A/N: So, this is my first attempt at SasuSaku. Or any pairing aside from NejiTen actually xD It's AU so some OOC behavior is to be expected but I hope that I managed to keep the characters true to their natures. I hope you'll like it though any con-crit will be greatly appreciated.

Warnings: Limey lemon, slight sprinkling of language, and some (very) non-graphic BL. You have been warned.

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or the characters used in this story.

Surrender

The softness, the heat … God, she felt so good….

Sasuke drew back a little, taking a deep breath, before pressing his lips firmly back against hers. Gentler this time, taking his time to slowly map her mouth with his tongue. She gave a breathy little sigh, opening her lips, granting him entrance.

And despite the way he fell ever deeper into the whirlpool of feeling swirling in his gut, Sasuke couldn't help the faint tinge of jealousy. Did she do this for him? Open her mouth so sweetly, a begging breath falling on his lips …

The thought washed coldness through his overheated body, and with a soft groan Sasuke parted their lips again.

Long, dark lashes still veiled the emerald depths of her eyes, resting softly against her lightly flushed cheeks. His gaze dropped to her pink lips, still slightly swollen from that explosive kiss, her breaths heaving through her, her fists still clenched tightly in the fabric of his shirt.

Sakura's eyes opened slowly as she breathed his name on a whisper of a sigh, "Sasuke…"

He suppressed another heartfelt groan, aware now of the biting grip of his hands on her hips, of her curves pressed against him through the barrier of clothes.

Breathing a ragged breath he stepped away, gained a little distance, in the hope that he would be able to think.

"We," he cleared his throat of the hoarseness that coated his voice thickly, "We shouldn't be doing this. My brother-"

She laid a single finger on his lips, a flash of pain in her eyes.

"Don't spoil it, please," her voice begged softly, sending more tingles over his nerve-endings.

But she stepped away too, running a tired hand through her silky hair. Sasuke's eyes traced the move jealously, how he envied that hand – it had the freedom he so longed for: the freedom to touch her hair, her lips, her skin …

He wrenched his thoughts away from her, and the silkiness of her skin, and forced himself to focus on the sheer wrongness of what they'd just done.

"I'm sorry," he said regretfully, but regret for what he wasn't quite certain and, unable to resist, reached out to twine his fingers with hers.

As always the temptation she presented had been too much for him.

"Itachi," Sakura began and the mere sound of his brother's name falling from her lips had Sasuke grinding his teeth, "is away."

The hypnotic pools of her eyes regarded him with only a hint of the pleading her voice contained.

"Stay. Just for tonight."

How could he resist that? It was too much, and yet far too little. By mutual, silent consent they'd already concluded that this betrayal could never be allowed to encompass more than it already did. But how could he resist the chance to hold her, be close to her, watch her eyelids flutter through her dreams?

Slowly Sasuke allowed her to draw him toward the bed, inwardly reflecting that much as he hated the thought of his brother in his place, it would act as the restraint he so desperately needed. God knew, where Sakura was concerned he needed every bit of help he could get.

She settled down against the pillows and looked up at him expectantly. Slowly he lowered himself down next to her, and she instantly drew him back against the pillows, curling her body closely around his.

The semi-darkness was coated in color. Blues, reds, greens … and the white that flashed through it all periodically was giving him a headache. But Naruto had asked him to come, wanted him to meet the love of his life, and Sasuke hadn't had the heart to say no. He rarely could say no to his loud-mouthed best friend. All else aside, he had wanted to meet the girl Naruto had been raving about for the last few months.

It was strange being back in his hometown, Sasuke reflected musingly, as he took another slow sip of the drink he held in his hand. Everything was the same, the places, the people he'd grown up with, and yet everything was different. Or maybe it was a case of him being different. His world was larger now than this one small corner of the earth.

His thoughts were derailed by a flash of pink hair and creamy skin and, for no reason that he could fathom, Sasuke found his gaze drawn irresistibly toward the dancing girl. Her hair was certainly noticeably, he had to concede that, but somehow the strange cotton-candy shade seemed to suit her. She turned slightly, laughing at the blonde girl dancing with her, and Sasuke could just make out the contours of her face in the dim lighting.

An oval face framed by the soft, pink, shoulder-length strands, but it was her eyes that drew him in. They glittered as the light caught them.

Sasuke forced his gaze away. What was he doing staring at an unknown woman like a love-struck teenaged boy? She wasn't especially beautiful – a forehead just slightly too wide, lower-lip just slightly too full. He shook his head and forced his attention back to the talk around the table.

