Free Between Loves (The Pendant Series Book 2) by Cynthia Austin Page B

and send him crashing to the ground.
    Two could play this game.
    He hesitated a moment longer before answering. His eyes rested on my mother’s pendant as he spoke.
    “Yes she was, but that was a long time ago. I gave her the necklace and she said she’d always keep it.”
    He took the necklace in his hand as he often did when we were together. Turning it around in his palm, he examined it with such sadness in his eyes. I wanted to kiss it away. I wanted to tell him that I could help make the pain go away.
    “Well, this necklace has been in my family forever, so it can’t be the same one,” I said, taking the pendant out of his hand and letting it fall back against my chest.
    “I know.”
    I challenged him, “She’s the reason you came back here, isn’t she? You said you came here for someone. Was it for her?”
    I didn’t know where all of this courage was coming from but it just seemed like I needed to know the answers.
    “She’s the reason I do everything, Sidney,” he answered, still lost in his mind, fixated on my necklace.
    Feeling I was gaining the upper hand in the conversation, I took advantage and took a step closer.
    “Then why are you here now?” I whispered seductively. This time it was my turn to get close to him and breathe my words in his face, intoxicating him as he did to me.
    But he wasn’t easily intimidated, and instead of retreating from me, he took my hand and pulled me close.
    Why do I insist on playing with fire?
    Pressing his nose against my cheek he inhaled deeply. His mouth moved across my cheek to my ear.
    “You ask too many questions, Sidney Sinclair,” he whispered in a throaty growl, taking back the control of this verbal rollercoaster. When it came to us, I was not as adept at this game. So, I folded. I closed my eyes and waited, his warm breath tickling my ear as it moved closer to my mouth. My lips parted, waiting for his to meet mine.
    And then I heard someone call my name.
    My eyes snapped open to the sound of his familiar voice. I turned my head and saw Ray standing in front of the bar, fists clenched, glaring at Adrian.
    For an instant, I wanted to hide behind Adrian’s leather jacket. Instead I just froze, hoping he wouldn’t cause a scene. But that wasn’t our style. Although I’d always tried to avoid making one, drama was a constant when your boyfriend was Ray Ryker.
    Ray headed straight over to us, his icy blue eyes focused solely on Adrian, who seconds before was about to kiss me.
    He took a moment to glare at me with overwhelming anger and hurt so that for a moment, I almost wanted to apologize, especially when I saw the black eye from my cell phone toss. But then I remembered that it was he who was the cheater, not me. He was the one constantly leaving me alone and it was he that was continuing to lie to me about Lilly.
    “What’s your problem, Ray?” I reacted, allowing all of my anger to resurface.
    His response was a mixture of anger and self-pity. “I guess I finally get to see you for who you really are, Sid. I’ve loved you since I was fourteen years old and you throw me away like I’m a piece of trash. I can’t believe I was stupid enough to trust you.”
    I was shocked. How dare he accuse me of such atrocities? I was the most loyal girlfriend he could ever ask for. I had stood by his side, silent for months, while he hurt me over and over again.
    Then a torrent of cruel words rolled off his tongue, spilling sloppily out of his mouth as he allowed each one to lash my skin like the whips they were. Standing tall, I took the abuse. I would no longer give him that control.
    “I can’t do this anymore, Ray. I’m sick of getting my heart broken over and over. We sit and talk and we try to work through our problems, but we can’t because the past lurks in every corner waiting for an opportunity to emerge again. Well, tonight it did emerge, Ray. It emerged when you decided to keep seeing Lilly.”
    I pushed him hard in his chest as I said that