Iris Kelly Doesn't Date (Bright Falls, #3)(82)

Iris blinked at her, reality rushing back in. “Shit. Sorry. That was a little aggressive, huh? I should’ve asked.”

“It’s okay,” Stevie said. She rested her hands on Iris’s waist. “Seriously, are you all right?”

Iris waved a hand. “Fine. Just . . . turned on.” She smirked at Stevie, all flirt and swagger, but Stevie didn’t smile back. She just studied Iris in a way that made Iris want to scream.

Iris stepped back, causing Stevie’s hands to fall away from her hips. Cleared her throat. “I was just on my way out.”

“I see that,” Stevie said.

“Did you need something?”

Stevie smiled. “Actually, yeah. I was hoping you’d go somewhere with me.”

Iris frowned. “Where?”

“That’s a surprise.”

“What?”

Stevie ran her hand through her hair, laughed a little nervously. “I was at home, thinking about you, and I realized we hadn’t had a true romantic date yet.”

“A date.”

“Our deal is still on, right?” Stevie said. “You’ve held up your end, but I’ve been a pretty horrible teacher to you.”

Iris sighed. “Stevie, you don’t have to do that.”

“Is your book finished?”

“No, but . . .” She trailed off, because despite Stevie’s claims, Stevie had actually helped Iris a lot, igniting every dormant romantic bone in Iris’s body. Tegan and Briony’s enemies-to-lovers story was flowing from her like a chocolate fountain at a wedding. Iris had even sent the first fifty pages to her agent last week, who loved them and encouraged her to keep going.

So Iris had, writing as if in a fever dream in the mornings and late into the night after play rehearsal.

Writing and drawing.

Drawing Stevie.

Stevie and Iris.

She shook her head, determined to tell Stevie no, she wouldn’t go with her.

Couldn’t.

But as Stevie tilted her head, that soft smile on her mouth, Iris found she was curious about this surprise, curious about what Stevie had planned for this next romance lesson.

And, if she was being honest with herself, she wasn’t actually sure she was in the mood for Lush, for searching for someone to fuck in a sea of nameless faces.

She didn’t really want nameless tonight.

She wanted a friend. The kind of friend who wouldn’t ask her about her love life or give her I actually know what’s best for you looks like Claire had been doing lately.

And Stevie was just such a friend.

If they ended up having sex at the end of this fake date, then so be it. Iris certainly wouldn’t say no to that. She’d never admit it to Stevie—and definitely not to Claire or Astrid or even Simon—but her night with Stevie was the best sex Iris had ever had.

“Okay,” Iris said. “Fine. What’s this surprise you have up your sleeve?”





TWENTY-FIVE MINUTES LATER, they turned into a driveway with a sign welcoming them to Woodmont Family Farms. The sun was just starting to dip below the trees, turning everything golden and soft.

“We’re . . . going . . . strawberry picking?” Iris asked.

“Not quite,” Stevie said, smiling as she parked next to a tiny house with a sign on the front porch that said Farm Office. “Ready?”

“I’m not sure,” Iris said, laughing.

Still, she got out of the car and let Stevie take her hand—this was a romantic date, after all, so what the hell—and they walked along a dirt path through a copse of trees. Iris continued to guess at what they were doing.

“Scavenger hunt?” she asked.

“No.”

“Vampire hunting.”

Stevie laughed. “Intriguing, but nope.”

“Damn. I’ve always wanted to fall madly in love with a vampire.”

“I’ll do some research for next time.”

“You’re pretty confident I’ll say yes to a second date,” Iris said.

Stevie just smiled at her. Soon, the trees thinned, and they broke through to a field, an endless swath of summer green.

And there, about a hundred feet away, a woman in a pair of dusky rose-colored coveralls stood next to a hot-air balloon.

“Oh my god,” Iris said, neck craning to take in the giant inflatable. It was huge, much bigger than she’d ever imagined a hot-air balloon would be, the body a beautiful rainbow of colors.

“Surprise,” Stevie said softly as Iris gaped.

“I’d say so,” Iris said, then turned to look at Stevie. “For real?”

“For real. Have you ever been on one?”

Iris shook her head. “I’ve always wanted to though.”

“Same.” Stevie squeezed her hand.

Iris grinned at her, her foul mood from earlier evaporating like fog under the sun.

“Stevie Scott?” the woman asked as Stevie and Iris approached.

“That’s me,” Stevie said. “And this is Iris. Are you Laney?”

“I am,” Laney said. “Welcome to Woodmont. You two ready?”

Iris swallowed. “I think so?”

Laney smiled. “It’s natural to be nervous, but you’re safe, I assure you. Go ahead and step into the gondola while I get things ready on the ground.”