It seemed as if everyone were suddenly getting married. Tonight he'd met Naruto's fiancée – a shy but nice enough girl who only had eyes for Naruto, thus setting Sasuke's fears on that score to rest. Naruto was notorious for falling for the wrong women but it seemed as if, this time, Naruto had finally managed to find someone who actually deserved him. Sasuke nodded his approval when his friend's blue gaze flickered questioningly to him, and turned his searching gaze away from Hinata, a slight smirk gracing his features at the joy that flashed over his friend's expression.

Tomorrow he would have to meet his brother's fiancée. Sasuke suppressed a sigh. His relationship with his older sibling was complicated at best. A case of love and hate colliding which inevitably resulted in no more than a wary truce between the two brothers. Unfortunately that truce had been broken, more than once, in the past by an unwary word. Distantly he wondered how on earth Itachi had managed to find anyone who could stand his coldness. He couldn't imagine his brother giving in to the fires of passion. Sasuke shook his head again, more vigorously this time, and forced his speculations to recede. Tomorrow would be soon enough to see for himself. And as soon as he decently could he'd escape – go back to his own life, far away from everything and anything that reminded him of home.

He knew that it pained Naruto – he knew that his friend hated corresponding mostly by email or the occasional phone call, knew that his friend wanted to see him more than once a year at Christmas. Christmas was the only time that Sasuke succumbed to pressure from his brother about coming home. Sasuke wanted no part of the family business, as Itachi was well aware, and yet, he somehow found himself attending their company's Christmas ball year after year. Ruefully he shook his head, Itachi was far too adept at manipulating Sasuke's usually suppressed guilt over not being home more often.

But, in all honesty, what was there for him here? A brother he just barely got along with as long as they only had superficial contact? He was damned if he'd hang around in this god-forsaken town simply for the sake of their parents' graves.

With a start Sasuke jerked away from his thoughts. He was entirely too melancholy – and, that aside, he rarely indulged in introspection – this was supposed to be a party. He shook his dark bangs out of his eyes, and firmly told himself that he liked his life as it was. He liked being a foreign correspondent for a news magazine, liked the thrill of danger that his job provided when he was sent to take photographs of the war-torn regions of the world. He liked the detachment of his occasional one-night-stands and, if he ever needed someone to talk to, Naruto was only a phone call away. He took a deep breath, ignored the small voice that had suddenly appeared and was whispering that it wasn't enough, and turned back to his best friend, forcing a look of attentiveness as he listened to the blonde ramble.

Good Lord but he was unbelievably beautiful.

Sakura forced herself to keep her eyes locked firmly with her best friend's as Ino gyrated to the beat of the music. But her attention was completely focused on the raven-haired man who'd stared at her so intently a few minutes ago. For the few seconds that their eyes had met she'd felt as if he was staring straight into her soul. Then he'd shaken his head and turned away but she hadn't missed the tell-tale lines that drew his brows together and suddenly Sakura had ached to smooth those lines away with her lips.

Ino had dragged her out to the club, on the flimsy premise that meeting her fiancé's elusive bastard of a brother the next day required her to relax and let her hair down for the night. Privately Sakura had agreed – she was stressed about meeting Itachi's brother for the first time. From what she'd managed to deduce, from the little Itachi had told her, his brother was likely to be as intimidating as his older counterpart.

She shook her head, forcing the thoughts away, and threw herself whole-heartedly into dancing, though she couldn't stop her eyes from occasionally flickering toward the dark-haired man in the corner.

Something about him was almost … familiar.

Sasuke drummed his fingers impatiently on the wooden countertop as he waited his turn to be served. The evening was beginning to grate on his nerves – he'd never been one for social interaction and the night seemed never-ending. His bored gaze swept over the other patrons lining the bar, and with a shock of recognition, he noted the pink hair just a couple of people to his left.

Some force seemed to take hold of him – made him push through the line until he stood next to her. She glanced up in surprise and something jerked in the region of where his heart should be.

"Hello," she said uncertainly, sending him a small smile when he continued to stare at her without speaking.

Sasuke shook off the unfamiliar feelings and allowed the charm he was so adept at turning on and off to flow through him – why his heart should be pounding so loudly in his ears he had no idea.

"I was watching you earlier," he returned, surprised by his own words. Where was the usual suave line? The bait that he knew would draw them in without allowing them too close?

