Darce! Darce! Laughter. Darcy could hear laughter singing and echoing all around him, calling out to him. The voice was soft and musical, and it sent a warm sensation through his body. In his state of haziness, he could see long, dark hair dancing in the wind, the strands brushing gently on his face. He could feel warm hands within his grasp, tightening as if the owner of that lovely hand was afraid he’d disappear.He was in a dream, Darcy realized, and he was lying on the ground, his body across and his head resting on someone’s lap. It was a very comfortable lap. Above him, he could see cherry blossom petals raining down on him from a tree of pink cloud. Some landed on his face. They were feathery soft and cool on his skin. He could smell the light, beautiful scent, and it reminded him of spring. Oddly enough, he felt at peace. He felt happy. And there was something else, too. He felt loved. So much love.He turned to look at the girl who was now stroking his hair. He frowned, for h

“You know,” Mary began, her eyes on the peaceful scenery of lush, green rolling hills in the distance. “You never talk about them much.”Her eyes on the road ahead, Sakura asked, “What do you mean?”“The brothers,” Mary said, adjusting herself on the seat. “You didn’t talk about them much back in high school. What was that all about?”Sakura shrugged her shoulders. “Was there any need?”“Was there any need?” Mary asked in disbelief. “You didn’t even tell me you were Uncle James’s adopted daughter until I found out myself. And that was because Uncle James himself came for the parents’ interview regarding you, and I thought he came to visit me. That was really embarrassing.”Sakura chuckled. “I suppose I should have told you, but at the time I thought it didn’t really matter.”Mary shook her head. “If you were to announce to everyone that you were Uncle James’s adopted daughter, those bitches wouldn’t have bullied you.”Sakura knew whom Mary was referring to. Those bitches were their ex

When the girls reached the ground floor, the brothers were still there waiting for them. Conrad grinned like an idiot. Nicolas nodded appreciatively. Logan whistled. Tristan winked. Hayden cocked his head and said, “Not bad.” And Sebastian and Darcy had impassive expressions their faces.Sakura wasn’t pleased the brothers had to be there, witnessing her awkwardly descending the stairs in her heels and short skirt.“What do you think, Conrad?” Lauren asked. “Doesn’t she look great? I wore that dress on my sixteenth birthday. Do you remember? But it fits her perfectly.”“Yes, it’s beautiful,” Conrad said, his eyes on Sakura.“Do you really remember me wearing that on my sixteenth birthday back in New York?” Lauren asked him.Conrad chuckled uneasily, remembering no such thing.“You look nice, Sakura,” Nicolas said.The brothers didn’t miss Nicolas saying Sakura’s name for the first time, as though he were cherishing it.Darcy turned on his heel and headed toward the drawing room to join

Sakura tried not to breathe—or move, for that matter—since she was being squeezed in the back seat like a sandwich between Logan and Conrad. Honestly, she thought, why did she have to return home with them? Why couldn’t Mark have dropped her off? Why had Mary taken her car away without telling her? Why, oh why?She pulled Sebastian’s large jacket—the one he had unceremoniously dumped on her person the moment she’d taken off her lab coat back at the lab—across her front tighter. Then she folded her arms across her chest, trying to relax. But how could she relax when Conrad kept staring at her and giving that dazzling smile of his? To be honest, she found it rather funny since he reminded her so much of Toby when the dog was trying to please her. She wondered if Conrad was trying to do the same thing.“Sakura,” he began, “what interesting things have you been doing?”Sakura wanted him to stop bothering her and thus gave him a good scowl.“Stop frowning, my sweet Sakura,” Logan said, whi

Sakura flashed her eyes open to see Tristan smiling at her—that flirty smile of his that any girl found most irresistible. His face was also only inches from hers. She could feel his warm breath on her skin.She licked her dry lips and stammered, “No… nothing. I… I was just looking for Toby.”Tristan cocked his head to one side, not believing her one tiny bit. “You’re blushing, Sakura. Why? Has one of my brothers harassed you?”“I… I said it was nothing,” she muttered, her cheeks flaming hot. Then, before he could ask her any more questions, she hastily moved to the side, away from him, and rushed off with Toby in her arms.Tristan watched her go, grinning knowingly. He cocked his head to one side, wondering which one of his brothers was responsible for his adopted sister’s weird reaction.Ah! She was blushing. A pretty blush, he thought. And her eyes, the deep-brown color, were exceptionally bright this evening. Not to mention the lips. They were full and very red as though they were