Falling for Sakura: A Secret Proposal Part 1 (Sakura and the Princeton Brothers #3)

by Alexia Praks

  She noted the brothers were still on to her. Please, she thought, let this finish soon so I can run away.

  Her prayer, however, didn’t reach God, and hence, it didn’t come true, as once all the models returned to the end of the stage, Mr. Tachibana began to make a speech.

  Sakura glanced to her left and noted both Sebastian and Darcy watching her intensely. Her heart raced and her stomach flipped. She gritted her teeth. Why here? Why now?

  Suddenly, Mr. Tachibana took her hand and raised it up high with his as he bowed. Sakura didn’t know what to do and decided to awkwardly bow as well. Then there were loud cheers and clapping. Finally, they started exiting the runway, and Sakura sighed with relief. Once they got backstage, Sakura thought this was it.

  “Tachibana-sama,” Ms. Ruka said. “We have a request. Mr. Princeton would like to meet with our finale girl.”

  Sakura gasped. No! No! No!

  She released her hand from Mr. Tachibana’s grasp and shook her head.

  “I can’t. I’m busy,” she said and made for a run. She was dashing to the right when, to her horror, she found Sebastian standing there, his large frame blocking her exit. Her heart jolted again, and she wanted to cry. Blast him, she thought. What the hell was he doing here anyway? She needed to get away and fast. She didn’t want to see him, or any of his brothers for that matter.

  She turned and dashed in the opposite direction. Her body, however, slammed into another hard, masculine body. Oomph! Strong arms wrapped around her, and Sakura looked up to see mauve-gray eyes watching her. Her heart somersaulted and her breath caught at the back of her throat.

  Darcy! My dear Darcy!

  She gazed up at him, his large body against hers and his arms wrapped around her, embracing her tighter, indicating he’d never let her go.

  Darcy stared down at the woman who’d been responsible for his hell this past year, his sleepless nights and aching heart. She was now here and in his arms once again, and he would never let her go, ever again. Oh God! How his heart ached. How he felt so much pleasure and so much pain seeing her again.

  Sakura felt like she wanted to cry. The last time she’d seen Darcy was when he’d been unconscious and in the hospital after he’d tried to save her from drowning. Now he was here, standing before her, embracing her and breathing his warm breath on her skin, causing her body to tingle with beautiful sensation and something familiar that stirred deep within her soul.

  She gained control of herself and moved out of his embrace. She took a few steps back, her whole body shaking uncontrollably. Then she found herself bumping against Sebastian and in his arms. She panicked and glanced up to see azure-blue eyes gazing down at her. There were both pain and pleasure in those beautiful eyes.

  Sakura bit her lip and wanted to cry out in outrage. Why here? Why now?

  She wasn’t ready for this. She wasn’t ready to meet them again. She hadn’t prepared herself—both mentally and emotionally. Both of them had affected her too much last spring after they’d confessed their love for her. She herself had fallen in love—not with just one of them, but with both. How could a woman fall in love with two men at the same time? Even more shocking when those men were brothers!

  She freed herself from his arms and stood in the middle, tears in her eyes. She had to get away.

  Suddenly, Tristan appeared before her, his face only a few inches from hers. He grinned. “Interesting,” he said. “Is that your idea, Mr. Tachibana? The two different eye colors?”

  Mr. Tachibana cocked his head to one side and was about to say something when Logan said, “One blue eye and one gray eye. They look oddly familiar, don’t you think, Tristan?”

  “God, you guys are annoying,” Hayden said and then turned to Sakura. “Come on. Mom and Dad are waiting.”

  “Sakura!” Conrad said, watching her. “Why did you leave us?”

  Sakura wanted to cry when she saw Conrad’s upset face. She didn’t know what to say and suddenly felt awfully hot and dizzy. “I’m sorry. I… I have to go and change.”

  Confused, she started walking away. As she headed toward the dressing room, she noted the brothers were following her again. Couldn’t they just leave her be?

  She glanced to her right and saw Sebastian, Hayden, and Conrad behind her, following her but at the same time keeping a good distance. On her right, she saw Darcy, Logan, and Tristan following her, also keeping a good distance. She felt like she had six bodyguards with her and felt awfully trapped.