"I know," she replied, turning back to the bar, a slight flush on her cheeks.

The blush – so unexpected – threw him for a moment. When was the last time he'd been in contact with a woman who could still blush? But it also intrigued him.

"Have a drink with me," he spoke abruptly but was gratified by her acceptance when she nodded hesitantly.

Thankfully the damned bartender finally decided to ask them for their orders, and one hand holding his drink, the other on the small of her back, guiding her, Sasuke steered her in the direction of the balcony a few minutes later. It was quieter up there – more secluded – a better place for getting to know someone.

Destination reached they stood in awkward silence for a few moments, and Sasuke frantically tried to gather his thoughts – what the hell was wrong with him? But then she smiled slowly at him, a genuine smile, and the almost indefinable flicker in her eyes told him that she understood. She was just as baffled by the emotions that tensed the air around them – but she understood his need to just be close to her – and her acceptance of that fact told Sasuke that she felt it too.

Sasuke kicked the door shut behind him with one foot, far too focused on the girl in his arms to bother about making sure the magnetic lock clicked into place. Her legs wrapped tightly around his waist, her arms around his neck, and her mouth, oh god her mouth, fused with his.

He dropped the key-card of his hotel room to the floor, uncaring of where it fell, only focused on touching as much of her skin as he could. His hands stroked slowly under the dress, caressing over her thighs, pushing the silky black material up over her hips. She moaned into his mouth, and Sasuke could feel his body responding, his pants becoming even tighter and his hands clenched around her hips, as he frantically tried to recall the layout of the room. At the moment he didn't care about the location of the bed, he only wanted the nearest available flat surface, but some sense of sanity kept his baser instincts at bay.

She wasn't very experienced. It was apparent in the way she responded to his touches, his lips on hers, and Sasuke didn't want her to regret accompanying him back here, so he forced his impatient body's demands to recede as he slowly carried her into the bedroom of the suite and laid her on the bed.

They'd stayed up on that damned balcony, speaking only sporadically, for a long time. All the while Sasuke was fighting against himself. She was obviously not the kind of woman he usually had these flings with. And he had no desire to embroil himself in a messy affair, but the lure of her mouth had been too much for him.

He'd kissed her.

And he'd been lost. He couldn't have stopped kissing her even if the world had fallen to pieces around them. How long they'd remained hidden in the shadows, kissing, caressing, he had no idea. He was too focused on her taste, her softness, her acceptance. Their kisses had steadily grown in intensity – desperation flaring uncontrollably between them – and Sasuke had found himself whispering an invitation. Another thing he never did. He went to his conquests' homes so he could leave whenever he wanted to. But the drugging feeling of her hands on his chest, and her lips on his neck, had driven him to ask. He had to have her.

He stroked his hand slowly down one smooth leg, quickly pulling her high-heeled shoe off, ignoring the shudders that ripped through him at her low moan. He raised his eyes to hers, and felt that jerking feeling in his gut again. Her eyes were green – deep, emerald green pools drawing him in and holding him captive…

She twisted impatiently and he came back to the present with a start. But the curious feeling filling him, like a rising balloon, couldn't be banished entirely, and Sasuke found himself worshipping every inch of her skin that he slowly uncovered. Vaguely, the last sane piece of his mind warned him that this was far too much like making love but Sasuke couldn't stop. Couldn't keep his hands from drawing reverent patterns on her skin, couldn't keep his mouth from tracing awed patterns over her bared stomach.

Finally all barriers between them were removed and, as he drove deeply into her, Sasuke's eyes drifted closed. Through the desperate bliss flooding him, through her cry of pleasure, the tug of her hands in his hair as she begged silently for more, his short-circuited brain could only manage to form one coherent thought as his hips began to move faster and faster, pushing deeper and deeper into her slick heat as if he wanted to disappear into her.

Home.

He'd woken late – and to an aching coldness.

She was gone.

All that remained was the faint scent of cherry blossoms and the ghost of her touch on his body. With a jolt Sasuke realized that he didn't even know her name.

For a long time Sasuke remained as he was, wrapped in the sheets and her fading warmth, an arm over his eyes, as he tried to make sense of the previous night. His behavior, his reaction to her – it baffled him. He never let his expressionless mask shift. Never. But for her it had slid off of him as if it had never been present in the first place.

