Sakura, Sebastian, and Michael returned to the holiday house some ten minutes later, and by then the sun had already set. In the foyer, the trio was greeted by Tristan and Logan, who had been waiting for them.

“What makes you so damned arrogant as to steal Sakura away for such a long time, Seb?” Tristan demanded the moment the trio stepped over the threshold of the holiday house. “It’s not like Sakura has already chosen you over us.” He turned to Sakura and asked, “Isn’t that right, darling?”

Logan shook his head as he tsked in disapproval. “And to be out until dark, too. Who knows what naughty things you did to Sakura behind our backs, just so you can have an advantage over us? You certainly need to be disciplined by your elder, Seb.”

Sebastian ignored his brothers’ teasing and asked instead, “I’m starving. When’s dinner?”

Sakura said, “Just so you know, your brother didn’t do anything naughty, Logan. You need to have some trust in Sebastian.” She cocked her head to one side and smiled with narrowed eyes. “I personally think it’d be you and Tristan who’d be doing questionable things behind your brothers’ backs, right?”

Sebastian laughed, as Sakura was spot on in that regard. Meanwhile, both Logan and Tristan managed to look guilty at the allegation.

With a look of confusion, Michael asked, “What’s so naughty about Sebastian kissing Sakura? She’s his girlfriend, isn’t she?”

Sakura blushed bright red at the boy’s innocent comment, while both Tristan and Logan turned to glare at Sebastian.

“Care to explain, Seb?” Logan asked.

Tristan nodded in agreement. “You even spout such nonsense that you’re Sakura’s boyfriend to Michael. This is beyond redemption, Seb.”

Sebastian cleared his throat and said, “Well, we were at the beach and the sun was setting. It felt right.”

With a sour face, Tristan said, “You don’t even bother to lie? You bastard, Sebastian! Shit! My heart. My poor heart.”

Michael said, “Tristan, are you okay? You don’t look like you’re about to have a heart attack, though.”

Tristan decided to teach young Michael a little bit about love. “See here, Michael. What I mean is... I like Sakura, and that bastard Sebastian is stealing her away from me in front of my eyes, and that hurts me deep inside.”

Sakura said teasingly, “That’s profound, Tristan.”

Logan pulled Michael to one side and asked, “They didn’t do anything more than kissing, did they?”

Michael thought about it for a moment and said, “Actually, they did.”

Tristan looked as though he were about to come down on Sebastian and strangle him, while Logan gave him a death glare.

“They were holding hands,” Michael said in explanation.

That drew the brothers’ attention, and Tristan said, “Oh, is that all?”

Michael nodded. “Sakura took loads of photos of me, too.” He grinned from ear to ear, obviously pleased. “It was so much fun.”

“Did she now?” Tristan asked, eyeing Sakura’s digital camera in her hands with a twinkle in his eyes. He moved closer toward her and said suggestively, “How about you and I go out to the beach tomorrow evening, and you take loads of photos of me, too? And then while the sun is setting, we do a little dance and kiss?”

Logan decided to chime in. “And me.”

Sakura couldn’t help herself and chuckled with amusement. “I’m sorry I have to spoil your romantic plans, Tristan. Remember, there are already arrangements made for tomorrow by Mr. Tachibana and Ms. Ruka?”

“True,” Tristan said. “Ah, I do wonder what sort of fun games we’re going to be having. If we must pair up, I’m claiming you first, Sakura.” He leaned in and asked, “Will you be my partner?”

Sebastian said, “Are you actually proposing to her?”

Tristan said cheekily, “What if I am?”

“Over my dead body,” Logan said.

“I can join in, too, right?” Michael asked. “I like games.”

Ignoring Tristan’s expectation of her answer to his proposal, Sakura said to Michael, “Of course. I’m sure there’d be no problem. The more the merrier.”

“If we have to pair up, then I’m going to pick Nicolas ’cause he’s smart and strong,” Michael said brightly. “He’s totally awesome. I’m going to find him now and ask him if he wants to be my partner.” With that, he rushed off in excitement.

