Sebastian found Darcy on the rooftop of the hotel some fifteen minutes later. The younger brother was standing in the center of the platform, hands in the pockets of his jeans, as he stared off to the sea in the distance, lost in thought.

“Hey,” Sebastian greeted, coming toward Darcy.

Darcy was, for a moment, surprised to suddenly see Sebastian standing beside him. He had wanted to be alone, to get some fresh air, and settle his tumultuous emotions, which were currently going haywire within him.

“Hey. You finished?”

Sebastian nodded. “I saw you left in the middle of our shoot.” The brother cleared his throat, feeling more than a little uncomfortable at the thought of bringing up the subject of Sakura. Regardless, he soldiered on. “Did something bother you?”

He heard Darcy release a sigh, as if in frustration, which was followed by silence.

Just when Sebastian thought he wasn’t going to get an answer, Darcy said, “Yeah. I was just... I don’t know. Frustrated, I guess.” He chuckled darkly. “Dammit! I mean, she’s so beautiful, and dressed like that in the middle of so many people, so many men just ogling her...” He turned to Sebastian then. “And you... flirting with her like it’s no one’s business.”

Sebastian slapped his brother on the shoulder as if to knock some sense into Darcy’s head. “And here I thought we’d agreed to let her make the choice. I thought we’d agreed not to get jealous when either of us was intimate with her.”

Darcy sighed again. “I know. But it’s still hard just watching and not being able to... It’ll take me some time to get used to it.”

Sebastian said, “I understand. Me, too.”

The brothers were quiet for a moment, each in their own thoughts. Then Darcy asked, “Do you think she’d think we’re nuts?”

Sebastian shrugged. “To be honest, I have no clue. If she rejects both of us, that’s the end of it.”

Darcy chuckled. “Then we’re both screwed.”

“No. Then we’ll go to plan B, like we decided.”

“Sakura will be so pissed, though. And I’d rather we not go there,” Darcy said.

It was Sebastian’s turn to chuckle. “You say that, but I bet you’ll be the first to act if she rejects us.”

Darcy couldn’t agree more. He was rather hotheaded and irrational when it came to Sakura, as evidenced by the way he had acted toward her these previous few days. God, he knew he was fucked up, but he couldn’t help himself. He felt like dying every time he thought he couldn’t be with her.

“Let’s be honest here,” Sebastian said suddenly, turning to look at his brother.

Darcy noted the serious glaze in Sebastian’s eyes, and knew what was coming.

“If we’re going to go into that sort of thing, we have to be open with one another. There’s no hiding. It’s trust.”

Darcy nodded in agreement.

“So...” Sebastian continued. “Did you give Sakura that hickey?”

Darcy stared at his brother for a moment and then suddenly laughed. He was chuckling away so hard that his stomach began to hurt.

“Oi.” Sebastian frowned. “What’s so funny?”

When Darcy managed to calm down, he straightened himself and said, “So, I’m not the only one insecure where Sakura is concerned.”

Sebastian raised a brow. “You think I’m that confident where her feelings for me are concerned? Knowing she loves you as well as me?”

“The way you act, yes,” Darcy said.

Sebastian sighed. “I don’t think any man is ever confident knowing that the woman he loves is also in love with another man. Otherwise, there wouldn’t be so many affairs. Don’t you agree?”

“A secret affair,” Darcy said.

Sebastian nodded.

Darcy said, “We’ll know for sure tomorrow night.”

Sebastian nodded again.

It was then Hayden came through the door and said, “Hey, the two brothers over there. Have you guys finished with your love discussion yet? Darcy, it’s time to go for makeup and wardrobe. You’re next after I’m done.”

Darcy nodded, and the three then headed back down together.

Some half an hour later, the brothers, all of them, were in the presidential suite once again, this time shooting on the balcony. It wasn’t long before Sakura and Akira joined them. Dressed in cocktail gowns, the two girls looked stunning, which of course, elicited a chorus of praise from the brothers.

