Falling For Sakura (Falling For Sakura Trilogy, #1) (15 page)

Mary turned to look at Logan and Conrad behind her again. “Are you sure you’re not gay?” She teased.

Conrad folded his arms across his chest. “I’m positive.”

It was Logan’s turn to speak. “Sakura, my sweet sister.”

This
welcomed a surprised, weird stare from Mary, and she laughed. She said, “Sweet sister? I think Sakura is anything
but
sweet.”

Sakura tightened her hands o
n the steering wheel. It wasn’t what Mary had just said that bothered her. It was because Logan had called her
my sweet sister
.

“Are you bringing that
… what’s his name?” Logan cocked his head to one side, pretending to search his brain for Mark Chatsworth’s name. “That doctor at the lab.”

“Mark?” Mary volunteered excitedly.

“Yes,” Logan said. “Are you bringing him to the wedding?”

“Naturally,” Mary said. “Of course.”

Conrad couldn’t help himself and asked, “What? So are you guys like dating or something?”

Mary laughed. “I wish. I’ve been working on it for
so long and so damn hard. I know in my guts that Mark likes Sakura, but she won’t budge—the beam pool.”

Sakura said, “I’m not ready for a relationship,
Mary. I told you already. I’ve got other plans. And I’m not a freakin’ beam pool.”

“Yeah. Yeah.” Mary w
aved. “We know you’ve got super-hot breasts, Sakura. But you know romance doesn’t come your way every day, and besides, finding the perfect man in your life isn’t that easy either.” She turned to Logan and Conrad. “How about we work together?”

Conrad was momentarily d
aydreaming about Sakura’s super-hot breasts. He wondered what they looked like and—

“Conrad?”
Mary shouted.

He jolted back to reality. “What?”

“To get this friend of mine and Mark together?”

Logan frowned darkly, and Conrad said, “No!”

Mary harrumphed. “Fine. I’ll work on it myself, then.”

A few minutes later, they arrived in town
. It was a picture-perfect little town with beautiful old buildings dating back to the eighteenth century. Most of the shops and eateries were set up by the waterfront. Hence they had an excellent view of the beach and the blue ocean beyond. In the far distance, one could almost see New York to the west if one had a good imagination.

Sakura parked the car along the side of the road, and they all got out. Logan stretched out his lo
ng legs and arms and inhaled the fresh air.

“Ah. It’s so good,” he said.

“Come on, Logan,” Mary said, pulling him by the arm. “We don’t have much time. We still have to go and see the florist.”

“Such
fun,” Logan responded.

Conrad rushed up to walk beside Sakura when he saw that his brothers were getting out of the other car parked not too far away and
knew soon they’d be onto them. He had to take quick action, he decided.

“So,” he said
to Sakura. “It’s nice today.”

“Yes
,” Sakura replied.

“I suppose it’ll be lu
nchtime by the time we finish.”

“Yes,” Sakura said, look
ing up at him, wondering what he was on about.

“I know a nice place,” he said. “I thought maybe you and I could go. We could get to know each other a bit more.”

Sakura smiled up at him, her eyes twinkling. She wondered if he wanted to be friends with her and perhaps get to know her a bit better as adopted siblings. Or perhaps she wondered if he was playing tricks on her. But then again, why would he? He was a grown adult. No one had time for that sort of bull now, and to be frankly honest, neither did she.

“Well,” she said
.

“Please come
,” he almost begged her, his eyes large as he waited expectantly.

Sakura thought he reminded her of Toby and coul
dn’t help chuckling. “All right,” she agreed. “But I know a place where we should definitely go. You’ll like it.”

“Yes!” Conrad yelled out excitedly as though a girl had just accepted a date with him.

“Yes what?” Sebastian asked from behind.

By that time, all the brothers had caught up
with them. Sakura turned around to have a look. Her heart skipped a beat as she gazed at the brothers, and it did a triple skip once her eyes met Sebastian’s.
Oh, God!
Why was her heart beating so hard? Why was she finding it so difficult to breathe properly? Not to mention her stomach kept flipping again and again.

