Pretty in a shimmering navy silk cocktail dress, Monaco's Princess Charlene looked every inch the royal mother-to-be as she arrived for an event in Palm Springs hand-in-hand with her husband.
The royal, 36, is expecting twins in December and her bump was clearly visible as she made her way into an awards ceremony held in honour of her late mother-in-law, Princess Grace.
Monaco's ruler, Prince Albert, and his wife have spent the last week in the US on behalf of the Princess Grace Foundation, which supports up-and-coming actors.
Not long now: Princess Charlene is nearly seven months pregnant and due to give birth in December
But after it was revealed that the Monégasque royals were expecting twins last week, all eyes have been on Princess Charlene's bump.
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ShareClearly unfazed by the attention, Charlene looked relaxed and happy and beamed at well-wishers as she arrived for the event.
For his part, Prince Albert was every inch the protective father-to-be, clutching his wife's hand and smiling solicitously as he ushered her into the venue.
The Monégasque royal couple are currently in California on behalf of the Princess Grace Foundation and have attended several receptions, including the Palm Springs ceremony, since arriving.
While much of their schedule has focused on the work of the Princess Grace Foundation, the couple also took time out to visit a children's centre in Rancho Mirage on Saturday.
All smiles: The couple smiled at each other as they arrived for the Princess Grace Foundation event
Tour: The couple have spent the last week in the US, attending events for the Princess Grace Foundation
There, the couple were introduced to Barbara Sinatra, the fourth and final wife of singer Frank, with Prince Albert gallantly planting a kiss on Mrs Sinatra's hand.
And Mrs Sinatra isn't the only big name well-wisher to meet the couple during their tour of California.
As news of the impending arrival of twins broke, the couple were rubbing shoulders with director Adam Shankman and Glee star Jayne Lynch, at a gala supper in Los Angeles.
The day before, the couple had lunched with another set of A-listers, among them Jerry Bruckeimer, Mel GIbson and Sylvester Stallone.
The high-profile events were all for the Princess Grace Foundation, which awards fellowships and grants to promising up-and-comers in the entertainment industry, including dancers and actors.
Albert is the vice-chairman on the board of the organisation, and is often in attendance at its events, one of which is an awards ceremony.
Charity: On Saturday, the couple spent the day at the Barbara Sinatra Children's Center in Rancho Mirage
Gallant: During the visit, Prince Albert planted a kiss on Barbara Sinatra's hand
Princess Charlene, who is nearly seven months pregnant, is also involved with the Foundation's activities and has a charity of her own, the Princess Charlene of Monaco Foundation, which focuses on sport, swimming in particular.
But with twins on the way, talk has now turned to the succession, with pundits left contemplating the question of how the birth of multiple babies might affect the succession.
According to Monaco's constitution, the first-born baby is the closest in line to the throne, with priority given to males.
But should both babies be boys - or indeed girls - working out which is first could prove a constitutional headache, with some arguing that the second baby born should be first in line as that child was conceived first.
Looking good: For the visit to the children's centre in Rancho Mirage, Charlene was pretty in gold and cream
Succession: Since the couple announced twins were on the way, talk has turned to the succession
This is not the first time that the question of Monaco's succession has become vexed, with Prince Rainier quietly changing Monaco's constitutional laws in 2002 to allow his daughters, Caroline and Stephanie, and their children to inherit the throne should Albert fail to marry and produce an heir.
Now, however, those changes are obsolete with not one but two heirs on the way - much to the excitement of Prince Albert.
In June, the royal told the Associated Press that he and his wife were 'overjoyed', 'thrilled' and 'very excited' about the impending arrival of their child - or children, as they are now known to be.
Glowing: Princess Charlene was glamorous in a floor-length white dress as she stepped out in Los Angeles
Looking good: Charlene had worn a glamorous sparkly top for a lunchtime reception in LA a day earlier
For charity: The high-profile event awards fellowships and grants to promising up-and-comers in the entertainment industry, including dancers and actors. Pictured: Charlene with Mel Gibson
The delighted father-to-be also spoke of the precautions the pair were taking, adding that they are 'taking every cautious step to make sure everything goes well'.
