"It wasn't this bad before." ...Hang on, give him a moment not to sound quite so sullen. "Before the Masquerade, I mean. You never gave me that look back then."

He pauses for a moment, carefully evaluating Kimblee's words and thinking it through. He's misread Kimblee plenty of times before. Is that all this is?

"...It feels like you're being manipulative. Is that better?" That's a genuine question, not sarcasm.