Meghan Markle and Prince Harry may only just have welcomed baby number one, Archie Mountbatten-Windsor, into their family - but talk is already turning to when they might consider having a second child.

One royal expert, E!'s chief royal correspondent Melanie Bromley, is out here throwing predictions into the ring, about a Meghan Markle pregnancy 2.0 - and we think she might be on to something.

Replying to royal fan questions recently about whether or not she thinks the Duke and Duchess of Sussex will go for baby number two, Melanie said: "I do, and I think it will be really soon. I think she will be pregnant by this time next year."

Bold. Very bold indeed.

The logic behind Melanie's royal baby forecast does actually make quite a lot of sense. "They have Africa in the [autumn], which will keep them really busy, so after that," she said.

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It didn't take long after their wedding for Meghan and Harry to announce they were pregnant with their first child; in fact, the news came sooner than many predicted. The thought there was that the couple might wait until after their first major overseas tour (to Australia, New Zealand, Fiji and Tonga) to start trying. But as it turned out, the royal bun was already cooking away in the royal oven by the time October rolled around, so the Sussexes revealed their happy news on the first day of the trip.

Following that line of thinking, a brother or sister for Archie may always come along sooner than we think. Who knows? Maybe this time next year Meghan won't just be pregnant, but we'll have the second royal baby here, present and correct.

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Melanie's prediction that Baby Sussex The Second will arrive in 2020 is also backed up by an interesting flurry of bets placed recently. According to the Express, bookmaker Coral said it had been "inundated" over the past few days with bets on Harry and Meghan having a second baby in 2020.

Alluding to the fact that there might be some insider info floating around somewhere to trigger the wave of bets, Coral's spokesperson added: "There is seldom smoke without fire." Oooooh.

But until Meghan and Harry do announce another pregnancy (and that's if they ever do - who's to say they won't stay a trio forevermore?) it looks like baby Archie might have the companionship of a puppy.

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Recent reports from a royal source speaking to the Sun suggest Meghan Markle is keen to adopt another rescue dog for her son to grow up with.

"Meghan really wants a dog with whom Archie can associate his childhood," said the insider. "Rescue dogs are a huge passion for her so the pull to adopt rather than buy a puppy is far stronger... She hopes they strike up an incredible bond and Archie can make plenty of memories."

Orrrrrr he could create memories with a brother or a sister. Whichever.

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Catriona Harvey-Jenner
Features Editor

Cat is Cosmopolitan UK's features editor covering women's issues, health and current affairs. news, features and health. The route to her heart is a simple combination of pasta and cheese (somewhat ironic considering the whole health writing thing), and she finds it difficult to commit to TV series so currently has about 14 different ones on the go.