A/N: Finally! It's finished (although, considering my time limits with most of my other stories, this was written in a relatively short space of time). Thanks to all my readers and reviewers who read this story- I hope you enjoyed it!

The Princess Diaries doesn't belong to me!

The sun had well and truly gone down by the time the non-descript black car smoothly swept through the empty, darkened streets of Pyrus. Lights shone out of the closed stores and the houses close by to the city as the car left the city and made its way back towards the palace.

Joseph had called Scott just before they had left the beach house (and after he had recovered from Clarisse's words and kiss) to let them know they were on their way, and while Joseph hadn't said what time they would arrive, he knew that the palace staff would keep meals for him and Clarisse… the Queen, he would soon have to refer to her as, although now, since they had opened their hearts a little to each other and had revealed their issues to each other- insecurity being the main one- and then sharing a kiss, awakening feelings that that they didn't understand but knew had always been present, was going to be difficult.

After chatting as they left Mertz, the conversation fell into a lull as the cabin darkened and, judging by her even breathing Joseph was listening to as he drove, he suspected that Clarisse had fallen asleep, a good indication at how truly relaxed she was- which was a good thing.

When he pulled up in front of the front steps of the palace, Joseph turned off the engine and sat back in his seat for a moment with a sigh. His knees were rather sore and he knew he would be a little sore in the morning, thanks to the sitting on the beach, but he also knew that all the soreness would be worth what he had been trying to achieve- to get the Queen to have a day off and to relax, even if momentarily.

He glanced over at her and, sure enough, she was asleep- she looked so lovely when she was sleeping, he hated to disturb her…. he suddenly had this odd, romantic notion of carrying her in, but Joseph also knew that she would not appreciate it- she would be embarrassed and even frightened by his gallant gesture, even if she masked it in anger.

"Clarisse… Clarisse?" he spoke softly, gently as he turned on the cabin light and then reached over to lightly touch at her on the shoulder, a gesture that instantly made her stir.

"Hmmm? What's wrong?" she asked sleepily, slowly opening her eyes and glancing around, slowly sitting up as she did so, although the seat belt prevented much movement.

"We're here. We're back at the palace," he clarified as she looked at him in confusion before realisation struck and Joseph saw resignation in her eyes.

"Oh. Alright."

"Take your time waking up, there's no hurry."

"Did I fall asleep on the way back?" Clarisse looked surprised and felt slightly embarrassed- what terrible company I must have been…I'm sure we were still talking…."

"About an hour ago, but you weren't terrible company, you obviously needed the sleep."

"I'm sorry for falling asleep, Joseph," Clarisse looked at him regretfully- she had wasted the last hour, the last hour that they would enjoy each other's company away from the palace, but falling asleep- and he chuckled as he reached over and gently touched her cheek, a gesture that made her blush.

"It's alright, as I said before."

"Still… a Queen never sleeps when there's company around."

"But Clarisse can fall asleep with Joseph, he doesn't mind," he contradicted with a smile and she couldn't help but smile back before looking over at the shining lights of the palace, the outdoor lights giving illumination to the steps and the front door.

"I suppose we had better go inside… I'm sure the kitchen staff have saved a meal for me… and you."

"Yes, we'd better not disappoint them," Joseph agreed before he stepped out of the car, aching slightly but not as bad as he thought he would, and walked around to open Clarisse's door and helping her out.

"Thank you…and thank you again for today," she gave him a small, shy smile and he laughed.

"You don't need to keep thanking me, Clarisse, it was my pleasure."

"I was also wondering…"

"Oh?"

"…if you're not completely sick of my company, I was wondering if you would like to join me for a nightcap a little later in the evening… after you've have dinner and a shower, of course."

"I would like that… I thought you would have been sick of my company by now," he joked softly as they strolled towards the palace, Joseph reverting back to his former stance, behind her, although his hand was resting on her back.

"Never…"

They paused in front of the closed palace doors and their eyes met.

"Around nine? Is that too late?"

"Considering it's about 7:30 now, that's fine with me…" and their gaze still held each other until Joseph regretfully broke it to open the front door.

