A symphony of glasses and chatter made her wait seem to be one of the longest in her experience. She didn't want to be sitting there waiting for Adam, but this was something she had to do. It had taken eight years in the making, but she'd finally worked up the nerve two nights ago to call him up and invite him to dinner. Now she sat in the back of the tiny Greek restaurant waiting for his considerable form to come thru off the street.

He wasn't late because that wasn't something Adam allowed. He was too much for being in control to ever allow himself to be late. No, she'd arrived early, determined to be in the lead for once even if it was just in choosing their table for the night. Untold hours had gone into the anticipation of this day and everything from her hair to what she was going to order off the menu had been anticipated. Lucy had called that and this whole dinner ridiculous but for once her best friend's opinion hadn't swayed Rayne any.

The tinkle of the bell positioned on the door brought Rayne out of her thoughts and back into the crowded eatery. It was a fight but she managed to keep her heartbeat normal as she recognized the man who strolled inside. Reminding herself to be calm and cool, she waved her fingers at him and watched as he bypassed the host station to head towards her.

As he passed various tables, he caught the attention of other patrons seated. For some it was the rugged handsomeness of his features, others were overwhelmed by the size of his frame. Rayne had long passed admiring the physical of him. For her it was the confidence that radiated from him, the intelligence in his eyes, and his dominating disposition that made it difficult to break her gaze from him in the past but tonight after a brief smile, she looked down at the cover of the menu. If her thoughts continued along those lines she'd never get the truth out and they'd remain as they been for far too long. Reminding herself that there was steel in her spine, closed her eyes and hardened herself against the rush.

He almost started as he saw her gaze avert from his. When she'd called to invite him to dinner, he'd been almost sure that it was going to be a friendly affair, but something about Rayne's body language told him otherwise. She could be so moody sometimes, but usually he could count on Rayne's excitement to see him.
Bending he brushed a kiss onto her cheek, the smell of lilies filling his senses. Musing to himself that some things stayed the same, he slid into the booth across from her. Asking about how she was Adam didn't wait for an answer before adding that she looked beautiful. Her eyes lit up momentarily but her thanks seemed flat in comparison. Frowning, he started to ask her what was wrong when the waitress appeared at the table.

Welcoming a distraction from what she had to do, Rayne smiled up at the girl, surprised to see a drink in her hand. Lowering the martini glass onto the table, she announced that the drink was compliments of the gentlemen at the bar. The trio's gaze drifted in the direction of the bar automatically and as if on cue the duo smiled and waved at her. Dipping her head to hide the blush the heated her cheeks, she quietly asked the server to convey her thanks.

Adam cleared his throat and she looked up from the amber colored martini glass to see the flash of jealousy in his eye. Any other day that flicker of emotion would have had her on cloud nine, but she refused to give herself flight. Unable to resist, she lifted the glass, taking a generous sip just to incite him. His jaw ticked as Rayne's tongue darted over her lower lip sending a rush straight up his spine.

"What's your problem?

"It's kind of rude of them to send you a drink. It's not like you're alone. They don't know we're not a couple."

"We're not a couple and up until a few minutes ago, I was sitting here alone. I'm sure it wasn't meant to be disrespectful of you." Rayne lowered the drink, meeting his gaze head on.

"You want me to go so you can invite them over and decided which one you're interested in?"

Expelling a deep breath, she counted to three before answering. "If you're going to be like this, maybe I should go."

"What's with you, why are you angry with me?"

"I'm not angry with you. I'm just not in the mood for you being you."

"What's that supposed to mean Rayne?"

"It means acting all possessive and jealous like when some guys send me a drink isn't okay any more."

"I'm not acting jealous."

"You know what? I can't do this." Grabbing her purse, Rayne slipped out of the seat and headed for the exit. Calling after her, Adam growled as he stood, pausing to throw a bill onto the table before chasing after her retreating form. By the time he got out onto the street, she was practically halfway up the block. Rolling his eyes, he covered the ground with determined strides.

Reaching out, he managed to grab her hand before she could get across the street. "What is your problem?"

"You! You are my problem! I am so tired of you, of this, of us," she spat the words with venom startling both him and herself. "Let go of my hand! Let go of me!"
Seeing that he was upsetting her, he released her hand. Rayne turned back towards the street so he wouldn't see the tears threatening to spill from her eyes. Torn between wanting to reach out to her and not wanting to upset her further Adam waited for a cue from her.

As if she could feel that he was going to reach out to her, that he needed a sign, the words she'd carefully planned the night around came tumbling out. "I'm leaving. I got a job offer in Chicago and I'm taking it Adam. If I stay here... I can't stay here. I just can't."

"A job? In Chicago?" A frown marred his face as he processed what had been said to him. "Why? Is it a good offer?"

"It's a decent job. But I'm not taking it because of the money. This has to end. The on again, off again drama that is Rayne and Adam, I'm ending it."

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"That's a lie. You know exactly what I'm talking about." He cast his gaze to the ground, answering her without words. "There's always something. First it was me, I wasn't ready. Then there was Kayla and after her, there was Derek and I realized I'm tired. I'm tired of being the Rayne Lennox who moons over Adam Lark. I'm going somewhere else to be someone else and I wanted to see you tonight to let you know that."

"I didn't realize that you were so unhappy."

"No you didn't. Not once." Her heart broke as his eyes darkened with guilt. "That's why I'm doing this. We just keep hurting each other."

There was no doubt in his mind that she was serious and desperation clawed at him from deep inside. "You're one of my best friends. You can't just move."

"I don't have any other options."

Mournfully silent, Adam tried to think of something to say to stop her from walking away, but no words came to him. Rayne cast him a final smile, fake in nature, but a smile nonetheless and turned away, heading across the street without looking back. As he watched her familiar form retreat, he realized she hadn't even said goodbye.