“Not a date.”
I ignored the amused comment. “They do, however, have excellent food and I come by at least once a week for dinner."
Lexi huffed a laugh and grabbed her glass of water. “Well, I do like good food.”
“So, tell me.” I leaned my elbows on the table. “Why the University of Massachusetts? You said you loved your Religious Studies classes, but I happen to know they only offer it as a minor.”
The tension in her shoulders eased, meaning I’d taken the right course. Diving right into her magic might’ve made her either panic or shut down.
“Well, I told you I’d not had a job outside of my mom’s store,” she began, clasping her fingers together. “My parents didn’t want me working so I could focus on school, so they’re paying for everything. A public university was cheaper than Harvard with our income.”
“Harvard?” I whistled. “Did you get accepted there?”
She nodded, eyes cast down at the table. “I didn’t tell my parents, though. My dad would’ve pulled so many strings or paid anything if he knew I wanted to go, and I didn’t want to put that burden on them. UMass was easier and much cheaper.”
“You’re a very considerate daughter,” I said, though the word came up far short of describing her. “How do they feel about you having a job now?”
Lexi cocked her head to the side, a smile threatening the corners of her lips. “I haven’t told my mom yet, but my dad was happy for me. I’m surprised he hasn’t come by yet and harassed you.”
I sat up straight and made a show of looking around. “Should I be worried?”
She laughed and the sound made my chest feel lighter. “You probably should be. He’s not quite a helicopter parent, but he can be pretty damn protective.”
Before I had the chance to ask about her parents, our food came. The server set the plates down, a scribbled-on napkin tucked under mine, then left. I glanced up as the owner approached, making moon-eyes at me and speaking in flawless Italian.
“Mr. Rivers, I hope everything is to your satisfaction tonight.”
I tugged the napkin out from under my plate and stuck it in his breast pocket, replying in equally flawless Italian. “It is, sir, but please have your staff refrain from leaving these while I’m entertaining my gorgeous lady guest. It’s very disrespectful.”
“Oh, indeed!” he gasped, setting his hand on my shoulder. “Oh, my apologies! I’ll see it doesn’t happen again, you have my word!”
“Other than that, the elegant ambiance is really quite perfect for a date,” Lexi replied. “It’s so very beautiful here. You must be proud.”
We both stared at her, then the owner nodded abruptly and shuffled off. I rested my chin on my palm, meeting her amber-brown gaze. The temptation to steal her away to her apartment reared its head again, but I crammed it back down. Her suave tone had me salivating more than the food on the table.
“I thought you said it’s not a date.”
She eyed me over her glass. “It’s not.”
“I didn’t know you could speak Italian so fluently,” I purred.
“Well, that was kind of the point of this dinner, right? To get to know each other?” She shrugged one shoulder and picked up her fork, picking at herfoie gras. “I’m good with languages.”
“So, how many do you know altogether?” I scooped a bite of mymozzarella di bufala, savoring the bold flavor.
Her eyes met mine briefly, then focused on her plate. “A few.”
My internal lie detector alerted me to the half-truth and the unexpected feeling startled me, like static crawling across my skin. It was the first sign I’d gotten that her lies could be detected, which either meant she could manipulate my abilities or… or she’d been unbelievably honest the past three weeks.
“How many is a few?” I swirled my wine glass, waiting to see if it happened again. “More than five?”
She swallowed her food and cleared her throat. “Is it really important?”
“Call me curious. If your love for religious courses bleeds into your talent with languages, then you’d need to know at least that many, right?” She was avoiding answering, but why? Was she embarrassed that she didn’t know more?
“I know a lot, okay?”
My questions were bordering on interrogation, so I dropped it, hoping to find other ways to test my ability. If I could detect her lies the whole time, then I would’ve had less reason to be paranoid than I’d thought. I wasn’t ready to drop my guard just yet, but I paid closer attention to her answers. And to topics she avoided.
