He'd thought that wit was needed to banter back with Corinne, but she wasn't really looking for that. After his day in the market, he understood, he'd simply failed to read her correctly. He'd been so thrown by her sarcastic, aggressive, innuendo laced banter, by the good looks she employed as a distraction that he'd wound up behaving no different than one of her marks. It wasn't about giving her a memorable answer, he needed to discern the real question.
She wanted confidence, needed to see that he saw and treated her differently than everyone else in the guild. Flirting with Vex and a good portion of the guild made his interest dubious in her eyes, and she wanted to know if he was serious. Saying a silent thanks to both Bryn and Maven, he waited for her to come over to him, eyes never leaving her. It was like she knew he was watching, he noticed a little more show in her movements, but where other people would become expansive, she shrank in, becoming feline and fluid, displaying her best skills to him.
"Delvin," Corinne dragged a finger up his arm as she drawled his name, standing close enough for him to reach out and kiss her. "I've missed you and the money you pay out when I finish a job. Do you have anything nearby, so I can get paid and see your handsome face?"
"For you, I just might."
"I'm so relieved to hear it. I'd hate to leave Riften before I've had a chance to christen my new house, and my gold is running low since I decorated it." She tossed her hair from her face and looked up at him, her eyes gleaming expectantly.
"Why don't you invite me over then?" Delvin asked, and this time, he leaned into her, taking up her space. His words were a demand couched in a question, subtle and probing, but sure of her affirmative answer. Delight sparked in her dark eyes, and he watched the smile form in them before it spread across her face.
"You'd have to break in." She challenged, in a voice of cultivated softness.
"I think I could manage that." He closed a hand over the wrist she had resting on the crate near him, not forcefully, he wasn't that stupid. She could shout him onto six different planes of Oblivion or burn him to a crisp if she felt like she was being threatened, and he had no desire to ever make her angry. The movement was precise, calculated, and it kept her there next to him, with her attention focused on him, instead of on her next retort.
Lowering his head towards her ear, he growled. "If I break in and don't find you naked under the sheets on your bed, I'll be very disappointed."
Corinne smiled at him, stepping a half step closer to him, and there was barely an inch between them. With her free hand, she put a finger on his chest, letting it slowly drift down the centerline, looking up at him with heavy-lidded eyes. The motion sent sparks through him, though he could hardly feel it through his guild armor. "I wouldn't dream of disappointing you, Delvin. I'll triple lock every door and window in anticipation." Her voice was nearly a husky purr in his ears, and he felt arousal and jubilation welling within him in equal measure. "I always knew we understood each other." She continued, dragging her finger back upwards, letting it tickle the underside of his chin. "Don't keep me waiting."
Like the master thief she was, she slipped effortlessly from his grip and sauntered from the Flagon, turning only to shoot him a saucy smile over her shoulder as she wiggled out of sight. Delvin let out a breath he hadn't known he was holding, and became aware of the sweat across his brow, the weakness in his knees. A hand on his shoulder brought him back to the present, and he found Brynjolf at his side, looking far too pleased with himself.
"I knew you'd figure the lass out. I had every confidence in you, but..." He laughed, looking over at Vex. "If you're breaking into Honeyside, you might want to get some lockpick training before you head out tonight, and give Vex some gold. She just lost a pretty hefty amount."
A Lack of Wit 6/6
She wanted confidence, needed to see that he saw and treated her differently than everyone else in the guild. Flirting with Vex and a good portion of the guild made his interest dubious in her eyes, and she wanted to know if he was serious. Saying a silent thanks to both Bryn and Maven, he waited for her to come over to him, eyes never leaving her. It was like she knew he was watching, he noticed a little more show in her movements, but where other people would become expansive, she shrank in, becoming feline and fluid, displaying her best skills to him.
"Delvin," Corinne dragged a finger up his arm as she drawled his name, standing close enough for him to reach out and kiss her. "I've missed you and the money you pay out when I finish a job. Do you have anything nearby, so I can get paid and see your handsome face?"
"For you, I just might."
"I'm so relieved to hear it. I'd hate to leave Riften before I've had a chance to christen my new house, and my gold is running low since I decorated it." She tossed her hair from her face and looked up at him, her eyes gleaming expectantly.
"Why don't you invite me over then?" Delvin asked, and this time, he leaned into her, taking up her space. His words were a demand couched in a question, subtle and probing, but sure of her affirmative answer. Delight sparked in her dark eyes, and he watched the smile form in them before it spread across her face.
"You'd have to break in." She challenged, in a voice of cultivated softness.
"I think I could manage that." He closed a hand over the wrist she had resting on the crate near him, not forcefully, he wasn't that stupid. She could shout him onto six different planes of Oblivion or burn him to a crisp if she felt like she was being threatened, and he had no desire to ever make her angry. The movement was precise, calculated, and it kept her there next to him, with her attention focused on him, instead of on her next retort.
Lowering his head towards her ear, he growled. "If I break in and don't find you naked under the sheets on your bed, I'll be very disappointed."
Corinne smiled at him, stepping a half step closer to him, and there was barely an inch between them. With her free hand, she put a finger on his chest, letting it slowly drift down the centerline, looking up at him with heavy-lidded eyes. The motion sent sparks through him, though he could hardly feel it through his guild armor. "I wouldn't dream of disappointing you, Delvin. I'll triple lock every door and window in anticipation." Her voice was nearly a husky purr in his ears, and he felt arousal and jubilation welling within him in equal measure. "I always knew we understood each other." She continued, dragging her finger back upwards, letting it tickle the underside of his chin. "Don't keep me waiting."
Like the master thief she was, she slipped effortlessly from his grip and sauntered from the Flagon, turning only to shoot him a saucy smile over her shoulder as she wiggled out of sight. Delvin let out a breath he hadn't known he was holding, and became aware of the sweat across his brow, the weakness in his knees. A hand on his shoulder brought him back to the present, and he found Brynjolf at his side, looking far too pleased with himself.
"I knew you'd figure the lass out. I had every confidence in you, but..." He laughed, looking over at Vex. "If you're breaking into Honeyside, you might want to get some lockpick training before you head out tonight, and give Vex some gold. She just lost a pretty hefty amount."