Then the photo shoot began with Hayden standing between the girls, his body leaning against the rail while his hand wrapped around Sakura’s waist. Akira was leaning against him on the other side. And then the camera went click, click, click.

This scene was indeed beautiful with the backdrop of the sea behind and the warm breeze dancing about them. The lighting was perfect, thus showing off the silk and lace of the clothes and, of course, the expensive jewels.

And it wasn’t long before Jason said, “That’s it. Done. You guys are pros.”

Akira clapped. “Yay! Only two more to go for me.”

“And three for me,” Sakura said as they headed back to the makeup room.

To Hayden, Tristan said, “So, you’re a pro, eh?”

Hayden nodded. “Unlike you, I don’t flirt with my sister while on a job.”

Logan chuckled. “Yep, he’s a pro all right.”

---

“I’m pretty sure this was not part of the wardrobe for the photo shoot, Jane,” Sakura said adamantly, staring at her friend. “If so, then why wasn’t I informed? I mean, honestly, these weren’t even there when I had the fitting before we came.” She was now looking at the piles of lingerie before her that she was supposed to get into.

“I’m sorry, Sakura. It was a last-minute decision. Mr. Tachibana is notorious for that kind of stuff. I didn’t know about it, either, until this morning, and with the mountains of stuff I had to deal with, I totally forgot to tell you.”

Sakura sighed. “Well, it’s not your fault, but...” She glanced at the garments once again. “I have never worn anything like that before.”

Jane said, “I know it’s rather showy, but it’s not much different from swimwear, is it?”

Sakura had to agree with that. To ease her embarrassment in wearing something this exotic and sexy, she’d just have to think of it as wearing a bikini, except with thigh-high stockings.

“Should we get started?” Jane asked.

Sakura nodded, and some ten minutes later, she was done, staring wide-eyed at herself in the full-length mirror. She was now wearing lingerie of silk and lace panties and bra in white and pale pink, along with thigh-high stockings of the same colors, designed in the style of Sakura flowers in spring. All three pieces had beads and crystals beautifully sewn onto the fabric. On her ears and around her neck was a set of classic pink diamonds in the design of Sakura flowers as well, to match the lingerie.

Jane was behind her and couldn’t help but utter, “Oh. My. God!”

Sakura’s heart raced and her body trembled. “This is nothing like wearing a swimsuit at all.”

Jane had to nod in agreement. “You’re right. It’s not. It’s so much more.” She couldn’t hold her excitement at seeing how beautiful her friend was. “You look like one of the Victoria’s Secret angels. Mr. Tachibana is going to be so happy he decided on this outfit for this photo shoot.”

Sakura wasn’t sure if she could agree with Jane. Yes, she admitted that she looked fetching in the lingerie, but she wasn’t sure if she was confident or comfortable enough to walk down the hallway to the photo shoot site when so many people were watching. And God, she was also wearing this while pairing with Darcy. What would he think? What would all the Princeton brothers think when they saw her? This was too much.

It was then Akira came in, and the moment she saw Sakura, she nearly flipped. “Holy Mother of Jesus!” She rushed over in excitement. “Are you really Sakura? Holy shit! The brothers are so going to die, seeing you in this.”

Sakura muttered, “Akira, don’t add fuel to the fire. I’m already nervous as it is. Look, I’m shaking.”

Akira touched her friend’s hands and agreed. “Just calm down, then. It’s normal. It’s just an outfit you have to sell in a magazine. Just think of it as nothing special. It’s just a job.”

Sakura said, “Do you think Tachibana-sensei will agree if we ask him to change this outfit to something more modest?”

Akira couldn’t help but chuckle at how naive Sakura was. “That’s not going to happen, Sakura. Do you know that every season, Tachibana-sensei has at least one set of lingerie? And they sell out like hotcakes.”

“Oh, really?”

Jane nodded. “Yes. They do go fast, don’t they? They’re usually out of stock within a couple of days.”

“Why is that?” Sakura asked. “Are they that popular?”

