Page 14 of Glass Jawed

Lucian

Yesterday? No.

Probably last Sunday. Yeah. It was last Sunday when I had last taken this damn bracelet off my wrist—unless I was showering, of course.

And even then, it was only because I wanted to take a picture of it with Cooper’s shrine and send it to my mom.

Before that, I couldn’t even recall the last time it left my wrist. Two straight months of wearing it, like a second skin. It wasn’t just Cooper anymore—his name, his memory—it was Aarohi too.

Somewhere along the way, my brain stopped trying to separate the two. So I didn’t fight it. The bracelet had become both.

And fuck if it didn’t mess with me sometimes—especially when she noticed it and gave me one of her adorable smiles.

Sometimes, the bracelet would be buried under my shirt’s cuffs. And there was something profoundly intimate about the way she’d tug gently at my cuffs, fingers searching, eyes lighting up when she saw it still on my wrist. Like she needed proof I hadn’t taken it off. Like it meant something.

Of course it did.

A few weeks ago, I had one of the most important meetings of the quarter.

A sit-down with shareholders about our D2C acquisition performance, which—spoiler alert—had taken a hit.

I’d been dreading it. Liam and I were grinding through the numbers at his place, our VP of Product dialed in on Zoom.

We were all running on caffeine and stress fumes when I ran a hand down my face.

.. and metal charm brushed against my wrist.

Cool. Grounding.

Aarohi’s face flashed through my mind—smiling, nodding, just existing.

This woman had a knack for business too, which was the ironic cherry on top. She’d casually shared some insights about acquisition strategy from one of her previous jobs, and I’d stored them without even realizing. Suddenly I was quoting her suggestions to our board.

When I told her later how well it went and that the team loved her idea, she’d beamed. I offered to put her on a short-term consulting contract and she just laughed, waved it off, and said, “You’re the CEO. You’d have arrived at the same solution eventually.”

And maybe it should’ve been a throwaway line. Maybe I should’ve laughed and let it go.

But I didn’t. I just kissed the shit out of her.

Because every day, it’s been getting harder to remember what the plan was.

Revenge? Right.

I’m a moron. I’m lying to myself if I think I don’t absolutely adore this woman.

Which is why when I met her friend, Kashvi, today—making slight jabs at me and Liam both—I was surprised but not shocked. I have no doubts that Kashvi knows about how Rohi and I actually met.

She was probably skeptical about me. And I was okay with that.

I’m just about to step out onto Liam’s balcony when I hear his voice echo sharply from one of the rooms.

The party hasn’t technically started yet. People will start arriving within the hour—Rohi and Kashvi included. But something in Liam’s tone stops me cold.

“This is fucking stalking!” he snaps.

A pause. Then Karina’s voice, defensive and agitated: “It’s not . He’s just visiting Toronto. Why is it so wrong that I told him about the party?”

What the hell?

I’ve never heard them talk like this. Karina’s always been the laid-back one in the group, Isaac’s girlfriend—now fiancée—calm to a fault. Never the one to raise her voice. And Liam? He might get annoyed, but rarely like this.

“You need to tell him not to show up,” Liam says. “Now.”

“Fine! God! What is with you?” she fires back. “I didn’t invite him. I just mentioned it. Jesus.”

“You really think he won’t take that as an invite? I’ve been fucking blocking his attempts to get to Lucian for days. He’s crossing lines.”

A cold pit drops in my stomach.

Tim.

They’re talking about Tim.

“There—happy?” Karina bites. “I thought we were all friends. And now just because they broke up, we’re supposed to pick sides? He was heartbroken when Lucian kicked him out, Liam.”

I freeze in place, hands shaking at my sides.

Fuck.

So Karina doesn’t know.

I’d only told Liam what happened. Trusted him to share it with the rest so I wouldn’t have to keep reliving it. I guess... he didn’t.

Loyal fucking bastard.

But that means Karina and others are just out here thinking I ghosted Tim. That I ended things cold. And if Tim shows up tonight—

Shit.

This is about to blow up in my face. I storm into the room without knocking.

Liam and Karina both freeze like I’ve just dropped a grenade. Liam opens his mouth—probably to warn me to calm down—but I’m not looking at him.

I’m only looking at her.

“Tim cheated on me,” I say flatly. “We broke up. I kicked him out. He left the city. End of story.”

Karina’s face goes pale. “What the fuck?” she breathes. “Why didn’t you tell us?”

Liam shifts beside her, visibly uncomfortable. He doesn’t say a word. Doesn’t have to.

I take a deep breath. No point in blowing up.

Not when I’ve finally built something good—with Rohi.

The last thing I need is to relive that night.

But the images come anyway. The cold sweat.

The disbelief. The sting of betrayal as Tim stood there naked, stammering excuses beside a nameless woman.

A woman that I now know intimately. Fuck .

I blink hard and push it all back.

“Because it was humiliating, Karina. He picked up a random woman at a bar,” I say, voice tight. “I walked in. Found them both naked in my bed.”

Karina gasps and blurts out. “But... he’s gay !”

I don’t respond.

Liam lifts a brow and shrugs. “Apparently he was confused. Still is? We don’t know. But yeah. He did it. And now... Karina, maybe you can word your message a little differently .”

