Author's Note: Wow! Thank you to all my readers- you all rock! That last chapter was hard, but hopefully there's resolution in this one!
The Princess Diaries doesn't belong to me!
There was a long silence after Clarisse asked the question, and Joseph fiddled with his cup, hoping to avoid her glare and subsequent confrontation, but when he briefly looked up, it was clear that she was expecting an answer.
"I would rather not discuss it at the moment," he finally said evenly, now on the defensive. "I can't say at the moment, but I need to to trust me."
"That's not good enough for me," Clarisse snapped, her face revealing both anger and disbelief. "Not by a long shot- especially when I turn on the television and see you coming out of a bar, Laura just behind you... you looking guilty, she looking smug- it looked as though you had been meeting secretly... How do you think that made me feel?"
"What? You saw us on television?" Joseph repeated, looking shocked. "The press was there, recording us?" He couldn't believe it, and didn't want to.
"Of course... someone must have tipped them off," she said sarcastically, unimpressed that he still seemed to be naive about the press.
"The same someone who tipped YOU off?" he suddenly turned shrewd, looking at her suspiciously. "How did you know about the bar?"
"I received a phone call from Viscount Mabrey..."
"Mabrey?" he interrupted with a growl, glaring at her. "How did he get this number... and why were you even LISTENING to him?"
"He was right, though- you were meeting another woman in a bar... I am not defending him," she added hastily. "But you weren't telling me anything, so what was I supposed to do?"
"You know that man is totally against us, you should have..."
"Oh, don't tell me what I should have done," Clarisse spat. "This isn't about me, this is about you telling the truth... so why do you just tell me what's going on? I'm not going to move from this spot until you do."
"Fine,"Joseph sighed heavily. "I really wanted to wait until this was sorted out..."
Clarisse rolled her eyes at this- married couples never had any secrets and, after her marriage to Rupert, she hated secrets.
"I went to see Laura because... because..." he hesitated- this was going be harder than he expected, but he also hadn't expected to come home to an extremely angry wife. "... Because she's writing a book about my relationship with her..." Clarisse went white at this. "And I heard, through Scott, that she might mention OUR relationship in it."
There was a slight pause before it hit Clarisse- while it had been an open secret in Genovia, someone was putting their relationship in a book- and not necessarily in a good way.
"What?" Clarisse said in a dangerously soft voice as the cup she was holding slipped out of her fingers and crashed onto the bench, shattering into a million pieces, but she didn't care as she stared at Joseph in horror.
"How and why on earth is she doing this? Why? She's only met me once, and while she may be jealous, that still doesn't give her the right to write about us!"
For a moment, her anger was diverted temporarily towards Laura, much to Joseph's relief.
"I don't know why she's doing this, but I'm sure I never mentioned you to her, or vice versa, and I told her so!"
"I should say you didn't talk about her to me- I wouldn't have wanted to know," she muttered under her breath, but Joseph ignored it.
"But she says she has a solid source that has confirmed much what I supposedly said... of course she won't tell me who it is, or even show me the manuscript...."
"Of course she won't- why would she?" Clarisse almost sneered. "So, what did you do?"
"I am hoping that she would consider my offer not to publish it..."
"She will, no matter what you ask her- she's vicious and will do anything to sell books... but, did you ever mention me to her?"
"Are you serious?" Joseph finally looked angry. "No, I did NOT mention you- EVER- to her... not only because I wasn't allowed to, but because it was none of her business... what kind of man do you think I am?"
"I'm sorry... I just thought you were having an affair with her...."
"You thought I was having an affair?" he repeated in a soft voice. "You thought that, despite the fact that I have never strayed on you, even when you were still married, and proved that I never will? Clarisse, I wish you would FINALLY realize that I am NOT Rupert and never will be; I am not interested in seducing young women who are only interested in me because I'm married to you; and I am not- NOT," he emphasized the word sharply. "Interested in continually reassuring you that I won't cheat... In fact, I'm actually quite offended and insulted that, almost three years into our marriage, you still have doubts about me... How can you even feel like that... But, at the moment, I don't care- it's your problem."
Clarisse had listened to his passionate speech feeling touched and a little afraid- this argument had escalated out of control, far beyond what she had imagined what would happen, but she didn't want to let her guard down... yet. But when Joseph had cavalierly said "It's your problem" it stung her enough to bite back with:
"If that is my problem, I also have another problem in that my so called husband doesn't trust me enough to tell me when there's something troubling him- even something as bad as this..."
