Meghan Markle, the new Duchess of Sussex, is kind to a fault, her good friend Serena Williams made clear to People at her Serena clothing line event last night. Royalty hasn’t changed her, the tennis star added, explaining what their conversations are like. “I’m like, ‘How are you?’ and she’s like, ‘No, how are you?’ and I’m like, ‘You’re so sweet, but I’m really asking—how are YOU?’” Williams said. “I’m like, ‘Meghan, stop being so nice…you’re the pregnant one, aren’t you supposed to have hormones, why are you so sweet?’ But that’s always been her.”
Williams also told People that although she has given Meghan some advice as a new parent, she“still gives me more advice.” The two have been friends since meeting in 2010, People pointed out, and Williams attended Meghan’s wedding this May.
The glimpse Williams gave of how Meghan actually is around her friends in private comes after Meghan was characterized as a diva and someone causing trouble in the royal family by British tabloids over the past couple days. A source told Vanity Fair last week that Meghan believes that the stories are all part of a smear campaign being orchestrated against her.
“She feels to a degree the British press is out to get her and while she’s aware of the news and what’s going on, she tries her best not to read all the stories about her,” the source told the outlet.
Meghan has kept a relatively low profile this week, although she has been out and about. She met Michelle Obama at her London event, did a reading at a charity carol service with Prince Harry, and had her own private engagement yesterday with university leaders at King’s College in London.
