Chapter 26
The Best Man Wins
When Sakura opened her eyes, it was so bright she had to shut them again. This time, she slowly fluttered her eyelids open to get used to the sharp brightness. As she stared up at the ceiling, she wondered why she was sleeping in so late and why she was feeling so tired.
Slowly she brought her fingers to touch her lips, gently caressing them. Why she was touching her lips she wasn’t sure. She was sure, however, that she’d had a dream. What was it? Why couldn’t she remember?
She continued to stroke her lips as her brain searched far and wide for that elusive dream she was sure she had last night. Then in a flash, what happened yesterday rushed back to her. Suddenly she felt that heavy burden within her chest.
She couldn’t believe she couldn’t defend herself. She was now a twenty-three-year-old woman, and Tara and Alaina had still managed to bully her. This was unacceptable. Why did she let them bully her? It just wasn’t right.
She gritted her teeth. No! From this moment forward, she would no longer allow those two vile women to hurt her. Nope! Not anymore.
At that thought, she fisted her hands and jumped off the bed, suddenly no longer tired. Yes, she knew exactly what to do. She would never drown again—ever!
Without taking a good look at herself, she rushed out the door and headed straight downstairs. With a determined look on her face, she burst through the dining room door.
The brothers, who were at that moment sitting around the table having their very late lunch since they’d just returned from their very unpleasant hairdressing experience, looked up. What they saw nearly sent them to heaven.
Sakura was in her pajamas of cotton sleep shirt and shorts. The buttons of the shirt were mostly undone from the top to midway down her chest, thus showing off her lovely flesh beneath. Since her shirt was quite long, the hem reaching down to just above her thighs, it looked as though she wasn’t wearing any shorts, thus showing off her lovely bare, long, slender legs. Not to mention her hair was a mess, her skin petal white, her lips red, her cheeks tinged a rosy color, and her eyes were wild and large as she gazed at them.
She was hot. She was sexy. And every one of the brothers wanted to ravish her.
Nicolas choked on his coffee, and his glasses nearly fell off his fine nose as he stared at the young woman at the door. Tristan blinked and blinked and blinked yet again. Logan forgot he was pouring himself a cup of coffee and kept on pouring until the coffee was pouring onto the white linen tablecloth. Sebastian had a piece of sandwich in his mouth and it stayed there. Hayden had a piece of sausage on his fork, ready for his mouth, but now the sausage had escaped back onto the plate and the fork was in his mouth by itself. Darcy could only stare at her in shocked surprise. And Conrad grinned, his eyes large, his face flushed red at seeing her in such a seductive state.
Sebastian was the first to gain his wits, and after he’d finished chewing his sandwich and awkwardly swallowed, he cleared his throat and told his brothers to quit staring.
Nicolas cleared his throat also and pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose, returning his attention to his tablet. “You’re messing up the tablecloth, Logan!” he said.
Logan blinked, turned his attention to his coffee, and when he realized what he’d done, he swore under his breath. Tristan laughed at his brother.
Sakura closed the door behind her and announced to the room, “I’ve decided to learn how to swim.”
Sebastian snapped up his head and stared at her in amazement. Darcy widened his eyes, and Conrad smiled even wider. Tristan got up and came around to her. He had a grin on his face that made his brothers suspicious. Without warning, he grabbed Sakura, pulled her into his arms, and hugged her real tight.
“Good morning, Sakura,” he said into her ear, his warm breath fanning her skin.
“What the hell are you doing, Tristan?” Conrad asked.
“Err, good morning, Tristan,” Sakura replied uncomfortably, realizing he’d had a haircut. She blinked and turned to look at the brothers and noticed they all had their hair cut. Sebastian’s blond hair was now cropped to just past his neck and cleanly styled, which made him look even more handsome than ever. Darcy’s long hair was completely gone and now the length only reached just past his neck. He looked very stylish, like some very hot male model in a fashion magazine. His eyes met hers, and she caught her breath at the back of her throat. Oh, God! He looked so different from before and so gorgeous. As for the rest of the brothers, they had their hair professionally trimmed and styled. They definitely looked amazing.
“Morning hugs,” Tristan said. Then he cheekily added, “And now for the morning kisses.”
Within a second flat, Hayden was out of his chair and shoving Tristan back. He pulled Sakura into his arms and hugged her tightly. “I’m giving her morning hugs, too.”
“Why, you brat!” Tristan snapped.
Hayden laughed. “Go lie down, you old dog.” Then he turned his attention to Sakura and said softly into her hair, “Good morning, Sakura. Did you have a good sleep last night?”
Sebastian and Darcy eyed each other with concern.
“Err, good morning, Hayden. Yes, I did,” she said, giving him a cute smile.
Sebastian and Darcy eyed each other again. They wondered if she’d forgotten about her nightmare from last night and them in her room.