Sebastian said, “I guess the only Princetons he looks up to are Dad and Nicolas.”

Tristan nodded in agreement.

Sakura said, “Well, Daddy James is a wonderful person, and Nicolas is the perfect Princeton after all. He is smart and strong, as Michael said, a perfect partner in any sort of game, if you want to win. Also, he’s a gentleman.”

Sebastian eyed her with interest. “And I’m not a gentleman?” he asked curiously.

“Only slightly,” she said, smiling. Then she turned to Tristan and Logan, who looked at her expectantly for compliments. She suspected they wanted her to tell them they were the perfect Princetons, too, and gentlemen to boot, which made her want to laugh because they were certainly not.

She shook her head in the negative and said, “Sorry, you both are far from it. But then again, I’m not particularly into the perfect gentleman.” With that, she turned on her heel and started heading away.

Tristan placed his palm on his chest and made a lovey-dovey expression, while Logan grinned from ear to ear. Sebastian couldn’t help himself, smiling at her suggestive comment.

As she climbed the stairs, Tristan said loudly, “Wear something nice for dinner, darling.”

Sebastian snapped at Tristan. “Don’t call Sakura darling. She’s not your girlfriend.”

Sakura secretly smiled at Sebastian’s show of jealousy, which she found rather amusing.

A few moments later, she came into the bedroom and found both Akira and Jane already freshened up and dressed in summer wear. Akira had on her short sundress, while Jane wore a lovely blouse and shorts.

“How was the walk?” Akira asked, as Sakura headed over to the drawers.

“It was good. It’s actually pretty nice and cool along the beach,” she said, as she put her camera away. Then she went about searching for underwear and something light to wear.

“I hope it won’t be too hot when we start work the day after tomorrow,” Jane said. “Otherwise, it’s going to be hell for everyone.”

Sakura nodded in agreement.

“Have to make sure there’ll be plenty of water for everyone, too,” Jane added. “It’s very easy to get dehydrated here.”

Akira said, “At least the first day is inside the hotel, right?”

Jane nodded in confirmation. “Mostly. One is outside by the pool, though. That slot was arranged for you, Sakura, and Conrad, Hayden, and Akira. But it’s not until late in the afternoon. By then, it won’t be too hot, like midday.”

“And day two?” Sakura asked from the other side of the room, as she was gathering her toiletries.

“Day two is all outside on the beach and in the water. Lots of swimwear,” Jane said. “And I cannot wait because everyone is going to look so hot.”

Akira chuckled. “Lots of testosterone and muscles, eh?” Then she imagined Nicolas with nothing on but a pair of swim shorts, his tall, muscular frame towering over her, and his tanned, smooth skin glistening wet, just like that time she accidentally encountered him back in New York City. Her stomach fluttered deliciously and her heart raced at the image that conjured in her mind.

“Are you going to freshen up now?” Jane asked Sakura, drawing Akira’s attention from her fantasy about Nicolas.

Sakura nodded in the positive. Then she asked, “Are you guys going down now?”

The two girls answered with a yes. Then Akira said, “Because there are a lot of us to feed, there’s so much food preparation that needs to be done, and Beth wants some kitchen hands. We volunteered.”

Sakura nodded in understanding. Of course, it wasn’t like they were staying at the hotel where there was countless professional staff on hand to serve their every whim, especially where food was concerned. Hence, everyone would have to help with the preparation and cooking. Besides, it’d be fun working and eating together.

She said, “I’ll come down and help, too, once I’m done.”

After the two girls left, Sakura headed into the bathroom and started her shower. Even though she had the dial on cold, the water still felt warm on her skin. When she finished shampooing and conditioning her hair, and had thoroughly washed her body and face, she donned a cute summer dress, and then put on a little makeup. Once that was done, she gazed at herself in the mirror, feeling quite pleased with the outcome. The light makeup really brought out her dark-brown eyes and rosy lips.

It was then she noticed something. She hadn’t been wearing her different color contacts for a while now, had she? Why is that? She didn’t know and certainly didn’t want to dwell on it right now because she had more important things to worry about, such as the photo shoot.