She glanced away and looked at all of them instead. They were
an awesome sight, she thought. They looked like they were advertising for Levi’s or something, with their long legs and tall frames. Oh my God! If she had her camera, she’d take photos of them and post them up for sale. Lots of commercial companies would buy them for their advertisements.

“Going out to lunch after this, are we?” Tristan said. “Good, I’m almost starving.”

Conrad widened his eyes in surprise. “What?” he shouted. “No!”

“Actual
ly, I’m slightly hungry already,” Logan put in.

“Me too,” Hayden said.

“We only just had breakfast,” Darcy interjected.

“I’m still growing,” Tristan replied easily.

“At twenty-six?” Nicolas asked teasingly.

“It’s decided then
,” Sebastian put in matter-of-factly. “We’re all going to lunch after this.”

“What?” Conrad growled. “No!”

Mary laughed and shook her head. “You guys are hilarious!” she said through tears. “It’s so much fun with you guys.”

“What’s so hilarious?” Darcy frowned at Mary. “These guys are a bore.”

Sakura sighed, wondering why they were fighting about lunch and who was going or not. Surely they were all going, right?

Finally they
reached The Dessert Room, and Sakura was very glad indeed that they didn’t have to argue about lunch anymore. However, she wasn’t so glad two hours later when the brothers all stood before her and practically begged her to taste their choices of cakes—not that they were much different since they were mostly chocolate.

“I thought this was supposed
to be Mary’s choice, not mine or yours,” she said.

“But we’re helping her,” Conrad said. “Isn’t that right, Mary?”

Mary nodded. “My choice is chocolate.”

“Me too,” T
ristan said. “Speaking of which…” He moved and stood so close to Sakura that he could be kissing her. “Chocolate is similar to the color of your eyes. Deep, dark, and dangerously delicious.”

Sebastian wasn’t please
d with his brother’s use of alliteration to describe chocolate and Sakura’s brown eyes. For sure, the man was flirting with her. He grabbed Tristan’s arm and yanked him away from Sakura, who blushed intensely.

“Stop flirting
around,” he muttered.

“All right, all right,” Mary said finally. “Look, we’re here for almost two hours now. Surely we’ve reached some type of conclusion. I want chocolate.” She turned to Nicolas and asked him. “You?”

“Chocolate,” Nicolas said.

Mary turned to Darcy
, who said, “Chocolate.”

Next
was Hayden. “Definitely chocolate.”

Logan said, “Of course chocolate. What else?”

“Chocolate, the color of Sakura’s eyes,” Tristan said, winking at her.

Sebastian said
, “Chocolate.” He eyed Sakura, who at that moment decided to lick the last of the white, fluffy cream by popping her finger into her mouth and sucking. All the brothers were watching her, their eyes fixed on her sensuous lips and the slender finger that slowly moved out of her mouth.

Her innocent action was so erotic that the brothers were
actually panting, and their bodies were heating up knowingly.

Mary, with her
head still down and jotting notes, finally asked the youngest brother, “And you, Conrad?”

“Sakura,” he said softly. “I like Sakura. I want Sakura.”

All the brothers felt the same way and couldn’t help but look at her like little pups who wanted to be petted.

“No,” Mary said, jotting down notes furiously. “You can’t have Sakura. Sakura is not on the menu. It’s a Japanese flower and you can’t eat it anyway.”

Sakura blinked and turned to look at Conrad. “Are you okay?” she asked.

Conrad b
linked. “Err, yes.” He chuckled uncomfortably.

Nicolas wa
s the first to regain his wit and coughed loudly to distract his other brothers from the trance. Sebastian managed to get himself out too and cleared his throat. “So chocolate it is, then, Mary?” he said.

“
Yes, it is,” Mary replied, finally looking up and giving them a big smile. “Thanks so much for your help, guys. Now then, off to the florist we go.”

“I’m no good with flowers,” Sebastian said, feeling rather awkward all of a sudden.