000

While Clarisse…Her Majesty… retreated upstairs with her ladies maids- who had obviously been waiting for her, given Joseph's earlier call- Joe made his way down to the security hub to have his dinner and catch up on what had happened at the palace during his absence.

"Joe! You made it back in one piece!" Scott, having already eaten, was sitting at the head of the table, drinking a cup of coffee and reading the newspaper. "You're a bit late, though."

"I told you we would be back around 7-7:30, so I'm not late," Joseph said calmly, sitting down at the middle of the table and accepting the tin foiled covered plate that one of the kitchen staff had brought in upon hearing about his arrival. "But thanks for your welcome, greatly appreciated."

"So… did you have a good day? Did Her Majesty enjoy her day off at the beach?"

Scott's words sounded sarcastic (as he tended to sound on most occasions, particularly when dealing with some of the younger men of the team, especially interns), but Joseph could see that he was genuinely interested in what had happened.

"Yes, she enjoyed herself today- the weather was great, so we had a chance to have a walk or three up and down the beach."

"So, how are your knees today? Did they handle all the walking and driving?" and Joseph knew that he was being sarcastic this time.

"Yes, they did- and did you enjoy all your paperwork today? I'm sure you wouldn't have spent all day on it."

They had always verbally sparred, Joseph and Scott- Scott respected the older man but also had a younger man's sense of arrogance and confidence, and had no compunction in teasing Joseph and answering him back, and Joseph found it amusing that Scott had no fear of him (unlike some of his younger colleagues and even some of the men who were older than him) and had a big mouth, although there were times when he found him annoying and irrepressible and had to pull him into line- something Scott respected him more for.

"Yes, I did… all of ten minutes," Scott openly grinned at him- he also couldn't resist teasing him when necessary, and this instance was necessarily, particularly seeing the stern look that passed over Joseph's face. "No, seriously, Joe, I did it all and it's waiting in your office for your perusal."

"I'm sure you did fine. Anything else happen here?"

"Not really- the palace was quiet, the press didn't notice anything or mention the Queen at all and I think the palace staff were more than a little bored… I know some of these guys were, but we managed to pass the time of day."

"Hopefully you did some work," Joseph said a little disapprovingly.

"Yeah, yeah we did, don't worry about that," Scott waved a hand carelessly. "So, aside from the walks on the beach, what else did you do today?"

"What is this, Twenty Questions?"

"I'm just curious about what happened at the beach…."

"And I'm sure you will tell all the men what we did, even if I told you."

"Nonsense. Please," he looked serious and Joseph shrugged.

"We talked, walked on the beach, walked through the waves and had a picnic, that's all… and if you tell anyone else what happened today, I won't be thrilled. The main objective of today was for Her Majesty…" (Her Majesty, even the words were slightly painful, knowing that he had been calling her 'Clarisse' all day) "….to have a break from her work, not to create unnecessary rumours and gossip."

"Okay," Scott said slowly, a little surprised at Joseph's vehemence over a very simple, innocent question but, simultaneously, confirming his suspicions about Joseph's feelings for the Queen. "Anyway, nothing else really happened today… it was really quiet… it was almost as if we had a day off as well."

"Good," before Joseph returned his attention to his meal.

0

Meanwhile, upstairs in her suite, Clarisse almost bolted down her dinner- after the picnic, she wasn't particularly hungry but she also had to eat, otherwise Joseph would start up again about her lack of appetite and weight loss (although she had to admit that she enjoyed Joseph's concern and his lecture- it was nice to have someone caring about her, as a person, not as an institution or worrying that if the Queen was sick, who would fill in for her)- after her nap in the car, she was feeling wide awake and refreshed, as well as surprisingly nervous about the nightcap with Joseph.

She didn't know why, they had just spent the day together, holding hands, walking up and down the beach and talking as the friends they were, not Queen and Head of Security, and she had enjoyed every moment of it… but now, back in the reality of the palace, returning to her responsibilities and knowing that she had so much going on in the next few months… but she wasn't worried about all those events and issues, she knew that she could handle it (and the break, more than ever, had made her realise that she could do this), she was worried about whether she and Joseph could still be friends….

