In the early twentieth century, a woman from Virginia, Konnie, is married to a Frenchman, Paul. After being raised by an American upper class family to be a reserved person with restrained emotions, she was courted by Paul  who went through great pains to marry her. They now live in France, where for Konnie, life is a simple but endurable bore- she rarely has to think or feel. She can rid herself of rebellious thoughts.

However, tonight Konnie and Paul are out to dinner, watching a lovely African American performer sing. Paul is amused and pleased to see Konnie expressing her appreciation for the songstress enthusiastically with more emotion than he usually sees her with. Konnie is entranced by her, falling into fantasies about supple Egyptian queens. As she begins daydreaming of the singer's sensuous lips, she abruptly puts her glass of wine down, and begins admonishing her own stray thoughts. But she begins to wonder, why should she deny herself the pleasure of looking at her, seeing the songstress’ beauty? Who has the right to tell her what she is allowed to indulge in?

But again Konnie shakes herself, and reminds herself that her upbringing had made her better than someone who ogles “colored girl singers.”

Paul can’t help but notice Konnie’s increase in emotional energy, and seems to want to preserve it. He tells Konnie that he knows the manager of the restaurant, and would likely be able to get the singer to meet with them. Konnie is annoyed at the suggestion, which starts a small argument between them. Konnie leaves to go to the bathroom in a huff, but when she comes back she finds that her husband had invited the singer over anyway, and she was sitting at their table.

Konnie is outwardly cool and calm, but inwardly noticing how young and beautiful she is, even up close. Paul introduces the singer to Konnie as Mirine Tige and begins conversing pleasantly. Paul notices how good Mirine’s French is, and asks her if she studied it as a child. Mirine responds with sarcasm: “on a sharecropper’s farm in Georgia?” Of course drawing attention to the fact that she is an African American, and would not have had access to such a great education in her childhood. As a white American from the south this bothers Konnie, as she feels Mirine was jabbing at southern tradition. But she also notes how Mirine does not seem charmed at all by Paul, who is usually good at having women warm up to him.

The conversation goes on, Mirine continues to be an unyielding conversation participant. At the end of the conversation, after Paul comments how it seems pretentious for them to carry on the conversation in French since they all speak English, Mirine asks if Paul likes French. He says yes. Mirine says that he should speak French if he likes it, then looks at Konnie as she continues to say that one should do things that they enjoy doing.

Mirine begins to leave, but comments to Konnie that while she was performing, Konnie looked like someone that she knew before in Paris. But she says that it was a mistake, apologizes for her staring, and leaves. Paul playfully apologizes to Konnie for annoying her, but is satisfied with the encounter. Konnie, however, needs another drink. She knows she will dream of Egyptian queens that night.