*Sixth book in the Royals Series*
It's been nearly 3 years since Jackie Baker married her long time friend, Prince Harry, with the eyes of the world on her. Now, with a one year old and twins on the way, Jackie must balance the pressures of her chi...
"Your Highness, the Duke is here," Mrs. Woodsworth called from the back door of York Cottage. Jackie and Mary Kate were playing in a pile of leaves in the backyard, jumping and rolling, Rupert joining in with a happy bark.
"Thank you, Mrs. Woodsworth," Jackie said, standing up and brushing crumbled leaves from her jeans. "Would you mind entertaining Mary and Rupert out here for a while?"
"Of course." The friendly housekeeper knelt down next to Mary Kate, somehow looking natural in her wool skirt and stockings.
Jackie cut through the house, meeting Harry's car in the circle drive. They hadn't spoken since she left Kensington Palace with Mary Kate about a week before. Halloween was just around the corner, and Jackie hoped they would be able to spend the holiday together as a family.
"Hey," Harry greeted breathlessly, pulling a suitcase from the trunk of his Range Rover.
"How was the trip?" Jackie asked.
"Good. Luckily I didn't have to threaten the lives of any photographers outside of the Palace."
Jackie pursed her lips. "Maybe they like me better."
"I was just kidding," Harry said. "How's Mary Kate?"
"She's good," Jackie reported. "She's out back with Mrs. Woodsworth, I thought we could talk for a minute."
"About what?" Harry asked.
Jackie shrugged. "Everything."
"Okay."
Jackie lead Harry over to a large oak tree near the front of the estate, sitting down and leaning against it's trunk. She was going to follow Will's advice and talk to Harry, tell him how she felt.
"We've been really distant lately," Jackie started, "Don't you think?"
Harry nodded. "Yeah, I've noticed."
"Why do you think that is?" Jackie asked.
"Because I've been working a lot, and you-" He stopped.
Jackie felt her guard go up. "I what?"
"You haven't."
"Maybe if you stayed home for once you'd realize it isn't always a vacation," Jackie shot back. She folded her arms across her chest, feeling the conversation going downhill. She honestly didn't want to fight, but it seemed she and Harry didn't see eye to eye on any issue.
"One of us has to do something, Jackie," Harry responded, his tone short. "We can't both just quit."
"I haven't quit!" Jackie hissed, trying not to raise her voice. "I'm just cutting back."
Harry shook his head. "You have totally quit. When's the last time you had an engagement?"
Jackie opened her mouth to speak, but paused. She couldn't even remember her last engagement. "I was going to go to the Invictus Games, but someone needed to stay with our daughter."
"I know you want someone home with her all the time, and that's fine, but you can't expect both of us to just quit our royal duties. One of us has to represent the Windsors," Harry said, looking as though a load had been lifted off of his shoulders.
Something clicked in Jackie's head. Harry wasn't abandoning her- he was just doing what he thought was right. "Why didn't you say that to me weeks ago?"
"I didn't want to push you to do something you didn't want to do," Harry explained.
Jackie threw her arms around Harry's neck, pulling him in to a tight hug. "I feel so relieved," she breathed.
"I'm sorry I haven't been around a lot, and I'm sorry I hurt your feelings," Harry said, wrapping his arms around her. "I went about it the wrong way, I should have just said something instead of making you wonder."
They sat under the tree for a moment, wrapped in a hug, the only noise coming from the rustling of brittle leaves in the wind.
The pieces fell together in Jackie's mind. She resented him for leaving her alone at home, and he resented her for leaving him alone in the spotlight. The solution was a balance- one that may be difficult to find.
"I wish I could go to Nepal with you, I really do, but I can't," Jackie whispered.
"It's okay. I'll go alone this time, and we'll go back together in a few years," Harry assured her. "Maybe you could pick up a few engagements here and there, let Nanny Sophia work for a change."
Jackie smiled. "I will. We still haven't visited our wax figures at Madam Tussaud's, they were finished months ago."
"They've been begging Michael to send us over. We should arrange for it."
She didn't feel complete when she and Harry were fighting. Jackie could feel the fog that had settled into her heart clearing by the second.
"Want to go play in the leaves with Mary?" Jackie asked, standing and brushing off her jeans.
"Yes!" Harry said with genuine enthusiasm. Jackie and Harry walked around York Cottage arm in arm to to the back garden, where Mary Kate and Mrs. Woodsworth were still playing.
Harry scooped up Mary Kate and Jackie dismissed Mrs. Woodsworth for the night. "She likes to push around her little walker, she was running last night," Jackie told Harry.
Harry put Mary Kate down, and the proud parents watched as Mary Kate made laps around the yard, laughing and squealing, Rupert at her heels.
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"Wow!" Harry laughed, giving Mary a round of applause. "You're faster than your mum!"
Jackie rolled her eyes. "Ha, ha. I recall beating you in a race before Will and Kate's wedding, when we were working out in the Palace gym."
"I think that was a dream," Harry laughed.
Jackie smiled to herself. She hadn't felt so happy in a long time.
"What's that noise?" Harry asked suddenly, looking around.
Jackie frowned. "I don't hear anything."
Harry held up a finger. "Listen."
Jackie froze, her ears straining. And after a moment, she did hear an odd noise. A buzzing sound, growing louder by the second.
Jackie and Harry looked up to the sky in unison. A drone was hovering about twenty feet above their heads.
"Get inside!" a voice called. It was Chris, running from the guard house.
Jackie grabbed Mary Kate, holding her head so that her face was shielding from the camera in the sky. "Let's go," Jackie urged.
"No," Harry said, his voice full of anger. He looked around, reaching for one of the wooden blocks from Mary Kate's walker.
Jackie ducked as Harry threw the block at the drone as hard as he could. He missed the first time, but a second block made contact, sending the drone spinning to the ground.
Jackie took Mary Kate into the house, and when she peaked through the curtains, she saw Harry and Chris taking turns stepping on the drone until it was a pile of broken plastic in the grass.
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Please please please keep up the suggestions!
Hopefully this chapter will relieve some of your worries, I know a lot of you were distressed by all the fighting!
