"Of course," he said quickly, seeing her reaction. "You needn't feel pressured." He was eager to turn the conversation back to a happier topic, and he looked around as if for inspiration. There was nothing. Then he suddenly smiled. "So how do you find the English?"

"Not much different from Bostonians," she said, then gave a quick and pleasant sounding laugh. Her transition was natural, not forced. "The food is different, but the attitudes are the same. Very proper like," she added, sipping her wine. It was about half gone by that point, but she was not rushing to drink it.

"Well, I'm glad to hear." Tristan said with a chuckle. He had met two Americans in medical school and both had been polite enough not to say anything, but clearly uncomfortable at times. Tristan suddenly remembered his own drink, and drank some of it. He was quiet for a moment while he savoured the taste.

"This is very delicious wine, sir," she said. It felt odd to call Tristan "sir" because they were sharing wine together. She looked down into her cup, "I hardly touch it, but I enjoy a glass of pinot noir every now and then. What kind is this?"

Tristan let out a laugh and sat up straight. "Ah, now you've found me out. I know nothing about wine," he confessed. He reached out and picked up the bottle to check the label. "Syrah..." he set the bottle down. "And I probably paid too much for it too, for the wine seller soon realized my ignorance." He should have knowledge of wine, since he had had some exposure back in school and at university, and his father had held fancy dinners occasionally for prospective business partners, but he had never paid attention to what was being served.

[CW: References to sexism]

"I am sure you didn't mean to pay so much for it, but it is delicious." She laughed, loosening up the more she drank wine. She had a laugh that would normally fill a room with joy. Her smile was genuine as she regarded him, "I wouldn't be able to help you buy wine either, I confess. Nobody takes a woman seriously when they haggle." She knew from experience.

Tristan shook his head and smiled. "Now, I doubt that's true. Have you not seen the fishwives in the market haggle with customers over their fish? They're fierce at it too." And he suspected that that was were Pippa's weakness lay. She was far too polite to negotiate as aggressively as that, surely. Tristan sipped some of his wine.

"No, I haven't. I just remember trying to get a lower price with a merchant once and he wouldn't budge for me." She chuckled. "But that was some time ago, back in Boston."

Tristan smiled. He watched her and let the wine spin in his glass. "But you are a fine mannered young lady and they are fighting for their survival. I bet if you had approached him with their confidence and determination, he would have reconsidered."

"Do you think so?" she asked with an arched brow and a widening smile, revealing almost perfect teeth.