Kate's happy Valentine Kate looks at a card made for her by Megan Squire, featuring the engagement portrait of the Royal couple A queu...

Kate's happy Valentine

Kate looks at a card made for her by Megan Squire, featuring the engagement portrait of the Royal couple

A queue of little well-wishers snakes down the pavement away from Kate, hoping against hope they will get to speak to the future Queen

Kate was given armfuls of flowers, including red roses, carnations and daffodils

The Duchess chatted to Aimee, who suffers from Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome, and her mother - who told the Duchess that her daughter's life had been saved by Alder Hey

The crowd snap photographs as Kate chats warmly to another little fan

Kate beams as she accepts the gift from young Jaqson, telling him that husband William had sent her a card and some flowers that morning

Patients at the Alder Hey Hospital hung a tribute to Kate in the window of one of the wards

With William thousands of miles away in the Falkland Islands, Kate would have been forgiven for spending this Valentine's Day cuddled up at home with her new cocker spaniel for company.

Instead, the glamorous Duchess of Cambridge proved her mettle as a working royal with a tour of Liverpool's charities. And if she was missing her husband, she certainly didn't let on as she was greeted by cheering crowds who jostled to give her flowers, cards and gifts as she arrived at Alder Hey chidren's hospital.

Kate beamed with delight as she was inundated with bouquets, from roses to tulips and daffodils.

Inside the hospital, Kate spent time chatting to patients and visited the oncology ward where took a seat with Megan Squire, 12, from Maghull, Merseyside and Paige Hearn, four, from Warrington, Cheshire, who were making Valentine's cards and crowns for the Duchess.

She told Megan, who gave her a Valentine's card featuring a picture of the couple on it: ‘Thank you so much, I'll make sure I show it to William when he gets back.’

The Duchess also hinted she was missing her husband of ten months as she paused, raised her eyebrows and said wistfully: ‘Which is not too far away now.’

Kate also appeared enchanted by little Paige, who presented her with a photograph of herself watching the Cambridge's wedding on television last year.

The youngster, who has leukemia, 'loves princesses', her mother, Claire said.

Paige then stood up and gave a curtsy to the duchess.

Mrs Hearn said: 'Paige has been very excited to meet a real-life princess and has been practising her curtsy for weeks. The Duchess was lovely, she asked about Paige's condition and how the treatment is going.

'Everybody here has been smiling all day.'

The youngster's own verdict on the Royal was that Kate was 'pretty and had long hair.'