Hide & Seek

Sakura decided it was the brothers' fault she that was so sore, and not just about the legs either, but all over now. Tired, thirsty, and her body aching, she still had to walk through this tiny, treacherous pathway that wasn't really a pathway via the woods to get to Princeton Estate. Normally she didn't mind, but this time she really did mind.

She grumbled to herself and cursed them again. Oh, yes, she was sure they'd be very comfortable indeed right now, sitting in the lounge and drinking that horrible coffee Beth would have prepared for them. Not to mention the mini-sandwiches, scones, muffins, and slices she had made this morning.

Once she reached Princeton Manor some half an hour later, she was sweating like a pig, her face was covered with dirt, and her hair was a mess. She sneaked into the kitchen—hoping like hell she wouldn't bump into any of the brothers—when she was greeted with a, "Where have you been? Mr. Princeton was looking all over for you."

She jumped in fright, her heart nearly dropping to her shoes. "Beth! Why do you have to shout?"

"I wasn't aware I was shouting," the housekeeper said. Then she went on with her mumbling, "Those two maids became useless the moment the brothers arrived."

Sakura knew very well what Beth meant. Any female, aside from her, would become useless the moment she set her eyes on the brothers.

"I was out for a bit, taking photos. I thought I told everyone," she said, giving the housekeeper a sunny smile. Toby rushed past her feet and raced to his bowl on the other side of the kitchen. He thirstily licked the water to his heart's content.

Sakura, too, was thirsty. She poured herself a cup of apple juice. Once she'd finished drinking, she sighed and said, "Ah… that was good."

On the other side of the kitchen, Beth opened the oven door and pulled out the tray of chocolate biscuits that had just been baked. Sakura couldn't help herself. He came over and snaffled one. She popped the hot piece into her mouth and sighed with pleasure. "You're the best. I'm starved."

"Who told you to go out for so long? You didn't have lunch either," Beth grumbled. "Go and eat properly in the sitting room like everyone else. Jesus! No wonder you're so thin."

Sakura chuckled. "That's okay. I'll eat here."

"Sakura, do go and eat with your brothers," Beth said with a no-nonsense tone.

Brothers, eh? Sakura's heart skipped a beat at the mentioning of the seven Princeton siblings. The images of the men back on the road flashed before her eyes.

"Come along now," Beth said, grabbing for another tray of sandwiches. "Mr. Princeton wants you to meet them. Not that you haven't met them before. But you haven't seen them for a while now, haven't you? To be frank, I haven't either. But oh, you should see them now. Handsome men they are."

Sakura thought sourly she could do without seeing them for another five to ten years. In fact, she'd preferred if it was for the rest of her life. Wouldn't that be great?

To the housekeeper, she smiled sweetly and said, "I'll come right along in a little bit, Beth. I just need to clean up. After all, I can hardly present myself in this state." She purposely took a step forward for Beth to see her in her full glory of sweat, dirt, and mess. After all, she had been passing through the woods on her way back, and it couldn't be helped that she now looked like a female Tarzan who had been surviving in the woods for years on end.

Beth shook her head. "You're still as wild as ever. What will they say when they see you in such a state? All right then, but don't be too long," the housekeeper said, walking out the door with a tray in her hand. "Oh, by the way, we'll be serving seven more now."

Sakura sighed. Of course.

Once the housekeeper was gone, she made quick work of her escape. She took out the extra pounds of pork, marinated it with her special marinade, and then scribbled on a piece of yellow Post-it note the cooking instructions for Beth. Then she grabbed a large tray and tossed on some chocolate biscuits, mini-sandwiches, muffins, an apple, and a bunch of red grapes. After that, she grabbed a bottle of apple juice and a glass and then rushed off to the back stairs where she was sure no one would see her. Toby, the loyal little pup that he was, followed closely behind quietly.

She hid in her room that night, working on her photos and putting them up for sale on her website. Now and again, she munched up her snacks to her heart's content, tossing a bit for Toby to enjoy. It was just a little after six o'clock when she heard them all raiding up the stairs onto the second floor.

Oh, dear! She'd just remembered that all the brothers' bedrooms were on the same floor as hers. She turned to stare at the door, hoping they wouldn't open hers by accident. Surely, they remembered their own bedrooms and wouldn't randomly walk into hers, which of course was at the very far end of the house.

"That was the best afternoon tea I've had in a long time," she heard Logan say.

"You have afternoon tea?" Sebastian asked.

"Can't wait for dinner," Conrad said. "I heard there's roast pork."

"Need a shower," Darcy stated.

Sakura sensed they were getting closer to her room now and that something wasn't right. She glanced at Toby, who was looking at her. Then the dog barked, and she wanted to die.

"What was that?" Nicolas uttered.

"What?" Tristan asked.

"I thought I heard something," Nicolas replied.

"You're going senile, old man," Tristan said.

Sakura put a finger to her lips, telling Toby to be quiet. Toby cocked his head to one side. Then she heard footsteps coming toward her door. Before all hell broke loose, she scurried to the door and quickly locked it. An instant later, the doorknob wriggled as if someone were trying to open it.

"It's locked," Sebastian muttered.

"Of course, it's locked," Nicolas said. "No one stays there."

"You got the wrong room, handsome boy," Tristan shouted. "Your room is next door."

A few moments later, the hallway was quiet again, and Sakura sighed with relief.

"Oh, my," she said under her breath. "Way too many surprises in one day."

About half an hour later, she heard them leaving their rooms one by one to go down for dinner, and it was only then she was able to fully relax. She nearly jumped out of her skin when Brenda knocked on her door sometime after that.

"Sakura, sweetheart, you're not coming down for dinner?" Brenda queried from the other side.

Opening the door and poking her head out, Sakura said, "Hi, Mom. Sorry, I have a bad headache. Mind if I stay in bed?" She disliked having to lie, but in this case, she saw no other option.

"Then take some aspirin and rest. I'll tell Beth to bring something up for you. You know you should look after yourself more. You should just relax. You're on holiday, after all."

"I know," Sakura said. Then again, she needed to make as much money as soon as possible if she wanted to travel to Japan and find her biological mother. After all, she had no idea when her traveling would end or how much it would cost.

"I know how independent you are about money, and I know how much you want to go to Japan, but you still have to look after yourself," Brenda said as if she were reading her mind.

"Yes, I know," Sakura said.

"All right. Your brothers are here, by the way."

Sakura bit her lip. I know. I've met them.

"You'll have to wait until tomorrow to greet them," Brenda commented. "And Dale and Molly were hoping to see you tonight."

"I can come down and see them in town tomorrow," Sakura suggested happily.

"Yes, they'd love that. You get better," Brenda said and then gave her a peck on the cheek.

"Okay," Sakura murmured. Once Brenda left, she closed the door and went to take a long, hot bath. Some ten minutes later, lying in the luxurious tub with warm water and bubbles up to her neck, Sakura stared up at the ceiling, thinking.

"They're eating my roast pork," she said. She glanced at Toby, who obediently sat there waiting for her to finish. She sat up and reached out to pat him on the head. "I hope they choke."