Page 83 of How to Get Even

‘No. Really,’ Bella said, feeling the truth of it. ‘Itisokay. I… can actually see how you two work.Somuch better than we ever did,’ she continued, nodding to herself as she made her way back to the apartment.

‘It’s okay to yell and scream, B. I can take it. I deserve it twice over. You don’t have to be so damnfineall the time.’

‘Yes, I’m beginning to understand that,’ Bella said with a small sad laugh. ‘Do you love her, Olly?’ she asked.

‘I’m not sure,’ he hedged. ‘It’s… complicated.’

‘Yeah,’ she agreed. ‘In more ways than you know,’ she said, thinking of how Olly might feel if –when –he discovered the truth of how they all met.

‘What?’ he asked.

‘It doesn’t matter. What matters,’ she pressed on, ‘is this. You can’t hurt her, Olly. She’s been through it. Really through it, you know.’

‘I know. She told me about the revenge porn.’

‘She did?’ Bella asked, unable to hide her surprise.

‘Yes.’

‘Oh. Well… that’s good then. So you get it,’ Bella said, her tone morphing to serious in line with her feelings. ‘You understand why you need to figure out how you feel. You understand why you need to get sure. Because you can’t play with her, Olly. If you do, if you hurt her, I will track you down and do things you couldn’t even imagine,’ she warned, absolutely no humour in her voice at all. ‘Paige deserves the world and if you don’t give it to her, I will make sure that you regret it.’

Olly swallowed down the phone and rushed to reassure her that he wouldn’t hurt her, that he would give her the world, and that when they next met in person, Bella would know how sorry he was that it hadn’t worked between them, but not sorry that it had brought him to Paige.

‘Okay,’ Bella replied, finally feeling the first thread of peace she’d felt in the last eighteen hours. ‘Now, can I speak to Paige?’

‘Sure. Hang on a second.’

Down the line she heard muffled sounds as she impatiently waited to hear her friend’s voice pour down the line.

‘Bella? Are you okay?’ Her friend’s voice poured down the line.

‘Yes, Paige. I am. Really,’ Bella promised, feeling relief and knowing that she actually meant it.

17

Anger may in time change to gladness; vexation may be succeeded by content.

THE ART OF WAR, SUN TZU

Bella had changed. Before, if Bella argued with him or wanted to contradict him, there was a certain reticence about her. As if she were holding back.

Well. She sure as shit wasn’t holding back now.

‘This is unacceptable,’ he said, trying to keep his anger at bay.

‘You are wrong,’ she stated defiantly, grey eyes flashing glitter. Again.

‘I’m your boss,’ he reminded her for what felt like the hundredth time.

‘That doesn’t mean you’re not wrong, Chase,’ she all but growled.Growled! At him!

‘The kids don’t like it when Mummy and Daddy fight,’ Maurice sing-songed as he passed on the way to the kitchenette where Ali and Ye-Joon were looking on in concern.

Chase bit back a sigh. ‘We should take this to my office.’

‘Why?’ Bella demanded. ‘You think they can’t see us in there?’

‘When did you get so mouthy?’ he demanded.

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