Page 160 of Glass Jawed
Becausethatvoice? That voice could melt the polar ice caps. That voice could short-circuit my brain and set my ovaries on fire simultaneously. And ithas.
And wait—did he just call me Rohi?
Fuuuck. I’ll allow it.
“Lucian!” Navya whines like the child she is.
He doesn’t even blink. Just stares her down like a damn apex predator.
“You need to back off, kid,” he growls, voice all grit and menace when she takes a step toward him.
Oh. My. God. Say it again. Growl it into a mic. Put it on vinyl.
“It’s fine—” I start, even though it’s very much not.
“No, it’s not,” he cuts me off, eyes burning. “She verygenerouslyinformed me that you were cheating on me with her cousin. I was just setting the record straight.”
Then he turns to a wide-eyed Navya, and though his voice softens by a hair, his words are still sharp.
“You need to leave. And I won’t be taking this to Vikram. But if you keep dragging me onto dance floors or brushing up against me during meals, Iwillhave a word with him—wedding or not.”
What an absolutely normal response, but...
...Puddle.
FORTY
Aarohi
“Oh my god,relax!” Navya snaps, dragging me out of the melted puddle I’ve become.
“I was trying tohelpyou,” she keeps digging. “Trying to make you understand that you’re wasting your time. She’s moved on.”
“And yet I remain unconvinced,” Lucian deadpans.
Ohyes, he does.
Wait—no. I’m so flustered I accidentally step closer to the vibrating mess that is Navya, as if proximity will help.
“Navya, go back inside,” I say as gently as I can. “This is between us. You don’t need to be part of this.”
She doesn’t budge.
“Go,” Lucian sighs, long and exasperated.
She finally huffs and stomps off, muttering a string of Hindi curses under her breath. Lucian probably doesn’t catch them—but knowing his luck, someone has definitely spoiled him enough to understand.
Once she’s gone, I walk over and stop right in front of him—right where she’d been standing. But unlike before, he doesn’t lean back this time. He stepscloser.
“I panicked when I saw you,” he admits with a sigh. “Didn’t know what you might’ve heard.”
I let out a soft laugh. “Only the part where you told her she has nothing to worry about because you and I aren’t together.”
His eyes go wide. “Fuck. I hope you believe me when I say—”
“Oh, Ido,” I cut in, shrugging. “I believe you wouldn’t... gothere.”
His shoulders sag. The relief on his face is instant and overwhelming.
