The fact that he was trying to match her was nice. And he brought up a very good point. Mashed potatoes in stew wasn't very good at all. For a proper stew, the potatoes needed to be chunks. Flashing him a small smile, she nodded. "Da, this is very true. I had not been thinking about it that way." She rubbed the side of her nose before returning her hand to her shawl to hold it closed about her shoulders.
"Back in Russia, when I was child, I thought 'All I will ever do is raise horses.'" She shook her head. "But then I did not, so I am now here." It was funny how things changed. As a child, she had loved living wild with the Yakut. She had wanted to marry one of their men and stay with them forever. Clearly, that hadn't happened. But she wasn't sad about it at all. "Is good to be so determined. But you are inspector, not police. There is difference, da?"