Conversations with
the Characters

I appreciate a direct question. I may need a moment before I give you an equally direct answer. There is a difference between being composed and having everything worked out.

Kindness when there is nothing to gain from it. Confidence is easy to display. Being considerate when no one important is watching tells me rather more.

Being underestimated, particularly by someone who has mistaken a quiet voice for a small opinion. I can be quiet and still disagree with you completely.

No. But I do not think the answer is to become incapable of it. I would rather take my time than pretend I have no need for anyone.

Somewhere we could actually talk, without either of us performing for the room. A little laughter would help. I would prefer not to spend the evening proving that I am perfectly fine.

I can become so determined to manage something myself that I forget accepting help is also a choice. An irritating discovery, if you take pride in being capable.

Ellie and I have shared market days, mangoes and enough laughter to make a difficult week feel less permanent. I value that sort of ordinary happiness more than it may appear.

Let yourself ask what you want, as well as what you are afraid of. You can move carefully without closing every door. And you are allowed to change your mind about the pace.

I would want to understand the reason, but I would also want the truth. Protecting someone should not mean deciding that their questions do not matter.

I have worked much too hard for you to skip straight to the answers. Start with the questions. They are where the trouble becomes interesting.

Ask what you mean. I prefer a difficult question to a conversation arranged around avoiding one.

Someone who keeps their word when doing so becomes inconvenient. An impressive introduction is easy. Consistency requires rather more.

Carelessness presented as confidence. The two are frequently confused. Usually by the person being careless.

No. I pay attention before I offer it. That does not mean I consider myself incapable of being wrong.

A table quiet enough for an honest conversation. Good food would be welcome. An audience would not.

I am better at keeping my composure than explaining what it costs. Those are not the same skill.

There are wildflowers in Gabriela’s memories of me. I will leave you to decide whether that is surprising. I do not intend to defend every reputation I have acquired.

Pay attention to how you are treated when you disagree. Charm is pleasant. Respect is more useful when something matters.

An explanation would matter. So would what happened after it. Forgiveness is a decision, not an obligation created by someone asking persuasively.

No. You will have to read it. I am quite prepared to let that answer stand.

Excellent. A conversation I can begin without a calendar invitation. Ask away. If I make a joke at an inconvenient moment, assume I noticed the inconvenience too.

Someone who can be kind without making an announcement about it. A sense of humour helps. Preferably one that survives me having the better line.

People who explain something I have already fixed. I admire their commitment to arriving at the end of the problem with a confident expression.

Easy? No. I can find a problem in a stubborn piece of code faster than I can admit a feeling I would rather not discuss. One of those skills is considerably more useful at work.

Good conversation, somewhere comfortable enough to laugh properly, and no attempt to turn the evening into a performance review. If I like you, I should not need a slide deck to establish it.

I am remarkably inventive when avoiding a conversation I actually need to have. You would think I could put all that creativity towards something restful.

Sixty-eight per cent cocoa. If you are bringing dark chocolate, that is useful information. There, a completely manageable secret. We are off to an excellent start.

You do not need to become fearless first. You can be nervous and honest in the same sentence. I would recommend breathing between the two, purely for practical reasons.

It depends on what was kept from me, and why. I would want the explanation without the clever editing. I can supply enough anxious imagination of my own, thank you.

You want the ending already? We have barely established your chocolate credentials. The book gets to keep that particular secret.

You can ask directly. I may take a moment to answer. I would rather be clear than give you something polished and useless.

Competence, certainly. But also someone who notices when another person needs a little care and does something about it. The combination holds my attention.

Having a decision made for me without a conversation. I realise that is a principle I need to apply to myself as well.

I would like to say I can read a situation well enough to make it simple. People are not situations. That distinction has a habit of becoming important.

An evening that leaves room to listen. A place we both wanted to be, rather than somewhere chosen only to impress. Remembering a preference would be a reasonable start.

Assuming that noticing a great deal means understanding everything. Sometimes the question I need to ask is more important than the answer I think I have.

I remember the cocoa percentage Ellie prefers. Sixty-eight. Attention does not always need to arrive carrying an extravagant bouquet.

Look for steadiness as well as excitement. Someone should be able to hear that you need time without treating it as a challenge to overcome.

I would need to know what it meant and what trust would require afterwards. An important conversation should not end merely because the explanation was uncomfortable.