"I wanted to tell you..."
"When it was over," Clarisse retorted, looking at him as her eyes filled with tears. "I can appreciate why you left me out, but that's why hurts the most... a marriage isn't real unless the couple works out all their problems together... and, at the moment, we're not doing that..."
She paused for a moment, brushing the tears away, before looking at him again with sad, pain filled eyes.
"You have told me the truth, and I appreciate it... maybe you secretly wish that you hadn't married me, but... I need some space."
"What are you saying?" Joseph asked hoarsely.
"Exactly what I mean- I think we should have some time apart, just to consider things..."
Both of them were anguished at Clarisse's decision, but Joseph didn't push her, not wanting to hear another word, 'divorce'...hopefully it wasn't over- they were just having time apart....
000
Joseph packed some of his belongings and was gone within half an hour of Clarisse's announcement. He couldn't see her anywhere when he left, but he wasn't planning on going far- just to the guard house (or the 'hangout' as Scott had christened it). Even if Clarisse wanted 'space', he still wasn't going to leave her alone- she was going to be protected by her husband, even if they were apart.
The team didn't say a word when he appeared in the kitchen with a suitcase- they obviously knew something had happened.
"I'll let you know what's going on, but I have to call Scott first," he said quietly before leaving the room and heading upstairs. He would be staying in a single bedroom with a small bathroom, very unlike his usual bedroom at the main house, but it suited his purpose for the time being.
"I didn't expect to hear from you so soon," Scott joked when he picked up the phone.
"Do you know anything more about Laura's source?" Joseph asked tersely.
"No, but we're working on it... why?"
"Clarisse found out about that meeting, via Viscount Mabrey, and she threw me out of the house."
"Oh damn... are you kidding?" Scott sounded shocked.
"Not about this- she's really angry."
"Do you need me to come out there? I've got a great second in command here, and it sounds as though you need to get drunk..." Joseph smiled at how kind Scott sounded- quite unlike the brash man he usually was.
"As tempting as that offer is, I really need you to find out who this source it...but, thanks."
"No worries, and I'm on it now... believe me, the rest of the guys and I know it's all rubbish.... oh, and I might investigate that link with Mabrey- he might have a bigger connection to this...."
"Good idea,"Joseph said grimly. "He's wanted to break us up since we got married, and he may have succeeded..."
"No, he definitely has not,"Scott said defiantly. "We'll get to the bottom this, and then you guys will get back together."
"Have you thought that Clarisse might consider our marriage over?"
"Not if I know Clarisse... she's going to fight for this and for you as soon as she recovers from this shock. By the way, where are you now? If you're on your way here, there's definitely room for you to stay...."
"No, I'm going to stay at the beach house with the boys, and I have no intention of leaving Clarisse alone... Of course, she's not going to want to see me, so I'm going to stay in the background, but I'm not leaving."
"'Atta boy, Joe- already fighting for your marriage."
After their conversation ended a few minutes later, Joseph recalled the events of the last 24 hours- first, finding out Laura's 'surprise' and trying to keep it from Clarisse while trying to figure out what to do; meeting Laura and her vehement refusal to show him the book, with a mocking "What's wrong, Joe? Are you afraid that there's something that may incriminate you and your now wife into a pre-marital affair while His Majesty was alive?"; then Clarisse finding out about it all, before accusing him of having an affair, culminating with him being kicked out.... It was a bad dream he couldn't wake up from, but he was determined to sort it out and make things right with Clarisse... Scott was right- their marriage wasn't over, and he was doubly determined to save it....
0
Clarisse hid in the living room with Shelley while Joseph packed, and she remained quiet when he came back downstairs. He had been looking for her, she could tell, as he slowly walked out the front door, but she simply didn't want to see him at the moment. She still couldn't believe that she had requested him to leave, and that he had acquiesced so easily, but she also knew she did need some space to think about all that she had seen and heard...
As soon as she was sure he was gone, she locekd the front door- he wasn't getting back in for while- and went back to the kitchen to clean up the shattered mug... But her thoughts were distracted... She was still furious at Joseph for what he had kept from her, and uncomfortably aware that he was right about her continued insecurities about their marriage (which made her feel guilty), but she was even more incensed about Laura... What right did she have to expose their private relationship to the public? He had dated her long before he and Clarisse had admitted their feelings for each other, and Clarisse had had nothing to do with Laura until their last meeting... so, she assumed that this book was retaliation towards Joseph.... She knew he would never have spoken to her about Laura- he had signed a confidentiality agreement when he had first started working at the palace... and he definitely would not have cheated on her... she had been irrational when she had accused him of that, but still, she was hurt and betrayed...