Dismissing the thoughts from her mind, she cleaned up her mess and then headed out the door.

---

The moment Sakura stepped across the threshold of the large, modern kitchen, loud chattering voices greeted her. To be sure, the atmosphere was indeed lively and busy. There was Beth along with the two maids, as well as Akira, Jane, and Ms. Ruka, busying themselves with preparing the evening meal. Sakura thought they looked like a bunch of housewives.

As she headed toward Jane and Akira, she noted large platters of raw seafood as well as expensive cuts of red and white meat, sausages, and an assortment of vegetables for the barbeque. Already, her mouth was watering at the sight of such a delicious feast, and her tummy growled knowingly.

“Hi, everyone,” she said, as she came to stand between Akira and Jane, who were preparing the vegetables.

Akira was chopping red bell peppers into bite-sized pieces, while Jane did the button mushrooms. On the other side of the bench, Ms. Ruka was skewering the chopped peppers, button mushrooms, and onions, while one of the maids was marinating the chicken with soy and honey sauce. On the other side of the kitchen, the other maid was skewering marinated beef into kebabs.

“What can I do to help?” Sakura asked, eyeing the array of bright-red pieces of juicy steak before her. She’d have to have some of those tonight, once they were cooked, since she needed to top up on her iron levels. Being anemic and getting tired so easily wasn’t fun, and she certainly couldn’t afford to trouble Mr. Tachibana and his staff when the photo shoot started.

Beth, who was on the other side of the kitchen, busily cleaning and deveining the king prawns, answered for them. “Sakura, won’t you be a dear and take those platters outside? The men can get started with the cooking now. If we wait any longer, I’m sure the Princeton brothers will turn into some wild beasts, due to hunger, and to be frankly honest, none of us wants that. They’d make a racket.”

Sakura couldn’t help but chuckle at Beth’s comment. She could certainly imagine the Princeton brothers shifting themselves into wild creatures because of their hunger. After all, it was already half past seven, and their last meal had been on the plane a while back. Besides that, hadn’t Sebastian already complained that he was hungry since they had returned from their beach walk some half hour ago?

Akira said with a chuckle, “I can certainly imagine that. Tristan and Logan would be the worst of the lot, I would think.”

Sakura smiled as she pulled a large silver tray toward her. On it was an assortment of mussels, king prawns, and squid—all cleaned and ready to be barbequed.

She said, “I agree on that one.”

Jane chuckled as she nodded in agreement, too.

Ms. Ruka said, “Well, I wouldn’t mind if they turned into wild beasts. In fact, I would love to see them turned. They’d be so hot and wild. Shirtless, and with muscles everywhere.” She smiled dreamily. “That gives me ideas.” Then she giggled.

Akira eyed Sakura. As if they found Ms. Ruka’s obsession amusing, the two girls laughed.

“What sort of ideas, Ms. Ruka?” Sakura couldn’t help but ask, arranging the seafood properly on the platter so they wouldn’t fall when she carried them out.

Ms. Ruka giggled and then said, “If we have time, I will certainly suggest to Tachibana-sensei to do an extra photo shoot. There are some scenes I think Tachibana-sensei would definitely approve, though they wouldn’t be suitable for the magazine.”

Akira raised a brow and said, “I can already guess what they are.”

Jane, curious, asked Akira, “What are they?”

Akira, being rather blunt, said, “Guys doing hot and naughty things together. In Japan, it’s call Yaoi. It’s Ms. Ruka’s favorite form of literature.” She even winked.

“Yaoi?” Jane asked, looking rather blank. “Literature?”

Akira nodded. “Yes, literature. Gay stuff.”

Jane blushed bright red immediately. “Oh.”

Akira continued. “It’s very popular in Japan, especially the manga, light novels, and CD drama. I must admit I’m a fujoshi. I binge read the manga and light novels. Very entertaining. And of course, who wouldn’t want to listen to some hot, sexy CD drama, especially when two guys are in the midst of some hot bedroom scenes, with all that moaning, groaning, and heavy breathing?”

Sakura said, “And here I thought you were some innocent chick.”

