"Oh, it's very dull. Trade rights in a particular industrially useful chemical."

He is very sure that if Elvee were here he would think it was fascinating. (He wishes Elvee were here.) He doesn't say either of those things; he nods again. 

Then Senator Palpatine will return to his reading.

And Marlo will return to his thoughts — he drafts ways to broach the topic of where they've seen each other before with Seku, makes lists of songs he knows he can sing well, occasionally wonders what Seku or Elvee would think of this thing or that. 

Senator Palpatine does not visibly react to any of this!

Marlo is not expecting him to! 

And eventually they'll arrive!

Everyone in Hapes appears to be female and extraordinarily pretty. 

That sure is a fact about Hapes. Marlo has no particular response to it. 

Dejah smiles at him when she sees him. 

Marlo smiles back! 

Then she turns to Palpatine. 

This is a long and etiquette-ridden conversation with a lot of subtext. It would probably be fascinating if you understood enough about Hapan society to understand all the subtext, but as it is watching it for Marlo is probably like watching a game of football without knowing what a ball is.

It is interesting, but mostly in the way that watching very complicated machines is interesting; he has no idea what's going on but he can still sort of see the moving parts if he looks for them. 

Eventually the conversation ends, although it's unclear who won or whether, in fact, it was a draw.

"Hi, Marlo!"

"Hello! How have you been?" 

"The outfits are much more comfortable!"

(She's wearing a long dress that shimmers in the light, and that is so low-cut that if she moved wrong she'd flash him.)

"I imagine, it'd be hard for them to be less." 

Senator Palpatine does not appear to be paying attention.

"Do you know how I could get in contact with Asha? Hapan men continue to be boring."

"...uh, he has a holo number, I don't know if I remember it right but I think it was —" and he lists off the number he gave the Temple. 

"Do you think he would like to be a prince of Hapes?"

"I have no idea whether he would like to be a prince of Hapes." 

"Oh, well, guess that was too much to hope for."

"He might! I just wouldn't know either way." 

"So, how has the Jedi Temple been treating you?"

"It's been alright! I would not expect you to find it terribly interesting."