I'm not saying I'm super suave and never, ever awkward around my husband—we bump noses and miss lips occasionally! But I seriously cringed when I saw newlyweds Meghan Markle and Prince Harry kiss during the awards ceremony of the Sentebale charity polo match they attended together today. Do watch:
Yay and hooray for their PDA! New love, amiright?
Except note the way Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, looks momentarily lost after the man to her left draws her in for a double-cheek kiss. When she turns back toward her husband, her confusion appears to persist, according to body-language expert Blanca Cobb. Just look at the way Meghan's hand gets stuck on Harry's left hip in the process of reaching around his waist:
"It's like she wasn't sure what to do," Cobb says, adding that royal protocol typically frowns upon PDA. "There wasn't enough distance for her to put her arm behind Harry, so her wrist was twisted in a weird way."
After the collision, which does not look planned, Meghan appears to pat or rub Harry on the back in a self-soothing manner, Cobb says, as though she's super glad it's all over.
"It's like she's silently saying, 'Oh my gosh, get me through this,'" Cobb says. "Touching her husband is grounding and a source of reassurance. With so many people around them and pictures being taken, it's natural for her to reach out to him for support and stability."
After the whole exchange, Meghan brings her hands in front of her body, palms together. "It's for self-assurance and self-soothing," Cobb says, confirming hints of social anxiety from too much going on too quickly.
Meanwhile, Cobb says Harry appears completely unruffled by the hectic turn of events. "There's a lot going on, but he's totally fine!" Cobb says. "He looks very comfortable and confident in his relationship."
Well, that makes one of them!
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Elizabeth Narins is a Brooklyn, NY-based writer and a former senior editor at Cosmopolitan.com, where she wrote about fitness, health, and more. Follow her at @ejnarins.