There was something in his voice that Sakura noted that didn’t quite sit well within her. Actually, all the brothers were acting a bit weird all of a sudden. What was wrong with them?

“I’m going to wait out at the beach. Come get me when you’re done,” he said, heading to the door.

“Me, too.” Nicolas chuckled. “Not good with flowers.” Then he headed after Sebastian. They both walked out the door side by side.

“Flowers aren’t
my thing either,” Darcy said, frowning darkly. He gave Sakura a quick glance and then walked out the door. Sakura noticed him looking at her. She thought there was something in his eyes—something secretive and almost painful.

“I’m good with flowers,” Tristan said
happily.

“That’s because you sent too many of the
m to your women,” Logan teased. “Come on, we better leave the ladies to this.” And he practically dragged Tristan out the door.

Hayden shook his head. “This turned out to be no fun and game. If I keep going
, I’m going to fall really hard,” he said, and before leaving the shop, he dragged Conrad out with him by hooking his arms around his little brother’s neck. “Let’s go join our bros,” he said. “Come get us when you’re done and ready for that lunch.” Then they were out the door as Conrad protested wholeheartedly.

Sakura cocked her head to one side, wondering what
the heck was wrong with them.

“Boys,” Mary said. “They ru
n away when they lose interest.”

C
offee, Coffee, & More Coffee

“Aren’t you going to get that?” Logan
asked Darcy, getting rather annoyed at the insistent ringing of the cell phone.

Darcy shrugged his shoulders and said, “Not that important. Whoever it is will leave a message. I’m on holiday, after all.”

“Good point,” Logan said. “Let’s just hope it’s not from the company.”

“If it is,” Darcy said
, “they’d contact Hayden. He’s the boss.”

“The boss is on holiday, bro.
” Hayden chuckled. “They won’t dare bother me. After all, I’ve already placed Tim in charge. He should take care of things just fine.”

The ring
ing stopped, and Darcy sighed in relief. Oh, he knew very well it was Kate Anderson, his ex-girlfriend, who had called him insistently. That was why he wouldn’t pick up. She’d been texting him too, since the first night he’d arrived on the island, apologizing to him that she shouldn’t have been so rash to him back there and that she wanted to get back with him. She was full of bullshit, of course, and Darcy was frankly sick and tired of her insistent text messaging and ringing.

He
relaxed, resting his weight on his elbow as he stared off into the distance across the beach, enjoying the view.

“We should go surfin
g,” Sebastian suggested.

“It’ll have to be on the other side of the
island, though,” Nicolas said. “St. Helena Beach, better waves there.”

“Yeah, we could stay at the cabin in the wood
s,” Logan added. “For a couple of days.”

“Good
idea,” Darcy said. “I’m ready for a bit of solitude.”

Yes
,
he thought. That was what he needed—
solitude
. More importantly, he needed to get away from Sakura. He needed to keep some distance between them, both for his peace of mind and for his heart.

It was an hour later when Mary called
out to them. “Hey!” she shouted from the top of the beach. “You guys hungry or not?”

Conrad jumped up immediately. “Definitely!” He brushed
the sand off his jeans and ran up to them. “Been waiting for ages.”

The brothers got up as well and made their way
to where the two girls were waiting for them.

Sebastian
noticed Sakura standing there with her long hair dancing in the wind and her floral skirt fluttering about her slender legs. She looked like a beautiful heroine standing by the cliff’s edge, waiting for the return of her lover who’d gone off to war. His heart skipped a beat. He gritted his teeth at that.
She’s your adopted sister
, he told himself.
You can’t feel this way toward her. You simply can’t.

They reached her, and Conrad quickly got to her
side like a loyal pup. Sebastian couldn’t help himself either and walked behind her. He could smell her beautiful scent again, which he simply loved. Not to mention her long hair kept flirting with his face, which he also loved.

They came to a sma
ll café a couple of blocks farther. It was facing the beach and had a very good view of the ocean. It was also jam-packed with costumers.