  She glanced ahead of her. Yes! Thank God! People! So many people. Busy people going about everywhere, shouting, screaming, and scrambling. It was backstage after all.

  That was when Jane appeared. Thank goodness! Sakura rushed up to her friend, her heart pounding. She knew there was a slim chance she’d be able to escape, and she’d take it if it killed her.

  “What’s wrong?” Jane asked the moment she saw Sakura’s pale face.

  Suddenly, a bunch of people rushed around them, and Sakura took that chance. “Don’t tell them who I am, okay?” She hastily lifted her feet one by one and took the damn heels off. Bare feet and a lot more comfortable, she begged Jane, “Please, I beg you. Don’t tell them anything about me. I’ll explain later.”

  She handed Jane the shoes and then dashed away, her person blocked by hundreds of people, hiding her from the brothers’ view. She raced toward the exit, shoved it open, and then sprinted down the stairs. That was close, she thought and continued running.

  The brothers lost sight of Sakura and frantically searched about them.

  “She’s gone!” Sebastian shouted.

  “The exit!” Darcy yelled and raced toward it, followed by Sebastian.

  Logan took out his cell phone as he was running. “Nicolas! She escaped!”

  Tristan, Conrad, and Hayden weren’t far behind him as they dashed down the stairs, chasing after the woman who had run away from them last spring.

  In the main lobby and standing with his parents, James and Brenda Princeton, Nicolas swore under his breath. “She got away,” he told them.

  James frowned and Brenda nearly broke down.

  “We’ll find her,” Nicolas reassured them. Then he rushed away toward backstage. As he was running, he took out his headpiece and yelled into the mic, “Listen, it’s your CEO Nicolas Princeton here. There’s a woman on the loose. Don’t let her escape. I repeat! Don’t let her escape. And don’t hurt her!”

  He came to a stop backstage, looked around frantically, noted the exit door was wide open, and raced toward it. He was about to reach it when he slammed into a woman and fell on top of her.

  “Baka!”

  “Shit!” Nicolas swore and rolled himself up. He found himself sitting on top of the most exotic beauty he’d ever seen. He swallowed and nudged his glasses up the bridge of his fine nose, his heart beating out of control.

  Nicolas’s heart never beat out of control.

  Akira glared at him. “Baka! You baka! How could you slam yourself into me like that? Now you’ve ruined the gown!”

  Nicolas didn’t have time for this. He had to help his brother catch Sakura. She was more important, and so he simply said, “Sorry,” to Akira, got up, and ran across to the exit door.

  Akira got up and harrumphed loudly. “Baka man!” she muttered under her breath.

  Nicolas dialed Sebastian’s number and yelled, “Where is she?”

  Sakura had no idea where she was in this enormous hotel. She was lost. She puffed as she stood in the middle of some sort of corridor, searching about her, wondering where she was.

  “I don’t know where she is!” she heard Sebastian shouting from a good distance away.

  Sakura swore under her breath and dashed down the corridor.

  “Wait! She’s here on the second floor. West wing!” Sebastian shouted into the phone.

  Sakura took the chance and glanced behind her. She nearly shrieked out when she saw both Sebastian and Darcy sprinting toward her. They’re fast.

  She sp
rinted, and the brothers were only a few steps behind her.

  “Sakura! Stop!” Sebastian shouted.

  “Sakura!” Darcy yelled. “Please don’t run away!”

  Sakura wanted to cry. I’m sorry! But I don’t want you guys in my life just yet. Not yet.

  The brothers’ hands were reaching out to her, their fingers inches from grabbing the material of her long gown. Then just like that, she dashed around the corner, out the door, and down the stairs. The brothers lost their chance, and she was gone.

  Sakura sprinted down the stairs as fast as she could and then out the door into the spring sunshine. She sighed and then raced into the thick crowd, hiding her slender form from the brothers’ eyes.

  The brothers rushed out and were lost. She was gone from their sight. Sebastian took out his cell phone and called Nicolas. “She’s gone,” he said, pain echoing in his voice.

