Meghan Markle And Prince Harry Kept This Part Of Their Love Story A 'Mystery,' New Book Says
"Finding Freedom," a book about the royal couple, still leaves out this very important detail.
Huffington Post Entertainment Writer
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Prince Harry and Meghan Markle announce their engagement at London's Kensington Palace on Nov. 27, 2017.
Much is known about Meghan Markle and Prince Harry's love story, two years into their marriage and four years since the couple first laid eyes on each other.
There's the Soho House connection, the early trip to Botswana, where they camped out and fell in love "under the stars," the matching bananas Instagram post and, of course, the roast chicken engagement story.
But there's one part of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex's relationship that still remains a bit of a "mystery" ― and the couple reportedly like to keep it that way.
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The Duke and Duchess of Sussex on their wedding day, May 19, 2018.
In the new book "Finding Freedom: Harry, Meghan, and the Making of a Modern Royal Family" written by royal insiders Omid Scobie and Carolyn Durand, the authors recount the early days of Meghan and Harry's courtship.
While detailing their first date at Soho House's Dean Street Townhouse property, the book mentions everything from the "rather rude" wallpaper featuring women's genitalia to the couple's drink order (a beer for Harry, martini for Meghan). But the couple's official matchmaker for their first blind date is still an enigma.
"Despite reports that Violet Von Westenholz had set up the date, it was mostly Meghan's pals Misha Nonoo and Markus Anderson who were in on the first meeting," says a passage in the book, seen by HuffPost. Nonoo is a fashion designer, and Anderson is the global membership director of Soho House.
The authors added: "The couple themselves prefer to keep the story of their matchmaker a mystery, even to close friends" and that "Meghan's only clue to pals at the time was that her first encounter with Harry was 'serendipitous.'"
Just 16 months later, Harry got down on one knee to pop the question. Meghan called the proposal "just an amazing surprise" in an interview with the BBC after the engagement announcement on Nov. 27, 2017.
Though the official Clarence House announcement said that the two got engaged earlier that month, "Finding Freedom" says that the two got engaged three months prior to telling the world.
"It was a moment they would never forget," the authors wrote of the special moment in "Finding Freedom." They added that "it would be some time before they shared the news with the world. For now, it would be their little secret."
The two were later pictured on their first official public outing in September 2017 at the Invictus Games ― where Meghan wore a "husband shirt" from Nonoo's line.
A spokesperson for the Sussexes said in a statement to HuffPost that the couple did not participate in the book.
"The Duke and Duchess of Sussex were not interviewed and did not contribute to 'Finding Freedom,'" the statement said. "This book is based on the authors' own experiences as members of the royal press corps and their own independent reporting."
"Finding Freedom" hits shelves Tuesday.
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entertainmentMeghan MarklePrince Harry, Duke of SussexBooks and Publishing