In response to the PS to my post yesterday, where I asked "What is it with Nora and friends and family kissing each other on the mouth, "long and hard"? Do people do that in your family?" , Marina has answered: Nope, we don't kiss each other on the mouth in my family. Not even in a "short and soft" way."

Well, neither do we in my family, and noone I know does. And this even though Uruguayans greet each other in what one could call a Continental European manner: with a kiss on the cheek. You get introduced to someone, you kiss on the cheek. That's the way it's done, period. But kissing in the mouth always has sexual connotations. Even a little peck, which is why when Nora had Maggie and Murphy kiss (and didn't Roarke kiss Peabody in the In Death series at least once?) it felt weird to me.