Page 100 of The English Queen

“It’s amazing how convincing they are, isn’t it? I still want a fifth. It’s not happening, but part of me wants a fifth.”

“You’re about to be king. Focus on the task at hand, cousin,” Rita scoffed. “You all can steal this one for a bit if you want when she’s a bit older and we’re more knackered.”

“I’m not tired,” Bruno said as Kiersten pulled his beard.

“Yet. You’re in the adorable honeymoon stage of parenthood. All the happy hormones are going. Give it about two days. Then, you will be exhausted. Rita will call Vanna. Vanna will rush over as time allows.”

“Oh, shit. I have to go pick up Mama tomorrow,” Bruno said. “She’ll be here in like ten hours. God. It’s going to be brutal.”

“We’ll send a car,” Rita insisted. “It would be fine, baby. She will get here.”

“You won’t want to leave,” Robbie said as the baby returned in Vanna’s arms.

Vanna had her finger in the baby’s mouth as a replacement for a dummy.

Vanna handed the baby over. “She’s hungry. I thought she was going to climb into my shirt. Kiersten, can you leave cousin Bruno alone?”

“Come, come, you poor famished thing,” Rita beckoned the baby. “She just latched on immediately after her surprise entrance into the world. Like nothing. She is a good eater—unlike the boys.”

“Kiersten is fine,” Bruno assured Vanna as she stood, arms outstretched.

Kiersten shot her mother daggers in return.

“Well, if you tire of her, tell me.” Vanna sat.

“What happens now?” Rita asked. “With the transition?”

“We’re already moving into the Palace by the end of the summer. We’ll keep Frogmore in Windsor for now. Mum will have access to her apartments. She and Pa are moving into Wood Farm as their primary residence in Sandringham and, for now, Duncan and Rebecca can use Anmer. Balmoral we are splitting. Once Mum… goes… Dad will probably hang around and it will be less-complicated. I’ll officially inherit Sandringham and Balmoral under strict orders of who gets to use what, which includes a house on the grounds of Balmoral earmarked for Louis and Beth and the other cottage in Scotland she wants Duncan and Rebecca to have. Elliot and Charlotte are getting a cottage at Windsor. It will happen as people have time. The goal is to be least-disruptive to the children.”

“How did the kids feel about it?” Bruno asked.

“They didn’t care. Paul was concerned he would have to wear a crown every day.”

“Oh, dear Paul,” Bruno laughed.

“The older two had almost expected it. They know I am acting as if I am King. It wasn’t a big change for them. Becoming Prince of Wales at eleven is difficult. Or to become The Spare at eleven, either. We were slightly older, but Duncan and I felt it was weird, too. The coronation plans have been underway since December.”

“Wild,” Rita murmured.

Bruno shook his head as Kiersten patted his cheek. “It has to be strange to grow up with a parent as monarch. It’s wild just being an Earl.”

“It is. George will be under tough scrutiny from a young age. I wish I could insulate him more. Thankfully, he has a mother with a good head on her shoulders. Just like Pa protected us, Vanna will be doing the same.”

“And I will have a person who will prioritise me doing the work rather than demonizing me for it…” Vanna looked at Robbie.

“It will be a change for all of us, but it will simplify things, too.”

“What was the thing that forced her hand?” Rita asked.

“Her hand wasn’t forced. I didn’t do this. Dad made it clear her condition had deteriorated and he was concerned about it.”

“I think it has helped her to know she can retire,” Vanna said.

Robbie nodded. “She is accepting the things she can’t change and focusing on the time she has left.”

“Well, let’s hope she meets Beth’s baby,” Rita said.

“That is the hope. I want it for her. She wants nothing more.”

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