Chapter Text
The news of Sophie and Benedict’s engagement was not a surprise but it was taken really well with the press and the two families when they returned to the country after their holiday.
They had decided to go about their engagement notification slightly different with them releasing their own statement, a picture of them once they’d gotten back to shore, looking out over the sunset, with the statement “together forever, she said yes”
That was all they released, they wanted to show their love but they wanted to keep it private, for a little while.
During the Charity event, they answered questions and afterwards the statement from the two families was released confirming their engagement and they planned to marry in a few months time.
But those plans were put on hold just two days after their private engagement party and the public photo shoot they did, Daphne came in and announced that she was pregnant…
It was agreed that Daphne and Simon should marry first, given that Daphne had not long turned 19 it was a big shock.
Benedict had raged privately about it because it meant that he and Sophie were going to have to wait. They wanted a summer wedding but that wasn’t likely to happen because it would be too much to have the wedding in such a short space after Daphne and Simon’s.
The press loved that there was a second footballer marrying into the royal family, and that there would be a third with Sophie when they got around to it.
Benedict talked to Sophie about the idea of them eloping and just marrying but it wasn’t an option, he knew that really. Sophie had pointed out that his mother would kill him and whilst she was happier with a smaller wedding than the others, she didn’t need a big wedding but as she was the daughter of the King’s oldest friend and he was a Prince, she knew it meant they had to have a public wedding.
They talked about it and decided to wait, they knew the summer was when they wanted to marry and as much as they didn’t want to wait 12 months, it was for the best.
It would be the longest engagement of any Royal couple. Benedict warned the rest of his siblings that if any of them knocked someone else up before he married Sophie he would personally kill them. Eloise and Francesca were too young really and it was only really Colin and after his ill-fated relationship Marina he had taken a step back from relationships so he felt they were safe.
Edmund Anthony Bridgerton was born 2 weeks after Daphne and Simon married, and 7 months after their marriage, Amelia Sarah Basset arrived into the world.
The press kept asking when Sophie and Benedict were to marry, if they were going to follow in his siblings footsteps and get Sophie pregnant before the wedding.
Sophie had told the press it wasn’t in the plans but “never say never”, which made Benedict laugh.
It was after Christmas that they finally agreed to marry in June, Sophie had said she wanted to marry in her mother’s old wedding dress and she had Geneiveve adjust it and she had a surprise for Benedict for the big day, something she’d been working with Violet on.
The lead up to their wedding things were crazy within the family, Charlie got engaged to Abigail and Anthony and Kate announced they were pregnant again and the week before the wedding, Daphne found out that she was once again pregnant
Benedict just laughed when Sophie asked if it meant he was going to murder his siblings but as they were already married he didn’t mind and it eased the pressure and the questions surrounding the wedding.
They had agreed to do something different, they would marry before the public event, all the legal bits would be done the day before the wedding that the public would see.
Benedict was worried about their security, they had two incidents with Araminta and Rosamund trying to find ways around the NDA’s and it was as a result of this that Benedict didn’t want to have a full public wedding. He didn’t want it to be a spectacle and a circus and it was why they had agreed that they would have a legal ceremony, the signing of the papers and everything the day before and then have a commitment ceremony which the public would see.
Because they weren’t having a public wedding, Sophie and Benedict decided to pay for their own wedding. They were using the main cathedral and the public loved that they were doing it this way, rather than the public funds paying for the wedding.
They treat the whole thing as though it was a wedding, Benedict was kicked out of the bed the morning of the wedding for Sophie to prepare for the wedding. Charlie was serving with Anthony as Best Man and Kate was Sophie’s maid of Honour with the rest of the Bridgerton girls being Bridesmaids.
The ceremony was televised, they chose the guest list, it was friends, family, former footballers, people from the charities they worked for rather than the big political names and these people would be invited to the evening.
