Prince William Hurt Kate Middleton at His 21st Birthday Party by Flirting With Jecca Craig

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By Kayleigh Roberts published 21 April 19

Prince William and Kate Middleton might be living their happily ever after now, but their fairytale story had plenty of ups and downs before they got there. One of the couple's early lows came during Will's 21st birthday party, when the prince did something that reportedly hurt Kate's feelings in a big way.

Their relationship was still a secret at the time, but Will invited Kate to his party. Before the party, Will gave an interview in which he insisted he was still single and went on about it at some length, saying:

That wasn't the thing that hurt Kate though. According to royal expert and biographer Katie Nicholl, Kate was used to Will lying to the press to protect his privacy and she totally understood. In her her book Kate: The Future Queen, however, Nicholl describes a slight Will committed against Kate at his party.

Even though Will invited Kate to the party, he didn't spend much time with her. Instead, he was focused on Jecca Craig, his old friend and rumored ex who had flown in from Kenya for the party.

Worst of all? Will gave Jecca a seat of honor at the party and sat Kate far away from his table. Ouch.

"Kate didn't know whether they had been romantically involved or not, but she noted that Jecca had been seated at the head table next to William, whereas Kate had to raise her glass to toast the prince from afar," Nicholl wrote.

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Kayleigh Roberts is the weekend editor at Marie Claire, covering celebrity and entertainment news, from actual royals like Kate Middleton and Meghan Markle to Hollywood royalty, like Katie Holmes and Chrissy Teigen. She’s a Ravenclaw who would do great things in Slytherin. To learn more about her, google “Leslie Knope eating salad GIF.