“Jesus! I wonder if we’ll get a table,” Mary said. Then she thought to add, “Or two.
” She glanced behind her at the seven brothers.

Sebastian
was impressed with the café. It was medium-sized with very nice, warm décor of earthy colors which made one feel immediately cozy. In fact, he was surprised there were so many tourists there right now. He wasn’t impressed, however, when a boy of about eight years old rushed up to Sakura and wrapped his arms around her waist, giving her such a long and tight hug.

“You’re back!” he said with a big grin on his face.

Sakura tousled his dark hair and chuckled. “I haven’t been away that long at all. I didn’t know you’d miss me that much.”

“I really
missed you,” the boy said with the biggest, fattest grin on his face.

“All right,” Sakura said. “Shall we find a table to sit?”

“Yes,” the boy said, finally letting go. “Just you and me.”

“And what about me?” Mary interrupted. “So you didn’t miss me?”

The boy chuckled. “I missed you, Mary.
Just not that much, though.”

Mary laughed. “Well,
if you must know, Michael, I didn’t miss you that much either.”

The brothers, by this point, wanted to know who the boy was.

“And us?” Nicolas asked the boy.

The boy
sucked in his breath and froze in his place as he stared up at Nicolas.

“James?” he shrie
ked. “What have you done? You look so young.”

The brothers too
k the opportunity to laugh at Nicolas. The eldest brother wasn’t pleased with their behavior and gave them a good scowl.

“I’m Nicolas,” he said to the boy. “I’m James’
s son, the oldest one.”

Michael stared wide
-eyed at the seven brothers. “All seven of you are here!” he said in awe. “Mom is going to be so pleased. Come on, I’ll find a table for us.”

With
that the boy led them by taking Sakura’s hand to the long table by the window that had a great view of the ocean beyond. The brothers took their seats around the table while Michael made sure Sakura sat next to him.

Tristan said loudly, “You have competition, Conrad. Better work harder.”

At this the brothers laughed again, and Conrad muttered something under his breath. Just then a pretty brown-haired and green-eyed young woman came to their table. Sakura got up and gave her a hug, which caused the brothers to wonder who this woman was.

“Hey,” Sakura said.

“Hey,” the woman replied. Then she moved over to hug Mary.

“I’ll definitely come over tonight to try on that dress. Peter and Richard are arriving this afternoon, right?”

Mary nodded. Then she turned to the brothers. “Boys,” she said, “this is Katherine Hodge. She’s my maid of honor, and Michael’s stepmom, by the way.”

“She’s a great mom,” Michael said. “And I love her very much.”

Sakura tousled his hair again. “Yes, she is a great mom.”

“I’m so sorry, guys, but we’ve been flat out today, and we’re also short staff
ed.”

“No worries,” Mary said, putting her hand up. “I’ll help.” With
that, she got up and headed toward the kitchen as if she knew what she was doing.

“Thanks, Mary. You don’t have to,” Katherine said,
running after her friend.

Sakura saw no other option once they were left alone. No one was
going to take their orders, so she stood up and asked the brothers what they wanted.

“Are you going to be our waitress?” Darc
y asked. There was a surprised look in his eyes that Sakura couldn’t quite miss.

“Yes, I am,” she replied nicely. “Why?”

“Nothing,” he said, looking away.

“Are you going to wear
one of those cute uniforms like the rest of them?” Tristan asked cheekily.

Sakura chuckled. “I usually do,” she said. “
But not today. I don’t have it with me.”

This
totally shocked the brothers, and they, especially Tristan and Logan, grinned cheekily. Sebastian knew his brothers’ minds were wandering off into their fantasy worlds involving Sakura and a sexy uniform and expressed an “Oi!” loudly to get their attention. This managed to retrieve his brothers back from la-la land.

Logan
had the courtesy to cough to hide his sneaky smile. Tristan sighed with a happy expression on his face. Hayden chuckled. Conrad blushed. Darcy shook his head as though they were beyond help. And Nicolas managed to laugh uncomfortably. He couldn’t believe that he too had managed to lose himself to such an imagination with a simple suggestion.

