"You know me, Eterna," Emerson started with a lazy grin. He took a long drink of his bourbon. "I'd sell my brain for a good drink."
Mostly, the game was a social thing, genuinely social. Emerson probably could've been doing better, but what was the point? Repeatedly showing off your smarts just insured that you threw all your cards on the table at the same time, thus giving everyone ample time to prepare something in response.
Emerson placed the 'x' under the 'e' of 'slinked', following Allison's suggestion. It was probably a good idea to get rid of that 'x' early.