Akira nodded. “Very popular, and I’m sure this season especially, since it seems Tachibana-sensei has outdone himself. It’s the best I’ve seen from him so far.”

Jane nodded. “He must have just finished it. That’s why they weren’t there when Sakura had her fitting back in New York.”

Akira said, “Yes. That must be why.” She turned to Sakura with a smile. “So are you ready? It’s time to go.”

Sakura took a deep breath and then nodded. Well, she didn’t have much choice, did she? This was work after all.

Jane picked up a robe and helped her put it on, which relieved Sakura. At least with this on, she didn’t feel too self-conscious.

As the trio walked toward the door, Akira said, “I assume you know where the site is?”

Sakura said, “In the presidential suite?”

Akira nodded.

“Yes,” Jane said. “In the bedroom.”

“In the bedroom,” Sakura said breathlessly. She should have guessed. She was wearing lingerie after all.

A few minutes later, with her stomach knotting in dread, she came in through the suite’s door with Jane and Akira. Of course, she kept her eyes on the floor as they made their way toward the bedroom. In her mind, she was also hoping there wouldn’t be too many people around, especially the Princeton brothers. It was already the afternoon, and surely, they’d had their fair share of watching the photo shoots. They must be tired of it by now and would prefer to spend their time enjoying their holiday at the beach.

“Sakura!” Conrad called out to her, destroying her hope of not having an audience while in this outfit.

She raised her head and noted not only Conrad, but the rest of his brothers present as well, not to mention Sosuke. She wondered if the Japanese man would soon become a part of the Princeton family since he seemed to be with them most of the time.

Sakura gave them a nervous smile as she clutched the robe about her chest as if to prevent it from falling from her.

Hayden said, “She looks nervous.”

“Why should she be?” Tristan said, cocking his head to one side.

Logan nodded. “She’s done this many times already today. She should be used to it by now.”

Sebastian had his eyes fixed on Sakura as she made her way toward Mr. Tachibana, Jason, and Miss Ruka. He didn’t miss the fact that her hands were trembling, and he vaguely knew why. She was probably not comfortable with the outfit she was wearing, which was the reason she had a robe on.

Bedroom scene.

And Darcy was not in a three-piece suit like the rest of the brothers’ photo shoots. For this scene, he was simply wearing a pair of loose white trousers and a white shirt. The casual type that he wore at home when he wasn’t working. Very homey. That meant Sakura must be wearing...

Lingerie. The moment that idea entered his mind, Sebastian swallowed hard and his body tensed. “Shit!” he swore under his breath.

Nicolas said, “Did you just figure out what Sakura’s wearing underneath that robe, Sebastian?” He was smiling with amusement of course.

Tristan’s interest was piqued. He turned to Sebastian and asked, “What’s she wearing?”

Logan narrowed his eyes and said, “Fuck! It’s a bedroom scene, so it has to be...”

Hayden said, “Lingerie, obviously.”

Conrad said, “Lingerie... So?”

The other brothers decided Conrad hadn’t yet experienced the wonder of beautiful women in sexy lingerie.

Sakura came toward the large four-poster bed, where Mr. Tachibana, Jason, and Miss Ruka were currently busy talking to Darcy.

Behind her, Jane said, “Mr. Tachibana, Sakura is here.”

The moment Jane said that, they turned to her, including Darcy, whose eyes bored deeply into her, which made her even more nervous.

Sakura licked her lips as Mr. Tachibana asked, “Sakura, darling, are you ready?”

Sakura nodded. “Can we make it quick?”

Jason chuckled. “We can’t rush it, Sakura. It’ll just take the usual time.”

Miss Ruka must have realized why she was nervous and said, “Sorry, Sakura darling, but it was a last-minute decision. Tachibana-sensei is rather notorious with that, you know. He simply must add this outfit to the collection, and I totally agree, because it’s the most beautiful piece, ever. I hope you understand it’s for work.”

Sakura nodded. “Yes, I understand. It’s just that I’ve never worn anything like this before.”