The evening event was an entirely private affair, after their open carriage ride back to the palace and then an appearance on the balcony, other than a few official photos, the world were not invited into the reception but unlike other events, Sophie and Benedict however agreed to let their friends and family post things to their social media.
Benedict’s speech about Sophie went completely viral, the paper’s calling him Prince Charming the next day after Charlie posted it on his Instagram page.
Richard posted their first dance to Instagram and the world got to see some glimpses into their wedding.
It was a year in the making and the planning and the longest any royal would go between engagement and actual wedding but it was everything that Benedict and Sophie wanted it to be.
Benedict arranged for them to go back to the same Greek island for their honeymoon and they spent four glorious weeks in the sun just the two of them and when they came back the newlywed Prince and Princess would carry on with their charitable activities, their first stop, 10 weeks after their wedding was to the same Art charity that they had attend together as Sophie’s first official outing.
They had planned to do a few more before this event but Sophie had been a little off colour since they had returned from their honeymoon and they thought she’d picked up a stomach bug but the few days before the event it seemed to calm down and Sophie thought it would be a straightforward and easy day with the kids. She loved spending time with the kids and she knew how much they liked seeing both her and Benedict and she was excited.
Everything was going wonderfully until Sophie went to stand up from leaning down to see Toby and she felt her entire world lurch and the next thing she knew she was flat on her back, Benedict beside her frantic as Harry had shoved Will out of the way, Will was on his arse next to Sophie having landed in some of the dog bowls in the hallway of the charity entrance, as Harry had sprinted down to go find a medic.
It was carnage and Will, who had agreed to help out on this one event since Sophie’s new guard had come down with gastroenteritis and there was now a real panic that the Princess had come down with it also.
“Sophie, sweetheart, are you okay?” Benedict asked frantically from the floor.
“What… what happened?” Sophie asked, feeling clammy and disorientated.
“You fainted, stay still, they’re calling for the medics, we’re going to get you to the hospital to be checked out” Benedict said, his hands on her face, desperate to make sure she was still with him, that she wasn’t going to leave him.
Watching his precious wife faint had put the fear of god into him, he had never known terror like it.
Sophie was whisked off to the Royal Hospital and Benedict held her hand the entire way there, all sorts of horrible thoughts going through his head, each of them ending the same with. With him losing her…
He tried his best to keep calm as the Doctors took her into a room and did some tests and Benedict was called back into the private room where Sophie was resting on the bed, a drip in her arm looking exhausted.
“Are you okay?” he asked her as he rushed over to her side.
“I think so, just tired… they’ve not told me anything yet. Your Uncle Nicholas popped in and took over, he asked some questions, ordered some tests and requested the drip. He said I was dehydrated but that’s all I know…” Sophie said as she leaned into Benedict’s arms.
Charlie had been called as had Richard but both were a few hours away from the capital but were on their way. The King and Queen both were aware but as they had the President of France with them, they couldn’t just up and leave but had Alice calling every half an hour for updates.
It was nearly an hour after Benedict came into the room that Nicholas came back into the room, a smile on his face as he took in his nephew and goddaughter.
Nicholas has been a close friend of Richad and Edmund’s before he married Georgiana and both the King and Nicholas were Sophie’s godfathers.
“So, i’ve got some good news and some bad news… and some really good news” he grinned at them both
“Okay… was the first one?” Sophie asked
“Well there is nothing majorly wrong with you, the fainting was caused by your dehydration and low sugar and iron levels” Nicholas said
“And the bad news?” Benedict asked, he’d have wanted the bad news first but Sophie had beaten him to it
“You’re suffering from hyperemesis gravidarum, which is the reason you’ve not been very well for the last few weeks, it’s not, as your original doctor assumed a stomach bug”
“Wait… that… that… you get that… it’s…” Sophie stammered and Benedict looked at her entirely confused as he moved slightly on the bed to look at his wife a bit better as she appeared to be going into some sort of shock
“Yes, you’re pregnant…” Nicholas confirmed
“P…p…pregn…?” Benedict stammered before he plummeted off the bed and fainted.