  Darcy gritted his teeth. He’d lost her yet again, and he felt his heart aching painfully.

  Tristan, Logan, Hayden, and Conrad came rushing out of the hotel at that moment, heaving in exertion.

  “Where did she go?” Hayden asked.

  “Sakura,” Conrad said softly.

  On the corner of the street, Sakura turned her head and peeked at the brothers standing there amongst the crowd, looking as if they’d lost all hope.

  “I’m sorry,” she whispered, tears in her eyes. “I’m so sorry.”

  * * * * *

  CHAPTER 9

  Escaped

  She was nuts! That, Sakura was very sure of. She was utterly and foolishly nuts. What made her think she’d get away from the Princeton brothers? What made her think they’d forget about her, especially after last spring, after what they’d been through?

  She closed her eyes and felt tears burn within them.

  What am I going to do now? she thought miserably. The brothers had found out she was here, living in New York. In fact, a mere stone’s throw away from the hotel.

  No. Don’t think about that. It was the least of her worries. Now she had to figure out how she was going to get her handbag, which was still at the hotel. And of course, how the hell she was going to return this million-dollar gown and diamond necklace.

  “You all right there, miss?”

  Sakura flashed her eyes open at the inquiry. She managed to give the taxi driver a small smile.

  “Yes, I’m fine. Thanks.”

  “Fashion show, is it?”

  She nodded.

  “Didn’t have time to change, eh?” The driver chuckled.

  “Yes, I was in such a rush,” Sakura replied, noting they were driving through the familiar streets of Soho. A few moments later, they were outside the gallery.

  “Can you wait here a moment?” she asked.

  “Sure thing,” the driver said.

  “Thanks.” Sakura rushed out into the street and through the door of Tanaka Gallery, her hands holding up her long skirt so she wouldn’t trip over it.

  “Holy shit!” Melissa greeted Sakura the moment she stepped into the threshold of the gallery.

  “Is Ned in?” Sakura asked.

  Melissa blinked. “How come you’re dressed like that?”

  Sakura didn’t have the patience to answer Melissa, nor did she feel the need to explain what had just transpired.

  “Is Ned in?” she asked again.

  Melissa wanted to scream out, Bitch! to Sakura but managed to refrain herself from doing so.

  “Upstairs,” she said coldly.

  Sakura didn’t have time to register Melissa’s cold glare. She hastily rushed up the stairs to the first floor where her loft was resided. She found Ned in the kitchen, making a cup of coffee. Toby was fast asleep on his basket on the other side of the room.

  “Ned,” Sakura called out.

  Ned glanced up, and the moment he saw the look on her face, he knew something was up. The fact that she was wearing a designer gown and a million-dollar necklace didn’t escape Ned’s attention either.

  He smiled gently and said, “They found you, eh?”

  Sakura slowly nodded. “What am I going to do?”

  “Not much,” he said.

  “That’s not very helpful,” Sakura retorted, crashing herself on a seat. Her body was still shaking from the encounter. She also felt a headache coming.

  “Oh, damn, I forgot.” She looked up to Ned. “The taxi driver is still waiting out front.”

  “You didn’t have your bag with you?”

  Sakura shook her head. “I was in such a rush. I didn’t have time. Do you mind?”

  Ned put his cup of coffee down and headed out the door even before Sakura could finish asking him.

  Sakura decided to take the next few minutes to calm herself and gain her composure when she suddenly realized something. Oh, Mother of God! Her bag. What if the brothers went in search of her bag and found it? What if they dug through and found the whereabouts of her house and, more importantly, her new identity?

  She rushed out of the chair and grabbed the phone. She dialed Jane’s number and waited in dread.

  After a few rings, it was picked up.

  “Hello, Jane here.”

  “Jane!” Sakura shouted. She couldn’t help herself. “Jane! It’s me, Sakura.”

  A little pause and then, “Shit! Sakura, where the heck are you? I was looking all over for you. What happened back there?”

  “Jane, please listen carefully. I need your help.”

  “My help? Wait, I don’t understand. What happened? Why were those men chasing after you? I mean the Princeton brothers. I mean… Oh shit!”

