It had been a long day, and by the time Sakura was full from the delicious meal, she felt rather tired and lightheaded. Of course, the constant flow of wine Tristan and Logan insistently poured into her glass undoubtedly added to those feelings. She must admit... the two brothers were rather good at their job as the hosts of the party, ensuring everyone was having a good time.

At the moment, Tristan was reciting a tale of a particular adventure during the brothers’ teenage years, back when they used to live on St. Joseph Island, when Sakura had been living with them, but wasn’t really part of them. This particular one was about the brothers’ camping trip with their father on St. Joseph Island. There was something about a storm that night, and the boys had to sleep in a cave.

Logan said, “It was awesome.” He chuckled. “I remember Conrad was so freaked out by the storm that he clung to Tristan.”

Tristan nodded, a teasing grin on his lips. “That’s right. Conrad was shaking all over like a poor little lamb.”

Conrad, on the other hand, seemed to remember nothing of the sort and said, “Don’t believe anything those two say. They’re just making things up.” Though he was blushing severely, this inferred otherwise.

Sakura couldn’t help but smile at Conrad’s comment because she knew he must be too embarrassed to admit such unmanly things in front of the girls and, of course, Michael. Then she wondered what it would be like if she were a part of the brothers back then, instead of being an outcast, hiding in her bedroom, and drowning in her loneliness. She thought that if only Tara and Alaina hadn’t started all the lies, abuse, and manipulation, she really would have been a part of the family, a part of the brothers’ lives, and her own childhood would have been so much better. She would have been happy with the Princeton brothers.

The Princeton brothers, indeed. Happy, indeed. Then again, the past could not be undone. What had happened had happened. Nothing could be changed, and Sakura knew she could only look toward the future to make her life a better one.

Suddenly, her thoughts drifted to Darcy, and she wondered where he was. She glanced about her surroundings, searching for the man. She noted that once again, he was nowhere to be found.

She sighed and then stood up.

Akira noticed her movement and asked, “Where are you going?”

Sakura said, “Sorry. I feel exhausted all of a sudden. I’m going to turn in for the day.”

Michael offered, “What me to come with you?”

She tousled his hair as she said, “No. You stay here and have fun with everyone.”

Michael insistently said, “But I want to come with you.”

Conrad interrupted. “Oi, Michael, Sakura is tired. Give her some space, will ya? There’s plenty of time tomorrow.”

Michael blushed, and seeing the error of his ways, reluctantly gave in. “Sorry, Sakura. You have a good rest, then.”

Sakura nodded, a smile on her lips. “See you guys tomorrow.”

With everyone wishing her a good night and sweet dreams, Sakura turned on her heel and headed toward the house.

On her way, she noted Sebastian, Nicolas, Jim, Peter, and Luke drinking and chatting away animatedly at the bar area, whilst the adults were doing the same thing sitting around the table not too far away. None of them noticed her heading toward the house, which pleased her, because firstly, she didn’t want to bother any of them, and secondly, if they had noticed, they’d have asked questions, and the brothers would probably insist one of them accompany her right to her bedroom door, which wasn’t something she wanted.

As she walked, she was deep in her thoughts, thinking about her childhood and the Princeton brothers. A moment later, she rounded a corner of the mansion and had nearly reached the back door when she felt a man’s hand around her wrist.

She jolted at the contact and swiftly turned around, only to face the man who made her heart skip in delight.

“Darcy,” she whispered softly, staring at him with both pleasure and surprise.

Without a word, Darcy turned on his heel and led her away from the house.

Sakura was confused as she paced after him, his hand firm and warm around her slender wrist.

“Darcy, wait,” she said. “Where are you taking me?”

Still, Darcy did not answer and simply led her away from the light, the loud noise, and the crowd.

Sakura decided to keep quiet as she followed him, her heart racing. A moment later, she noticed they were walking on the sandy beach. The sound of the waves crashing onto the shore was louder here. Not to mention the air; it felt cooler. Cleaner. Fresher.

Finally, Darcy stopped, and before Sakura could utter a word, he pulled her into his arms and hugged her tight.

Sakura was surprised at first and gasped out, but once she was intimately in his arms, she relaxed and savored the moment.

It felt good to be in his arms. She felt warm and safe. Protected. Secured. And loved. She simply wanted to slip into the abyss whilst being embraced by him.

Suddenly, she felt him kissing her forehead, his firm, warm lips branding her skin. She opened her eyes and raised her face to his.

The moment their eyes locked, Sakura sucked in her breath at the sight. God, he looked so dark and passionate, and those mauve-grey eyes, they made her heart leap with both joy and apprehension.

“Darcy,” she whispered, her voice shaking, a little.

Darcy must have noted the mixture of emotions in her eyes and her expression and said, “Am I scaring you?”

