"I know," he said tightly, staring across the expansive room without actually focusing on any of the people. "That's not the problem."
"Then why ..." I let my words fade as another revelation hit me. "You're jealous of Adrian."
Christian fixed his ice-blue eyes on me, and I could tell I'd hit the mark. "I'm not jealous. I'm just - "
" - feeling insecure over the fact that your girlfriend is spending a lot of time with a rich and reasonably cute guy whom she might like. Or, as we like to call it, jealous."
He turned away from me, clearly annoyed. "The honeymoon might be over between us, Rose. Damn it. Why are these people taking so long?"
"Look," I said, shifting my stance. My feet hurt after so much standing. "Didn't you listen to my romantic speech the other day about being in Lissa's heart? She's crazy about you. You're the only one she wants, and believe me, I can say that with 100 percent certainty. If there was anyone else, I'd know."
The hint of a smile crossed his lips. "You're her best friend. You could be covering for her."
I scoffed. "Not if she were with Adrian. I assure you, she has no interest in him, thank God - at least not romantically."
"He can be persuasive, though. He knows how to work his compulsion..."
"He's not using it on her, though. I don't even know if he can - I think they cancel each other out. Besides, haven't you been paying attention? I'm the unfortunate object of Adrian's attention."
"Really?" asked Christian, clearly surprised. Guys were so oblivious to this sort of stuff. "I know he flirts - "
"And shows up in my dreams uninvited. Seeing as I can't get away, it gives him the perfect chance to torture me with his so-called charm and attempt to be romantic."
He turned suspicious. "He shows up in Lissa's dreams too."
Shoot. Shouldn't have mentioned the dreams. What had Adrian said? "Those are instructional. I don't think you need to worry."
"People wouldn't stare if she showed up at some party with Adrian."
"Ah," I said. "So this is what it's really about. You think you're going to drag her down?"
"I'm not that good ... at those kinds of social things," he admitted in a rare show of vulnerability. "And I think Adrian's got a better reputation than me."
"Are you joking?"
"Come on, Rose. Drinking and smoking aren't even in the same league as people thinking you're going to turn Strigoi. I saw the way everyone acted when she took me to dinners and stuff at the ski lodge. I'm a liability. She's the only representative from her family. She's going to spend the rest of her life tied up with politics, trying to get in good with people. Adrian could do a lot more for her than I could."
I resisted the urge to literally shake some sense into him. "I can see where you're coming from, but there's one flaw in your airtight logic. There's nothing going on with her and Adrian."
He looked away and didn't say anything else. I suspected his feelings went beyond her simply being with another guy. As he'd even admitted, he had a whole tangle of insecurity about Lissa. Being with her had done wonders for his attitude and sociability, but at the end of the day, he still had trouble dealing with coming from a "tainted" family. He still worried he wasn't good enough for her.
"Rose is right," an unwelcome voice said behind us. Preparing my best glare, I turned around to face Jesse. Naturally, Ralf lurked nearby. Jesse's assigned novice, Dean, stood watch at the doorway. They apparently had a more formal bodyguard relationship. Jesse and Ralf hadn't been in line when we arrived, but they'd apparently wandered up and heard enough to piece together some of our conversation. "You're still royal. You have every right to be with her."
"Wow, talk about a turnaround," I said. "Weren't you guys just telling me the other day how Christian was about to turn Strigoi at any moment? I'd watch your necks, if I were you. He looks dangerous."
Jesse shrugged. "Hey, you said he was clean, and if anyone knows Strigoi, it's you. Besides, we're actually starting to think that rebellious Ozera nature is a good thing."
I eyed him suspiciously, assuming there must be some trick here. Yet he looked sincere, like he really was convinced Christian was safe.
"Thanks," said Christian, a slight sneer curling his lips. "Now that you've endorsed me and my family, I can finally get on with my life. It's the only thing that's been holding me back."
"I'm serious," said Jesse. "The Ozeras have been kind of quiet lately, but they used to be one of the strongest families out there. They could be again - especially you. You're not afraid to do things that you aren't supposed to. We like that. If you'd get over your antisocial bullshit, you could make the right friends and go far. Might make you stop worrying so much about Lissa."