“Oi, Hayden!” Logan called out. “Let her go. You’re suffocating her.”
Hayden scowled at his brother and finally did let her go, reluctantly though. Tristan put his hands on her shoulders and his face beside her nape as he said, “Come along now. It’s lunchtime.” He gently nudged her toward the table.
Sakura felt rather weird that he was so close to her. She grinned politely and said, “But I’m only here to ask Sebastian a favor.”
Sebastian choked on his coffee and coughed loudly. Darcy frowned darkly. Tristan decided to look jealous, and Logan chuckled.
“Be careful,” Nicolas said. “It’s hot. Very hot.”
The brothers understood what Nicolas meant, but none of them were paying him any attention. After all, they liked it hot and dangerous. The hotter and more dangerous, the better.
Sebastian, after wiping himself clean from coffee, turned his attention to her and asked, “What is it?”
“Can you teach me how to swim?” she asked, her eyes pleading. “I’ll pay you.”
Tristan made her sit beside him. “Why him, Sakura? I can teach you how to swim.” He leaned closer and said softly, “I can teach you how to put on a swimsuit and take it off again.”
Darcy growled at Tristan, completed with a good scowl. “Any one of us can teach her how to swim,” he said coolly. “It’s not that hard.”
“I can teach you how to swim, Sakura,” Conrad said. “I’m totally a good teacher, and I won’t charge you.”
“Lay off it, puppy boy,” Tristan said. “Sakura wants me to teach her. Isn’t that right, sweetheart?”
Sakura blushed. The brothers knew Tristan was flirting with their adopted sister again.
Nicolas finally put down his tablet and said to his audience, “Since I’m the eldest, I’ll take the responsibility.” He turned to smile at Sakura. “I’ll be your swimming instructor, Sakura.”
Logan folded his arms across his chest and laughed loudly. The brothers turned to look at him as if he’d gone mad. Logan shook his head. “Don’t you think that’s rather unfair?”
Nicolas cocked his head to one side. “Your meaning?”
“Even though you are the eldest, it doesn’t mean you’re the best at swimming or any good at being a swimming instructor.”
Sakura glanced from one brother to another, confused. Good God! She was only here to ask for one favor and now look at where it got her. She didn’t like it one bit that they were fighting over who got to be her swimming instructor. She stood up and was about to say something when Hayden said loudly, “Logan has a point.”
“All ri
ght, we’ll toss a coin.” Tristan suggested.
“No!” Conrad put in. “I’ll be Sakura’s teacher.”
“How about a bet?” Tristan suggested again.
“How about a race?” Sebastian put in.
The brothers stopped arguing and looked at Sebastian, their faces impassive.
“Four hundred meters, freestyle,” he said in a challenging voice.
Conrad looked as though he were about to die. Nicolas frowned. Tristan slumped back in his chair. Logan groaned loudly. Hayden shook his head and chuckled. Darcy said calmly, “You’re on.”
Sebastian nodded and turned his attention to his other brothers. “Well?”
Tristan waved at him to just go ahead and shoot him.
Conrad said, “It’s not fair. I wish I’d trained to swim professionally.”
Hayden said, “I’m in.”
Nicolas got up from his chair and headed out the door. “Let’s go, then.”
Sakura was lost. What were they on about? Why were they competing to be her swimming instructor?
One by one, the brothers got off their chairs and headed out the door. Tristan came to stand behind her, put both his hands on her shoulders, and said very closely to her ear, “Let’s go. The race is about to begin.”
Sakura blinked. “But—”
“Don’t argue now. You know we don’t like to be kept waiting,” Tristan said, pulling her out of her chair.
Sakura reluctantly followed them out of the dining room door, and only moments later she found herself in the pool area with seven grown men.
She shrieked and nearly ran from the scene when she saw Sebastian pulling off his T-shirt. Her heart thumped so loudly in her chest and her stomach flipped so hard she thought she was going to die of a heart attack.
Oh my gosh! Sebastian looked amazing with just his jeans on. His muscles were toned and well shaped, not to mention his six-pack. Sakura had heard of women who liked to look at men, especially at their abs, and sigh with that odd feeling in the pit of their stomachs. She thought that type of thing would never ever happen to her, but she was wrong. She was feeling it right now. Her body felt all tingly, and her breathing became a bit labored.
She saw Sebastian looking at her in that strange way of his again. She bit her lip and hastily looked away, only to see Darcy taking off his shirt, too.
Compared to Sebastian, Darcy wasn’t as bulky, though his muscles were as toned and well-defined as Sebastian’s. His abs were very prominent and caused Sakura’s breath to catch at the back of her throat.
Oh God! Another hot, shirtless man.