Slowly, she nodded as she licked her lips. “A... a little,” she said.

Darcy was mesmerized by her sensual lips and rubbed the sensitive flesh with his thumb. “Sorry. But it’s hard not being with you... Not being near you. It’s hard.”

Sakura cast her eyes downward because she couldn’t handle the intensity and rawness of his passion for her. God, if she were to look into his eyes longer, she was sure she’d succumb and would just do the unthinkable, and that was to let him do things to her they’d both regret later.

She licked her lips again and said, “Darcy, thank you for this morning, on the plane.”

Darcy asked, “During takeoff and landing?”

She nodded, blushing, feeling rather embarrassed.

“Were you always afraid of flying?”

Again, she nodded. “Since I was a child.”

“I see,” he said.

They were silent for a moment, with her still in his arms.

Suddenly, Darcy said, “Sakura, look at me.”

There was a sort of command in his voice that she found hard to disobey. When she finally mustered the courage to look at him and raised her gaze to his, she noted that he still had that dark, passionate expression in his eyes, and she felt her heart race in response.

Darcy cupped her face then, his long, lean fingers digging deeply into her hair. He said, “I can’t help the way I feel toward you, Sakura, and it’s damned hard hiding it. It’s damned hard running away from it. I’ve decided I’m not just going to give up and let any of my brothers steal you away from me.”

Sakura blinked in response to those words. Was... was that supposed to be a declaration? Or a confession? Or both?

“I’m going to kiss you, Sakura,” he said firmly. “If you don’t like it, then push me away, because I sure as hell will not let you go.”

Sakura sucked in her breath again, wondering where this new personality of Darcy’s had come from. This dominating characteristic. This determination.

But of course, she didn’t have time to think further when she felt his firm, warm lips pressing sensually against hers.

“Ngh...” she groaned, and her knees felt weak at the beautiful sensation that rushed through her being.

Darcy was passionate and wild, his lips scorching and his tongue searching, urging her lips to part for him.

Sakura felt lightheaded and breathless and leaned further into Darcy’s arms for support because she knew she’d fall to her knees if she didn’t.

Darcy took that as an affirmative sign and pulled her down with him onto the sandy ground below.

Sakura felt her body land softly on top of Darcy’s as he deepened the kiss and urged her lips to part for him. When she finally surrendered and did as he entreated, he plunged his tongue into her mouth, exploring and stroking her.

Sakura groaned, and her whole body shook with undisguised pleasure as Darcy stroked his tongue deeply, kissing her so wildly and passionately that she became mindless and clung to him for dear life.

By the time Darcy decided to pull back and terminate the kiss, Sakura was dazed and her body hot and shaky from the experience.

Under the moonlight, Darcy stared long and hard at the woman he loved. She was so alluring, like a goddess under the moonlight, enticing and seducing him. He couldn’t help but swear under his breath. “Shit!”

Sakura blinked, wondering why he was swearing, but of course, she did not know just how exotic she was at that moment, with her eyes bright and passionate, her cheeks flushing hot, and her lips blood red from the kiss.

“Darcy?” she asked softly.

Darcy chuckled darkly. “Sorry, sweetheart, but it seems I can’t help myself, and I can’t stop here.”

Without further ado, he placed his hand behind her head and pulled her to him again.

Sakura groaned softly the moment their lips made contact, and soon, Darcy plunged his tongue into her mouth again, playing havoc with her mind.

They stayed there, kissing, as the waves crashed onto the shore and the sounds of laughter and cheers drifted smoothly from the distance.

When Sakura managed to pull away from the kiss, she was breathless and dazed, and her whole body was shaking. She collapsed and rested her cheek against Darcy’s chest, listening to the man’s beating heart whilst her own was racing.

A moment later, Darcy made a move again, searching out her lips for another kiss. Sakura stopped him before he had the chance by placing her fingers against his lips.

She said, “Let me breathe first.”

He chuckled in amusement. “All right, but only for a little while.”

She frowned at him. “How dare you?” She teased. “We are not even officially dating, and here you’re kissing me like I’m your girlfriend. I was really dizzy for a little while there.”

Her words caused his expression to darken, and he said, “Then let’s date, Sakura.”

Sakura stiffened at his words immediately and held her breath as her heart now beat even faster.

Date? Darcy? Then they’d officially become girlfriend and boyfriend, wouldn’t they? Then they’d have to go further... like having sex. Was she ready for that?

Darcy noticed her change in demeanor and said, “It’s your choice, Sakura. I’m not pressuring you. I know you have feelings for Sebastian, too. I know it’s hard for you to choose between us. Sebastian or me. Either way, you have to make a choice. You can’t leave us waiting and wondering much longer.”

Feeling as though Darcy had just pushed her into a corner, she hastily moved out of his arms.

