LIAMFuck. Fuck. Fuck, what the fuck have I done?I burst out of the restaurant like it was on fire, breath heaving, heart in pieces. My shoes slapped the pavement, and I didn’t even care that I looked like a lunatic sprinting out of a high-end place like that. My eyes darted, desperate, searching."Jessica! Jessica!"She didn’t turn. Didn’t flinch. Just kept walking like she didn’t know me. Like I wasn’t behind her yelling her name like it was the last word I’d ever say.Her heels clicked steadily against the sidewalk, so calm it made my panic feel stupid. And then she reached Lucas’s car. The fucking car.She opened the passenger door, got in without a word. Slammed it shut. That sound hit harder than anything she could’ve said.Lucas looked at me through the windshield, no expression on his face. Just started the engine, put the car in gear, and drove off with her.Gone. Just like that.My chest was burning. My throat was dry. I didn’t even know what the hell I was supposed to do.
Hi everyone, I want to sincerely apologize for my inconsistency lately. There’s been a lot of family drama and unexpected life stuff happening behind the scenes, and it pulled me away more than I intended. But I’m fully back now—and the good news is, we have probably less than 20 chapters to go! I also want to thank you for your patience. If you’ve noticed a shift or dip in the writing at certain points, it’s likely because I wasn’t in the best headspace while working on those parts. This story means a lot to me, and I appreciate every single one of you who’s stuck with it—and with me. Your support has meant more than you know. Thank you for being here. With love, O.J💕
JESSICA “You’re not even pretending to work today,” Lucas said, leaning over my cubicle with a grin like he’d just caught me red-handed drinking office coffee before 8 a.m.I sighed. “I’m trying. It’s just… one of those days.”“Where the only thing you’re good at is looking distracted?”I forced a laugh. “Hormones,” I blurted, instantly regretting it. “Just—hormones.”He raised an eyebrow. “Hormones and Slack open on social media?”“Shut up,” I muttered, but I smiled, the tiniest bit.Lucas took a sip from his ridiculous neon water bottle. “Don’t forget we’ve got the investor prep at three.”“I won’t.”“I mean it, Jess. I need your A-game. No hormone excuses.”“I said I won’t,” I repeated, softer now.He gave me a mock salute and disappeared down the hall, his loafers squeaking like bad background music.I sat at my desk, fingers hovering over an unfinished report, but my head was miles away.I was replaying the message Liam sent that morning, over and over, like a broken record. It
LIAMI didn’t answer.Instead, I gently slid her off me, careful, like she’d break if I did it too fast. She let me, eyes still burning into me like I owed her a better explanation. Maybe I did.But I didn’t say anything.I got up, walked toward the bathroom. My body was already heavy with the weight of where this conversation was going, and I didn’t want to go there. Not tonight. Not now.“You’re just going to walk off?” she asked from the bed, voice tight.I stopped. Turned slightly. My jaw ticked. God, not now.“I’m not walking off,” I said, sharper than I meant to. “I’m just… done.”“Done with what?” she shot back.“Done with this. With always feeling like I’m not enough for you.”She sat up, covers falling around her waist. “I never said that.”“You don’t have to.”I ran a hand down my face. I didn’t want this argument. I hated this version of us. The one where I felt like I was constantly trying to read her mind, and failing.“You can go if you want,” I said, flat.Her mouth o
JESSICAI woke up to heat—slow, crawling heat that pulsed low in my belly. Liam’s arm was heavy across my waist, his chest warm and bare against my back, his breath thick and slow against my neck. But it wasn’t just that. It was the way my body ached. The way I could already feel the damp throb between my legs. The way his hardness pressed against me like he belonged there, like he’d grown there overnight.I didn’t move at first. Just breathed. Just listened.The room was dim, lit faintly by the streetlight bleeding through the blinds. The AC hummed low, the fan creaked with every slow spin, and Liam slept on—solid, steady, and completely unaware of how badly I needed him. Or maybe he knew. Maybe that was why he was already hard. Maybe he’d dreamt of me just like I’d dreamt of him.I shifted—slow, subtle, enough to feel the shape of him, stiff and hot through the thin barrier of my sleep shorts. My heart skipped.God.I pushed back, just a little. Just to test him. His fingers t
JESSICA I didn’t even shut down my system properly. I just wanted out. My heart was racing for no reason—unless you count the fact that my husband was downstairs, and I’d rather be in his arms than breathing recycled office air for one more minute.My hands were shaky as I stuffed papers into my bag, not even checking if they were important. I slammed my laptop shut mid-email. Sorry to whoever was getting that half-written “Best regards.” I could barely hear anything beyond the thump of my heart and the hum of the elevator ticking its way up.“Jess?” a voice called behind me.I looked up too quickly. My coworker, Halima, tilted her head with concern.“You good?” she asked. “You look like you're about to sprint out of here.”I forced a smile, one that didn’t quite reach my eyes. “Yeah. Just tired.”She gave me a skeptical once-over. “Tired doesn’t make people forget their ID badge and toss their mouse in their handbag.”I blinked. Sure enough, the wireless mouse was sitting right on t