Akira chuckled and said, “Far from it.” She sounded rather proud, actually.

“The Princeton brothers? Posing? Like intimate scenes? Like bedroom scenes?” Jane asked, looking rather embarrassed all of a sudden.

Akira nodded. “Something like that. You know, brothers’ complex sort of stuff.”

“Brother what?” Jane couldn’t help asking again.

Akira chuckled and decided to enlighten the apparently innocent Jane. “Brotherly love,” she said. “Something forbidden, and oh-so-hot and sexy at the same time.”

Jane looked flustered at the explanation, while Sakura smiled with amusement. When she saw that Jane still couldn’t decide whether this was okay or not, Sakura said, “Jane, those things are only fictional.”

Akira leaned closer to Jane and teased. “If you want to know more, just ask. I’m only too happy to help you learn about that beautiful, exotic world.”

Jane shook her head. “I... I don’t... Not really... I don’t know.”

Akira was amused at Jane’s reaction and couldn’t help but chuckle.

Sakura said, “Stop teasing Jane, Akira. Can’t you see she’s embarrassed?”

Akira only grinned at that, but she did stop teasing Jane, who was still bright red as she furiously prepared the mushrooms.

After she had finished with arranging the seafood into their proper sections, Sakura picked up the platter. “Right, I’m taking these now.”

Akira, who had just finished with the red bell peppers as well, said, “Wait. I’m finished with these. I’ll help you with those.”

Sakura nodded, and a moment later, the two girls started heading out with platters of seafood in their hands.

Outside, the night air was cool and refreshing, and Sakura sighed pleasantly. “Ah, it’s nice out here.”

Akira agreed. “It is, isn’t it?”

As they came into the courtyard garden, with perfectly mowed lawn and marble pavement, she noted the place was breathtakingly mystical and beautiful, with colorful lamps, lights, and lanterns hung from the branches of tropical fruit trees and placed along the structure of the mansion. It felt rather like Christmas in the park during summer.

Sakura had no doubt this must be the Princeton brothers’ creation, though she didn’t know which of them had made the decorations. She knew she could count Sebastian out, as he had been walking along the beach with her and Michael and wouldn’t have been the one responsible for all this work. She could also check both Tristan and Logan off the list as well, since she couldn’t imagine them doing something like this. As far as she knew, they weren’t the type to be involved with the behind-the-scenes work where they and their effort weren’t likely to be acknowledged. They were more of the performer, the showman type.

Sakura noted that the barbeque house was located to one side of the lawn, which apparently Daddy James was currently manning. She wondered if he intended to be the head chef tonight. Scratch that. He was indeed the chef. She just noticed he had on a cute apron, which was designed with a tropical floral pattern. Very Hawaiian indeed. Not to mention he had on a chef’s hat, one of those small, black ones.

Next to the barbeque house was an outdoor bar where Tristan and Logan were busily making cocktails and serving drinks. She wondered if that had always been their responsibility whenever the Princetons had a gathering like this. They looked rather good at what they were doing, with all the mixing and shaking. Meanwhile, sitting on the barstools, casually chatting and drinking cocktails, were Peter and Jim, Mary’s and Katherine’s husbands, respectively.

In front of the barbeque house were several outdoor tables perfectly set up with tropical flower arrangements as centerpieces. Around the exotic bouquets were wine glasses, plates, and cutlery. Everything was arranged so perfectly and beautifully that Sakura would have thought this was a setup for a fancy wedding reception instead of a down-to-earth affair with family and friends.

As she and Akira headed toward the barbeque house, Sakura noted that two of the tables were already fully occupied. Seated at one of them were her biological mother Haruka, her adoptive mother Brenda, and her friends Mary and Katherine. Mary, as usual, was the center of attention and chatting away animatedly as she showed the women photos of her honeymoon in Europe, which Sakura hadn’t yet seen. Of course, they’d be making time for that a bit later, which hopefully would be tonight, if she or Mary weren’t too tired.