Darcy, who was watching Sakura, noted how nervous she was and wondered if he was the cause. Though, he must admit that he wasn’t feeling one hundred percent confident, simply because he was having a photo shoot with her, in a bedroom scene at that.

When she flicked her gaze to him, he gave her a smile to alleviate her nerves.

Sakura sighed in response and returned his smile. She also didn’t miss the fact that he was extremely hot with his dark hair in a messy style, wearing a pair of loose white trousers and a white shirt that was left unbuttoned, showing off his toned chest and six-pack abs. Not to mention the tattoo on his chest, featuring the sakura flowers and the word snow.

Her eyes lingered on the tattoo as her heart began to race and her stomach fluttered deliciously. When she lifted her gaze back to his face, she noted the dark passion exuding from those beautiful mauve-grey eyes of his.

Mr. Tachibana said, “All right, Sakura, listen carefully. This is what I want for this shoot.”

Sakura nodded, and then Mr. Tachibana began his explanation. By the end of it, she was blushing profusely.

Sexy. Intimate. He wanted her to be as sexy as she could be and as intimate with Darcy as she could muster, right on that bed, while showing off her outfit at the same time.

She nodded, telling herself this was for work and she could do it. It was with Darcy, after all, so it shouldn’t be hard.

Finally, Mr. Tachibana clapped his hands and said, “All right. We’re ready for shooting now.”

With that, Jane came up behind Sakura and whispered gently, “I’m taking this off you now.”

Sakura swallowed hard and then nodded. “Okay.”

The moment the robe was gently pulled from her body, a hush descended over the room, and Sakura groaned inwardly. She knew this was going to happen. Now she thought walking in without the robe might have been a better option.

She tensely raised her gaze to Darcy, and the moment her eyes met his, her throat became dry and her stomach flipped.

Oh, God, he was just standing there and ogling her with those passionate mauve-grey eyes of his, as though he wanted to eat her up or something.

She licked her lips nervously and said, “Shall we get started?”

His response was a slow nod of his head as his eyes continued to study her with appreciation. Everything about her in that lingerie was perfect. She is perfection. She was an angel indeed, and suddenly, Darcy wanted to grab her hand and take her far, far away from the prying eyes of other men. He wanted her for himself, in a secluded room, where he could kiss her and touch her and explore every part of her beautiful body.

Fuck! He wanted her so badly that it was hard for him to just stand there and pretend he wasn’t affected, that he wasn’t turned on.

“My,” Mr. Tachibana said. “It looks even better than I thought.” He chuckled with glee as he took hold of her hand. He then proceeded to make her rotate, showing all of her to the room full of people and, of course, the Princeton brothers, who couldn’t stop gawking at her.

“Holy Shit!” Logan said. “Our sister is hot in that lingerie.”

“Shut up, Logan,” Sebastian said darkly. “And why is Mr. Tachibana making her do that? Doesn’t he know everyone is watching?”

Tristan said, “You sound like a possessive lover, Sebastian.” He smiled gleefully. “That beautiful princess must be shared, especially amongst us brothers.”

Hayden said, “Coming from you, that sounds rather sleazy.”

Conrad said, “Sakura is beautiful in that, but I prefer her with more clothes on. The dress when she had the photo shoot with Hayden and Akira was nice.”

Nicolas said, “Well, this is only for the magazine.”

Sebastian wasn’t the least bit pleased with how things had turned out. Of course, he had expected there to be a lingerie photo shoot today, since he had been a fan of Mr. Tachibana’s brand and had seen the catalogue numerous times when it came out every season. There had always been a section dedicated to lingerie, and it would be no different this time around. But damn, he didn’t expect it to be Sakura and Darcy modeling the sexy piece.

As he gazed at her, he thought how exotic and desirable she was. Everything about her was perfection in that erotic outfit. Long legs in thigh-high stockings of white and pink with small beads and crystals lining the hems. Then there were those sexy panties that hugged intimately around her butt, showing just how shapely and firm she was. The waist of the panties, too, was lined with small beads and crystals. And then the bra. Fuck! Pink silk and white lace cupping those beautiful breasts in the most enticing way, thrusting the boobs upward, showing off the shape and soft flesh that made men want to weep with joy.

