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The door opened, and Jenny entered carrying a tray with an antique coffee pot with matching cups and the standard accoutrements. She gave a short curtsy and placed the tray on the table.
“Shall I pour, Ma’am?”
“I think we can manage that ourselves. Thank you, Jenny,” she replied.
Jenny walked backward to the door then left the room. That custom needed to change. The poor woman had nearly run into a small table by the door because she couldn’t turn her back to the Queen.
“I know we haven’t agreed to anything beyond today, but I only have an hour with you today, and I have a lot more questions,” Palmer spoke. “At the end, do you think we can talk about the possibility of a follow-up interview?”
“How do you take your coffee?”
“Oh, wow. The last woman to ask me that is now my ex-girlfriend,” Palmer blurted out. Then, she covered her mouth in surprise. “I amsosorry. I have no idea why I just said that.”
Elizabeth stared at her for a moment before she nodded.
“Can I guess?”
“How I take my coffee, or why I just blurted out something like that out to a Queen?”
“The first one,” Elizabeth said, smiling at her.
“Go for it.”
“You seem like a busy woman.”
“I guess,” Palmer said.
“Not much time for things like cream and sugar, so black is my guess.”
“Black is fine, but I also wouldn’t mind a sugar packet.”
“Cube.”
“Huh?”
“Sugarcubes. We’re civilized in this country. Our sugar comes in cubes,” Elizabeth teased.
Palmer laughed lightly and said, “Right. One of those would be great. But I can do it.”
“I’ve got it.” Elizabeth stood. When Palmer went to stand up as well, she added, “You can keep sitting. Some of these customs have got to go.”
“Which ones?” Palmer asked.
“Is this on the record?”
“It can be if you want it to be,” Palmer said, readying her pen above the notepad she’d pulled from her shoulder bag upon sitting down.
“You came here on vacation. Do all reporters bring notebooks with them even when they’re on vacation?”
“The good ones do.”
Elizabeth poured them each a cup of coffee. Then, she added a sugar cube to Palmer’s and stirred it in before passing her the cup. She made her own coffee with a splash of cream and sat back down across from the reporter.
“Can I ask you a question?” Palmer asked.
“That’s why you’re here, isn’t it?”
“Not an interview question. It’s just that these chairs are the straightest-back chairs I’ve ever sat in, and I fleweconomyover here. How do you deal with them?” she asked, shifting uncomfortably after placing her coffee cup on the small table next to her.
