Terms and Conditions

Iris is the female romantic lead and the other protagonist and point-of-view character. In her mid-twenties, she is a driven African American woman who copes with both dyslexia and asthma. She comes across as vibrant and friendly although this hides her vulnerability and fear of rejection. She avoids serious relationships to prevent herself from being hurt like her mother was. Declan runs into these emotional walls when he finally admits to his feelings and decides to propose a real relationship within their fake marriage.

Iris has struggled with dyslexia since childhood. Having been bullied by peers, her teachers, and even her own father for it, she hides this fact from everyone at work, spending far more hours than most working so she can prove her own worth. This is why Declan’s actions throughout the novel have the power to both earn her trust and hurt her deeply. When he reveals he has known about her dyslexia the entire time, he tells her she is fantastic at her job and that, if anything, dyslexia has made her 10 times better at her job because she thinks differently than him. Iris thinks that his assessment of her as his biggest asset is “heart-wrenchingly beautiful” (305), and she begins to trust him more with her heart from then on. However, when he tells her at Dreamland that she failed in her plan to help him with Yakura, he dredges up a lifetime of her having been called a failure and opens her biggest wound.

Despite the hurtful words she has heard over the years, Iris is a determined and strong woman, as her exhausting efforts and her place as Declan’s most valued employee show. This strength helps her throughout the novel, and when she leaves Declan and the company after his emotional betrayal, this strength is her greatest asset. However, she too closely identified the position with her sense of self. After she quits, she realizes, “I spent years tying my worth to my positions, and now that I don’t have it, I feel lost” (433). Just as Declan has to decide not to become his father, Iris has to decide not to let her past limit her future. She decides to push past the limitations she has put on herself and apply for college, fulfilling the dream for which she assumed she was not ready.

Rowan and Cal are the two younger brothers of Declan and protagonists of the other Dreamland Billionaires novels (The Fine Print and Final Offer, respectively). Cal plays a larger role in Terms and Conditions than Rowan, as he and Iris have become close friends. According to Iris, Cal is her only friend since her dedication to her job has caused her to turn down so many invitations that all her other friends have stopped contacting her. Call provides support when Iris needs it, particularly after Declan betrays her with his hurtful words in Dreamland. The brothers hint in Terms and Conditions at some kind of requirements that Cal must fulfill according to their grandfather’s will, but Cal seems to be avoiding the task. Their references hint that it may involve his own romantic relationship, which ended badly.

Rowan’s love story played out in The Fine Print, prior to the opening of Terms and Conditions, but his choices and Declan’s reaction to them have caused strain in their relationship. Having fallen in love with Zahra, Rowan has chosen to stay and work at Dreamland, rather than return to Chicago to help Declan with the running of the company. Declan resents being left with the responsibility and fixates on the betrayal he feels rather than the fact that Rowan has chosen happiness. Iris and Zahra regularly attempt to push the brothers into reconciliation, but their attempts fail until Declan sees the truth about his behavior after he has hurt both Iris and Rowan.

Zahra is Rowan’s girlfriend and the other protagonist of The Fine Print. She worked at Dreamland and, upon submitting a proposal about one of their rides, Rowan hired her to work with him. The two fell in love and, like Iris and Declan, helped one another heal their internal conflicts. Zahra tries to push the brothers together several times, ultimately creating the situation where Declan and Rowan talk. She also becomes a confidante for Iris when they meet at Iris and Declan’s fake wedding, and this builds up to a fast friendship.

Seth Kane and Ms. Landry are the sole parental figures in the novel, as Mrs. Kane passed away when her sons were young and Ms. Landry left her husband after years of abuse.

Seth looms over Declan’s life after years of abuse and manipulation. He is the current CEO of Dreamland, but he is determined to hold the position and keep Declan down at any cost. He spreads rumors about Declan and Iris’s marriage being fake, he insults Iris with degrading language, he repeatedly calls Declan weak, and he tries to ruin Declan’s deal with Mr. Yakura so that Declan looks bad in front of the board. He spent the boys’ childhood verbally abusing them and physically abusing Declan, and Declan spent years gathering evidence of his abuse to use as blackmail.

Ms. Landry is the opposite of Seth. She has always been a caring and loving mother to Iris, and when she could, she took herself and Iris away from her husband’s abuse. They lived in a small apartment, but Ms. Landry taught Iris the meaning of home. She does not know the truth about Iris and Declan’s marriage; she believes Iris has finally fallen in love and moved past the scars of having seen Ms. Landry’s abuse at the hands of Iris’s father. Ever supportive, when Iris goes to her after Declan’s hurtful words at Dreamland, Ms. Landry offers words of wisdom about forgiveness and marriage.