[He stops a few feet short from her, letting her get out the tired narrative that he's already heard from her -- that the Force wasn't a shortcut, that they shouldn't rely on it when there was nothing to support their absolute success, that it was amoral to use the Force to manipulate the thoughts of others.

She protests too much. And she gives him an opening that he seeks to lead on -- a test of sorts. After all, he was not so used to people being interested in his well being.]

Perhaps Thrawn is not the one we should aim to bend.

[He senses the honesty in what she says. I don't want anything to happen to you. This is where he should reassure her -- but it is an uncomfortable thought, encouraging her investment. So he settles on allowing her to stay in his space, as close as they could possibly come to one another short of engaging in actual physical contact.]

If the administrative eyes are upon Thrawn, he won't be able to act at all.