Poppy wakes the morning after sleeping with Alex and immediately worries that his brief note means he is pulling away. Remembering how badly things went after Croatia, Poppy decides she has to keep the mood light rather than force a serious conversation. Alex returns from a run with coffee, a cinnamon roll, and news that he has picked up the car, and the two spend a long, relaxed day by the pool while carefully skirting any direct discussion of what has changed between them.

As they get ready for David's bachelor party, Poppy keeps testing the boundaries of the new situation and offers Alex an easy out if he wants space. Alex instead asks whether Poppy regrets last night, and both of them firmly say no. Alex admits he has barely looked at Poppy all day because he cannot stop thinking about her, which breaks the tension. That confession leads to kissing, shared admissions that both have wanted each other for years, and another sexual encounter before they finally leave for the party.

At the extravagant mansion hosting David's coed bachelor party, Poppy is thrilled and startled to arrive holding Alex's hand in public. David greets them enthusiastically, immediately notices their handholding, and celebrates it. As the party unfolds, Alex and Poppy keep flirting openly. When Poppy says she wants Alex to have what he wants, Alex answers that he already does, and they share a long public kiss that makes their new closeness feel visible and real.

Later, while Alex joins a trivia game about David, David sits with Poppy at the edge of the pool and asks how this happened between her and Alex. After Poppy jokes about their broken Airbnb air-conditioning, David admits he is relieved. David explains that he has been worried about Alex, who spent years pouring his emotional energy into caring for Betty, helping raise his brothers, and managing their father's struggles, only to end up alone in Ohio while the rest of the family built lives of their own.

David then reveals that everyone once thought Alex would marry Sarah and that Alex had even bought a ring to propose. That revelation shocks Poppy and changes how she interprets the Tuscany trip and her long history with Alex. Poppy becomes convinced that her dependence on Alex and the emotional bond they never acknowledged may have damaged his relationship with Sarah and repeatedly forced Alex to sacrifice his own happiness for her. By the end of the chapter, David says he is glad Alex has Poppy now, but Poppy feels sick with guilt and fears she may have taken Alex's future instead of giving him what he needed.