Special thanks to all of you who have been so patient in waiting for this next chapter! Thank you for your wonderful reviews. Please note that this chapter contains sexual content. While I toned it down quite a bit from the uncut version (which is, as always, available by request to those of the proper age), it is still in need of a warning...so consider yourself so warned! LOL
Thanks to my beta, RevSue, for all of your wonderful encouragement and fast turn around time! You're the best!
Without further ado...
Chapter 19: A Little Assistance
It was a couple of hours later when Joseph entered the suite he shared with Clarisse. He assumed that she would have retired for the night as tomorrow was a very big day at the palace. He entered quietly, not wanting to disturb her. He started to make his way into the sleeping area; but noticed a faint light coming from the sitting room. He gently opened the doors and saw her, still fully clothed in her red ball gown, standing in front of the fireplace. The dancing flames further intensified the red of her dress and created an even greater contrast to her fair complexion.
Her body still held its regal stance although her head was lowered slightly to allow her to gaze into the flames. From looking at her, however, Joseph knew her focus was far from the room or the beauty of the fire.
He came up to stand behind her, putting his hands on her shoulders. He placed a kiss on her exposed shoulder. "It's done, my dear. Viscount Mabrey has been detained for questioning about his level of involvement, along with his father-in-law. We know that the father-in-law was one of the key players in the attempt to overthrow the Renaldi rule. We also brought the Von Trokens in for questioning to determine if they had any involvement as well."
She didn't speak, but simply inclined her head slightly to indicate she had heard. They stood there, in silence, for some time. She continued to stare blankly ahead; but finally, her voice broke the silence. "They killed them, Joseph. Rupert and Phillipe – they were murdered. And Pierre, dear Pierre, has been treated horribly. The entire family, even the country, lost respect for him because of his decision…it must have been so hard for him…keeping his secret for all of these years. I fear I said some terrible things to him. I have a call in to him to try to set things straight, but I was told he had secluded himself for prayer. Then Charlotte and poor Mia…what would I have done if...?"
Her shoulders slumped and she clutched her stomach as the terror of the evening began to finally seep into her consciousness. Joseph supported her frame and held her close as he whispered his support into her ear. When he sensed the initial reaction had passed, he spoke gently to her. "Clarisse, my darling, may I make a suggestion?"
She nodded her head slightly before leaning into him. She allowed him to lead her over to the couch and gently lower her to a sitting position beside him. He stroked the tender flesh of her shoulder as he continued, "In less than eighteen hours, Mia will be crowned Queen and will assume primary responsibility for the well being of the citizens of Genovia – a burden you have been carrying on your own for far too long. Until that time, though, the people need you to be strong. You just need to hold it together for just a little while longer, alright? When the news is received that the coronation has gone as planned, the evil men are behind bars awaiting their fate, and the former Queen is off celebrating her much deserved honeymoon, there will be a sense that all is well in Genovia once again."
She smiled for the first time in hours – it was only a small smile, but it was there. Her voice was soft as she spoke, "I noticed you included the honeymoon in the series of events to take place tomorrow."
"But of course, my love. The Queen has served her country well for many years. Starting tomorrow, her needs will be served by her ever faithful husband."
She pushed aside the terror tenuously being held at bay in her mind to focus on the husky voice of her husband. "And what needs would that be, pray tell?"
Joseph smiled and adjusted his hold on her so she was now laying face up across his lap. He gently traced patterns along her forehead, lips, and throat. Her eyes closed as she finally allowed her body to relax some. "I'm afraid the Queen has many needs that must be addressed. The order of which will, of course, be up to her."
He touched her forehead. "First, there are the mental needs. You see the Queen has been through a lot lately and I believe she needs someone to provide a listening ear for her to work through the many jumbled thoughts running around in her head."
A small tear escaped from her closed eyes as she nodded, "Yes, I do believe there is much that she has to share…but only with you, my love."
He then let his finger follow a path over the tip of her nose to her cheek to catch the tear that escaped. Finishing the trail, his finger lightly grazed her lips, down her jaw line and over to her heart where he let his hand rest. "Then there are the emotional needs. My Queen has been hurt by some very evil people and they have caused her a great deal of distress. And while she needs to contain the emotions for a short time longer; once on her honeymoon, she is free to express all of the hurt, anger, and any other emotion she so chooses away from the public eye."
