L exhales in a soft sigh, perhaps more weary than surprised. This entire conversation feels fraught, with traps present though neither of them has intimated as much, but... well, that's admittedly somewhat normal for them, a form of comfort for what it is if not the uncomfortable subject matter.

"As Niles is very sexual, and thinks of engaging in various forms of gratification often... I imagine it's difficult for him to think that another might think of sex one percent of the time, as opposed to ninety-nine percent."

As per usual, L chooses his words very carefully, and continues to, as he errs on the side of honesty due to the floodlight their Bond can shine on anything too brazen.

"I did it rarely. When I needed it to look like someone was with me, for safety's sake. The jig was up when Niles figured it out, and so I stopped, but... given our relationship prior to Aefenglom, wherein we were seen in public on multiple occasions, and my own purely coincidental but consistent history of taking significantly more attractive partners, than myself... no one would have found it suspicious unless we spoke for too long, and that never happened."

Once, actually, it had... but as Rich and Jeremy were no longer here, L sees no reason to mention it.