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"Well, she was talking to me. That's enough to make anyone lose their temper. And I accused
her of sleeping with my dad because he was the soundest evolutionary choice."
"Rose," groaned Lissa. "You kind of left out that part in your recap. Why'd you say that to her?"
"Because it's probably true."
"But you had to know it'd upset her. Why do you keep provoking her? Why can't you just make
peace with her?"
I sat upright. "Make peace with her? She gave me a black eye. Probably on purpose! How do I
make peace with someone like that?"
Lissa just shook her head and walked over to the mirror to check her makeup. The feelings
coming through our bond were ones of frustration and exasperation. Lingering in the back was
a bit of anticipation, too. I had the patience to examine her carefully, now that I'd finished my
venting. She had on a silky lavender shirt and a knee-length black skirt. Her long hair had the
kind of smooth perfection only achieved by spending an hour of your life on it with a hair dryer
and flat iron.
"You look nice. What's up?"
Her feelings shifted slightly, her irritation with me dimming a little. "I'm meeting Christian
soon."
For a few minutes there, it had felt like the old days with Lissa and me. Just us, hanging out and
talking. Her mention of Christian, as well as the realization that she'd have to leave me soon for
him, stirred up dark feelings in my chest…feelings I had to reluctantly admit were jealousy.
Naturally, I didn't let on to that.
"Wow. What'd he do to deserve that? Rescue orphans from a burning building? If so, you might
want to make sure he didn't set the building on fire in the first place." Christian's element was
fire. It was fitting since it was the most destructive one.
Laughing, she turned from the mirror and noticed me gently touching my swollen face with my
fingers. Her smile turned kind. "It doesn't look that bad."