Finally, and with a groan, Sasuke pushed himself to his feet and into the shower. He was already late. And Itachi placed great store on punctuality. As he allowed the spray of water to wash the last traces of her from his life Sasuke began to feel more like himself and he focused his thoughts on the ordeal to come, wondering what a woman who actually wanted to marry his brother could be like.

An hour later, as he pulled up in front of his childhood home, Sasuke was once again in full control – had regained his equilibrium – and as he shut the door of his rented car and pulled his sunglasses off he suppressed the grimace that wanted to bloom on his features. He hated coming back here. Every time he was in town he stayed at a hotel and, usually, Itachi respected his unspoken request and arranged for them to meet at some public venue. Sasuke hadn't been back to the house in many years. Not since his graduation in fact, when he'd packed the last of his things and driven away, refusing to even look at the reflection of the stone structure in his rear-view mirror.

Taking a deep breath he forced himself to walk forward, and just as he reached the door, it swung open.

Sasuke and Itachi stared at each other for an interminable moment – coal eyes meeting coal eyes – and then Itachi smiled. More a movement of his lips than an actual smile but inwardly Sasuke couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief. The last thing he felt like was a lecture on punctuality and manners. Sometimes it seemed as if his brother forgot that he was a grown man.

Itachi stood back, inviting Sasuke in, and with heavy reluctance Sasuke entered the foyer. Itachi indicated Sasuke to precede him to the morning room, and Sasuke tried to force politeness to the fore as he headed for the doorway, preparing to meet the woman his brother intended to marry.

The brothers reached the double doors and Itachi opened one of them and, hand on Sasuke's shoulder, pushed him slightly forward. Sasuke's mouth twisted. Clearly Itachi wasn't as oblivious to his reluctance as he'd thought. He stepped over the threshold and felt as if the floor was being pulled out from underneath him, as if the world was crashing down around his ears.

He saw the distinctive pink hair first. But then she was slowly turning, and her green eyes widened as she recognized him. A savage sense of satisfaction ripped through Sasuke as he watched panic blooming in her expressive eyes, but the thought was fleeting – easily forgotten as he drunk in the sight of her.

Today she was wearing a modest pair of trousers and a blouse. Casual and tailored. But the image was super-imposed by another one in Sasuke's mind. The same slim body, now hidden, wrapped around him, and she wore nothing but an expression of pained bliss as he claimed her.

Sasuke shook his head slightly, forcing the memories away, aware now of his brother just behind him.

"Sasuke, allow me to introduce Sakura Haruno."

Itachi's voice was nearly expressionless, as always, but Sasuke couldn't help but notice the effort his brother put into that small inflection of warmth when he said her name. Suddenly he was seized by the insane urge to laugh. His brother's head was slightly bent as he pressed a chaste kiss to the knuckles of the woman he was going to marry in a few short months.

A woman Sasuke had so recently fucked senseless.

A flash of guilt accompanied the thought … it had been so much more than just sex … he hadn't been mistaken about that. Sasuke forced the thoughts away again and allowed his gaze to lock with Sakura's.

Sakura, he mused, so fitting.

The pleading panic in her eyes hadn't faded, and neither had the jealousy roiling through Sasuke, but his eyes flickered to his brother and the resultant wave of guilt drowned out any other feeling.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Miss Haruno."

Sasuke nearly laughed again at the mechanical, cold tone of his voice, but he was committed to this course of action now, so he started forward slowly, hoping that she would catch on. Just in front of her, Sasuke paused, refusing to dwell on the way the scent of her invaded his senses, and extended a polite hand for hers.

Hesitantly she placed her small hand into his, and Sasuke squeezed lightly and let go quickly as she finally replied.

"The pleasure is mine. And, please, call me Sakura."

Yes, we're certainly far past formalities. Sasuke couldn't help the thought slipping through and he quickly turned to Itachi before he could think any more inappropriate thoughts.

Itachi smiled at him. A rare, genuine smile.

"I'm glad you came, little brother."

Itachi stood frozen in the hallway, staring into the bedroom beyond the half-ajar door.

His brother and his wife lay on the bed, entwined in each other's arms, both fast asleep. They lay on top of the covers, both fully clothed but the way their limbs were tangled spoke volumes. Itachi felt his mouth twisting. They looked peaceful, content … he couldn't remember the last time his younger brother had look happy. Her pink hair spread across Sasuke's chest, his arms around her, their legs intertwined.