Albert, 56, has two other children - daughter Jazmin Grace Grimaldi, born in 1992 to American Tamara Rotolo, and Alexandre Coste, born in 2003 to Togolese air hostess, Nicole Coste.
Under Monaco's inheritance laws, neither of Prince Albert's two illegitimate children have no claim to royal titles and are not considered his official heirs.
His daughter Jazmin was born in California to a former waitress with whom Prince Albert had a brief fling. Now 22, she recently graduated from Fordham University in New York.
His son Alexandre, now ten, lives with his mother, a former Air France hostess from Togo, on the French Riviera.
Prince Albert reportedly demanded DNA tests for both children before accepting paternity.
ROYAL TWINS: HOW THE BIRTH OF TWO WOULD AFFECT THE SUCCESSION
With an average of 3.5 sets of twins born per 1,000 pregnancies, an instant family of two babies - even royal ones - isn't unusual.
Georg Friedrich, Prince of Prussia is one royal parent of twins, who with wife Princess Sophie of Isenberg welcomed Carl Friedrich and Louis Ferdinand in 2013.
Another is Crown Prince Frederik of Denmark and his wife Mary, who became parents to Prince Vincent and Princess Josephine in 2011.
Prince Louis Alphonse, Duke of Anjou is yet another royal father of twins, following the birth of Prince Louis, Duke of Burgundy and Prince Alphonse, Duke of Berry, to his wife María Margarita Vargas Santaella in 2010.
But although royal twins are fairly frequent among European dynasties, among them the Monégasque couple, British royals are an entirely different story with just one set born in the last 2,000 years.
Born to King James I of Scotland and his wife Joan Beaufort in 1430, Alexander and James were the first and only twins born to British royal parents.
Tragically though, Alexander, the eldest of the two, died before reaching one - with his younger brother later taking the throne of Scotland as James II.
During his marriage to Mary of Guelders, James sired no fewer than seven children, all of them in separate pregnancies.
Despite the lack of British royal twins, odds have shortened on another set of royal twins - belonging to the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge - being announced.
While the Monégasque rules of succession are clear, the British rules aren't set in stone, although as the new baby - or babies - will be spares, the question of who inherits what is less vexed.
In theory, with Prince George already in the royal nursery, the new babies would come behind him with the elder becoming the spare while the younger would have no real role.
As for which parent is responsible for the Monégasque royal twins - or the British ones, should they come to pass, Consultant Gynaecologist Dr Andrew Paterson says both could be behind a multiple birth, although the mother is the more likely candidate.
‘Twins are not genetically based,' he explains. 'Monozygotic twins are more rare and when a single fertilised egg divides in two, creating identical twins.
‘Another way is when a mother release two eggs at ovulation and both are fertilised, creating non identical twins.
‘If either the mother or the father have twins in their family, the chances of them having twins is higher.’
A crown fit for two? Princess Charlene and Prince Albert II of Monaco announced on Tuesday that they expecting twins - which has led many to speculate which baby will inherit the throne
Wedding bells: Charlene, 36, a former Olympic swimmer from South Africa, married Prince Albert in July 2011
'The truth is that, I'm sorry to say, Albert hasn’t seen Alexandre since a brief visit last September,' she claimed. 'It has become impossible since he married that girl.'
In 2005, Prince Albert said in an interview with Larry King that while Alexandre will never inherit the throne, 'he will be very well taken care of' - presumably financially.
While it's rare for a noble figure to have twin heirs, it has happened before - most recently in 2009, when David Cholmondeley, the seventh Marquess of Cholmondeley, welcomed twin boys with his wife Rose Hanbury, a former fashion model 23 years his junior.
Born by C-section three months premature, the boys were named Alexander Hugh George and Oliver Timothy George.
Older by a few minutes, Alexander is the heir-apparent to the Marquessate and bears the courtesy title Earl of Rocksavage. Oliver is known as Lord Cholmondeley.
Succession: In 2002, Prince Rainier changed Monaco's constitutional laws to allow his daughters Caroline (left) and Stephanie (right) and their children to inherit the throne should Albert fail to marry and produce an heir
Who will it belong to? The Palace in Monaco pictured during the wedding ceremony of Prince Albert II
Illegitimate: Prince Albert has two children out of wedlock - one of whom is daughter Jazmin Grace Grimaldi
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