Terms and Conditions

Declan feels Iris pulling away as they leave the church, although he feels minor relief at having completed one step of their plan. At her icy demeanor, he feels a desire to push back, and that desire, combined with his intent to prove that the feelings caused by their kiss at the altar were a one-time thing, leads him to pull her in for the kiss that the photographer requests. To his dismay, the feelings come back with a vengeance.

At the reception, Declan struggles more and more with his feelings for Iris, which he believes are a problem. He ruminates on the fact that acting on his feelings would only cause problems in his plan, and he becomes more and more distant from Iris. He eventually leaves her and goes to the bar, seeing her hurt but convincing himself it’s better for both of them if he keeps as much distance as possible. As he finishes his first drink and realizes he had gone to alcohol to cope, he feels awful, remembering his father’s behavior during his own childhood. He reminds himself that he is not his father and pushes away the glass before the bartender can refill it.

Iris spends the remainder of the reception drinking with Declan’s brothers and Zahra, Rowan’s girlfriend. Still upset at Declan’s treatment, she quickly becomes drunk. Declan stops her from drinking more and attempts to escape the reception with her. They’re caught by the wedding planner, who insists on the bouquet toss. Cal and Rowan then bribe the DJ to announce the garter toss, angering Declan. He and Iris make it through the garter removal, although Declan notices Iris’s shiver as he does so. He tosses the garter and scoops her up in her inebriated state, finally escaping to the car.

In the car, Iris attempts to talk about his behavior, but he is curt and rude, emphasizing again the false nature of their relationship. She begins to question what she had thought was a burgeoning friendship, wondering if he had only put on an act to make sure she followed through on the marriage. As they arrive home, she calls out his mistreatment of her on their wedding night, of all days, and tells him that she is no longer interested in being friends because he doesn’t seem to like her in the first place.

Iris storms inside and begins undoing the hours of work put into her hair and make-up. She attempts to undress but quickly realizes she can’t undo the line of buttons down her back, so she unwillingly knocks on Declan’s door to request help. It takes a few moments for him to come to the door, and she realizes that was because he had been in the shower, as he greets her in only a towel. Iris is clearly affected by his body but manages to request assistance. He struggles with the buttons, as well, and tells her to go into his room so he can use the light by the bed to see better.

As he moves to put some clothes on first, she notices that he still has the small cactus she had given him two years ago and that he keeps it on his nightstand. Surprised, she asks about it, but he brushes it off with a claim that he can keep a cactus alive.

Even with the better light, Declan cannot undo the buttons, as they are too delicate for his large hands. To Iris’s dismay, he suggests cutting the dress off, and only the realization that he truly cannot help her unbutton it makes her grab scissors and allow him to cut her out of the $50,000 dress. The feeling of him cutting the dress affects her, and she almost believes he is equally affected when he runs a hand down her now-bared spine. Declan then pulls out a string that was “bothering” him, and Iris decides that she will not let herself be so affected by him again since he does not seem quite so attracted to her.

Declan knocks on Iris’s door the next morning with what Iris deems an apology coffee. He ignores the feelings caused by being near her and determines that he will approach their marriage with as much distance as possible. Iris retaliates for their wedding and his rudeness by repeating her own version of his words at the engagement party, taunting him with her closeness but reiterating that every touch and glance is an act. Declan is aroused by her movements, but he pulls back and chooses to emphasize that they no longer have to pretend to be attracted to one another. As he had hoped, the words drive her further from him.

Declan meets his father for lunch, where Seth continues to challenge the veracity of the marriage and tells Declan he will not go down as CEO without a fight. When Declan defends Iris, Seth realizes Declan may actually have feelings for her, which he claims is a disappointment, as he had always respected Declan and his capabilities more than his brothers.

Declan had been considering a honeymoon, despite the fact that they were not originally going to take one, and Seth’s threats make Declan more determined to do so to keep up the appearance of himself and Iris as a happy, loving couple. Iris willingly agrees to book the trip since she hasn’t had a vacation in years. She points out that Declan’s assumption that taking his first vacation in years shows devotion is incorrect. As Iris ends the conversation with a quip at Declan’s expense, he turns away to hide the smile that only Iris can pull from him.

Iris invites Cal to the office to help her plan the honeymoon; she is excited not only for her first vacation since working for Declan but also because Declan told her money was no object. Cal suggests only romantic or tropical getaways, which Iris considers dangerous due to her attraction to Declan shirtless the previous night. When Cal suggests South Africa as a joke, Iris decides a safari-based honeymoon is much better. Angry over Declan’s continued icy treatment and lack of a thank you for all her efforts in planning, she books the most expensive safari lodge and uses his card to pay for her braids, as well.

On the flight to South Africa, the flight attendant flirts with Declan, and Iris, irritated, asserts her claim as wife. Declan is amused by her jealousy, but she denies it.

After two days of jet lag, Iris wakes up early, excited to start the safari, but as she checks on Declan, she finds him in his suit and on the phone with Mr. Yakura’s wife. When he tells Iris that Mr. Yakura has demanded a meeting and that they will be skipping the safari to prep, Iris becomes angry. She lets her anger slip over putting Declan’s needs first during the past few years. This surprises him, but she tells him to forget it and leaves; they communicate through text, and she prepares the PowerPoint he requests. She is reminded of how she has to work harder than most, as she considers that the PowerPoint would have taken a non-dyslexic person half the time; Iris needs extra time to review the document for errors.

As she considers all the work she has put in to prove her worth, she realizes again how much she has put Declan above herself. She has slowly lost any type of life outside of work and feels like she has lost herself too. Recognizing that the problem is in her tendency to play it safe, she admits that she may need to pursue opportunities that intimidate her despite the blow to her self-worth when she was rejected for a human resources position.

