Royals: Part 2

Chapter 12

'The Bridal Party takes New York '

'Bride-to-be Jacqueline Baker and her matron of honor, Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, were spotted out and about in New York City this past week. Onlookers say the women looked happy as they shopped for clothing and what appeared to be decor for Jackie and Prince Harry's 5th Avenue apartment, which the Prince purchased at the end of last year.'

'The royal duo were spotted from the Upper East Side all the way down to SoHo, even lunching at a small restaurant tucked in the back alleys of Chinatown. Fellow diners say that both the future Duchess and the current Duchess looked radiant and healthy, reportedly "laughing a lot".' 

---

Jackie closed her laptop, satisfied by the most recent article written about her. She had been distracted all week in New York City, not reading a single one. But now that she was back in her Kensington Palace flat, she couldn't help but to catch up.

As the article reported, her and Kate's trip had been a success. 1040 5th Avenue felt like home. It was perfectly decorated, just as Jackie had dreamed. She was excited for Harry to see it, and even more excited to explore New York City with him. Unfortunately, she wasn't sure when that would happen. He was so busy with work that Jackie hadn't seen him since she and Kate left for the US, and she had been back in London for nearly a whole day. She felt an emptiness in her chest. She missed Harry- a lot. Not seeing him for a week had only given her a taste of what his deployment would be like.

As if on cue, the door to Jackie's Kensington Palace flat opened. She jumped up from the couch to see Harry walk in the door, looking windswept and happy. Snow still speckled his jacket and red hair. Jackie threw herself into Harry and gave him a tight hug. "I missed you so much."

"I missed you too." Harry held Jackie at arms length, seeming to admire her gray robe and tousled hair. "You look beautiful."

"Why thank you. I put a lot of work into this ensemble." Jackie smiled, overwhelmingly happy.

She was about to open her mouth to begin the difficult conversation about his military career when Harry spoke up. "Can we go out?"

"Go out where?"

"To a club or something. I've just had the longest week, and I have tomorrow off, so I just feel like letting loose."

Jackie smirked. "It's so late-"

Harry let out a laugh. "It's only 8:30!"

Jackie groaned, contemplating a night out in the clubs with Harry or retiring to bed before 9. "Oh, alright."

Harry gave her a playful push. "Go get ready!"

---

"Can't we go in the back?" Harry asked. Jackie could hear a muffled response, which prompted Harry to roll his eyes. "Great. Thanks." He hit the end button on his phone with more force than necessary.

"What'd they say?"

"They're going to keep the paps out, but we have to go in the front."

Jackie sniffed. "Why?"

"Publicity, of course."

Jackie and Harry were en route to Harry's favorite night club, Boujis, in Chelsea. Harry and Will swore by the club because of the discretion and privacy it offered. However, in the dawn of a royal wedding, even the most trusted royal hangouts were bound to milk the publicity. Harry had decided to call ahead, to ask if he and Jackie could slip in the back door. Unfortunately, Boujis couldn't pass up a photo-op of the royal couple walking through their doors just a few months shy of their wedding.

"I can already see them following us," Harry said with a scowl, pointing out the rear window of the Range Rover they were riding in. Jackie saw it, a pack of motorbikes and cars, trailing only about a car length behind.

Jackie suddenly had a flash of what poor Diana must have gone through, dropped in the spotlight at only 20, having to grow up and find her identity in the world's eye. Jackie thought her situation was hard, but at least she was a confident 28-year-old, totally in love, with a good idea of what she wanted out of life, and strong self esteem. Diana had none of that.

"Let's just walk in and ignore them," Jackie said, all of a sudden humbled at the thought of how good she had it.

Harry nodded, looking exasperated. "I suppose we'll have to."

"Don't worry," Jackie said, taking his hand. "We're going to have fun."

Harry smiled, giving Jackie a kiss. After a few more minutes, their car arrived outside of Boujis. The cameras were already flashing outside, luckily, the tinted windows and snow gave them some cover. Jackie buttoned up her black evening coat, covering her little black dress. She wore heels, not the most trustworthy shoes to wear in the snow. Harry looked handsome as always, of course, in a white button up shirt and jeans.

With a wink, Harry opened the door. The snaps of the flashing cameras and shouts of the paps began immediately.

"Jackie!"

"Harry!"

"Look over here!"

"C'mon, give us a picture!"

Harry got out first, standing by the door while Jackie climbed out, remembering to keep her knees firmly clamped together, swinging her legs out in one motion to the ground. Harry held out a hand, which she took, and they forced their way through the paparazzi together. Jackie tried to keep her face relaxed- cameras were being held about 6 inches from her faces and were bound to get some unflattering photos if she didn't.

Harry opened the door of the club, Jackie ducking inside first. As the door closed behind them, the sound of the paparazzi was replaced by muffled music. They checked their coats and were waved past the payment window.

Jackie and Harry stepped into the club, which was packed with people. The air felt heavy and she was immediately warm. The music was just a touch below painfully loud, but it sort of filled her head and forced out all of her other thoughts, which was refreshing. A few people looked their way, but most were either engrossed in dancing or talking. They waded through the crowd to the bar and ordered some drinks, a beer for Harry and margarita for Jackie.

As they waited for their drinks, Jackie noticed that girls had begun to wander over, like flys to honey. Their eyes were locked on Harry, and within a few minutes, the bar was packed with 20-something girls, as if they were getting in line to speak to him. Jackie wasn't insecure, but it irritated her to see the eyes of about 30 girls on him.

One of the more daring ones had just opened her mouth to speak as the bartender handed Harry the drinks. He gave Jackie her margarita and without noticing the girl said, "Want to go dance?"

Jackie smiled, putting an arm around his back. "Yes I do."

Without a glance at the girls, Harry led Jackie out to the dance floor. And they danced, as if in a world with only the two of them, at least for the night, together at last.