Tina:  Oh no, my pooty-loving puppy.  No quickies this weekend.

Bette:  I only love your pooty. Okay what do you want for breakfast?

Tina:  Smoked salmon, bagels, cream cheese, red onions, capers, a pot of coffee and some fruit. Maybe some pink grapefruit if they have it.

Bette:  God, that sounds good. It has been a while since we have had lox.

Tina: I need to go to the potty. How about your morning kiss before I go?

Bette: Oh, yes…

They kissed and Tina was off. Bette got up and found her robe an went to order breakfast. It would be 45 minutes before it would be delivered.  Just enough time for the two of them to shower and dress. Bette suggested that they just put on some lounging clothes and dress just before they needed to go.

Bette and Tina emerged from the bedroom in jogging suits as the knock on the door came with their breakfast. Bette signed the ticket and included an additional tip and when to table where the food was set up. They chose to eat their grapefruit first and had their coffee.

Tina:  So, tell me about Harriet Myers.

Bette:  She was Dad’s assistant for as long as I can remember. She was a little younger than Dad but I always thought she was an old lady. She was pleasant enough; it’s just she was not what I would call “kid friendly”.  When I came to the office, which was rarely, she was charged with taking care of me and she had no clue what to do with me. So, I finally just asked her for a pencil and some paper and a place to sit where I could draw. She seemed thrilled with that suggestion and every time there after I came to the office, I had my drawing station set up and ready to go. It’s kind of embarrassing when at 16, she was still suggesting that I might like to draw.

Tina: Oh my god, Bette. Really? I take it she must have never dealt with children.

Bette:  To the best of my knowledge, she never married and no there were no children. Dad adored her. She was efficient and she was exactly what he wanted in an assistant. I believed my mom approved of her as well as there was no possibility of a romantic liaison between the two. She had a rather stoic type personality:  all business, seldom smiled. When I was young, I was somewhat frightened by her. But by the time I was a teenager, she was not so scary. Of course, by then the only person who could frighten me at that point, was Melvin. But I got the feeling from things Dad would say that she knew more about Dad than anyone on earth except maybe Gabriel. That was particularly true after Mom died or left. Ms. Myers then tried to be a little more sympathetic toward me after that. She actually called to see if she could arrange my prom night needs. You know… a limo, restaurant reservations and that sort of thing.