Royals Meghan Markle Holds a Magazine Featuring Sister-in-Law Kate Middleton — Years Before They Met! Magazine editor Denise Cash shared the future-predicting photo in Nov. 2017 to congratulate Meghan Markle and Prince Harry on their engagement By Stephanie Petit Stephanie Petit Stephanie Petit is a Royals Writer and Reporter at PEOPLE. People Editorial Guidelines Published on August 16, 2019 10:35 AM Share Tweet Pin Email Meghan Markle and Kate Middleton‘s first photo together came long before they even met! Royal fans recently unearthed a smiling shot of Meghan from 2014, in which she’s posing with the deputy editor of Irish U magazine Denise Cash. In her hands, the future royal is holding an issue featuring Kate on the cover (and an untrue headline about the Duchess of Cambridge and Prince William expecting twins). The former actress sports a white turtleneck sweater for the visit and has her hair pulled back into her signature look: a low bun! Cash shared the photo on her Instagram account in Nov. 2017 to congratulate Meghan and Prince Harry on their engagement, calling the future Duchess of Sussex “Princess Meghan” in the caption. The magazine editor even joked in the comments, “We knew her and Kate would be sisters-in-law. Look at the cover!! 😊” Karwai Tang/Getty Images While the women are now bonding over motherhood — Kate has three young children with Prince William, while Meghan and Prince Harry welcomed son Archie on May 6 — it wasn’t long ago that the sisters-in-law were figuring out their own distinct roles. Just one year ago, the Duchess of Sussex, 38, was navigating life as a new member of the royal family and a newlywed. Meanwhile Kate, 37, was balancing being a mother to an infant and two children under 5 along with her royal duties as a future queen. “There was undue pressure where the whole world wanted them to be best friends,” an insider previously told PEOPLE. Kate Middleton and Meghan Markle. Press Association via AP Images Inside Meghan Markle and Kate Middleton’s Complex Relationship When the women didn’t appear to be tight companions to the outside world — both ran with their own circles of friends, and their first joint outing without their husbands didn’t come until last year’s Wimbledon appearance — they were pitted against each other. Reports of tension boiled, exacerbated by Meghan and Harry’s decision to leave Kensington Palace — where Kate and William live with their kids — for Frogmore Cottage in Windsor Castle, about 25 miles away. The two couples also split their joint office, and the Sussexes later announced a separation from the foursome’s Royal Foundation charity. Prince Harry, Meghan Markle, Camilla and Kate Middleton. Neil Mockford/GC Images Can’t get enough of PEOPLE’s Royals coverage? Sign up for our newsletter to get the latest updates on Kate Middleton, Meghan Markle and more! However, those within the royals’ circle said the distance between the two couples helped them reconnect. The separation is “allowing them more time to be like family” rather than colleagues, noted a royal source. “There is a sense of [Meghan and Kate’s] relationship strengthening.”