  “What? Jane? What’s wrong?”

  “They’re here. I think they’re searching for something… or someone.”

  Sakura felt her heart leaping within her chest. “Jane, please listen carefully.”

  “Yeah? I’m listening,” Jane said. “They’re heading toward me, by the way.

  Sakura noted Jane’s voice was shaking. She said, “Jane, could you please find my bag and hide it? When you’re finished, could you please drop it off here at the gallery?”

  “Sure?” Jane said. “Is that all I have to do?”

  “Yes, please. Don’t let them find my bag. This is very important.”

  “And you sincerely promise you’ll tell me what the hell is going on later?”

  “Yes, I promise,” Sakura replied.

  “Then, my dear friend, I have to hang up because there’s a hot Japanese guy heading my way, and it looks like he’s about to eat me alive.”

  “Okay, thanks. Bye now.” Sakura hung up and sighed. God, she sincerely hoped Jane would be all right.

  Ned came back into the kitchen then and cocked his head to one side. “Tell me what happened.”

  Sakura bit her lip. “I’ve met them. Ned, I thought they’d forget about me. I thought Sakura didn’t exist in their lives anymore. It’s been a year.”

  Ned folded his arms across his chest. “What about you? Have you forgotten about them yet?”

  Sakura managed to blush at the question. She shook her head.

  “My advice, Sakura dear,” Ned said, “is to listen to your heart and follow it.”

  “What do you mean by that?”

  Ned took his now cold cup of coffee and headed downstairs to resume his work. “I notice a tear on the gown, Sakura,” he said over his shoulder.

  Sakura’s heart skipped a beat. She glanced down, and sure enough, she saw a nice tear across the length of the gown.

  “Shit!” she swore. She lifted the skirt and examined it closer. She wanted to die. She rushed across to her bedroom and began to change. Fifteen minutes later, with her pink hair still in its coiffure, though messier now, she sat on her bed and proceeded to sulk.

  This is the worst day of my life, she thought. As if meeting the brothers wasn’t bad enough, now the million-dollar gown was ruined.

  Ned returned some moments later. He came to pat her on the shoulder. “Let’s hear all of it, then.”

>   Sakura looked up at him, her eyes brewing with fresh tears. Then she began her tale. It was twenty minutes later when she was finished, and by then, Melissa announced her presence by leaning her slim body against the doorframe.

  “You look awful, Sakura,” she said. “What’s going on?”

  Sakura said, “Nothing. Are you leaving now?”

  Melissa frowned at the change in subject. Damn if she didn’t want to know what happened to the beauty. But she hoped it was very, very awful and humiliating. Well, surely it must be humiliating. Otherwise, there wouldn’t be tears in those two odd-colored eyes of Sakura’s.

  “Yeah,” she finally said. “See you Monday.”

  Sakura nodded. Once Melissa reluctantly left, Ned proceeded to close up shop. He returned a couple minutes later to find Sakura still sulking miserably.

  “What are you going to do?” Ned asked suddenly. “You can’t keep running away.”

  Sakura sighed. “I know that.” She laughed then. “I can’t believe it. I only wanted to meet my biological mother, and now look where it got me. The brothers know I still exist and am in fact living right here in New York, a mere stone’s throw from them. On top of that, I’ve managed to damage this million-dollar designer gown. Oh yeah, and I’m a criminal of the worst kind because surely they all think I’ve stolen this necklace.”

  Ned leaned closer to look at the pink diamond necklace in Sakura’s hand. It was the most beautiful jewelry he’d ever seen and probably worth at the higher end of a million. As he inspected closer, he noted there was a very small diamond missing. He wondered if it had already been missing before Sakura wore it or if it were damaged when Sakura was running away from the brothers. Either way, he wasn’t going to tell Sakura about it because she looked ready to commit suicide as it was. Hopefully, though, no one would notice it once Sakura had returned the jewelry to its proper owner.

  He said, “Why don’t you take a shower before Jane gets here?”

  Sakura looked up at the older man who had treated her like his own daughter and nodded her head.