Page 340 of Chaos has a Name
He nodded and answered without hesitation.
Oh, and there it was.
“Y-y-yes.”
Leaning back in her chair, she watched him, and she could see the wheels turning. Rayna could also see that he was holding his breath as if she was going to laugh.
She wasn’t.
Instead, she tried to learn more about him because she did genuinely like him.
Oh, and was attracted to him.
“So you practice what you say in your head before speaking out loud? And that’s why you come across cold?”
He nodded.
“I-i-it’s. N-n-ot.E-e-asy.”
She imagined it wasn’t.
But it explained a lot.
It rationalized the one-word answers that sounded clipped and made it seem as if he was bored with the person. It also explained how he thought before he spoke, protecting himself.
That made her want to protect him, not mock him. She imagined a lot of people did because, well, people, as a rule of thumb, were assholes.
“And this only happens when you’re nervous around a person you like?”
He nodded but said nothing as he continued to eat.
She smiled at him.
“Well, then, I’ll take that as a compliment,” she said. “What doesn’t make you nervous?”
Caspian was honest, but once more, he thought out his answer to show her that he could control it.
The whole time he was silent, she was watching for different tells this time. The effort seemed monumental for him.
The poor dude was struggling to speak without it. Finally, he answered.
“Nature and yoga. My family, meaning the Blackhawks.”
She could see that. What she wanted to do was make him feel at ease so that he could be calm with her. Rayna wanted to get to know him, and now that she understood, she was more patient and less doubting.
She could see Caspian trying his best.
“So, yoga?”
Caspian nodded.
Then, he tried to answer quicker, so she didn’t get impatient with him.
“Y-y-e-e-s. It is good for the body, and it clears the mind. I start and my day w-w-w-ith it.”
She understood.
“I start my day and end it with chocolate. I get it. Whatever makes a person less likely to slap the taste out of someone’s mouth at work.”
