It’s only Tuesday, but it’s already been a big week for royal family news!
Yesterday, we learned that Kate Middleton is pregnant with her third child, an announcement that the Duchess of Cambridge’s many fans had been eagerly awaiting for months.
And today, royal obsessives were overjoyed with yet another long-anticipated announcement.
As the whole world has known for almost a year, Meghan Markle and Prince Harry are dating.
But for all the Harry and Meghan engagement rumors, the high-profile vacations, and the many times they’ve been spotted together in public, both parties have been cagey about publicly addressing the relationship.
Until now, that is.
Meghan covers the new issue of Vanity Fair, and inside the magazine opens up for the first time about her relationship with Harry.
“I can tell you that at the end of the day I think it’s really simple,” Markle tells the magazine.
“We’re two people who are really happy and in love.”
Asked about the early effort to keep their relationship out of the headlines, Markle replies:
“We were very quietly dating for about six months before it became news, and I was working during that whole time, and the only thing that changed was people’s perception. Nothing about me changed.”
She adds:
“I’m still the same person that I am, and I’ve never defined myself by my relationship.”
Though the magazine’s cover declares her “Wild About Harry,” Meghan makes a point of never mentioning her princely beau by name.
It’s a strategy that’s similar to the one Harry used last year when he issued a statement addressing Meghan’s critics while refusing to give the tabloids the satisfaction of a relationship confirmation.
Meghan says that despite that public plea from Harry, the bullying and harassment have continued.
Fortunately, she says she’s learned to take it in stride whenever possible.
“It has its challenges, and it comes in waves — some days it can feel more challenging than others,” she said. “And right out of the gate it was surprising the way things changed. But I still have this support system all around me, and, of course, my boyfriend’s support.”
“I don’t read any press. I haven’t even read press for Suits. The people who are close to me anchor me in knowing who I am. The rest is noise.”
Interestingly, Meghan’s comments come on the heels of a remark from one of her Suits co-stars indicating that struggling to cope with the pressure of such a high-profile relationship.
“She’s an actress, this isn’t what she signed up for anyway… this is like a whole new ballpark,” said actor Max Topplin.
Meghan seems to concede that it hasn’t been easy, but she says that at the end of the day it’s all worth it – not because she may one day become royalty, but because she’s in love.
“We’re a couple. We’re in love,” Markle says.
“I’m sure there will be a time when we will have to come forward and present ourselves and have stories to tell, but I hope what people will understand is that this is our time,” she continues.
“This is for us. It’s part of what makes it so special, that it’s just ours. But we’re happy. Personally, I love a great love story.”
And so do the millions who are enthralled with Harry and Meghan’s saga.