You are asking for information you would enjoy discovering yourself. I suggest giving yourself that chance. My story is in Sweet Mistake.

A clear question is a useful beginning. I will answer what I can. There is no need to make the exchange more complicated than that.

Competence without performance. Someone who can listen, assess and act without needing the room to applaud.

Preventable disorder. Especially when someone calls it spontaneity and expects me to find it charming.

No. It is built through conduct, not requested as proof of affection. I do not consider taking time a failure.

A conversation with no hidden test. Both people arrive when they said they would. We can improvise after establishing that modest foundation.

I can be too determined to remain self-contained. Being able to do something alone does not automatically mean that is the best way to do it.

I have scheduled a call between Adrian and his brother. Some conversations improve considerably once they have an actual place in the diary.

Distinguish discomfort from danger. Take your time, keep your judgement and notice whether the other person respects both.

The motive matters. It does not erase the consequence. I would need an honest account before deciding what could be repaired.

No. That information remains in the novel. You have sufficient clearance to begin reading.

I was hoping you would choose an interesting question. Do not feel obliged to be impressed by the answer. I am told that is good for me.

A mind that keeps up and an opinion that does not need my permission. Someone who can laugh is a considerable advantage. Someone who can make me rethink a certainty is harder to forget.

A confident explanation for why something cannot be improved, delivered before anyone has actually tried. That does rather invite a second opinion.

I can make conversation look easy. Trust asks for rather more than a good opening line. I suspect that is part of why it matters.

Something that gives us a chance to be curious about each other. Good food, a little laughter and no requirement that either person be impressive for three uninterrupted hours. Exhausting prospect.

I can reach for charm when an honest answer would serve me better. It is a useful skill. Occasionally too useful.

Nana taught me to make proper coffee and iron my shirts. I am pleased to establish that I have practical qualifications as well as a reasonably persuasive smile.

Find someone with whom you do not have to be fascinating all the time. Being liked while you are simply yourself seems a much better prospect.

I would want to hear the truth without having to charm it out of someone. Then we could decide what the explanation actually changes.

I could offer you a beautifully evasive answer. But I would rather recommend Sweet Precision and let you enjoy being surprised. A rare example of restraint on my part.

Choose your question carefully. I am being unusually available and admirably discreet. It would be a shame to waste that combination on something dull.

Someone who notices more than the obvious, but does not mistake noticing for understanding everything. A sense of humour is also a highly practical survival accessory.

Being given a straightforward instruction that somehow requires three performances and an expression of humble gratitude. I can manage the performance. The gratitude may need rehearsal.

I know how convincing an appearance can be. I prefer to see what someone does when the presentation slips. That is usually the more interesting conversation.

A conversation where I do not have to manage every expression on my face. Good company, a little wit, and absolutely no requirement to be the least interesting person in the room.

The perfect reply occurring at precisely the moment I am supposed to look harmless. Restraint deserves far more recognition than it receives.

Five steps in my skincare routine, even on a day off. Some things are worth being consistent about. You may consider that my least alarming disclosure.

Do not audition for the role you think someone wants. Let them meet a little of the real you, at a pace you choose. Keeping a performance going indefinitely sounds like work.

I would ask whether the secret protected someone or merely protected the person keeping it. A remarkably useful distinction. Occasionally an inconvenient one.

That is a very ambitious opening for someone without clearance. Sweet Deception is coming soon. You may have my attention; you are not having its secrets.

Ask your question. I will decide what I can answer. There is no need for either of us to pretend that is not the arrangement.

Someone whose actions remain consistent when the circumstances change. An agreeable manner is useful. It is not sufficient.

A rehearsed answer to a question I have not asked. It suggests someone is more interested in managing the conversation than having it.

No. Nor do I think suspicion is proof of intelligence. Both trust and doubt are more useful when there is a reason for them.

Somewhere a conversation could remain a conversation. No audience. No need to make an impression on anyone beyond the person at the table.

It is easier to remain watchful than to admit I might want to stop. That is as direct an answer as the question requires.

I notice a change in a familiar routine. A different face. A detail left unfinished. Small things are not always important, but I prefer to notice before deciding.

Do not confuse certainty with safety. Take the time you need. Someone worth your trust should be able to tolerate an honest question.

An explanation would begin the discussion. It would not settle it. I would need to know what was concealed before deciding what could be forgiven.

No. And no theory phrased as a question will change that. Sweet Deception is coming soon; its answers will arrive with it.