Prince Harry and Meghan Markle tied the knot in a widely televised ceremony back in May 2018. The two had somewhat of a whirlwind relationship, and Meghan was an American actress — probably not exactly who Queen Elizabeth II thought one of her grandsons would end up with.

Still, when it came time for Harry to ask his grandmother’s permission to propose to Meghan, the queen replied with a cryptic nine-word message.

Queen Elizabeth, Meghan Markle, and Prince Harry | Chris Jackson/Getty Images

Prince Harry’s request to Queen Elizabeth prompted 9 telling words

Harry and Meghan first began dating in 2016, but things moved pretty quickly. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex first met in the summer of 2016 and kept their relationship under wraps for about three months. But by late 2017, Harry was ready to start a life with Meghan. It was fairly quick compared to Prince William’s lengthy eight-year relationship with Kate Middleton prior to their marriage proposal.

Harry wrote in his “Spare” memoir that he was quite nervous when asking the queen if he could have permission to propose to Meghan. “I stood completely still, as motionless as the birds in my hands,” he wrote. “I stared at her face, but it was unreadable.” But it was the next line of Harry’s book that was the most interesting: “At last she replied, “’Well, then, I suppose I have to say yes.’”

The nine-word response certainly would cause concern for anyone. The queen, apparently, was not jumping for joy. Rather, it seemed more like she was relenting because she loved her grandson. But perhaps that has less to do with who Meghan was as a person and more to do with the fact that they had only been publicly dating for one year.

Even Harry knew it wasn’t exactly the response he wanted. “Who cares how she words it, just know when to take yes for an answer,” he wrote in the book.

Despite what people think, Harry and Meghan always did have a good relationship with the queen. They had nothing but good things to say about her during their interview with Oprah Winfrey, and when they welcomed their second child, they honored both the queen and Princess Diana by naming her Lilibet Diana.

Harry and Meghan have not been back to the UK since the queen died. The two happened to be in the UK at the time, and they extended their trip by eight days in order to properly grieve the loss. Meghan even recalled during the Oprah Winfrey interview that the queen made her feel welcomed when they first attended a royal engagement together, so it’s safe to say that Harry did earn his grandmother’s blessing when he wanted to propose.