Sophie squeaked “BEN?!”
“Oh he’ll be okay in a moment, Georgie, wanna take a picture of this then wake your nephew up?” Nicholas chuckled.
Sophie giggled “can I have a copy?”
“Of course, do you have any questions?”
“I suppose I should wait for my husband to be woken up…” Sophie giggled as she gave Georgie a thumbs up whilst Benedict was passed out on the floor as she took the photo and then made her way over and gave Benedict a little gentle slap the face
He stirred pretty quickly and as he was helped to his feet Sophie burst into fits of giggles “Honestly… you had to didn’t you?”
“What… what happened?”
“Your Uncle told you I was pregnant and you fainted!” Sophie giggled
Benedict went bright red “are you really?”
“Yes, it would appear so, about 10 weeks…” Nicholas said “due mid March if our dates are correct”
“Oh… that… it must be a wedding night baby” Sophie giggled. They’d abstained for the month before they married and Benedict went red again
“Can we maybe…not tell everyone I fainted…?” Benedict asked, looking between his uncle, aunt and wife from his spot on the seat next to the bed
“Well maybe not the press but your Aunt did take a photo” Nicholas grinned
“Which I have a copy of” Sophie grinned at her husband who groaned
“Anyway… back to the matter at hand… any questions?” Nicholas asked once they’d finished teasing Benedict.
They asked the questions about the morning sickness and Benedict knew they were going to have to tell the public early with Sophie’s condition as it would mean less public events.
Charlie and Richard arrived at the hospital in a panic to find Sophie and Benedict cuddled up on the hospital bed, Sophie looked tired but happy. She was being kept in for the night.
“What’s going on. Is everything okay?” Charlie demanded the moment they got into the room.
“It’s fine Warlie, calm down…”
“CALM DOWN? I get a call to say my sister fainted, I saw it on the fucking NEWS, and you’re telling me to calm down…” Charlie said to his sister.
“I’m fine, really, it’s just due to exhaustion and dehydration some low iron and sugar levels” Sophie said
“But what caused it?!” Charlie asked, turning on Benedict “you promised to look after her… I swear to god…”
“I’m pregnant Charlie… chill the fuck out” Sophie said
Charlie paused mid rant at his best friend and blinked at her “you’re…”
“Pregnant, yes” Sophie said “about 10 weeks”
“Oh Sophie, that's fantastic news!” Richard beamed as he rushed over to hug his daughter “do your mum and dad know?”
“Not yet, they’re coming over later, they had to deal with Macron first then they’d pop in” Benedict said.
The news that Sophie was pregnant was announced the day after Violet and Edmund had learned Sophie was discharged from the hospital and they started making plans for the birth of their child.
It was traditional for the Royal family to stand on the steps of the Royal Hospital after the birth but Sophie didn’t like the idea of it, she knew both Kate and Daphne had both done that but Sophie wasn’t sure she felt comfortable doing that. She knew she’d have Benedict by her side but the thought of getting up after she’d given birth and having to show her face and her newborn to the papers, didn’t sit right on her.
She had a love-hate relationship with the press. They were respectful of them to a point but she had been asked a few questions about her step-mother, about some rumours that had been floating around that had come from Rosamund…
One online blog even had the audacity to print that the baby wasn’t Benedict’s and it was all just a trap…
Most of the papers didn’t believe it, they could see how devoted Benedict was to his wife and how he was always talking about her, even more so than Anthony did with Kate.
The public loved them both and wanted more details but Sophie’s pregnancy wasn’t easy, she was in hospital twice more before she was 6 months pregnant and by the New Year, she felt like she was the size of a whale, she could barely move and was bigger than Daphne who was due to give birth any day and she still have three months to go…
They moved into My Cottage, a country manor that was about 40 minutes away from the Palace and the capital just before Christmas and Sophie was pretty much stuck there, she wasn’t able to do much between the exhaustion and the way Benedict was hovering over her constantly.
