I glanced around at all the familiar—and unfamiliar—faces. “How did you guys get in here? I can’t believe you’re all here!”
Then I spotted who I’d been waiting for, making her way toward me alongside the friend she’d brought for a girls’ weekend away.
“Kobi!” I cried, throwing my arms around her.
She hugged me tight. “Ivy! So good to see you.” She stepped aside and gestured toward her friend. “And this is Mia. We work together at the café.”
I was glad Kobi had made a good friend in Sydney. As Mia and I chatted, we both sang Kobi’s praises.
“You look fantastic, Kobi!” I took her in again. “How have you been, girl?”
“I’mgreat. I’m so sorry I haven’t caught up earlier. It’s been crazy at work,” she said. “But now we’re both living in Sydney, it’ll be way easier.”
“Don’t apologize.” I laughed. “I totally get it. I haven’t visited you either. I’m just glad you’re here now.”
“I’m so happy for you and Karson.” She glanced around. “And Iloveyour new place.”
“Ivy, babe! At last,” Sass said, sweeping us all into a group hug. “Now I see why you’re never coming home. The perfect job. The perfect house. And your perfect guy.”
“I know, perfect right?” We all cracked up.
I turned to the crowd, my hands covering my cheeks. “Thank you so much, everyone. I seriously don’t know how you pulled this off.” A disbelieving laugh escaped me. “We only just got the keys ourselves!”
“Simple,” Sass replied. “Karson emailed me all the details, and with his permission, the realtor gave me the spare keys early this morning. Olivia and I had everything ready before you even got off the plane.”
Smiling, I shook my head as Karson looked across at me with warmth in his eyes before being swallowed up by a growing group of friends.
Some of them were dressed casually while the others looked like they’d stepped straight out of a brochure in button-down shirts, chinos, blazers, and loafers—they looked like old friends from his school days.
“Kelvin! Josh! Bring it in.” Karson laughed as they pulled each other into a loud, back-slapping hug. “It’s awesome to see you guys. Who knew I’d actually miss you?”
The group burst into laughter, and a waiter circulated through the crowd, handing out flutes of bubbling champagne.
“Tyler!” Karson called out as a guy headed his way. “How are you, mate?”
“Great.” Tyler grinned, pulling him into a hug. “Sadly, not traveling the globe like you. You guys know how to travel in style, and you barely post, but when you do… wow!”
“Yeah, man, look at you,” Kelvin added. “You’ve even got a ski goggle tan.”
“Ahh, yes, thanks for pointing that out,” Karson chuckled. “The dreaded ski tan. I’ll be down on the beach tomorrow soaking up the sunshine, it’ll be gone in no time.”
Grinning, Kelvin ruffled Karson’s hair.
Sass and I drifted to one side, sipping champagne and giggling about her latest shenanigans before Karson caught my eye and held out his hand. We wandered over to the group.
“Ivy. Girls,” Karson said, glancing between us, “these are some of my mates.”
He turned to his friends. “Guys, this is Ivy, my amazing girlfriend. And these are some of her friends—Sass, Olivia, Kobi.”
The conversation flowed as we all got to know each other better. Karson’s friends were a great bunch of guys—funny, welcoming, and impossible not to like.
“Karson,” Tyler said, “we want to see you back at college next semester, bro. How else are we going to get through Statistics? Running a global corporation is no excuse for dropping out now.” He smirked.
“Tyler, even if I do go back next semester,” Karson said, his brows furrowing, “you’ll probably still fail Statistics.” He chuckled and gave him a friendly slap on the back. “Anyway, you can always ask Kelvin. He’ll get you sorted.”
“Fair call.” Tyler laughed. “Man, I hate that subject with a passion.”
“Me too, it’s so boring,” Kelvin said. “And this place is ridiculous. I wish I’d lived here when I was under house arrest.” He smirked.