She had fallen in love with him, she knew that, a long time ago but today was the day when she truly realised the truth of what she had felt for him for a long time. The only problem was that while she knew she was in love with him, she didn't feel ready to tell him that just yet… not because it wasn't true and not that she was afraid of him (well, maybe she was a little afraid of him, but mainly because of her feelings for him), but she wasn't ready… and she was scared of herself as well as the commitment that confessing that to Joseph would entail, a commitment she wanted (she knew that) but she wasn't quite ready to admit to it yet.

She was overthinking this, she knew this and told herself sternly to stop in while she was in the shower (and, more amusingly, she discovered she had brought a lot of the beach back in her shoes and her clothes, didn't know how), and Clarisse knew she had to stop and just enjoy what was happening… but after what had happened to her over the years with Rupert….did she really deserve to be happy?

She had just emerged from the bedroom, dressed simply in one of her favourite blue dresses (having dismissed her maids shortly after returning to her suite) and was just about to sit down and wait (she couldn't do any pacing, her legs and back were aching, but it was a good ache), when there was a knock on the door and she hurried over to open it.

"Hi," she said shyly, coyly- why did she say hi, they had seen each other just an hour before?

"Hi," he responded almost as coyly, noting the blue dress and how it brought out the colour of her eyes. "It's eight thirty, not nine, but I thought…."

"It's fine, I'm here and ready… come on in."

Once he had stepped into the room and closed the door behind him, Clarisse hovered beside him.

"Would you like a drink?"

"I would, but I'll mix them… why don't you sit down?"

"How are your legs and back feeling?" he asked when he had mixed their drinks and was sitting back down next to her. "Mine are a little sore."

"Mine are aching more than sore… it's just reminding me that I'm getting old," she said with a sigh.

"We're getting old," he contradicted and she gave him a smile. "Although, looking at you, I would say that you don't look a day over forty."

"Stop that!" she blushed. "You're just biased."

"Indeed I am, and I'm not going to change. So… did you have a good time today?"

"I did, thank you… and did you?"

"I did… although I was amazed at the amount of sand that came out of my shoes and socks!"

"Me too," she laughed along with him and the slightly awkward atmosphere of the room dissipated. "Scott and the rest of the team alright?"

"Yes, they were fine. I'm sure they spent most of the day watching TV and playing cards… all that mattered to me was that Scott did his paperwork!"

"You're a hard task master!" she chided him gently. "But a good one."

There was a slight pause as they sipped their drinks and Joseph, having sensed the atmosphere when he came in, decided to defuse the situation.

"Clarisse? Are you alright?"

"I'm fine, why do you ask?"

"You just… seem a little shy… if you ask me."

"Am I?" she blushed again, looking down at her lap and Joseph took the moment to set his glass and hers on the table and take her hands in his, moving closer to him.

"Yes, you are… and if I could hazard another guess, I would say that you're worried about where we're going from here, now that we're back at the palace."

"You're a mind reader!" she looked at in amazement and he laughed.

"No, it's only because I know you so well."

"Touché… and yes, you are right. Today was such a lovely day, we talked so much and….well, I don't want us to go backwards…but I…."

"You're not ready for more," he concluded simply. "I know that. The truth is, I don't think I'm quite ready yet either… but I know that I don't want us to go backwards either."

Clarisse was watching him, wide eyed- the dear, kind man! He was an amazing man, truly he was and she didn't deserve him at all!

"Really?"

"Really," he affirmed, freeing one of his hands so that he could caress her cheek. "I'm a patient man, Clarisse and I can wait… just as long as we're friends and we feel as comfortable with each other as we did today…. Do you think that we can do that?"

"Yes, I can definitely do that," she said eagerly, happiness flooding through her- they were still friends- albeit on the edge of a precipice that would take them somewhere they hadn't (or maybe they had) imagined they would go- but they were still friends!

"Good, then you can stop worrying."

"I'll try," she said solemnly but her eyes were sparkling mischievously.

"Good… although, if you get stressed out again, you may need to have another day off."

"With you?" she flirted.

"Who else?"

"Good…then maybe it's going to have to be soon."

"We'll see about that…" he chuckled before he leaned over and kissed her gently on the mouth. "We'll see about that."