Terms and Conditions

Angry over Iris’s rash actions, Declan requests a few minutes alone before the party and questions her motives. For a moment, Declan believes Iris may be infatuated with him and asks her this directly. Iris insists they are friends and that she simply wants to help him. Declan asserts that he has no friends, but he accepts her help.

Fearing that lines around their relationship may become blurred, Declan reminds Iris of the rules and that every touch and public display of affection between them will be a lie.

Iris and Declan join the party as the DJ announces “the future Mr. and Mrs. Kane” (20). Declan sees Iris’s nerves and helps her settle herself before announcing to the gathering that they will marry at the end of the month. Rowan (the middle brother) and Cal welcomes Iris warmly into the family and joke in an attempt to lighten the atmosphere created by Declan’s typically cold demeanor. Soon, the party returns to normal.

Declan’s father, Seth, approaches the couple. Although he puts on a congratulatory show for the crowd, Seth also challenges the reality of their engagement, accusing Declan of putting together a fake marriage. Both Declan and Seth become angry as they exchange accusations and thinly veiled criticisms, and the altercation ends with Seth’s departure.

Guests congratulate Declan but barely acknowledge Iris. Eventually, the DJ calls them to the dance floor, where Iris appreciates a more affectionate Declan before reminding herself that it is all an act.

When Iris finally finds a moment to retreat to the restroom, Seth corners her and offers to pay her more than Declan is, hoping she’ll reveal the truth. He claims that he knows about the inheritance clause, but Iris manipulates him into revealing that he has no proof for such accusations. After relating the encounter to Declan, he warns her that whatever Cal has told her about their father is much worse in reality.

Iris announces her engagement to her mother and grandmother, Nana. Having believed her to be single, her mother is shocked while Nana approaches the news with humor. Once she has absorbed Iris’s story about a secret relationship, Iris’s mother admits that the idea of Iris marrying Declan is not actually difficult to believe. Nana echoes the sentiment by reminding Iris of how much time she spends with Declan.

Later, Cal arrives at Iris’s apartment to confront her about why she would agree to marry Declan. To emphasize how out of character the decision was, he reminds her that she has broken up with every boyfriend she has had before “things got ‘too real,’” even breaking up with one man because she thought that “an ex-boyfriend buying her a spare toothbrush was ‘moving too fast’” (35).

Iris believes that the arrangement with Declan may be beneficial for them both. He doesn’t believe in relationships, while Iris avoids commitment because her parents’ abusive marriage led her to believe that “[t]o love means to lose more than [she’s] willing to part with” (35). With this idea in mind, Iris rejects Cal’s insistence that Declan may hurt her. He also reminds Iris that she has to have a child with Declan, but Iris tells him that it won’t be a problem because the contract states that they would use in vitro fertilization.

Declan gives Iris the contract that he spent the weekend drafting. On reading that Declan plans to give Iris full custody of their child, Iris tells Declan that she will not agree to those terms. When Declan claims that the terms are non-negotiable, Iris threatens to call off the engagement and to tell the press the truth. Realizing how serious she is, Declan agrees to care for the child every other week.

Iris also requests that they marry in a church to please her mother, a condition to which Declan reluctantly agrees. He attempts to put her in his debt for it, but she flashes the engagement ring and asserts that becoming his wife in this deal makes them even. She also tells him that she’ll accept the $200,000,000 increase in her compensation that he initially offered in an attempt to convince her to accept full custody. He recognizes he has been played and that he regrets having taught her everything she knows about negotiating.

As Iris and Declan return to work, Iris feels the pressure of continuing her normal workload as Declan’s assistant while planning their wedding within two weeks. To add to her work, Declan tells Iris to revise their report for a new Dreamland in Japan. Hearing her irritation and stress, Declan thanks her genuinely, surprising Iris. As she texts with Cal over the shock of an expression of gratitude from Declan, she realizes that he must have meant it, a realization that makes her “stomach flip” (48).

When Cal comes to the office to drop off food for Iris, she vents about the difficulty of their deal with Mr. Yakura, the landowner with whom they are working to build Dreamland Tokyo. Iris and Declan have yet to determine what Mr. Yakura truly wants and why he continues to send the contract back, asking for revisions. Cal offers to help, but Declan pushes Cal out of the office.

On hearing that Cal plans to attend a cake tasting with Iris, Declan tells her he will attend instead of Cal, prompting Iris to wonder if he is jealous of Cal. In the evening, however, still at work, Iris falls asleep and is woken by Declan two hours later. As they head to their tasting appointment, late, Iris expresses confusion over why Declan is being so understanding of her falling asleep and not being able to finish the Yakura contract by the requested time. Declan expresses that he is “not a total asshole. [He] know[s] [she] ha[s] a lot going on” (53). This abnormal consideration from Declan puts Iris on edge.

