Melania Trump saved her husband from another embarrassing scene while in Rome. The president and his wife are on their first foreign trip and the majority of headlines have centered around their body language. Their interactions on the world stage are closely watched and they've succeeded in giving the media a lot to speculate on over the last few days.

Twice in one day

Donald and Melania Trump made up for the lack of hand-holding by partaking in it twice on Wednesday at the Sistine Chapel in Vatican City. The couple were photographed holding hands as they looked up at Michelangelo's painted ceiling.

They did a second time when they posed for a family photo with Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner under Michelangelo's crucifix.

Videos fuel rumors of marital discord

The first lady showed no interest in holding hands with Donald when they arrived at the airports in Tel Aviv and Rome. Videos showing the president offering his hand to Melania only to have it rejected have gone viral. In Tel Aviv, Melania swatted his hand away and in Rome she responded by using her hand to pull the hair back from her face. It definitely looked like she was giving him the cold shoulder.

Many argue that the media is making a mountain out of a molehill, but rumors about the true state of their marriage persist.

Body language expert weighs in

Why was the first lady so abrupt in refusing Donald's hand in Tel Aviv? Body language expert Patti Wood told The Independent that Melania Trump may have been sending the signal that she refuses to be led "like a child." The president was several steps in front of his wife when he reached his hand back to her and had it swatted away.

Wood gathers that Melania is used to being desired and openly displaying affection with her husband, but that changed after he was inaugurated. Donald is more interested in conveying a presidential image all on his own, not as a presidential couple. It was he who acted less than enthused to hold her hand when they flew into Palm Beach back in February.

Other reasons for lack of affection

Another point that's been debated is that Melania might have been uncomfortable holding hands in Israel because the culture there is more conservative. As to why she did in Rome, it's unclear. The country doesn't have the same conduct restrictions as the Middle East. It could be that she wanted to avoid any negative attention by showing affection on their first overseas trip, but the opposite happened.

Is the fact that Donald and Melania Trump were finally holding hands at the Vatican an effort to put on a united front for the sake of the public or did they feel it was appropriate for the situation they were in? Whatever the reason, the president was spared another humiliating incident with his wife.
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