She said quietly, “I know that.”

Suddenly, she felt tears burn her eyes, and gosh, she wanted so desperately to run away. She knew she was being naive and childish. She knew she was stalling for time. She also knew it was best that she make her decision soon, by the end of this work vacation if possible. After all, she couldn’t leave the brothers hanging, as Darcy had implied. They had to carry on with their own lives, too.

She said, “Sorry, Darcy, for making you and your brothers go through this... sort of thing. I... I promise to make a decision by the end of this vacation.” She moved out of his arms and then stood up before Darcy could stop her.

“Good night,” she said, and rushed away; her slim figure hazy against the darkness of the night.

Darcy watched her go, his expression dark and furious.

“Shit!” he swore loudly, pissed with himself for bringing up the subject.

If only he could control himself, he thought. If only his passion and love for her hadn’t taken over his logic, then he wouldn’t have pissed her off. But it had been so damned hard for the past few days, commanding himself to stay away from her, to stop thinking about her. But of course, it had all been in vain, because every single second he had thought about her.

Yeah, he had screwed up big time this round and cursed once again. It was then Sebastian appeared along the beach and spotted him, and Darcy thought about escaping.

“Hey,” Sebastian said as he came to sit beside his brother.

“Hey,” Darcy replied, his tone quiet and dark.

For a few moments, the brothers just sat there, staring into the darkness of the sea, the water illuminating under the moonlight.

Finally, Sebastian said, “You’re in a bad mood.”

Darcy sighed as he raked his fingers through his hair. “Yeah,” he said. “I pissed Sakura off.”

Sebastian didn’t respond as he continued to stare off at the sea.

When Darcy couldn’t handle the silence anymore, he continued. “Aren’t you going to ask?”

“I can guess as to what it’s about,” Sebastian said. “Sakura and us?”

Darcy nodded. “I think I was pressuring her. I came on too hard maybe.”

Sebastian chuckled. “It’s unlike you to be so impatient.”

“Shit!” Darcy muttered. “It’s just... I can’t help myself. I just wish she’d decide between us. I just wish...”

Sebastian said, “Darcy, I hate to be a bad brother, but you need to remember that it hasn’t been that long since we barged into Sakura’s life again and demanded her attention.”

Darcy chuckled brokenly and had to nod in agreement. “Yeah, like a few months.”

Sebastian nodded. “We had a past with her, us brothers. A bad past, to say the least. And now, seven of us just barge into her life and demand we be a part of it again? That’s tough for any girl to take in.”

“Yeah, I know,” Darcy said. “We caused her a lot of pain. Suffering.” He chuckled sadly. “And now we want to be in her life. What a fucking contradiction.”

Sebastian said, “Love, eh?”

Darcy nodded in agreement. “It’s a crazy thing, love.”

The brothers were both quiet for a moment before Sebastian cleared his throat and said, “Say, Darcy, do you really love Sakura that much?”

Darcy frowned at his brother and said darkly, “What the heck are you on about? Of course I love her. So much so that it hurts when I don’t see her face. Just hearing her voice makes my heart glow, you know? Just catching a whiff of her scent makes me so happy. It tells me she was here. You know what I mean?”

Sebastian nodded in agreement. He definitely understood what that meant.

“And you?” Darcy asked.

“I love her, Darcy, in the deepest part of my soul.”

Darcy said, “Me, too.”

Sebastian continued. “If you love her that much, would you ever want to let her go?”

Darcy thought his brother sounded rather daft and said bluntly, “Of course not. Why would I do that? I’d rather die than let her go.”

Sebastian said, “I see. Me, too.” He sighed. “We’re screwed, aren’t we?”

It was then that Darcy laughed. He couldn’t help himself. Once he finally managed to calm down, he nodded.

“Yeah, totally screwed. No matter what happens, no matter who Sakura chooses, we’re both going to be so fucking screwed.”

Sebastian said, “I’d be very happy if Sakura chooses me, but then again, I’ll be sad if she doesn’t choose you. I don’t want any of my brothers to be unhappy, Darcy.”

Darcy licked his lips and sighed. “Me, too. It’d break my heart if any of us were to be unhappy.”

The two were both quiet for another moment as they were deep in their own thoughts.

A moment later, Sebastian said, “I don’t know. Maybe it’s the alcohol, because yeah, I’ve been drinking quite a bit tonight... or maybe I’m going crazy, but I have a proposition.” He turned to look at his brother as he asked, “Do you want to hear it?”

Darcy frowned for a moment. He didn’t miss the desperation in Sebastian’s voice nor the anxious expression on his face, which really surprised Darcy. This wasn’t the usual confident Sebastian whom Darcy knew, at all. Instantly, he knew something was up and said, “Sure.”