Thank you for all your reviews and follows. I would have liked to have posted an update a few days ago, yet work got too busy. The story continues with HRH Albert and his take on his impending wedding night. I had to make a small adjustment to the setting as I hadn't realized that the couple had departed to Windsor after Victoria said goodbye to Lord M. Therefore the current setting will be Buckingham Palace.

Albert stood in front of a full length mirror and ran his hand across his face. He wondered if he should have Lohlein shave him again. In the end he decided against it.

"Was moechten Ihre Hoheit fuer die Nacht anziehen?"

"Speak English, Lohlein!" Albert said sharply.

"Please pardon me your Royal Highness" Lohlein said in heavily accented English. "Would you like to wear your night clothes, sir?"

A look of irritation flashed across the Prince's gaunt face "Of course not, Lohlein, do you really think I will walk halfway across the palace in my night clothes? I shall just require your assistance in removing my coat and tie."

"Very well, mein Herr" Lohlein bowed discreetly.

"Also, Lohlein, please make arrangements for my belongings to be delivered to her Majesty's chambers in the morning. I will be staying there from now onward."

Lohlein helped the Prince out of the ceremonial coat and presented him with a pair of more comfortable shoes. Albert slipped his feet into them.

"You can retire for the night, Lohlein. I will not require your service until tomorrow."

Lohlein bowed as he retreated towards the door "As you desire, your Royal Highness."

Alone for the time being, Albert took a seat at his desk and removed a small key from his pocket, which he used to open the small box containing his personal correspondence. He picked-up some loose pages and chuckled to himself as he read the notes from his night with Gretchen for the tenth time. How much had he longed for this day in the past two months. Now that he had finally wed his dear Victoria, he was suddenly filled with anxiety. He so much longed to please his wife in every possible way, yet this was the one area he most definitely lacked the necessary experience.

"My dear brother, I surely hope that Gretchen left you with more than those notes." Albert jumped at the voice of Ernst behind him. He blushed furiously and hastily shoved the notes back into the box.

"What are you doing here, Ernst? I did not call for you and I am sure you would prefer another sort of company on the night of my wedding." Albert said angrily.

Ernst just laughed, sat on a chaise nearby and crossed his legs as he lit a cigarette.

"As if I would let my baby brother into the den of the lioness completely unprepared. I trust that my dear Gretchen was of service?"

Albert blushed even further "I did not lay with her Ernst, we just talked."

Ernst let in a loud gasp "Do you know how much that tart cost me Albert? I paid her just to talk? Did you at least have her undress? Do you know what is down there?"

Albert jumped at his brother's crudeness "Get out of my chambers Ernst! I will not lower myself to your standards. What happened between Gretchen and myself does not require your knowledge. Neither do I desire to discuss my private life regarding my marriage with you."

Ernst clicked his tongue "Look at my baby brother. Getting too big for his shoes already. Now that he has officially become the Queens's subject. I hope that you will not lose your manhood in the process."

"Raus!" Albert slipped into his native German and pointed at the door in rage. Ernst bowed mockingly and retreated towards the door "Viel Glueck, Bruder! Make me proud."

Albert paced the room in rage. How dare his brother make fun of him? Especially on a night like this. It was true that he was not versed in such matters. However it had been by choice, not because he did not have enough offers from willing women during his travels. He had had first-hand experience on the consequences that the lust for flesh had on a family. Both his father and his mother had succumbed to it and Ernst and himself had suffered the consequences. While his brother may have chosen to follow the same path as their parents, Albert had vowed that when the time came, he would give himself to the woman he loved. This did not mean that he did not appreciate what Gretchen had taught him, although he had been extremely embarrassed when she disrobed in order to explain in more detail, The only naked women Albert had seen thus far had been the Rubens his wife so detested. The older Gretchen however, had put him at so much ease that although he never touched her, he had left that house of ill repute filled with much more knowledge than he had anticipated, for which he would forever be thankful.

He jumped as he heard knock on the door.

"Enter!" He said more forcefully than he wanted. It was Penge.

"The Queen has asked that you join her in her private chambers." The older man tried to keep his distaste under a carefully polished surface. He never saw the day coming in which a German sausage would take his virgin Queen. He was tired of the Germans and tired of the Coburgs taking over his palace with their stuck-up servants and their distaste for English food. That was but for one, as he fondly thought about the dresser of King Leopold's second wife.

"I have taken the liberty of asking the servants to prepare the room next to the Queen's to be used as your Royal Highness' bedroom." Penge bowed towards the prince.

Albert shook his head "Thank you, but that will not be necessary. I will be sharing the bedroom with her Majesty. I only require the dressing room and I have already instructed Lohlein to move my belongings in the morning."

Penge looked towards the ceiling. That was all he needed. The German was already disrupting the established protocol in the royal household. What savages these people were. With some form of glee he thought about Lehzen and how outraged she would react to these news. They were her people in the end, yet he was sure that the old hag would not be too satisfied at being cast to the side.

"As you wish, your Royal Highness. Would you allow me to escort you to your new chambers?"

Albert nodded and followed the older man through the corridors of the palace. He was not immune to the glances shot at him from various servants he passed. He wrung his hands nervously as they arrived at the door to Victoria's private chambers. Penge lifted his hand towards the big brass handle, but the prince stopped him.

"That will be all for tonight, Penge, I will find my way from here."

Penge bowed "Very well, your Royal Highness". He retreated.

Albert took a deep breath and opened the door to the blue sitting room. With new found resolve he walked towards the door to Victoria's bedroom and softly knocked on the door before opening it. He stood transfixed for a second and stared at the beauty that was his wife, sitting on that enormous bed, so small her frame that her feet didn't even touch the ground. Her hair was hanging loose past her shoulders and in her white night gown looking at him shyly through those clear blue eyes, she could not have looked more regal. Albert closed the door behind him and approached Victoria. As he stood close to her he could see her eyes darting across his face, searching for any signs of emotion. He smiled softly at her.

"Can I get you anything? Some Madeira perhaps?" Victoria whispered nervously.

He shook his head.

"I am not thirsty" He whispered back.

Victoria nodded "No Madeira?"

Albert smiled at his wife "No Madeira."

He lowered his lips towards her mouth and kissed her softly. Victoria leaned back and together they lay on the bed. As he broke the kiss, Victoria ran her hand slowly across his face "Albert". The word was a whisper, yet it was filled with so much love that Albert's heart contracted. He pulled a strand of hair from her face. "Victoria" he whispered back. He kissed her again, all his nervousness suddenly gone. As if suddenly remembering, he got off the bed and pulled Victoria to her feet. She looked at him, a look of panic briefly crossing her face before replacing it by a look of confusion.

"Albert, what are you doing? You do not wish to be in the bed?"

He kissed her briefly on the lips.

"There is nothing I want more, my darling wife. But first, I must do something."

With that he pulled Victoria towards the door. Victoria resisted.

"Albert, I cannot go out there. I am in a state of undress."

He placed a finger on her lips "Trust me." He whispered.

He opened the doors to the sitting room and closed them behind them. Gently he placed his hands around Victoria's waist, before picking her up in his arms. Victoria gave a small shriek and he looked at her lovingly.

"Mein Lieb, eines Tages werde ich Dich ueber den Eingang von Rosenau tragen. Bis dahin, wird dieses reichen muessen."

Victoria smiled at the language of her childhood "I will make sure that one day you will carry me over the threshold of the Rosenau, my dear Albert."

Albert placed his lips on hers as he pried the door open with his back.

I hope you liked this chapter. I will try and update soon. Let me know what you think. Your reviews mean the world to me.