At his words, her hand covered his and pulled it to her lips. She placed a gentle kiss on his palm and then cradled her head in his hand. "I'm afraid that may take longer than the two weeks we have allotted for our honeymoon. I've spent a lifetime suppressing my emotions; I'm not sure I can reverse that in such a short span of time."
"Which is why I am glad we still have a lifetime to spend together; we have all the time in the world, my darling." His thumb brushed across her lips again before his hand journeyed downward. His hand came to rest fully on her chest and gently caressed as he continued to speak softly to her. Her body immediately responded to his touch and her eyes flew open. His eyes were dark with desire as he held her gaze. "Finally, there are the physical needs. I know I am personally looking forward to meeting every desire that my beautiful and sexy wife may express."
"And what if your wife has physical needs right now that must be met?" Her breathing had deepened as he continued to caress her. She found herself wanting even more of his touch.
At her words, Joseph realized she needed him physically tonight almost as a bandage to help hold the demons at bay until she was free to deal with them. They needed to be staved off for just one more night and she was asking for his help to do that. "Then, as your dutiful husband, it will be my pleasure to meet those needs for you."
She felt his hand move up to caress her face, her eyes closed in response to his gentle touch. She wanted to focus only on him and his touch. As his fingers grazed her lips, she drew one into her mouth, gently sucking. She heard his sharp intake of breath as she enjoyed the taste of his gentle hands. He pulled his finger out and let it create a moist trail down her throat. She felt his hand continue downward over her silk covered stomach and down to her thigh. He tried to pull the skirt of her dress up to allow him easier access; but was being highly unsuccessful due to the fuller skirt of the gown.
She smiled as she heard him whisper. "Care to offer a little assistance, my love? I can't seem to get past the yards of material that comprise your dress." He offered her a hand as she attempted to get up.
Once standing, she turned her back to him and then looked back over her shoulder. "Care to offer a little assistance, my love?"
He smiled as he stood and began to undo the zipper of her dress. With painstaking slowness, he unzipped the dress, kissing her back as each inch of flesh was exposed. Once at the bottom, he placed his hands inside the dress and ran them back up to the top. With a gentle push, the dress fell to the floor in pool of silk around her feet. She stepped out of her shoes, away from the dress and moved in front of Joseph.
He drank in the sight in front of him. The shadows and light emitted by the fire gave her an ethereal look. The light created an incandescent glow against her skin. "You look positively breathtaking, Clarisse."
She blushed under his compliment. Her hands moved under his jacket and quickly removed it from his body. "And you look positively overdressed." They made quick work of removing the remainder of his tuxedo which ended up on the floor next to her dress. Once he was clothed in only his trademark black silk boxers, she gently pushed him back to a sitting position on the couch.
She seated herself and began to kiss him. Their tongues began dueling and fighting to possess the other's mouth. Needing air, Joseph finally broke the kiss. He began to kiss her again with all of the intensity and emotion that had been suppressed for so many years. He noticed, however, that something seemed to be missing. Usually he could hear wonderful sounds emanating from deep within her as he paid homage to her body…
She felt Joseph break the kiss and then start again. The sensations created from their kiss were starting to fill her mind. Without realizing, she let down the barriers she had constructed in her mind, which allowed the feelings both pleasurable and terrible to slip into her consciousness.
"…certainly look as if an illness had taken our King from us. No one would…more accurately…no one did…suspect foul play."
She leaned in to Joseph, wrapping her arms around him, pulling him even closer.
"To kill you, your Majesty."
Her nails scraped across his back and she sought comfort from his strength.
"It fairly guaranteed the success of a fatal accident…"
She couldn't help it. Tears started to escape through her tightly shut eyelids.
He felt the moisture hit his shoulder. Just a few drops at first, then they were falling steadily. He pushed her back slightly, "What's wrong, love?"
"I'm sorry, Joseph. I find I am unable to relax enough to truly enjoy this. My thoughts keep turning towards much less pleasant topics."
He wiped her tears away with a gentle caress of his hands. "It's alright, Clarisse. Come on, let's go to bed. I have a few ideas to help you focus on more pleasurable topics."
She nodded and stood. She was surprised when Joseph scooped her into his arms and began to carry her into the bedroom. "Joseph, what are you doing?"
