"If you say so."
But Lissa wore the outfit I suggested anyway. She talked to me as she finished getting ready, and I watched with envy as she applied makeup. I hadn't realized how much I'd missed cosmetics myself. When she and I had lived with humans, I'd been pretty diligent about primping every day. Now, there never seemed to be enough time - or any reason. I was always in some kind of scuffle that made makeup pointless and ruined it anyway. The most I could do was to slather my face with moisturizer. It seemed excessive in the mornings - like I was putting on a mask - yet by the time I faced the cold weather and other harsh conditions, I was always surprised to see my skin had sucked all the moisture up.
The smallest pang of regret shot through me that I'd rarely have any opportunities to do this for the rest of my life. Lissa would spend most of her days dressed up, out at royal functions. No one would notice me. It was weird, considering that until this last year, I'd always been the one who was always noticed.
"Why do you think she wants to see me?" Lissa asked.
"Maybe to explain why we're here."
"Maybe."
Unease filled Lissa, despite her calm exterior. She still hadn't entirely recovered from the queen's brutal humiliation last fall. My own petty jealousy and moping suddenly seemed stupid when compared with what she had to go through. I mentally slapped myself, reminding myself that I wasn't just her unseen guardian. I was also her best friend, and we hadn't talked very much lately.
"You have nothing to be afraid of, Liss. You haven't done anything wrong. And really, you've been doing everything right. Your grades are perfect. Your behavior's perfect. Remember all those people you impressed on the ski trip? That bitch has nothing to get on you about."
"You shouldn't say that," said Lissa automatically. She applied mascara to her eyelashes, studied them, and then added another coat.
"Just call 'em like I see 'em. If she gives you any grief, then it's just going to be because she's afraid of you."
Lissa laughed. "Why would she be afraid of me?"
"Because people are drawn to you, and people like her don't like it when others steal all the attention." I was a bit astonished at how wise I sounded. "Plus, you're the last Dragomir. You're always going to be in the spotlight. Who's she? Just another Ivashkov. There are a ton of them. Probably because all the guys are like Adrian and have all sorts of illegitimate children."
"Adrian doesn't have any children."
"That we know of," I said mysteriously.
She snickered and stepped back from the mirror, pleased with her face. "Why are you always so mean to Adrian?"
I gave her a look of mock astonishment. "You're standing up for Adrian now? Whatever happened to you warning me to stay away from him? You practically bit my head off the first time I hung out with him - and that wasn't even by my choice."
She took a thin golden chain out of her suitcase and tried to fasten it around her neck. "Well, yeah ... I didn't really know him then. He's not so bad. And it's true I mean, he's not a great role model or anything, but I also think some of those stories about him and other girls are exaggerated."
"I don't," I said, jumping up. She still hadn't managed to fasten the chain, so I took it and put the clasp together for her.
"Thanks," she said, running her hands over the necklace. "I think Adrian really likes you. Like, in a wanting-to-be-serious way."
I shook my head and stepped back. "Nope. He likes me in a wanting-to-get-the-clothes-off-the-cute-dhampir way."
"I don't believe that."
"That's because you believe the best about everyone."
She looked skeptical as she began brushing her hair smooth over her shoulders. "I don't know about that either. But I do think he's not as bad as you think. I know it hasn't been that long since Mason, but you should think about going out with someone else...."
"Wear your hair up." I handed her a barrette from her suitcase. "Mason and I were never really going out. You know that."
"Yeah. Well, I guess that's more reason to start thinking about dating someone. High school's not over yet. Seems like you should be doing something fun."