Garrett - One Year Later

"Happy birthday to you!"

The crowd sang out the last notes of the song, and Iris blushed while Ivy beamed, delighted as always to be the center of attention. We stood in the cabin's dining room, a crowd of friends and family gathered around. My three brothers had stopped by. Haden and Troy argued quietly in a corner, but Liam sat at the table, a cold beer in his hands and his attention completely ensnared by Ivy. I reminded myself to talk him out of that crush later.

Together, the twins leaned in and blew out the candles. As soon as the last flame flickered out, Iris raised her eyes, locking onto me instantly. Only then did I hit send on the message I'd typed out on my phone. Hers dinged a few seconds later.

"I want a corner piece," Ivy said, pointing at the cake. "The icing to cake ratio is best on a corner piece."

Minh ignored her. "Iris, what do you want?"

"The middle piece," she replied. At the same time Ivy said, "She always gets the middle piece."

I swallowed a laugh. In the last year, I'd spent more time with Ivy Wilson than I thought I ever would, and while she was nearly as conceited and flaky as everyone thought she was, I'd learned a few things about her that made me love her. The biggest thing being how much she genuinely loved Iris, even if Iris didn't always see it that way.

Parker sidled up to me, his arms folded over his chest as he watched my mom laugh at something Iris whispered to her. "Do you know how much I want to punch you in the fucking face?"

My expression hardened as I glanced at my friend and business partner. "What the hell for?"

"Besides the fact that I still owe you after the incident in the park last year? Or the fact that Ivy now works for me, and I have to put up with her every day?"

I winced. Both things deserved of a hit to the face. That we could agree on. "Sure. Besides that?"

"You look like a whipped puppy every time you're around her. It's so sweet it makes my stomach hurt."

Behind his teasing tone, I caught a hint of something bitter. "I thought you were dating someone seriously. Jenna?"

Parker glanced into his cup, swirling around the contents. "It's not going to work out. We called it off."

He raised his drink to take a sip, but not before his gaze slid to Ivy for a second longer than was appropriate. I ground my teeth together, fighting back the urge to call him an idiot because it wasn't my place to judge him if he had decided to sleep with his admin assistant. Not now...all things considered.

"Oh, Garrett. She's just the sweetest thing," Deborah said, coming up to me and patting me on the shoulder. Her graying blonde hair framed her soft face, and despite the lines crinkling around her smile, she looked far younger than her sixty years.

Melissa turned from her conversation with Lexi to speak to us. "I'm glad things worked out after all that fuss."

Brows furrowing together, I aimed for a nonchalant tone, failing miserably. "I don't know what fuss you're talking about."

"Please," Melissa said, rolling her hazel eyes. "You didn't think your mom kept quiet about that trading places business, did you?"

"Why yes, I did. Silly me, thinking my mother might offer me some loyalty and respect our privacy."

Melissa snorted. "To be fair, she said nothing until the book was announced. That's when she spilled the beans."

Deborah crinkled her nose and bounced on her toes. Like a child in a candy store. "And to think, they've already optioned it for a movie."

A firm hand clapped my shoulder and squeezed. "Isn't that exciting? We can all go to the movie premiere and watch two people reenact Garrett's sex life."

"Fuck off, Troy," I growled, elbowing him in his stomach hard enough to make him wheeze.

Neither of the women had the decency to look embarrassed by the idea, though Deborah's cheeks were a little rosy. That probably had more to do with the two glasses of champagne I'd watched her drink.

"I heard that new actor was being considered for the male lead role," Melissa whispered to Deborah, the two of them putting their heads together as they walked away. "Jonathan, something or other. Oh, what is his name?"

"Sorry, brother. I told him not to mention that," Haden said, adding another jab to Troy's stomach.

"Are you kidding me? We screw with each other all the time, and this is gold. You'd have to be a saint to leave it alone," Troy fumed, rubbing his stomach and watching us warily. Parker tipped his drink toward Troy in agreement.

"What were you two talking about?" I asked, changing the subject from Iris's upcoming book and movie.

I'd found the rough draft of the manuscript when we moved in together last spring, and it had taken me two months to convince her she should share our story. That didn't mean I wanted to talk to my brothers about it, especially because I knew precisely how steamy the book got. The internet would have to invent a new spicy rating when it was released.

"Nothing," Troy and Haden said together.

A squeak from across the room stopped me from pressing them further, and I turned to find Iris staring at her phone, her entire face and neck turning bright red. A feral grin tugged at my lips, and I pushed through the crowd until I reached her.

Bending over the chair, I pressed my mouth to her ear as I whispered, "Do you like your birthday present?"

"Ooh, what is it?" Ivy hissed, her mouth full of cake as she leaned over to look at the phone.

"Nothing!" Iris clicked the side button of the phone. The screen went dark, hiding the picture I'd sent her.

"Oh. It's one of those gifts."

"N-no, it's not."

It most definitely was. I'd snapped the picture last night while Iris stretched naked across our bed on her stomach, her hands stretched out in front of her and tied together with a pink silk ribbon. Her round ass jutted into the air, one cheek baring a raised handprint. My free hand cupped her other ass cheek, spreading it just enough to show my cock as it sank into her pussy.

"You write the filthiest things, but you blush like a nun," Ivy muttered. She glanced up to catch Liam staring at her, and she shocked the hell out of me by turning pink.

Minh, who'd been listening to us the entire time, poked a fork covered in purple icing at me. "As lovely as I'm sure your gift is, surely you got her something else? She gets your dick 365 days a year."

"She's not wrong, dear," my mother piped up. "Though I'm sure your dick is lovely."

My mouth fell open, and I prayed a hole would swallow me up. I very much regretted inviting everyone to this party.

"Someone please shoot me," Iris muttered.

"Oh no," I said, regaining my composure and turning Iris's face toward mine. "You're not leaving me alone to deal with this lot for the rest of my life. In fact..."

I dropped to one knee and dug into my pocket. Iris's pupils dilated, and her chest slowed, as if she stopped breathing. Pulling out the ring box, I eased the lid open, the creak of the hinges deafening in the suddenly silent room.

"I don't want to spend a moment of the rest of my life without you. Will you marry me, Iris?"

Her brown eyes filled with tears as I emphasized her name. Several heartbeats passed, and the hairs on my nape raised. She was taking too long. She was going to say no. She was—

"Out loud," Minh muttered, tapping her friend on the shoulder. "You have to say it out loud."

"Yes!" Iris shouted, throwing her arms around my neck, crushing me to her.

Cheers erupted, and someone popped open another bottle of champagne. I kissed her and slid the sparkling solitaire on her finger. My mother hugged us both before spinning around to face her friends and flip them the bird.

"Pay up, Melissa! I told you Garrett would get married first."

"Mom!" My three brothers and I shouted in mock outrage. Our mothers just laughed and filled their champagne flutes until they overflowed.

"I love you, Garrett," Iris whispered, stealing another kiss in the midst of the chaos. She stood and tugged me toward the hallway leading to the back bedrooms.

"Where are we going?"

Her smile was bright in the darkness. A beacon I would gladly follow for the rest of my life.

"To collect on the rest of my birthday present."