Page 21 of Twisted Hate (Twisted 3)

Silence blanketed the room, broken only by Jules’s ragged breaths. Her earlier cool had evaporated, replaced with flushed cheeks and blazing eyes, but for once, I didn’t take pleasure in riling her up.

I opened my mouth to say something, anything, but I was too stunned to formulate an appropriate response.

Jules and I had exchanged more barbs than I could count over the years. She always gave as good as she got, but what happened just now…if I didn’t know better, I could’ve sworn she was actually hurt.

A hot poker of guilt stabbed at my chest.

I straightened and rubbed a hand over my face, wondering when the hell my life had gotten so complicated. I missed the days when Jules and I insulted each other with zero guilt or remorse, when my sister wasn’t in love with my ex-best friend, and when my best friend had still been my friend.

I missed the days when I was me.

Now here I was, about to do something old Josh would’ve rather cut off his arm than do.

“I shouldn’t have said that,” I finally conceded. “It was a low blow, and I…” A muscle worked in my jaw. Dammit. “I’m sorry.”

I spit out the words. It was the first time I’d ever apologized to Jules, and I wanted to get it over as quickly as possible.

Just because I did the right thing didn’t mean I had to like it.

I braced myself for Jules’s gloating, but none came. Instead, she just stared at me like I hadn’t spoken.

I forged ahead. “However, the clinic is important to me, and I don’t want our…differences to get in the way of our work. So I propose a truce.”

Proposing a truce might as well be surrendering, but I refused to let our animosity poison my time at the clinic. Everywhere else, fine. But not here.

Her brow wrinkled. “A truce.”

“Only when we’re in the clinic.” I wasn’t naive enough to think we could uphold any semblance of peace outside a work environment. “No insults, no snarky comments. We keep it professional. Deal?” I held out my hand.

Jules eyed it like it was a coiled-up cobra waiting to strike.

“Unless, of course, you don’t think you can do it.”

Satisfaction trickled through me when her lips thinned. I’d touched on a competitive nerve, as I knew I would.

She didn’t take her eyes off mine as she grasped my hand and squeezed. Hard.

Jesus.For someone so small, she was fucking strong.

“Deal,” she said with a smile.

I smiled back through gritted teeth and squeezed even harder, relishing the way her nostrils flared at the pressure.

“Excellent.”

Forget what I said about being bored.

This was going to be an interesting few months.