At the other table sat Nicolas, Sosuke, Mr. Tachibana, Luke, and, not so surprisingly, young Michael who was beside Nicolas. Sakura wondered if Michael had already asked Nicolas to be his partner for tomorrow’s games. From the starry eyes and big grin she noted on the boy’s face, she assumed he had done so and that his proposal had been accepted, which, of course, pleased Sakura.

Once they arrived at the barbeque house, Sakura did not miss the fact that it was indeed a state-of-the-art design. The equipment was top notch—gas barbeque, stove, oven, and marble benchtop. There was even a large sink for washing, as well. Talk about convenient. Indeed, this was a man’s territory. Daddy James’s territory.

Sakura and Akira were placing the platters of seafood onto the benchtop when Michael rushed up to them.

“Whoa! Looks awesome,” he said, grinning from ear to ear, eyeing the platters. Turning to Akira, he told her, “I love barbeque because there’s lots of meat.”

Akira chuckled. “I love barbeque, too, Michael.”

Meanwhile, Sakura said to Daddy James, “We’ll go and get some more food.”

Daddy James eyed the platters and said, “Thanks, girls. Now we can start cooking. I’m sure everyone is starving. Right, Michael?” He chuckled.

Michael agreed by nodding.

“You want to be my kitchen hand?” Daddy James asked the boy. Again, Michael nodded, this time enthusiastically.

“How about I bring you an apron, Michael?” Akira asked teasingly, her eyes twinkling.

“Thanks,” Michael said. “That’d be awesome.”

Akira nodded, and she and Sakura headed back into the house. They were just stepping into the kitchen when Sakura saw Hayden and Darcy grabbing platters of food to take outside as well. As they passed her, she didn’t miss the fact that Darcy was eyeing her. She gave him a smile before he glanced away. She also noted his hair, as well as Hayden’s, was still wet, so she assumed they must have just finished with their showers. They smelled nice, too, of course.

A moment later, she was just taking another platter out, which contained an assortment of vegetables, when Sebastian appeared.

“Need some help?” he asked.

Sakura noted that his blond hair, too, was wet and that he smelled wonderful. She moved closer to him so she could inhale more of his scent.

She raised her eyes to look up at him and said, “You can help bring those out.” She nodded toward the array of platters on the benchtop.

“Sure,” he said, heading toward them.

Sakura waited while Sebastian retrieved two platters, one in each hand. Then side by side, they headed out.

Beth, who had been watching them while busy with prepping more seafood, said, “Sebastian seems to be getting ahead of his brothers.”

Jane curiously asked Beth, “Why would you say that? It’s not like they’re competing for her or anything, right?”

On the other side of the kitchen, her head poking inside a cabinet, searching for a small apron, Akira said, “It’s a real-life reverse harem romance, Jane. It’s happening.” Then she shrieked with delight. “Found it! I can’t believe there’s actually one. A kid’s apron.” She laughed heartily.

Jane asked, “A real-life reverse harem? Between Sakura and the Princeton brothers? I had no idea.”

Akira chuckled as she descended from the chair she had used to stand on in order to raid the higher cabinets. Once she planted her feet on the floor again, she said, “At least you know what a reverse harem is. And no, not just the Princeton brothers. My brother Sosuke as well. He’s smitten with Sakura, to say the least.”

Jane went more than a little pale at Akira’s comment. “Sos... Sosuke? As well?” She sounded as if she couldn’t believe what she had heard and was rather upset about it.

Akira noted Jane’s ashen expression and couldn’t help but want to laugh with amusement.

She said, “Don’t worry. That lousy brother of mine has the lowest probability of getting Sakura’s attention. In my opinion, Sakura only regards him as just another wonderful relative, a big brother, which he kind of is. So, Jane, don’t worry.” She leaned closer and continued lowly so only Jane could hear. “Just try harder to catch his attention.” She even winked. “He can be quite dense sometimes.”

Jane became flustered by Akira’s suggestion and said, “Akira, it’s nothing like that. Sosuke... He’s...”

“Do your best, Jane,” Akira said. With that, she turned to take another tray of food and then headed out the door, while Jane, who watched her go, blushed severely.

