“Shit!” Darcy swore under his breath. He shouldn’t have picked up the phone. Shouldn’t have at all, and now, what was he supposed to do? Hang up! That was what he was supposed to do.
“Hello? Darcy, is that you? Darling, please, I’m so sorry. Please talk to me. I’ve missed you. I’m very sorry for what happened. There’s no excuse for what I’ve done. I know I slept with the guy, but I swear I’ll make it up to you. I swear, Darcy, sweetheart. Please talk to me.”
Darcy tightened his hand around his cell phone as he stared at the number on the screen. Kate Anderson. It was her again—his ex-girlfriend. The ex-girlfriend whom he’d never had any feelings for, the ex-girlfriend who had cheated on him. Now she expected him to go crawling back to her? Just like that? Did she consider him stupid? He would never go back to her. Not now. Not ever!
He’d never liked her. In fact, he’d never understood why he’d gone into a relationship with her in the first place. Well, to be honest, the relationship had always been one-sided, and that was her side. He had gone along without realizing it because Tara and Alaina had been pulling him along since Kate was their friend.
He gritted his teeth. Shit! She was still going on about her mistakes, begging him to come back to her. He was sick and tired of it and quickly switched the phone off, cutting her off midsentence.
He stood up and threw the cell phone onto the sofa with so much force and frustration that if it were the wall it would have been smashed to pieces.
He needed to be alone to think clearly, to get Kate out of his mind. And, yes, he admitted to himself, to stop himself from thinking about his adopted sister Sakura.
Sakura. Why was he thinking about her? Why was he hurting so much thinking about her? Why was he thinking about her and Sebastian together? Why was he hurting so much when Sebastian had taken her out riding on Hayden’s motorbike? Why had his heart beat so fast when he’d seen Sebastian holding Sakura’s hand? Why had he held his breath when Sakura looked at him?
The expression on her face. Oh, God! It really tormented him. It had caused his breathing to shudder involuntarily and his heart to flutter achingly. There was something in her eyes, something deep, passionate, and longing.
No! Don’t be stupid, Darcy! the voice in his head shouted. She never wanted you. She hated your guts.
“Shit!” he swore under his breath. He needed to get away. He needed to be in his comfort zone, and his room wasn’t his comfort zone anymore. He needed to be somewhere else.
In a split second he was gone out of his bedroom.
He came to the only other places in the house where he knew he’d find peace and quiet. A place where he knew no one would find him. A place high up where he knew he could lie down and think.
He opened the door to the indoor pool and found that it was, as he expected, empty. Yes, he had the place to himself and he was glad.
He headed straight for the stairs that would lead him up high to the diving board above. Once he reached the top, he lay down, put both his arms under his head, and closed his eyes. Instantly, Sakura’s face conjured up in his mind, and his heart started to beat irregularly again, almost painfully.
“Sakura,” he whispered softly. “Why do I feel like this toward you? Why?”
***
Thirteen Years Ago, Summer
Nine-year-old Darcy opened his eyes as he felt something tickling his face. The first thing he saw was the clear blue sky above him. It was a beautiful summer day, and he didn’t want it to ever end. He turned his eyes to the left, and his heart glowed with joy as his eyes met his pretty adopted sister’s.
Ten-year-old Sakura was watching him, a beautiful smile on her lips. She looked like an angel with her dark hair and pale skin. He thought she looked just like Snow White in the fairytale book.
“You’re awake?” she asked softly.
Darcy adjusted his head that was resting on her lap so he could lie there more comfortably. Her thighs were soft beneath his head, and he liked that. He only wished he could sleep on her lap every night instead of his pillows.
He reached out his small hand and started playing with her long hair, coiling the strands about his fingers. He didn’t know why, but he just loved being with her. She made him feel wonderful.
“Did you have a good sleep?” she asked.
“Yes,” Darcy replied.
“Did you have a good dream?”
“Nope.”
Sakura moved her hand and ruffled his dark hair.
“I don’t have good dreams either,” she whispered softly, gazing off into the distance.
Darcy looked up at her, noting her sorrowful expression, which in turn caused his own heart to throb with pain. Of course, he didn’t understand why.
“Do you have nightmares?” he asked.
He watched her nod her head.
“Well, if you have another one, I’ll come and sleep with you. I’ll protect you from your nightmare. I’ll be your bodyguard. I’ll be your prince, Snow.”
She laughed. “You’re only a little boy, Darce.”
“I don’t care. I’ll still protect you even if I’m just a little boy,” he said firmly, giving her a dashing smile. He moved his hand from her hair to touch her face, his fingers caressing her skin.
“You’re such a nice brother, Darce,” she said, returning his smile.
Darcy’s expression quickly changed to a scowl. He sat up abruptly, which caused Sakura to gasp in surprise. He turned to look at her long and hard, his mauve-gray eyes intense on her face. “I’m not your brother,” he muttered darkly.
Sakura was taken aback. “But—”
“I don’t want to be your brother—ever!” he said firmly. “I want to be with you forever, but I don’t want to be your brother.”
“Darce,” Sakura whispered, her face pale and sad. “But I thought you liked me.”
Darcy panicked. No! No! No! He didn’t want to upset her. He just didn’t want her to be his sister; that was all. So why was she so upset? Oh no! She was going to cry.
“I do,” he protested, trying to soothe her sadness. “I like you a lot.”
“Then why?” she asked. “Why, Darce? Why can’t I be your sister like Alaina and Tara?”
Darcy watched two fat tears roll down Sakura’s cheeks. He didn’t understand why himself, but he just knew he wanted to stay with her forever and that he didn’t want her as his sister.
“Because I…”