Sakura, Akira, and Conrad’s photo shoot took place by the pool on the nineteenth-floor. In the late afternoon, the light perfectly shone on the trio dressed in Mr. Tachibana’s newly designed clothes.
Sakura, in an elegant lacy, flowy summer dress that enhanced her slender figure, looked enchanting as her long hair danced in the gentle breeze. Her smile was radiant as she faced the camera, one hand over Conrad’s shoulder. Akira, in a sexy black, flowy dress, stared smolderingly at the camera as she rested her elbow on Conrad’s other shoulder. Then there was young Conrad himself, dressed in a classic, stylish three-piece suit, looking as though he were on top of the world with a beautiful woman on either side of him.
Mr. Tachibana was extremely pleased with the trio as he encouraged them to pose as though they were having an awesome time at a summer party, which indeed they did, especially Akira, who rather enjoyed herself tremendously.
Then, all too soon, Jason said, “That’s it. Well done, you three.”
Sakura laughed as she fanned herself with her hands. “Wow. That was good. And it’s hot out here, too.”
Akira nodded.
Conrad was chuckling. “I wish we could go on. That was fun.”
Tristan shouted from the sidelines, “Hurry up, you three. We still have one last photo shoot to go until our day ends.”
With that, Jane shooed everyone back to the makeup rooms to get them ready for the last session of the day, the group photo shoot in the restaurant.
About an hour later, Sakura found herself in another corner of the restaurant with its great view of the ocean in the distance. With her were Akira, Sosuke, Tara, and, of course, the Princeton siblings, Nicolas, Tristan, Logan, Sebastian, Hayden, Darcy, Conrad, and Alaina. Every one of the men was in a sleek three-piece suit, while the girls wore cocktail dresses.
With her long hair down, Sakura wore a pale-pink satin and lace sweetheart gown. She was directed to sit in the middle on the antique sofa. Meanwhile, beside her on her left was Sebastian, who looked like some young, arrogant business tycoon sitting there with one leg crossed over the other as he leaned back against the seat.
On her right was Logan, smiling cheekily as he was instructed to lean forward, to direct his eyes and hot smile at the camera. Half sitting on the arm of the sofa next to Sebastian was Nicolas, who had Akira intimately in his arms. Leaning slightly against the arm of the sofa next to Logan was Tara and beside her, slightly to the back, was Alaina. Sosuke was standing right behind Sakura, his hands in the pockets of his trousers, while he stared smolderingly at the camera.
Sitting in the armchair next to the sofa was Conrad, who was supposed to look relaxed. Meanwhile, half sitting on the arm of that chair was Darcy, hands in the pockets of his trousers, looking broodingly handsome. Lastly, leaning against the window were Tristan and Hayden, all aloof and stunningly hot.
Once everyone was where Mr. Tachibana wanted them, Jason started shooting rapidly, taking in wide-angle shots where every one of the beautiful people was in the frame. Some fifteen minutes later, Mr. Tachibana asked them to change positions, and then the shooting continued again.
Some half an hour later, Jason finally said, “That’s a wrap for today, everyone.”
A loud cheer went up, followed by Sakura heaving a deep sigh.
Beside her, Akira chuckled. “Finally, eh?”
Sakura nodded. “It’s been a long day.” She turned to the window and looked outside. “And the sun is setting, too. It must be pretty late.”
Akira nodded. It was after six in the evening.
“Good work, everyone,” Mr. Tachibana said. “Let’s clean up for the day. Remember, we have an early start tomorrow, too. Please don’t exhaust yourself partying. Wait until tomorrow night.”
A chorus of yeses came from his staff and, of course, the models, including Sakura.
Once changed into her normal jeans and T-shirt, Sakura, along with Akira and Jane, met up with the Princeton brothers and Sosuke at the elevator. The group then headed out of the hotel and into the van.
Sakura sighed as she took a seat at the back. “I’m beat.”
