"Sire?" Joseph's second-in-command began while alone with the king in the king's office.
"What is it?" Rupert looked up at the man to see he looked uneasy.
"You had asked me to tell you if anything strange should occur with Joseph…" He began.
"Yes, and?"
"I was on duty last night and I happened to see Joseph walk into the queen's suite late last night. I thought it suspicious, given the hour and—"
"Enough." Rupert demanded. "You are no longer to keep an eye on Joseph."
"Yes Sire, and, I know it's probably not my business, but what was I looking for?"
"You're right, it is none of your business." Rupert growled. "And you'd be wise not to speak of this and what you saw, otherwise your days here will be numbered. Got it?"
"Understood." He tried to keep his composure, but he was actually terrified o the king in that moment.
'So it's true then,' Rupert thought. 'After all I've done, she deserves some solace in all of this. If Joseph is that for her, then who am I to stand in the way?'
—
"Mommy?" Pierre called as he totted along into Clarisse's office.
Clarisse smiled at her son. She got up from her desk and scooped him into her arms. "Hello my darling."
"Mommy can we play a game?" His sweet little eyes looked up at her.
"Mommy has to finish this last paper, but I promise we can play afterwards."
Joseph watched the disappointment on Prince Pierre's face and it broke his heart. "Prince Pierre." Joseph said, then bowed as Pierre looked at him.
"Joey!" Pierre nearly shouted and reached his arms out towards Joseph.
"Would it be okay if you and I played a game until your mom was finished?" Joseph asked as he took Pierre from Clarisse.
"Can Philippe play too?" Pierre asked.
"Of course!" Joseph answered. "Why don't you go get him, and then the three of us can go outside, hmm?"
"Okay!" Pierre almost jumped out of Joseph's arms and ran off to get Philippe.
"Thank you Joseph." Clarisse smiled at him.
"There isn't anything I wouldn't do for them." He smiled back just as Pierre and Philippe came running into the room.
"Can we go now Joey?" Pierre was far too excited about it, in Joseph's opinion.
"Sure thing." He picked the boys up, one in either arm.
"And you're going to join us mommy?"
"I will be there as quick as I can." She smiled then turned to Joseph. "Where—"
He already knew what she was going to ask. "The gazebo."
"I'll be along shortly." Her smile only grew bigger as she watched how her boys loved Joseph. She also knew, quite well, of his hatred for the name 'Joey,' but yet, he accepted it with one of the purest smiles she'd ever seen him wear. She quickly returned to the paperwork and finished it in record time so that she could spend some time with her boys. As she approached the gazebo she couldn't help but smile. Joseph was sitting on the floor, cross-legged with Philippe in his lap, and Pierre was on Joseph's back leaning over Joseph's shoulder, tricking Philippe by changing which shoulder he was looking from. The three of them looked so happy, and had she not known, she would have thought these were Joseph's boys, not Rupert's. Rupert never did this with the boys, but yet, even with Joseph being rather busy with her, he always made time for Pierre and Philippe. "Hello my darlings." Clarisse called as she approached.
"Mama!" Philippe yelled excitedly as he jumped from Joseph's lap and took her hand as she walked over to them. She sat down beside Joseph with her legs bent at her knees and feet together off to the side as Philippe returned to Joseph's lap.
"All done?" Joseph whispered.
"That piece of paperwork, yes. But the rest can wait." She smiled.
After a couple hours, the housekeeper who also took on helping with the young princes came by to collect them for lessons, to which the boys quickly protested.
"We want to play with mommy and Joey!" Pierre was clearly upset.
"Tell you what," Joseph began as he took Pierre into his arms, "if you go and do what you need to, we can come out and play again tomorrow."
"Really?"
"I promise." Joseph smiled as Pierre started to smile.
"Okay!" Pierre ran off to his lessons, taking Philippe's hand along the way.
"That's really sweet of you Joseph, but will you have the time tomorrow? It's a busy day." She started to get up, but Joseph jumped to his feet and helped her up as she smiled her thanks.
"I have this bad habit of making time in my day for the royal family." He teased as he winked at her. "But for the princes, I will always find time."
"You would make a great father." She said as they took a leisurely walk back to the palace.
He laughed. "Me? A father? I don't see it at all!"
"You were so great with Rose yesterday, and how you are with my boys, Joseph, you'd make the best of fathers." She smiled and Joseph watched as her smile fell.
"Clarisse? What is it?"
"Am I holding you back from being a parent?" She blurted out.
"What?!" His shock was rather evident.
"You heard me. Am I holding you back from you having a family of your own?" She stopped walking and turned to face him.
"Clarisse, I don't want that. I've never seen myself as the 'father-type,' and I still don't. I love your boys, don't get me wrong, and I love playing games with them, but I don't think I'd be able to be a father."
"But Joseph, you're so great with them, they love you so much. The way you are with them… I don't know, I just feel like I'm the reason you'll never have that." She looked down at her feet, she couldn't look at him.
He lifted her chin up and saw the stray tear, so he quickly wiped it off of her perfect face. "My love, when I agreed to take on this job, I knew that having my own family would be near impossible, and I was fine with that because I was sure I didn't want that. Then, one day, I was face-to-face with this angelic being and I couldn't help but fall in love with her. I never thought I'd ever fall in love. But I know that I could never want a family, and that's fine with me. As long as I can continue to love you, and your kids, that's all I need. No, I will never have my own kids, but I can still spoil your kids rotten and be there for them. And I will continue to do that, for as long as you'll allow me."