Then Nicolas, Tristan, Logan, Hayden, and, of course, Conrad all took off their shirts. Oh, God, she thought. She hoped they weren’t going to go totally naked in front of her. She was about to run away to save herself from the embarrassment of seeing seven hot men naked when Tristan caught her by the shoulders and said cheekily, “How about a kiss for good luck?”
Sakura blushed. “I’m not kissing anybody, and what are you guys doing anyway? I’ve already asked Sebastian to be my swimming instructor.”
“Ah,” Nicolas said, taking off his glasses. “It’s already been decided.” He gave her a grin.
Sakura gasped. Oh gosh! Nicolas looked so different without his glasses. He looked very handsome. His eyes, though perhaps he couldn’t see properly, had that twinkle in them.
“If you guys keep doing this, I’ll ask Richard to teach me instead,” she said loudly, almost in sheer panic. She was panicking because she was surrounded with seven very good-looking, shirtless men who were about to take off their jeans. Breathe, Sakura, breathe, she told herself.
The brothers weren’t listening to her. Sebastian jumped into the pool with his jeans still on, followed by Conrad and Hayden.
Sebastian said loudly, “Richard is a lousy swimmer.”
“Yes, he is indeed,” Logan said, shoving Tristan to the side. “Now then,” he said, leading Sakura by the wrist to the seat near the pool. “You just sit here and enjoy the race, eh?”
Sakura didn’t want any part in their competition and was about to run when Logan chuckled and said, “You know it makes no difference whether you want us to race or not. It’s just us brothers. When we want something we like, we compete for it. And it doesn’t matter if we know we’re going to lose. We’ll still give it our best shot. So just sit there and enjoy the race. There’s a good girl.”
When he saw Sakura wasn’t going to argue, he stood up and jumped into the pool.
Darcy was watching her and noted her feet were pale and turned almost purple. He took off his socks and came over to her.
“Darcy?” Sakura voiced, surprised to find him kneeling before her.
Darcy picked up her left foot and pulled his sock on it. “Your feet are freezing cold,” he said, his warm palms on her skin.
Sakura bit her lower lip as he pulled the other one on her other foot. His touch was gentle, and she felt her heart flutter in her chest.
Darcy glanced up at that moment, and their eyes locked. His heart started to thunder within his chest, and he couldn’t tear his gaze from her.
Sakura bit her lip and blinked, her whole being quivering warmly at his intense stare. Then she also felt the brothers watching them. She looked up, and sure enough, they were.
“I wish I was wearing socks,” Conrad said.
Darcy got up, and with his jeans still on, jumped into the water. Suddenly it was like a real race as the brothers all climbed back out and took their positions.
“On my count,” Nicolas said. The brothers nodded and got themselves ready.
Sakura felt her heart start to thump faster. Her body tensed and stiffened as she waited patiently.
“One,” Nicolas said loudly. The brothers bent forward.
God, Sakura thought, they look like professional swimmers with their tall, lean bodies all bending like so, ready to throw themselves into the water and start the race.
“Two,” Nicolas said.
Sakura gritted her teeth and perched up on the seat, her heart pounding.
“Go!”
Suddenly, they all dived into the water. Splash! From Sakura’s vantage point, she noted that Sebastian had the strongest start, his body hitting the water the farthest, followed by Darcy and then Hayden. Nicolas, Tristan, Logan, and Conrad dived in at about the same distance. Then they were on—head to head—their powerful arms propelling them forward, stroking alternately, their strong feet kicking along.
Sebastian was the first to reach the other end of the pool. He flipped around, kicked his powerful legs against the wall of the pool, and then swam toward the other direction. Darcy wasn’t far behind him, followed by Hayden, Logan, Tristan, Nicolas, and then Conrad. They did another three turns, all in breathtaking pace—neck to neck. Suddenly, Conrad stopped. Sakura panicked because she thought he was drowning. She watched him climbing out of the pool. He seemed to be having trouble breathing.
“I can’t go on any longer,” he puffed out. He was starving for air, and his chest was heaving with exertion. “Sorry, Sakura,” he managed.
Sakura nodded her head and gave him a smile. Conrad nodded back, and then they both turned their attention to watch the intense race that was still going.
A few seconds later, Nicolas climbed out. He wasn’t at all breathless. He said, “I can’t see a damn thing. I need my glasses.”
Conrad gave him his glasses, and after he’d safely put them back on the bridge of his nose, Nicolas sat down and watched the race with interest.
At this time, Sebastian was still in the lead, and Darcy wasn’t far behind him. They only had another lap to go, and then it’d be over. Sakura watched, her stomach flipping and her whole body tense with anticipation. She didn’t know why she was so anxious. Perhaps she was in the competition as well. Although, to be honest, she didn’t really care which of the brothers won.
