Theo shrugged. "Ah, well, you can't blame a man for trying."
A lie like so many others: people blamed him for trying all the time. But Theo didn't mind that Elias had turned him down. He'd known haggling was a long shot.
Or ... it had gotten him something, at least. Not something he particularly wanted, but he appreciated that Elias was a creative fence. "Mm, not at the moment, I'm seeing this absolutely brilliant girl."
A complete and completely unnecessary lie. But maybe there was still a way that Theo could turn this to his advantage: "But if you have contacts there ... I know a love song or two, if they're looking for background music."
Theo raised his shoulder to indicate the lute hanging off of it. His expertise with the instrument wasn't a lie; he was a genuinely good musician, though no prodigy. And, besides the pay a musician might receive for his music, the brothel seemed like a place where people might set aside their valuables for a minute or two while they were ... distracted.
can't say good morning without lying twice