"I do believe this is a customary tradition for newlyweds, is it not? I was feeling rather deprived that I had not been given the opportunity to do this yet. Besides, everyone needs a little picking up now and again."
Her smile returned as she sought solace in the comfort of his strong arms and the steady beat of his heart. She remembered another dark time in her life when she had been granted a reprieve from her terror in Joseph's embrace.
Back in time
She had been seeking peace in her private rose garden. Only a few months earlier, Rupert had died in his sleep. She was still mourning the loss of a good friend; and, as a citizen of Genovia, the loss of her King. She had been given little time to mourn as she had had to step in and run the country. Occasionally, though, she would convince Joseph to let her come to her private garden late at night. He would insist that she needed her sleep; and she would insist she needed the peace she found here. Tonight he had agreed and was standing, as always, a few feet behind her…just enough that he could be there in a flash if needed; but far enough away to allow her some privacy.
The fragrance of the roses were helping somewhat tonight; but she still felt troubled – as if something terrible were just looming outside of her grasp. Unfortunately, her instinct was right and a short time later Shades found them and shared the news that Phillipe had been killed in a car accident. The façade she had shakily constructed after Rupert's death crumbled at this news and her body along with it. She sank to the ground; but rather than find the cold, hard earth, she found the warmth of Joseph's body supporting her.
She couldn't recall how long they had stayed like that. Finally she felt like she could stand and, with Joseph's help, made her way to her feet. Before she could try to walk, though, he swept her up in his arms and began to carry her back to the castle.
"Joseph, what are you doing?"
"Just offering a little assistance to my Queen." The strength of his embrace washed away any resistance she might have mustered. It seemed every eye in the castle had followed their steps that night – not out of curiosity or shock over breach of protocol; but rather out of sadness for the grief that now consumed their monarch and the royal family.
Joseph had stayed with her all night, just holding her and whispering words of comfort as she worked through the raw pain of losing yet another member of her family.
Present day
"I seem to recall another time when you provided this service for me. You don't do this for every maiden you find in distress, do you? " She spoke into his chest not wanting to even slightly break the contact.
It was his turn to smile, "Only for you, my love." He placed her on the bed after removing her remaining clothing. He decided a direct approach would be best to provide her with the greatest distraction. Even in the short time they had been together, he knew instinctively what brought her pleasure. He began to work his magic on her. It was as if her body was a musical instrument that he was a master at playing. He created a symphony that caused waves of pleasure to crash over her body. Her release provided the crescendo to the masterpiece they were creating together. With each measure, he filled her with the music of his love and pushed away the demons to the dark recesses of her mind.
He saw the peace now present on her gentle features and knew that she would make it through. She snuggled against him and settled into a peaceful sleep. His arm went protectively over her and he closed his eyes to join her in sleep.
The next morning he awoke to find her missing from the bed. He found her in the sitting room taking her tea. She was already dressed in the gold dress that she would wear to the coronation.
"What time is it? He asked her as he leaned down to kiss her good morning.
"Only a couple of hours until the coronation, I suggest that you start getting ready, my love."
He couldn't believe it was that late – he never slept in. "Why didn't you wake me, love?"
Her smile was priceless. "Well, I suspected that you were quite exhausted from all of your husbandly duties last night; and I wanted you well rested before your honeymoon that is scheduled to start later today."
He grabbed a cup of coffee and a roll as he headed towards the shower. "Then perhaps you should request more coffee and see if Mia has any of those energy bars she's always raving about from America as I'm certain I will need them to keep up with my wife's insatiable appetite!"
She laughed at his statement. "Indeed I shall check with her. Oh, and Joseph?"
He stopped before entering the bathroom, "Yes, love?"
"Thank you for last night. You are truly my knight in shining armor. I can't imagine surviving the horrors of my past, the terrors of my present, or the loneliness that would be my future if you weren't a part of my life."
"And I cannot imagine my life without you. I love you with everything that I am, Clarisse."
"And I you. Now off to the shower with you or you'll be late to see your granddaughter crowned Queen."
"I thought Knights to the Queen were never late…"
"Joseph…" her tone told him he needed to get moving and that the teasing would have to wait until later.
"I know, I know…off to the shower with me. Would you care to offer a little assistance?"
"Joseph!"
Please R&R - Thank you!
