Page 75 of The Wages of Sin

“That’s a sweet thing to say.” Maybe the sweetest anyone had ever said to me.

“It’s the truth.”

My breath hitched in my throat as my chest tightened. How could I have forgotten this was what happiness felt like?

I took another drink, trying in vain to cover my blush, and attempted to steer the conversation back to a topic that made me feel less self-conscious.

“How do you know Russo was lying?” I asked.

“Everyone has a tell,” he said.

“Even me?”

“Especially you.” A wicked-looking grin crept over his face. “Someone like you usually has several.”

“Someone like me?” I gasped in mock offense before laughing. “What does that mean?”

Dorian draped his arm over the back of the couch, turning more fully toward me.

“Someone who is uncomfortable with the idea of lying,” he explained. “Take it as a compliment. It means you’re generally honest.”

“Only generally?” I teased. “Not totally?”

He shrugged those wide shoulders. “You lied to me earlier this evening.”

Fair enough. Maybe if I’d been less tired or hadn’t just chugged a full vodka soda, I would have argued. But instead, I just cocked my chin to the side and said, “What gave me away?”

“Your forehead tenses,” he said, starting at the top and working his way down. “Two little lines dig into your face right above your nose. Your nostrils flare. The corners of your lips pull down. The tendons in your neck?—“

I’d heard enough.

“Got it,” I said, cutting him off as I raised my hands in surrender. “You made your point. I’m a bad liar. But I’m guessing Russo isn’t.”

“No, he’s pretty damn good,” he said. “But no one is perfect.”

“So what’s his tell?”

“A small twitch in his right trigger finger.”

I laughed, certain that Dorian was joking around, but he didn’t so much as smile.

“Wait. You’re serious?”

Dorian nodded. “Dead serious.”

“You were able to notice one tiny twitch with everything else that was going on? The lights? The noise? The crowd?”

“It helps that it’s a common tell among certain people.”

“Which people?” I asked.

“The kind that likes to reach for a gun whenever they get uncomfortable.”

Oh! Violent people. That made sense…and it also made me curious.

“So is that your tell too?” I asked. “Should I start looking at your hands every time I ask you a question?”

“No.” Dorian shook his head. “But only because I don’t use guns.”

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