Prince William and Kate Middleton’s love story is one straight out of our favorite fairytales. A prince and a commoner falling in love, getting married, and living happily ever after—what’s not to love? Well, some people have noticed that the royal couple tends to shy away from public displays of affection, and they began to wonder why it is that such a seemingly loving couple won’t even hold hands in public.
According to Myka Meier, a royal etiquette expert, there is no official rule that the royal couple isn’t allowed to be physically affectionate in public. However, they refrain from public displays of affection simply for professional reasons.
“The likely reasoning is more that while traveling on a tour such as the India trip, technically the couple are working representatives of British Monarchy,” Meier explained to PEOPLE. “The couple are likely to show very little PDA, if any, to remain professional during their designated roles abroad.”
Still, Meier notes that Prince William and Kate do tend to show some forms of physical affection at more relaxed public events. Thus, they could very well be the most affectionate couple, but in the context of international public appearances, they are essentially business partners representing the monarchy and must act accordingly.