Tension continues to build, as Declan and Iris prepare for the meeting with Mr. Yakura. Declan is concerned over Iris’s behavior, only speaking to him via email or text and avoiding the suite’s common areas. He tries to confront her before the call, but she resists long enough for Mr. Yakura’s call to come through. When Mr. Yakura asks about Iris, she steps in behind Declan. They put on a tense show of affection for him before moving on to business.

Mr. Yakura is finally ready to accept their deal, with a few requests. After listing these, he asks if they would be able to revise the documents and send him everything by Friday, and Declan agrees, thinking that the deal is more important than their planned vacation.

When Declan hangs up, Iris admits that she should have known better than to think they could have fun on this trip and that Declan could put work aside. She tries to step outside for a walk, but Declan fears for her safety in the dark and with wild animals around. Instead of telling her this, Declan orders her to start on the work for Yakura. This is the final straw for Iris, and she tells him she will start as soon as she turns in her two-weeks’ notice.

Storming out of their suite, Iris hears rustling in the bush and quickly realizes she does not want to be outside at night. She does still want to rebel against Declan’s demands, however, so she sits on one of their bungalow’s deck chairs with the lights off.

After several calls from Declan, Iris finally picks up. He is angry and demands to know where she is, but Iris pushes back for a few moments before relenting. When he opens the door to meet her outside, he pauses to observe her, which makes Iris uncomfortable. Declan sits on the chair beside Iris and surprises her with not only an apology but also an admission that he was wrong. Above and beyond the apology, Declan informs Iris that he told Yakura they would need more time to complete the work he’d asked for that week, stating that some things are more important than the project.

He admits he should not have told her to work on her day off, and he asks what would make working with him better. Iris requests he treat her more like a human being, and she points out that he should stop calling the Tokyo project “his” project since she has given up much and put just as much work into it as he has. He agrees, and Iris agrees to stay with the company. Declan even says he is willing to go on the safari with her tomorrow.

However, Iris notes the phrasing Declan uses when he warns her about ever trying to quit again: “If you ever try to leave me again, I’ll make you regret it” (184). Iris believes Declan would take her quitting as a slight against him, and she recalls Cal’s assertion that Declan needs no one. She thinks to herself that he needs no one except her.

Declan is waiting impatiently as Iris meets him two minutes later than planned, and he leads her toward the meeting point for the safari. He continues to use his phone as they walk, and Iris asks him to agree to simply enjoy the safari. He agrees.

When they meet the safari guides, they discover that the trip is private, rather than a group tour. The tour guides ask what animals they want to see, and Iris is quick to say leopards. When Declan tries to refuse, she prods him, asking what he liked as a child. He says elephants, mentioning they were his mother’s favorite. The response softens Iris, and they head out for the safari.

Dinner, it turns out, is also more romantic and private than Iris had realized from the website. The tour guides set up a candlelit dinner with champagne and then leave the two to their privacy under the stars, and Iris realizes this is the first time they have eaten together without either work or their phones as distractions. Nervous, she downs half a glass of champagne, and Declan notes this. Her joke in response, about becoming the wife of a Formula 1 driver, begins a conversation about one of the driver’s charity sponsorships, of children who need prosthetics, and Declan admits to sponsoring some of the kids in the program.

Iris makes a joke about how it benefits Declan, and he is clearly upset by her assumption. She apologizes and asks him more about his desire to act as a sponsor. He surprises her, telling her his reasons and even sharing the pictures he has received of the children he sponsors on a trip to Dreamland. Iris realizes that he did want to join them, despite his hedging and avoidance, and she is saddened by the fact that he misses out on so much of life because he is focused on work. The chapter ends with Iris’s recognition that she has done the same thing, as well as her determination to show him what he’s missing.

Since the next day brings rain and thunderstorms, Iris and Declan are unable to go back out on safari. Declan surprises her by asking what she plans to do for the day. She responds that she will likely watch TV until her “brain melts,” and she continues on her path to the living area, hearing his footsteps behind her. As he joins her on the couch, she questions him, assuming he would want to work when she’s not asking him to go on safari. To her utter shock, he says he wants to join her, although he phrases it as a joke.

Knowing Declan as well as she does, Iris knows this is something big for him. He normally works as much as he possibly can, so she knows that him giving up valuable work time means he wants to spend time with her. Pleased, she settles in to watch TV with him.

Eight episodes of a home renovation show later, Declan asks how she can keep watching, and when she hints that she might enjoy doing something like home renovation, he seems upset at the idea of her not wanting to live in his house someday. She tries to placate him, but he asks what is wrong with his house. Iris explains that it’s a house but not a home, and to help him understand, she tells him a vague version of her parents’ divorce and about how her mom taught her a home is a place of comfort. Declan doesn’t understand, and Iris feels sad at the prospect of him never knowing that feeling of having a true home. She even thinks that perhaps she could help him make his house a home, an idea that both scares and excites her.

Declan wakes Iris in the middle of the night, jolting her out of sleep with the news that a leopard is right outside their bungalow. Rushing to catch what may be her only chance to see a leopard in person, she follows Declan to his bathroom window, where they both settle into the tub and spend much of the night watching the leopard prowl. Touched that Declan had not only remembered and woken her but also clearly rushed out of the shower to do so, Iris falls back asleep in the early hours with a smile on her face.

The honeymoon is over when Iris’s mom calls with the news that media sites are publishing a story that Iris and Declan’s marriage is fake and that Iris is being paid to marry him and have his child. Iris struggles again to keep her mother from discovering that this is true, but her mother is convinced the two love each other. Iris is hurt by the social media comments, both public and private, that she has received, including some death threats. However, she is determined to fix the situation. She suspects this was Seth’s doing, and she decides she will fix her and Declan’s image and fight Seth’s dirty tactics.