“Cappuccino for me,” Sebastian
said. “And an open steak sandwich.”

“Yes,” Nicolas
said, clearing his throat. “A cappuccino for me and an open steak sandwich as well, thank you.”

Conrad was about to tell her his order when Michael interrupted
him loudly. “I want hot chocolate and some hot chips please. Oh, and I want a cute teddy bear on my hot chocolate please.”

Sakura chuckled. “
Indeed, you may have that cute teddy bear.” Then she turned to Conrad, who was riling and frowning at eight-year-old Michael. “A mochaccino and pasta, thanks,” he said.

Sakura nodded, and one by one the brothers told her what they wanted.
They were very surprised to see that she didn’t write their orders down and went straight to the point-of-sale machine behind the counter to order everything herself, as if she owned the place. They were even more surprised when she went to the coffee machine and expertly began making their hot drinks. When fifteen minutes later she returned, it was with two silver trays carrying their orders.

“Cappuccino for Nicolas a
nd Sebastian,” she said, expertly placing their drinks before them. “Mochaccino for Conrad.”

“Thanks,” Conrad said, giving her a bright smile
. He took a good sip of his and smiled contently afterward.

One by one, Sakura gave the others their drinks
they’d ordered. “And last but not least,” she said, coming to sit beside Michael, “hot chocolate for my dearest Michael.” She placed a cute cup in front of him.

“Oh look! It’s a bear!” Michael shouted and
bragged to the brothers by shoving his cup to them, pointing at the picture of a bear on his hot chocolate.

“How come mine doe
sn’t have art on it?” Conrad asked.

“Neither does mine
,” Logan added sourly.

“That’s because you didn’t ask for it,” Sakura said.

“What’s in yours?” Michael asked, taking a peek at Sakura’s cup.

“A swan,” Sakura said.

“I think you look like a swan. You’re pretty.” Michael praised. “I like pretty girls.”

Sakura chuckled. “Don’t all boys?”
she asked, looking at the brothers, remembering when they’d been children and how they always preferred pretty Tara over her—the quiet, shy, ugly Sakura who no one wanted to be friends with.

“So you made us coffee?” Nicolas asked.

She nodded. “I did.”

“Is it any good?” Darcy asked, wondering if she
’d deliberately sabotaged their drinks. After all, how could she know how to make proper coffee?

“James only drinks Sakura
’s coffee when he comes here,” Michael said abruptly. “’Cause she’s really good at making it.”

“No, he doesn’t,” Sakura said. “He drinks Beth’s coffee back at home too.”

Michael blinked and frowned at her. “You didn’t make coffee for him at home? That’s mean.”

Sakura chuckled. “Only somet
imes.” She turned to the brothers and noted they looked as if they were afraid to drink their coffees, except for Conrad, who was enjoying his tremendously. She wondered if she should have put salt in their drink just for the fun of it. But then again, she wasn’t that mean.

“Well?” she said
. “Drink up before it gets cold.”

The brothers
, excluding Conrad, looked down at their cup of coffee as if there were poison in it. Nicolas picked his up and slowly, while all his brothers had their eyes on him, took a sip. The brothers waited, watching him. Nicolas closed his eyes. He tasted the smooth blend of the coffee bean. It was beautiful, amazingly delightful in his mouth. He flashed his eyes open and took another sip.

“Good?” Logan
asked.

Nicolas
nodded. Logan, knowing if it had passed Nicolas’s stamp of approval it had to be very good, quickly drank his. “Whoa! This is the best coffee I’ve ever tasted.” Then he proceeded to drink some more.

One by one the brothers drank theirs and sighed with pleasure. They all agreed it was one of the best coffees they
’d ever had.

“Now I know why Dad doesn’t like Beth’s standard coffee,” Hayden said, shaking his head. “After this I
don’t think I’ll ever go back to standard coffee again.”

“Me, too,” Logan
said, and the brothers laughed.