Page 120 of Awaiting

“I suppose, my husband is just asking how it will work for the two of you,” Margaret spoke to clarify. “You live in Kansas. Will you move here?”

“Move?” Bexley asked.

“How’s the stew?” Alex changed the subject.

“Alexandria can’t move to the States,” the Queen said. “At some point, you’d have to be here if you two are still together, dear.”

“I don’t know.” Bexley looked at Alex. “We haven’t talked about it. As long as it took us to get together, it also happened really fast.”

“Mother, can we maybe talk about something else?” Alex requested, taking Bexley’s hand under the table and giving it a squeeze. “Papa, why are you going to South Africa?”

“It’s important that she understands, Alexandria. I’m not trying to–”

“Please, I beg of you: call me Alex, Mum,” Alex interrupted. “I have asked you since I was six years old to just call me Alex. I waited until this weekend to cut my hair, even though I’ve wanted to do it for years. I wore a suit for the first time today in official portraits, even though I feel more comfortable in them and have asked time and again to be able to be more myself. I just want you to call me Alex. Is it really that hard?”

Bexley squeezedAlex’shand this time.

“Your name is so beautiful,” her mother replied. “I love your name. And I like calling you by your name. I like when you’re introduced as Her Royal Highness, Princess Alexandria.”

“But we’re here as a family. No one is calling me Princess right now. I’m just Alex here. Father is George to you. You’ve even called LawrenceLarryand MargaretMaggie.”

Her mother nodded and said, “I never knew it was that important to you.”

“Well, it is.”

“Very well. It’s important, Alex, that Bexley understands everything about what she’s signing up for.”

“But not tonight, Mum,” Alex said. “Can we be a normal family tonight?”

“I’d want to continue my work,” Bexley spoke.

“I’m sorry?” the Queen said.

“I don’t know what lies ahead for Alex and me. I know that we’re very new and that I’m happy. I don’t know what I can or can’t do. My grandmother needs me right now; I can’t just leave Kansas permanently. But, I don’t know, maybe one day I could move here. I don’t know London well; this is my first night here. But I loved Wales, and I’d love to see more of the country Alex loves so much.” She turned to Alex. “I know royals don’t exactly have jobs, and I’m not ready to make any kind of commitment to going public with Alex until she and I are both ready for that, but I’d want to continue my work. I help people. After they’ve had strokes, I help them learn to speak again. I help give kids confidence so they can read in front of the classroom without risking being mocked or bullied. I love what I do. I’ve worked hard to get to where I am. And I’d want to keep doing that.”

There was silence around the table. Then, the Queen cleared her throat and said, “Well, I’m sure that could be arranged.”

???

“I kind of love that you have a queen bed. It seems fitting,” Bexley said to Alex later that night.

“They don’t make a princess-size,” Alex replied. “But a king bed doesn’t fit in this room, and truthfully, it’s always just me in here.”

“What about…”

“You will be the first woman to ever sleep in this bed with me, sweetheart.”

Alex removed Bexley’s shoe for her. She was currently kneeling in front of Bexley, who was sitting on the end of the bed after what felt like one of the longest days of her life. Today was more nerve-wracking than the day she had to defend her dissertation. But, considering how much Alex had warned her about her mother, she thought the dinner went well enough. By the time the rest of the family had left, Bexley felt like she’d at least won most of them over and was well on her way with the most difficult-to-impress woman in the world.

Alex kissed Bexley’s knee, then removed the other shoe before kissing her other knee, and said, “You were brilliant tonight.”

“So were you. Don’t think I didn’t notice your mother calling you Alex at least five times after you scolded her.”

Alex pushed Bexley’s skirt up to the tops of her thighs.

“We’ll see if it sticks,” she said, kissing the inside of Bexley’s left thigh.

“Babe, I’m so exhausted,” Bexley told her, running her hand through Alex’s hair.

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