She flushes, eyes wide. “Yeah. Shit. Yeah, of course.”

I rub the back of my neck, trying to steady my voice. “Just make sure he doesn’t show up, okay? I’m dating someone else now. I don’t want her blindsided by my ex walking into the middle of a fucking birthday party. No one wants that.”

Under-fucking-statement of the year!

Karina nods quickly and pulls out her phone, tapping furiously. “I’ll message him right now.”

She finishes typing and hesitates, holding up her phone at me. “Is this okay?”

I shake my head and raise a hand. “I don’t care what it says. Just make sure it works.”

She passes it to Liam instead. He squints at the screen, reads it, and nods once.

Before the tension can coil tighter around us, the sound of the main door opening cuts through.

We all head out.

Isaac’s unmistakable voice carries into the hallway. “Honey! We’re hoooommme!”

Karina exhales sharply, relief flooding her features. She walks out first, greeting Isaac’s little sister Emma with a warm hug and then throwing her arms around Isaac, who mock-groans like she just smothered him in public.

The moment breaks.

But a different kind of pressure is building in my chest. It’s not dread. It’s something else.

Because Rohi will be here any minute.

And I just realized... that I need her here as soon as possible. I just need to set my eyes on her so I can calm the fuck down.

***

“Fuck, sweetheart. You shouldn’t have worn this dress.”

We’re on the far end of Liam’s balcony, mostly hidden by the heavy drapes and the shadows of the skyline. The party behind us is loud—someone’s put on late 2000s hip-hop and the living room is steadily filling up—but none of it touches us here.

Because I’ve got her.

I’ve got her .

Kashvi winked at her the minute they walked in, and hasn’t left Liam’s side since—which is great for me. I get to monopolize my girl.

And god , when she walked in?

Something inside me just... settled. It was ridiculous how fast it happened. How right it felt.

She looked nervous at one point—shoulders drawn, eyes darting—but a silent look from Kashvi had calmed her. I’d meant to ask about it. But I’d rather distract her by kissing the life out of her.

“Do you want me to stop?” I murmur against her throat, as my fingers slide under the hem of her dress.

She lets out a breathy laugh, head tilted back, exposing more of her neck for me to devour. “You say that like you’re planning to.”

“I’m not,” I admit, lips grazing her collarbone. “I’m really not.”

She whimpers as my hand travels higher, fingertips brushing lace and heat. My cock’s been hard since she leaned into me earlier with that coy little smile.

“What do you know about Liam’s dating history?” she asks suddenly, breath catching when I slide a knuckle down the inside of her thigh.

“Not sure I want to talk about Liam while I’m half an inch from your pussy,” I growl, biting her earlobe.

She lets out a sharp laugh—and then a gasp when I nudge her panties aside and slide my fingers over her wet slit, smearing her arousal everywhere.

“Fuck, Lucian—” she grips my arm. “What if someone sees us?”

I glance around, smirking as I shift her further into the dark corner. “We’re on the thirty-seventh floor. And this angle? No one can see shit.”

“I can’t believe we’re doing this,” she whispers, hips rocking into my hand as I slide two fingers inside her.

“I can.” I kiss her jaw. Her cheek. Her parted lips. “You feel how wet you are for me, baby?”

She nods helplessly, one hand grabbing my shirt, the other fisting in my hair.

“Luc. Fuck, baby, I’m close.”

That nickname.

She only calls me that when I’ve got her trembling. And every time she does, something warm and dangerous coils in my chest.

I curl my fingers, press my palm against her clit just right, and her breath stutters.

She clutches me, moaning into my neck as her body tenses, shudders—and then melts.

I keep my arm around her, holding her steady as her head drops to my shoulder.

When I finally ease my fingers out, I bring them to my mouth.

She watches—eyes wide—as I slide my fingers past my lips and taste her.

Then, gently, I fix her panties back into place, my other hand smoothing down her dress. She’s still dazed, her breathing uneven, and the way she’s looking at me—like she sees something in me I haven’t even named yet—nearly brings me to my knees.

It looks a little like conflict wearing the mask of my surrender.

“Rohi...” I whisper, dropping my forehead to hers. I don’t know what the hell to say. I don’t even understand what I’m feeling. The only way to describe it is—it’s terrifying . And thrilling. All-consuming.

I cup her face, brushing my thumb across her cheek as I press a soft kiss to her lips. “Let’s go inside, sweetheart.”

She smiles shyly, then suddenly grins like an absolute fool. “Oh... is Liam a dip-in-then-leave-’em type?”

Groaning, I squeeze her cheeks so her lips pucker like a fish.

“No seriou—”

I kiss her hard, just to shut her up.

“You don’t need to worry about Kashvi,” I mutter against her mouth.

She snorts as we head back inside. “Hah! You’re right. You should be worried about Liam though.”

I laugh—like really laugh —and it feels like it bubbles out of somewhere deep, somewhere untouched for too long. She laces her fingers through mine and I swear my heart does this stupid little lurch.

The noise of the party floods us as we step back in. Warm lights. Familiar faces. Her hand in mine.

Shame I just didn’t remember this feeling when it counted. That I was only days away from fucking imploding.