Then it was the final lap, and Darcy and Sebastian were now side by side, hea
d on. Suddenly, Sebastian increased his power and propelled himself harder and faster. Darcy must have felt it and increased his power, too. Then in a split second, Sebastian reached the end first, followed by Darcy. Hayden wasn’t far behind and Tristan after that. Logan was the last to finish, by a mere five seconds.
Sakura was amazed as she stood there breathless. What an experience, she thought. It was something she’d never expected to see, to feel. God, she felt as though she were with them, swimming along, feeling the power and the adrenaline. Then when they’d reached the end, she stopped breathing completely.
“I can’t believe I’m last,” Logan muttered under his breath.
Tristan, Logan, and Hayden climbed out of the pool, and they all lay down on the marble floor, trying to catch their breath. Sebastian, however, wasn’t even breathless. His face showed it was nothing to him.
Nicolas said, “He didn’t do his best.”
Sakura was confused as she stared wide-eyed at Sebastian’s powerful, handsome body climbing out of the pool. Her whole being trembled with longing. She didn’t understand why, but she yearned to be close to him. She wanted to run her fingers along the length of his toned muscles, to feel his wet, smooth skin against her fingertips. Her insides ached, and she had to control the tremor that seemed to rise within her. Oh, God, fire. There was fire within her that was burning and refusing to die down until…
Sebastian caught her eyes as he stroked back his wet hair. He noticed the look on her face and swallowed hard. Shit, he thought longingly. Holy shit! He couldn’t believe what he was seeing. Did she know she was staring at him that way, that she was practically ogling him with desire?
Conrad’s words penetrated Sakura’s muffled mind. “He isn’t usually that slow.”
“Why the hell did you do that?” Darcy shouted from the pool.
Sebastian glanced away, knowing very well his body had willingly responded to his adopted sister’s intense stare, to what those beautiful eyes of hers were implying. He distracted himself from her by saying, “What? I won, didn’t I?”
“You were mocking us, Sebastian,” Logan said none too gently. “What? Because you didn’t want to make a fool out of us in front of Sakura? Oh, thanks a lot, dear brother.”
Sebastian wasn’t listening to them. His mind was elsewhere. God, how was he going to deal with this forbidden blaze of desire he was obviously having toward his adopted sister? And it seemed, whether she knew it or not or whether she liked it or not, she too was beginning to feel the same way toward him.
He came up to her, standing mere inches from her, his massive height easily towering over her form.
Sakura gasped involuntarily the moment he stopped in front of her. She gazed up at him and caught her breath. He was truly an amazing specimen. His face was gorgeous, and those azure eyes of his penetrated deep into her soul.
Because she couldn’t handle how intensely he was staring, she dropped her gaze and found herself gawking at his massive chest instead. So smooth and still wet. She itched to touch him. Oh, God! What was wrong with her? She shut her eyes, telling herself to stop being so stupid.
When she opened her eyes again, she found herself staring at his abs. The heat! Oh, God! The heat within her body.
Sebastian cleared his throat. He said to her, sounding more like a growl than anything, “Monday morning, ten o’clock sharp, we begin our lessons.” Then he turned on his heel and walked out the door.
Sakura stared after him, confused. “What happened? I don’t understand?” she whispered to herself.
Nicolas said, “If he were to put in all his effort like he used to, he would have finished before any of us even got halfway.”
Sakura wasn’t referring to that. She was referring to her own response to seeing Sebastian in such a state.
“Right,” she said, nodding her head but still confused.
“Oh well,” Tristan said. “I did try my best.” He got up and walked to the door. “It’s shower time.”
One by one the brothers headed out the door.
Sakura turned her attention to Darcy, who was just getting himself out of the pool. She noted that his toned, muscular body was wet, beads of water kissing his smooth skin. As he stood up, he stroked back his dark hair, and incidentally, his eyes met hers. Her breath caught at the back of her throat as he gazed at her. Her heart began to race and her fingers tingled. Her whole body buzzed with a warm sensation, and she felt lightheaded all of a sudden.
“You should go and have lunch,” he said. “You haven’t eaten anything since yesterday.”
Sakura cleared her throat. “Yes, I will later.”
He nodded at her and then left.
Conrad came up to her and asked, “So what are you going to do this afternoon?”
“I have to fix my dress,” Sakura said without thinking, her mind still on Darcy.
“I’ll help,” Conrad announced.
She chuckled. “How?”
“Dunno. But I’ll help.”
“I’m meeting up with Beth, Katherine, and Mary later. They’re here to see how I got on with the dress. I’ll have to tell them about what happened.”
“Are you?”
Sakura laughed uncomfortably. “To the dress. Don’t worry. I’m not about to spread rumors about your sisters attacking me. See ya later,” she said, heading out the door.
Conrad had a sad look on his face as he watched her go.