you in the mood to eat?"
Daniel stammered as he ducked his head slightly. "Uh, yeah. Haven't had a chance to eat since last night."
Karl just chuckled and shook his head, tugged a red Polo shirt on, and
closed his locker. With the bag slung over his left shoulder, he
followed Daniel out. He waved goodbye to a few of the members and
trainers, then held the front door open for Daniel. "After you."
"I took the bus down here since Dad needed the car tonight. I'll have
to catch it by eleven since that's the last bus that'll run tonight."
Digging his keys out of his jeans pocket, Karl glanced over at him. "How are things at home?" He led the way to a white Camaro.
At first Daniel didn't want to answer that. "Okay, I guess."
Karl stopped and put a hand on Daniel's shoulder. "Why don't I believe that?" He turned Daniel around to see his face.
"I get sick of listening to him, you know." Another casual shrug hid
the real emotion behind the words. "Sometimes he gets really hateful."
"Something tells me he's not fond of your choice in partners," Karl said quietly, his eyes never leaving Daniel's.
Not sure how much to say, Daniel played it safe and kept his remark general. "He's not fond of anything about me."
Karl's hand moved up to cup Daniel's cheek, his fingers sliding back through Daniel's hair. "Then he's a fool."