Damn, Sebastian wondered if he could abate this zealous, urgent feeling that suddenly erupted within him. He wondered if he was patient and calm enough to just sit there and watch her being ogled by so many other men, while she was wearing something that alluring, and standing right in the middle of the room, too, with bright lights on her from every angle, showing off just how tantalizing she was.

Fuck, he knew for a fact he didn’t have the patience to just sit and watch like a normal spectator. All he wanted to do was to take her away to a secluded place and kiss her and make love to her. But of course, he couldn’t. Not now. Not yet, at least, not until she had made her decision. And right now, he had to calm down, cool his passion. He had to watch and learn and get used to the trust and so much more.

Sakura was bright red with embarrassment by the time Mr. Tachibana finally stopped showing her off to everyone.

Jason chuckled and said, “Shall we get started?”

Mr. Tachibana nodded and then told everyone to get ready. A minute later, Sakura found herself half sitting on Darcy’s lap on the bed, her hand wrapped around his powerful shoulders while he had his strong arm around her waist.

“Are you okay?” Darcy asked, his warm breath fanning her cheeks.

With her eyes downcast—because she was too nervous to look at him directly—she nodded. “Yes.”

God, she was nervous, and why wouldn’t she be? Dressed in something this provocative and posing so intimately in Darcy’s arms for the whole world to see.

“Good,” Jason said. “Sakura, move closer,” he instructed.

Sakura shifted her head a little so her nose was nearly touching Darcy’s, and then the camera went click, click, click.

Darcy moved slightly this time, pulling her toward him by the waist.

“Good,” Mr. Tachibana said from the sidelines. “Sakura, raise yourself a bit more.”

Sakura did and ended up kneeling, both arms wrapping around Darcy’s neck and her chin resting just above his head. That meant Darcy’s face was directly in line with her bosom, which made her blush. Her heart started to race as she tried her best not to show just how affected she was when he was so near.

Darcy must have noticed her heart racing and whispered, “There’s loud drumming in your chest, Sakura. Is there a party going on in there?”

His teasing words made her turn her eyes to him. She slapped him on the shoulder. “This is not the time to joke around,” she whispered. “It’s hard as it is, dressed like this and posing in this position with you.”

He cocked his head to one side. “Oh? You don’t like being this intimate with me?”

Sakura licked her lips. “No, it’s not that. It’s just that doing this in front of so many people...”

A frown appeared on her face, which made Mr. Tachibana call out, “Sakura, your face.”

Sakura gasped and pulled herself together. She turned her face to the camera and hastily posed as she thought befit a model.

“Good,” Jason said. “Excellent.”

Darcy said, “I personally don’t mind.” He gave her a dashing smile that made her heart glow with delight. “In fact, I don’t mind showing everyone how intimate I can be with you, and how much you mean to me.” As if to indicate what he meant, he moved his hand to the back of her neck and gently pulled her face toward his. Up close, he nuzzled his face in the crook of her neck as Jason enthusiastically photographed them.

“Good. Excellent pose,” the man said.

Hayden said, “Wow, Darcy knows what he’s doing, doesn’t he?”

Nicolas chuckled. “Looks like he’s a tough opponent to beat.”

Akira, who had come to stand beside him when the photo shoot began, said, “I didn’t know you were one of the participants, too.”

Before Nicolas could reply, Tristan said, “Of course he is. He’s as smitten with Sakura as the rest of us.”

Beside her, Logan said, “But we know he doesn’t have the hots for Sakura, which is a relief.”

Tristan nodded. “In fact, we are one hundred percent sure who he has the hots for.”

This piqued Akira’s interest, and she asked, “Oh, really? Do tell. Who is it?”

“It’s you,” Hayden said bluntly. “Nicolas has the hots for you.”

