Gypsy Truths (All The Pretty Monsters #6)- Kristy Cunning Page 0,193

“Even then you don’t really know who’s talking or what’s actually being talked about.”

I stare at her for a very long moment, wondering if I just heard her correctly.

Mary, Tiara, Lemon, and Leiza all cut a surprised and slightly horrified look in her direction.

As if she just realized what she’s said, her head pops up, and she darts a look at me.

“Not that I’ve ever tried to eavesdrop on you,” Ingrid hurriedly adds.

Rolling my eyes, I return my attention to the mirror.

Now that she’s finished using the curling iron on the bottom of my hair, she begins pulling the top half from the rollers, the shaky hands of my stylist tickling my scalp.

“There will eventually be individual ceremonies for all these matings,” Mary points out. “Emit’s should be in the woods behind—”

“There will be one ceremony,” I interject, watching them all look at me with blank expressions through the mirror. “It’ll be in the woods, at midnight, and on a night where the moon isn’t an issue. I’ll wear a black dress and veil, have green shoes, and you guys can decide on the rest of what I wear.”

They only look a little bit happy with that.

“It’ll be brief, and it’ll be tame. Once the Monster Mansion cake is cut, I want to dance all night long.”

Shera continues to give me a blank look. Mary smiles somewhat shyly and looks away. Lemon grins very openly, as she sips her drink. Tiara looks at me like I’m an idiot.

“She’s so cute,” Lemons says, grinning around her cup.

“Cute? I’m working toward sexy, since it’s my wedding day,” I grumble, eyeing myself in the mirror.

Lemon snorts, and Mary laughs along with her. I feel like they’re mocking me, but I have no idea what I’ve done.

“I bet they do every single thing on the damn list,” Shera mutters so low I almost don’t hear.

She gets a little aggressive with my hair for a brief moment, as if punishing me, but it quickly lessens.

Even though I was skeptical of her vision, I watch as she finishes weaving the different curls together, and slowly smile. She’s actually good at this.

“At least the vampire beta has some worth,” Tiara says, digging Ingrid out of her hole by diverting the conversation.

Shera glares into the mirror at me, as if saying it’s all my fault she’s stuck in a room full of omega she-wolves, who constantly talk about her instead of to her, while she finishes the last curl in my hair.

“This vampire beta is so beyond top notch that you’re all lucky to be in my presence,” Shera says very tightly, eyeing my hair with a lot of scrutiny, before she sprays it. “But this feels reckless to do so suddenly. I mean, the alphas just put Idun down last night. I know I can see her on Idun TV, and we all heard Vance say they could handle her again if need be, but I have some trust issues with that.”

I nod as though I get it, but clearly, I say nothing else.

Either we managed to escape most everyone’s sight while Anna was dressed as someone other than me, or…Arion was thorough in suppressing people’s memories.

“I’d rather not think about Idun at all,” Ingrid whispers very quietly, looking around as though the boogeyman may pop up if she speaks too loudly.

“Honestly, I sort of thought you’d be secretly powerful and be able to put Idun down. I know it’s silly, but there’s always been this draw toward you that calls to our basest omega instincts,” Leiza says to me, studying me as though she can’t believe she was wrong.

Shera snorts, and I shrug a shoulder.

“My mother never let me be a badass,” I remind them. “Even if she had let me, I still wouldn’t be much of a match for Idun. Especially not on my own.”

Shera rolls her eyes.

“I’m not sure why I ever thought differently. Maybe it’s because you put my ass to the ground the one time I stepped between you and Arion,” Shera confesses with some clear reluctance, eyes more focused on my hair.

She’s like a dog with a bone about that whole thing. It’s like she can’t let it go.

“I remember a day when confessing such a thing would have embarrassed such a prideful, arrogant vampire,” Tiara cuts in, purposely studying the back of her own hand, as opposed to looking at Shera.

“I remember a time when omega wolves knew how to fear extremely powerful beta vampires,” Shera volleys.

I open my mouth