After that, one by one, the platters of seafood, meat, and skewered vegetables were taken out onto the deck, where Daddy James, the head chef, along with his helpers Hayden, Darcy, and of course young Michael barbequed the immense and various food. Meanwhile, Sebastian, Jim, and Peter were having a fine time drinking and chatting at the bar area.

After everything was set, Sakura decided to join her biological mother Haruka, her adoptive mom Brenda, and her friends Mary and Katherine, who were sitting around a large outdoor table, nibbling on some deep-fried food as starters to appease their hunger.

Sakura came to sit beside Mary, who was chatting on nonstop about her trip around Europe during her honeymoon, and showing everyone photos of her and her husband’s wonderful journey.

Sakura was nibbling on some almonds when Michael came to squeeze in between her and Mary, which made Mary frown with disapproval.

She said, “Honestly, Michael, announce yourself before surprising people.”

Michael said, “Sorry, but I want to sit next to Sakura.”

Mary rolled her eyes, while Sakura chuckled merrily.

A moment later, Tristan appeared behind her and offered her a glass of champagne. “Here you go, darling sis,” he said.

Sakura stared at it for a moment and said, “Thanks,” as she took it.

“How have you enjoyed the evening so far?” he asked politely, which made her a little suspicious.

“Err... Good,” she said, her eyes on him.

He chuckled, his eyes twinkling with delight. “Thank goodness you listened to my suggestion. You wore something nice. It looks good on you.”

Sakura said, “I wasn’t wearing it for you, Tristan. I just thought something light would be nice and cool because it’s so hot here.”

Conrad suddenly appeared behind Tristan and said, “Stop flirting with Sakura, Tristan. Go back to your workstation and make more drinks for the adults. Can’t you see they’ve run out?” He rolled his eyes.

Tristan chuckled. “Oops! My bad.” He turned his attention to the adults and said, “I do apologize, my most important guests.”

Haruka said, “No, it’s fine.”

“Another glass, please,” Mr. Tachibana said.

“Me, too,” Mary said, handing Tristan her empty glass. “More orange juice for the pregnant woman here.”

“Of course, my lovely cousin,” Tristan said, as he took the glasses. “Anyone else want to order more drink while I’m here?” The question was followed by shaking of heads. “All right, then.” With that, he turned on his heel and headed back to the bar.

It wasn’t long before the smell of deliciously barbequed food reached them, and a moment later, Daddy James announced, “Come on, everyone, start serving yourselves.”

Immediately, everyone started toward the cooked food set on one side of the table. Three big platters were brought around for the adults, while the young ones served themselves.

The next hour was mostly eating and drinking, with the Princeton brothers, mainly Tristan and Logan, making a lot of chatter and jokes, entertaining everyone.

During the meal, Sakura found herself sitting at a smaller table with Akira, Jane, Conrad, and Michael.

As she was enjoying her grilled lobster with garlic butter, Sakura heard Jane say meekly to Akira, “So, can you show me some of that Yaoi stuff when we get back to our room?”

Sakura nearly choked on her piece of meat, while Akira smiled with glee.

Nodding in approval, Akira said, “Glad to have finally found another potential Yaoi fan. We’ll have heaps of fun tonight. I’ll make sure to show you lots of stuff. Who knows? You might become a fujoshi like me.” She chuckled heartily. A moment later, she turned to Sakura and offered, “You’re welcome to join, Sakura.” She even winked.

Conrad looked from one to the other and said, “That sounds fun. Can I join in?”

Akira looked at Conrad for a moment and then burst out laughing. She shook her head and said, “No, you are not allowed to join in.”

He frowned. “Why not?”

“Because it’s girl stuff,” she said.

Sakura chimed in. “I’m sure you won’t be interested in this sort of thing, Conrad.”

Michael decided to join in the conversation as well. “I might, though. So, what is it?”

Akira turned to the boy and said, “It’s for adults only, not suitable for kids.”

Michael pulled a face as he said, “I wish I was an adult.”

Conrad said, “I’m an adult, and I still can’t join them.”

Michael nodded in agreement. “True.”