“You need to get glasses or get your head checked.” There went that. My patience was shot.
“I’d bet my life on it.”
“And I will streak down this mall naked for everyone to see if she’s cheating on Alec. She loves him, Sydney.”
There was no way. She must have seen another person who looked like Brandy.
“I have proof.”
Thank God my sister was within eyesight but far enough where she couldn’t hear this conversation. Brandy would be devastated if she knew what Sydney was insinuating.
“Then, show me this proof. You got pictures of them kissing?” My voice increased with mounting rage, causing people to turn toward us.
Great. Now, I was bringing attention to myself.
A few people did a double take in my direction, and as recognition hit their faces, I pulled Sydney to the side, beside the wall. There was no doubt my face was a mask of anger. I towered over her, but she didn’t cower.
“You need to stop this shit right now. Whatever you concocted in that little brain of yours because of your vivid imagination or the fact that you believe that no one will ever be good enough for Alec has got to stop.”
“Look! Here.” She plucked out the gold locket from her jacket pocket. “Now, explain this.B.C. *heart* H.B.He’s H.B., isn’t he?”
My eyebrows pulled together. Brandy had torn her room apart, looking for that locket yesterday, and Sydney had fucking stolen it.
I plucked the locket from her hand. “It’s not what you think.” Because there had to be a perfectly reasonable explanation for all of this. “And his name is James.”
Suddenly, a crack in her furious face faltered. “What?”
“That guy over there, his name is James. Those are not his initials.”
Now, a few more people had recognized me.
I’d had enough of this nonsense. I’d ask Brandy myself. I gripped Sydney’s forearm, walking us farther into the corner.
“Do you need a hearing aid in addition to glasses?” My stare could have broken glass, but I had to give it to her—she didn’t back down. “His name doesn’t start with anH, and he’s not the person who gave Brandy this locket.” Maybe it had been an ex-boyfriend, her best friend. Who the hell knew? But I was shutting this down right now.
She blinked, then double-blinked. “Does he have a nickname?”
Then, I fucking lost it. “What the hell is your problem? Why are you doing this? Why?” My whole body tensed, and it took all my energy to lower my tone. “I don’t know who H.B. is, but I promise I will find out right now to clear this up, to squash your doubts about my sister’s loyalty.” I turned to leave, to ask Brandy and James directly, when she wrapped both arms around my forearm.
“No. Stop.”
“Can you try to be quiet, Sydney? Just shut it!” I gritted my teeth, watching a few more people turn in our direction.
“Just hear me out,” she said.
“I’m done with hearing you out. I can’t believe you stole her locket. I let you in our house yesterday just so you could spy on her. Un-fucking-believable.”
She blinked, looking somewhat contrite. “Listen, I’m not out to get Brandy.”
My eyes narrowed. Now, she was straight-up lying. No one would be good enough for Alec. Not in the Loverly sisters’ eyes.
“Doesn’t look like it to me. Looks like you’re about to start trouble and break up a happy couple. Why? This is total bullshit.”
“Who gave her this locket then?” she asked, her voice softening like she was trying to calm a bull ready to ram out of his stall.
“I’m going to ask her.”
“You confront her, and she’ll go on the defensive and hate me. If she is in fact innocent …”