Truth be told, it was a bittersweet sight. One that slightly relieved the guilt that had been eating at the eldest Uchiha for so many months now. They looked right together. And for the first time since Itachi had given in to his board of directors and agreed to settle down, he didn't pity his unfortunate choice. Fleeting, and forbidden, as Sasuke and Sakura's moments together were Itachi couldn't help but feel justified. At least she would not know only unhappiness for having him in her life.

With a slight sigh, Itachi turned away from the door, heading further down the hallway to an unoccupied guest room with an en-suite bathroom. He would leave them be. Wait until his brother had taken his leave before announcing his presence to his wife.

He dropped his tie onto the bed, shed his jacket and, not bothering to undo the buttons, pulled his dress shirt over his head. With economy of movement Itachi went to the bathroom, turned the knobs for the shower, and finally, gratefully, stepped under the spray. He rested a palm against the cool tiles in front of him as he bent his head under the spray of water to wet his hair, deep in thought.

Generous as the gesture was, Itachi couldn't help but be honest with himself. He hadn't liked seeing them like that. Couldn't entirely help but feel betrayed by his younger brother's actions. He couldn't blame Sakura. She certainly deserved better than this cold, empty life he'd gifted her. Once again his train of thought was derailed by the maliciousness that boiled beneath his studious efforts to be fair.

She chose this. Knew what she was getting into right from the start. She needed the money, no matter how much she pretended to be in love with me.

And you? How are you any better? You needed a convenient bride, and pretended the same interest.

Itachi shook his head, feeling as if he was trapped in a bad animation movie with an angel on one shoulder and a devil on the other. True, they'd both used each other but his brother … why did she have to choose his brother of all people?

Forcing his thoughts away, concentrating only on the feel of the water cascading over his tensed muscles, Itachi completed his shower in record time. Then, a towel wrapped around his hips he stood in front of the full-length mirror and searched his body for any incriminating marks.

He lifted his long hair away from his neck, where it clung wetly, and shuddered as he remembered the lips tracing his skin … sucking lightly on a pulse point … the scrape of teeth over his jugular… strong hands gripping his hips…

For a long time he stared himself in the eye as his thoughts whirled wildly.

Why couldn't he stay away? What made him go back, time and again, to Shisui's apartment? The other welcomed him each time, never judging, but Itachi couldn't help but judge himself. He knew the reason his board had pushed for a marriage. They didn't want their stocks to crumble if news of the CEO's sexual orientation reached the tabloids. And, God knew, they didn't want to turn to Sasuke as their savior. Instead they discretely informed him that settling down might settle the rumors that had, thus far, been confined to the company itself.

Again Itachi relived the breathless moment his lips had first touched Shisui's. The confusion still hadn't abated, no matter that it had been nearly a year. He still couldn't understand how this could've happened to him. Still hated it. Hated how desperate and needy Shisui could make him feel with only a few small touches.

Inevitably Itachi broke. No matter how many times he promised himself to change. No matter how hard he tried to will the attraction the other man held away, every few months found him searching for the pieces of his pride in between the tangled sheets of Shisui's bed.

Then he'd come home, and try to forget. Try to pretend…

With a brisk shake of his head, Itachi turned away from the mirror, satisfied that there was no evidence marking his skin, and headed through to the bedroom. As he slid naked between the sheets of the guest-bed, he pushed all thoughts of hard muscle rippling beneath silky skin away and replaced it with an image of his wife.

She was undeniably lovely, if not a raging beauty, and Itachi allowed his thoughts to roam over her conjured body, desperately waiting for even a small twinge of attraction. As always he failed, but tonight, the guilt wasn't so crippling … clearly Sasuke had found more than a twinge of attraction for her. With a start Itachi examined his last, amused thought - why wasn't he jealous?

Carefully he imagined another running their hands over Shisui's body, pushing his dark hair out of his face as they leaned in to kiss those soft lips.

Itachi suppressed the growl that wanted to rip from his chest, suppressed the flash of stabbing pain, forced the red from his vision, and tamped down on the jealousy that flowed rampantly through his veins. Under control again, he miserably sank into the pillows. Slow, deep breaths accompanied his efforts to keep his mind blank, and the exhaustion of his body could no longer be held at bay. As Itachi drifted off into sleep a bitter smile twisted at his lips.

Wasn't it ironic? Two brothers, barely on speaking terms, each willing, for very different reasons, to give everything he had to change places with the other.

A/N: *peeks at readers* I'm actually considering turning this oneshot into a multi-chapter – what do you think? Let me know, please review!