Page 180 of Chaos has a Name
That was for damn sure.
Other than his issue with speaking to the ladies, he was a simple man. Caspian liked reading books, practicing yoga, and planting a garden.
While he was a Marine, he wasn’t into war. The corps had been a way to escape and survive. It had been the duty of his family, not the wants of one of the sons.
Since she’d offered, he fell into step with her.
“Where are you from?” she asked, talking to him as he walked beside her. It was clear he’d shortened his stride to match hers.
“I don’t know,” he said, honestly.
That made her curious. Had she asked the question the wrong way? Or did he not understand?
So, she rephrased.
“Where did you grow up?” Rayna asked.
He kept the sentences short so he could control what came out of his mouth.
“On military bases,” he offered.
That explained a lot.
Honestly, he seemed…regimented.
“Which parent was in the military?” she asked.
He felt that was a pretty safe question, so he answered it.
“My father was a soldier, and we moved around a lot. So that’s why I can’t tell you where I grew up.”
That was still…odd.
“Were there that many?” she asked.
Here was the slippery slope. Caspian had to make conversation, but not give away too much.
“My father worked in special operations. We couldn’t discuss things like that, so I never learned where I was from. It changed…a lot.”
She felt that pain there.
That would be so sad to not have a place that was yours to call home.
“So, military brat. My best friend in college was one. Her father was in the Air Force. He was in Germany, Italy…”
He let her talk.
And she kept going.
In a way, it carried him and his part of the conversation, so he didn’t mind.
“She was so well-rounded. She could talk about all kinds of things. I bet you saw a lot, and are incredibly intelligent.”
He didn’t answer.
Women didn’t want smart men. They wanted alpha males who were badass. They wanted perfection, and he was anything but.
Caspian had a major flaw, and to that day, he couldn’t get past it.