That made Akira blush, and Nicolas growled, “You three, shut it.”

It was then that Jane came over and whispered, “You’re next, Conrad, Akira. Better go to makeup now.”

Akira nodded and quickly left, Nicolas’s gaze trailing after her.

Conrad said, “And I was enjoying watching them, too.”

Sebastian asked, “You enjoy watching Sakura and Darcy together?”

Conrad nodded, and before he left, he said, “Yeah. They look good together.”

Sebastian frowned as he watched Sakura and his brother posing intimately on the bed.

As the session went on, Sakura relaxed and became less self-conscious. Whereas Darcy became more daring, his hand intimately touching her bare skin. Then finally, near the end, Mr. Tachibana asked them to do another pose. Sakura found herself exposing the full length of her front to the camera and for every one of the spectators to see—long legs in thigh-high stockings, sexy panties and a bra made of silk and lace, the pattern exotically designed, showing off most of her fair skin and hot body.

Behind her, Darcy had one hand along the right side of her hip while the other wrapped around her left arm. His nose was intimately snuggled at the nape of her neck as he eyed the camera. Sakura herself tried to look as sexy as she could as she gazed at the camera, and then click, click, click.

Sakura knew that behind Jason, Mr. Tachibana, and Miss Ruka, behind the lighting and the crew, were the Princeton brothers and, of course, Sebastian watching them. God, she didn’t feel good knowing he was seeing her this intimate with Darcy.

Is he uncomfortable?

“What’s wrong?” Darcy whispered into her ear as the camera continued to click in front of them.

Sakura shook her head. “Nothing.”

Darcy knew it wasn’t nothing. He knew Sebastian was watching them, and that made Sakura both nervous and worried, which he could understand. To ease her apprehension, he said, “It’s fine. Sebastian understands this is only a job.”

Sakura turned her eyes to him and smiled. He was right, of course, and she shouldn’t worry too much about it.

“Hmm.” She nodded, and then they continued with their photo shoot.

A few minutes later, Jason said, “That’s it.”

Sakura sighed and literally collapsed against Darcy, who gladly embraced her right there in front of everyone. With a smile, he said, “There. Not too bad, eh?”

Sakura chuckled. “I’m glad it’s done. Now, I have to go and change for my next session.”

“You are busy today,” he said.

Sakura nodded.

“Tired?”

Again, she nodded.

“Hey, you two love birds, stop flirting in front of everyone,” Tristan teased.

“You still have another session to go, Sakura,” Logan said. “No time to relax and flirt with your boyfriend.”

That had Sakura blushing. She hastily got up from her seat on the bed. “I’m going,” she said, and then rushed away, passing Mr. Tachibana and Jason, who smiled at her, pleased with her efforts and, of course, the outcome of the photo shoot.

In such a rush, Sakura understandably had forgotten about her robe. And as she headed to the door, the brothers couldn’t help but marvel at her as she passed by, especially her backside.

Once she was gone, Darcy got up from the bed, too, and headed toward his brothers.

Sosuke said, “You were very real during the photo shoot, Darcy. Were you a model before?”

Darcy shook his head. “This was my first time.”

As they all headed out the door, Darcy asked Sebastian, “Were you jealous?”

His face impassive, Sebastian said, “I was. Fuck, it was hard controlling myself. I have to admit it.”

Darcy chuckled. “Now you understand how I felt?”

Sebastian nodded. “Perfectly. But trust, that’s important, and by the end of it, I was fine. So, that was a good experience.”

“Trust,” Darcy said under his breath. “Yeah, that’s important.”

“Also,” Sebastian said, chuckling. “I’ve figured something out.”

Darcy was curious. “What?”

“That she’s hot when she’s with you, and that makes me want her even more,” Sebastian said.

Darcy nodded. “She was plenty hot when she was with you, too. That’s why I got so pissed.” He admitted.

Sebastian chuckled. “I see.”

Ahead of them with the others, Hayden said, “You two are so slow.”

“We’re coming,” Darcy replied.