Conrad came to sit beside her and said, “You worked hard today, Sakura.”
Turning to him, she said, “Yeah. At least I didn’t mess it up.” She was glad, because she’d thought things might have been pretty bad.
In front of her, Akira said, “You did good. I’m sure Tachibana-sensei is pleased, especially with that bedroom scene.” She even winked at Sakura.
The reminder of her session with Darcy in the bedroom made Sakura blush. Of course, it didn’t help that she chanced to glance away from Akira, only for her eyes to meet Darcy’s, who gave her an endearing smile that made her heart leap with joy.
He looked rather pleased, and that made her happy.
The rest of the brothers boarded the van a moment later, and Nicolas, the driver, started the engine.
“Everyone ready?” he asked from the front. A chorus of yeses sang back at him, and he started driving out of the parking lot.
Some twenty minutes later, the group arrived back at the holiday house, and the instant they got out of the van, the delicious smell of food reached them.
“Oh, God,” Sakura said. “I’m starving.”
“Me, too,” Jane said. “I ran around like a headless chicken today.”
That made Sakura laugh. When she stopped, she said, “Yes, you did, didn’t you? Back and forth and here and there.”
“Can’t be helped,” Jane said. “It’s my job, after all. And I do like it.”
Sakura and Jane waited for Akira while the brothers and Sosuke headed into the house first.
“Sorry,” Akira said. “I was just checking to see if I got all my stuff in my bag.”
“No worries,” Sakura said. “Shall we go in?”
Akira nodded, and the trio headed toward the house. As they approached the stairs, Beth announced to the new arrivals that dinner would be served at eight, which of course made both Sakura and Jane groan in despair, while Akira laughed.
Once inside their shared room, Sakura requested to shower first, since she wanted a little rest before dinner. Jane and Akira agreed.
“You do that, Sakura,” Jane said, “while I sneak into the kitchen and see if I can find something for both of us to munch on until dinner.”
Sakura nodded. “Good idea.”
Akira said, “I’ll come, too. After all, I am a bit peckish.”
As Sakura headed into the bathroom, Akira and Jane headed out the bedroom door. Then some twenty minutes later, Sakura reemerged feeling refreshed after a good cold shower. She crashed on her bed with a satisfied sigh. It was then that Akira and Jane returned, along with a tray of goodies and, of course, a tagalong, Michael.
“Hey, Sakura,” the boy said, coming in through the door.
Sakura rolled onto her side as she returned the greeting. “Hey, Michael. How was your day today? Fun?”
Michael came to sit on her bed as Jane put the tray of food on the table between them. Meanwhile, Akira came to join the group after shutting the door.
Sakura eagerly reached out and got herself a piece of club sandwich. She took a bite and smiled with appreciation. After swallowing, she asked, “So, what have you and everyone else been doing today?”
As Sakura, Akira, and Jane ate silently, Michael recited his adventures with everyone on a tour to the city, and then the beach that day. By the time he was halfway through his narration, Sakura was on her fifth piece of club sandwich.
Akira said, “You should stop eating, Sakura. Otherwise, you won’t be able to eat dinner. You’ll be too full.”
Sakura nodded at that and reluctantly pulled her hand back.
Time passed quickly as Michael continued to relate his adventures with the families, and by the time he was finished, it was almost eight o’clock. Thus, the girls and Michael went down to join the others for dinner, a loud and cheerful affair as everyone enjoyed the meal.
Tristan and Logan, of course, entertained everyone with their jokes, per usual.
They were having dessert and sitting around the living room when Daddy James came to sit beside Sakura. “How was your first day on the job?”
Sakura smiled, pleased that he was asking her about her work like any nice adoptive father would. “It was better than I expected. I mean, it was nerve-racking when I first went in, but after I got used to the people and the surroundings, it was good.”