With about 5 weeks to go before she was due to give birth, Benedict had been asked by the Royal Academy of Arts to help with a couple of charity events in the capital, the weather wasn’t wonderful and he didn’t want Sophie travelling just yet. They were due to head back to the palace in a few weeks to prepare for Sophie to give birth.
They had agreed with Violet and Edmund that Sophie wouldn’t do the press op at the hospital, they would arrange something when Sophie was well and able. She’d had a much rougher pregnancy than anyone had anticipated and she was being watched constantly by a doctor or a midwife, they had a nurse on retainer at the hospital near My Cottage should they need her but Sophie’s low iron and sugar levels meant that most of the public, whilst disappointed they would have to wait for news of the newest royal baby, were prepared to wait.
But it so happened that even Benedict nearly missed the birth of his first child…
Charlie had gone to visit Sophie whilst Abigail was away with work, needing some company and knowing it would be better for Benedict if Sophie had someone there with her, they’d been watching the TV and Charlie had been asking Sophie if she was okay as she’d been uncomfortable and moving around a lot all day. “I’m fine, it’s just braxton hicks… the nurse told me yesterday” she said as she winced in pain.
Charlie didn’t like it but he kept an eye on his sister, until he heard a scream from the kitchen when she’d waddled in to get herself some water, desperate to stretch her legs…
Only when Charlie ran into the kitchen, he saw Sophie’s waters had broken…
He had called for an ambulance but they were in the middle of the worst Storm the country had seen in a few years and there was no way an ambulance would get there in time. He called Benedict who was thankfully already on his way back, trying to battle through the wind and it was Harry who told that Sophie’s water’s had broken because he knew if he told Benedict, there would be hell on and the nurse…
He’d called the nurse but she was stuck at the hospital and when she’d answered the phone Charlie knew there was no way that he she was going to get there to deliver Sophie’s baby…
So he was the one who had to help his sister… just the two of them with the nurse on the phone.
Sophie was screaming and terrified, begging for Benedict and telling him she couldn’t do this without Benedict.
Benedict had gotten the news as they were about half a mile out of My Cottage, he had known something was up as Harry had sped up driving despite the heavy snow and he had known his bodyguard would never do something reckless with him unless something had happened and Benedict was only a little grateful that he wasn’t given the news until they were so close.
He burst through the door to hear Sophie swearing and screaming at her brother, her legs up on the sofa as he was telling her to push.
“BEN!!” Sophie cried out “WHERE THE FUCK WERE YOU!?”
Charlie sagged in relief as Harry and Benedict came in, he was seeing far more of his sister than he had ever wanted to see but the pale look on Harry’s face as he saw the scene in front of him, he knew he was going to have to carry on.
30 minutes after Benedict arrived home, the baby screamed his way into the world as an Ambulance and three sets of security arrived having battled through the snow.
Both mother and baby were taken to the hospital and Charlie was hugged by Benedict and thanked for his help in delivering their son. Charlie grimaced “never talk to me about it again” he laughed.
But when he made his way through to the hospital after cleaning himself up, and Richard arrived with the King and Queen to meet their grandson, they went to the hospital where they were introduced to Charles Harry Bridgerton, a nod to the two men who had helped bring him into the world.
Charlie smiled as he held his nephew and vowed there and then that should his sister have any more children, he was paying for a midwife to be there from the moment Sophie told him having vowed he would never be in this position again, his sister's screams as she gave birth would haunt him forever…
In 8 years time… when he watched his sister being rushed down to the theatre whilst she tried to bring her fourth child into the world he knew he’d give anything to hear his sister screaming just one last time…
But as he watched his sister and his best friend cuddling their son but after the rocky start to their relationship, he could see their happily ever after in front of them… the two more sons they’d welcome before their world would be turned upside down…
But all of that… would be a story for another time… but for now, Mother, father and Baby were happy and that was all that mattered.