At the tasting, Iris challenges Declan on his potential jealousy. He rejects the idea as well as any possibility of wanting to join her and Cal’s small friend group, but Iris notices his eye twitching, a sign of his nerves. She concludes that he does want to be friends with them, at which Declan shuts her up by shoving cake into her mouth. As he watches her lips, he concludes that he can shut her up by “keep[ing] [her] mouth permanently occupied” (56); Iris chokes and the chapter ends.

The chapter opens with Declan’s proclamation that Iris must move into his home that weekend. Iris does so, but as she transfers her plant collection into his home, Declan becomes distracted by the proliferation of plants and possessions.

As she settles in at the end of the moving day, Declan’s thoughts begin to reveal his increasing distraction around Iris. They exchange banter before Declan shows her to their room. Having anticipated the possibility of an arranged marriage, he had created a master suite in which the closet shares a hidden door with the room next door, which is to be Iris’s room for the duration of their marriage.

After Iris moves in, Declan and Cal share a private drink together, during which Cal teases Declan about surviving the influx of Iris’s belongings. Declan challenges Cal about his feelings for Iris, but Cal assures Declan that there is nothing between them. He admits to one kiss, when Cal was drunk and Iris was lonely, which clearly angers Declan. Despite Declan’s inner assertion that he prefers being alone to avoid others leaving him, the chapter ends with his thought that “Iris is destined to be with one man and one man only. [Him]” (68).

Woken up by Declan’s shouts at 6:00 a.m., Iris rushes to confront him about the early hour. She finds him in casual clothes for the first time in their acquaintance, with mimosas and donuts on the table as he paces in front of a Formula 1 race on TV. Shocked by the unusual attire, complete with donut crumbs and the odd choice of drinks, Iris struggles to process the moment. Reacting to their mutual embarrassment, Declan challenges Iris by asking her to remove the last of the donut crumbs on his face. Iris is caught in the moment before pulling herself away and joining him in watching the race. She doesn’t know anything about Formula 1 but stays to learn, joking about her sudden crush on one of the racers, which Declan dislikes.

Later, Iris works in the same room; she works on a Sunday because she has too much to do between her regular work and planning the wedding. Cal joins her when Declan is out, and he confronts her about her original idea of leaving the company. He assures her that Declan respects her enough that he would listen to her ideas, but Iris insists she will not leave. Cal’s prodding reveals his knowledge of Iris’s dyslexia, which she works hard to overcome and keep from everyone, including Declan, rather than asking for accommodations.

Declan returns unexpectedly, overhearing Iris’s comment about not quitting and questioning what she means. Cal attempts to lead Iris into finally being honest, but, inspired by a commercial, she covers up the conversation by faking insistence on wanting a dog so that Declan won’t become suspicious, even though she has never thought about owning a pet before.

In this chapter, Declan finally meets Iris’s mother and grandmother. At their jokes and high humor, Iris observes Declan’s eyes alight with what she believes is humor. He seems to judge the shabbiness of the apartment, at which Iris feels embarrassed but defensive.

Iris’s mother and Nana put him through the family tradition of testing men with incredibly spicy chicken, and Declan stubbornly eats all of it as they share the story of Iris’s ex-boyfriend’s proposal.

As they leave, Iris’s family expresses their approval, and the secret of the spicy chicken test is revealed. Declan helps Iris on with her coat, even pulling out her hair and doing the buttons for her. Iris feels as if she herself might fall for his act, and she is shocked to recognize that she may actually like the feeling of being taken care of by Declan.

Declan and Iris pause outside their rehearsal dinner venue, both dreading the prospect. On entering, Declan is quickly drained. He is an introvert, hates small talk, and hates the way people attempt to use him to climb the social ladder. The event leaves him with a headache. He attempts to hide in a corner, where Iris finds him. He finds comfort with her there.

Seth approaches, still putting on a show of fatherly support, but his words betray his remaining doubts about the wedding. Declan comments on his father’s drunkenness for his entire childhood, and Iris pulls him away before the situation can devolve further. Declan’s thoughts reveal that his father physically abused him as a child while teachers ignored the bruises. Declan spent his childhood doing his best to protect his brothers from his father’s physical abuse.

Iris pulls Declan into a supply closet to give him a few minutes away from the crowd, and he attempts to convince her to elope, even promising that her mother could join them as their witness. They hear waiters about to enter the closet to turn off the light, so Iris pulls Declan into an intimate embrace for appearance’s sake. Declan’s body betrays him, and he feels attraction and lust at the embrace. The chapter reveals the depth of Declan’s attraction to Iris, but he continues to believe it is an infatuation, one not worth ruining their professional relationship over since he believes Iris is integral to his plan to become CEO.