Of course, she didn’t tell him about the intimate scenes she had with his six sons. He’d probably flip upon hearing the full details. God, she hoped he wouldn’t see the catalogue when it came out next month.
James said, “Yet, you look worried.”
Sakura blinked. “Do I?” She chuckled nervously.
It was then that Conrad interrupted. “Sakura was beautiful today, Dad, in Mr. Tachibana’s clothing. I mean, she looked like an exotic princess.”
James chuckled with amusement. “Did she now?”
Tristan said, “Yep. A hot princess all right.”
Beside her, Michael suddenly said, “Sakura, do you know that you have bruises on your neck? Did you get insect bites at work today? Is it common to get insect bites in Hawaii?”
That drew everyone’s attention to Sakura, which made her blush profusely.
Her hands flew to her neck, touching the marks. “Hmm. It’s nothing, Michael.”
Akira, of course, only added fuel to fire when she said, “Yes. Pests to be precise. Two of them I might add.”
“What is this?” Tristan suddenly stood from his seat and came toward Sakura. “Pests? Bites?” Up close, he bent over and inspected her neck.
Sebastian said firmly, “Tristan. Get away from Sakura.”
“Stop making such a big deal out of it,” Darcy said with a dark frown.
Tristan, of course, ignored the two as his eyes zoomed in on Sakura’s neck. Suddenly, he said, “By Jove! There’re two bloody hickeys.”
At this, Logan demanded, “Hickeys? On Sakura! Who would dare do such a thing to our sister princess?”
Everyone in the room laughed out loudly.
Mary said, “Sounds like you’re jealous, Logan.”
“I am not,” the man retorted.
“Who’re the pests?” Tristan asked, making a show of looking around the room, searching for the culprits.
Michael asked, “What’s a hickey?”
Mary said, “There’s no need for you to know what that is, Michael. It’s an adult thing.”
Michael asked, “So, some pest did adults things to Sakura?”
At this, the whole room roared with laughter again.
Sakura blushed even more. Thank God her biological mother, Haruka, and adoptive mom, Brenda, weren’t around, as well as Mr. Tachibana and Ms. Ruka, to hear this ruckus. Otherwise, she’d be even more embarrassed.
Across the room, Sebastian and Darcy were frowning.
James finally said, “All right. That’s enough, everyone. You’re making Sakura uncomfortable.”
“The uncomfortable ones should be the pests,” Logan said, eyeing Sebastian and then Darcy.
Sebastian said, “Stop blowing things out of proportion, Logan. And Sakura looks tired.” He turned to her. “We have an early start tomorrow.”
She nodded. “Yes, we do.” She stood up and said, “Good night, everyone.”
A chorus of good-nights was said in return, and she, Jane, and Akira left the room.
Up in their bedroom, Sakura found that she was restless, despite her tiredness from the day’s work. As she lay there with her eyes closed, her mind kept wandering off, thinking about Sebastian and Darcy, about their confessions to her and their love for her.
Decide.
She had to decide by tomorrow which brother she would choose to date, to become a couple with. But was that even possible? To choose one and not the other when she loved them both? When they both were good men and had been so good to her?
Was it even possible for her to leave one with a broken heart? Could she handle knowing that she was fully responsible for that man’s unhappiness?
Oh, God! The decisions. The pain. The torment. And the confusion.
She opened her eyes, frustrated.
There was no way she could delay much longer. After all, she owed it to them. She couldn’t leave them hanging. She had to tell them something.
But what is my final decision?
Should she choose Sebastian? The man who had always been there for her, and had helped her since they were young. The one who had saved her numerous times, and at times had even risked his own life for her.
Or should she choose Darcy? The man who had loved her since they’d been young. The man who had been her best friend and stuck by her side. The man who had made her smile when she had been so alone and depressed.
She let out a big sigh, her mind now more confused than ever.
No, she thought. Just for a moment, she wanted to stop thinking about them, about the decisions and the pressure. Just for a moment.