Before she could consider the idea of the confidentiality agreement, Joseph's spare phone (which he had left behind) began ringing and, after checking caller ID to make sure that it wasn't him, she answered the phone....
"Grandma, I just saw the meeting on TV, and I don't believe they're cheating like the press is making it out as," she burst out. "Joe wouldn't do anything do that... so how, are you two holding up?"
"I threw Joseph out of the house," Clarisse replied numbly, just wanting to sleep until the whole scandal (she was now sure that the rest of the country knew all about it) was over. "Joseph's former girlfriend is writing a book about their relationship and maybe including us in it, so we had a massive argument and he left... I don't know what's going to happen now...."
"Tell me everything...."
Clarisse haltingly recalled everything she had seen and heard, skipping over the details of the argument, and when she finished, there was a long silence on the other end of the phone before Mia sighed heavily.
"I know this might not sound too sympathetic, but you shouldn't have listened to Viscount Mabrey... yes, Joe should have told you what was going on, but maybe he was trying to protect you... but, by listening to Mabrey, you played right into his hands... he's always been so against you and this was the perfect opportunity to try and split you two up...." and Clarisse realized she was right, before Mia continued. "After hearing this, however, I'm beginning to wonder if he hasn't had a bigger hand in this..." she trailed off as Clarisse suddenly felt sick- what if Mabrey HAD orchestrated this, or some of it- Laura had written the book, but Mabrey had known about it... what had she done?
00000
The next few days were surprisingly uneventful despite the fact that Joseph and Clarisse were living apart- a fact that had yet to be discovered by the press, but when they did find out, both of them knew life would become unbearable, hence both Scott and Mia were digging hard to find out who Laura's source was.... Clarisse didn't particularly care about what was going on around her- now that she had some time and space to think, she wanted to confront Laura, fighting for her man and her marriage.
In the meantime, she chose to stay inside much of the time, one of the bodyguards walking Shelley every day, and the one time she ventured out to the garden, Joseph was also outside, so she quickly turned her back on him and went to the furtherest part of the garden to weed, but her heart wasn't in it.... She missed Joseph so much that it hurt, especially when she went to bed at night, but she wasn't yet ready to talk to him....
Joseph, on the other hand, spent much of his time outside, patrolling the property and hoping to catch a glimpse of Clarisse, but she was obviously too upset to do any gardening or walk Shelley. In the following days after the scandal broke, he had received several angry phone calls from Julie, Annie and Lynn, and it had taken a while for him to calm them down, especially Julie, who was upset that Clarisse was avoiding her calls.
"It isn't personal, she just tends to shut herself away when she's upset...."
He wasn't too comforted, however, when he saw how tired and pale she looked when she emerged from the house...obviously she missed him as much as he missed her, but as soon as she saw him, she turned her back on him.... not a good sign....
0
It was exactly a week after Clarisse threw Joseph out when Mia rang, having found the information Clarisse had wanted, and her plan was now in action.
"Are you going to talk to Joe too?" she inquired- miraculously, the press still hadn't found out about their living arrangements although, in an entirely 'accidental' interview with the press, Viscount Mabrey had insinuated that ""there could be some problems in the marriage, but Clarisse had ignored that. She was surprised that Laura hadn't been seen in the press, but she assumed that she was laying low until things were sorted out.
"I will," Clarisse replied calmly, and it was true- she was going to save her marriage.
Joseph was surprised to see how formally she was dressed when she emerged from the house two hours later, and climbed into the car- her driver had informed them that she was going out, so they were expecting her to come out, but so formally dressed....
"I wonder where she's going?" he commented as they followed her car out of the driveway.
When they arrived in Pyrus, Joseph was even more surprised to see Clarisse's car stop in front of the same bar he had met Laura at, and he began to wonder.... he HAD to sneak in and find out what was going on....
0
Laura was already waiting in the specified booth with her solicitor when Clarisse and her bodyguards arrived, and Clarisse slipped elegantly into the booth, sitting down opposite them.
"Thank you for meeting me here today, Laura," she said pleasantly- this was her meeting, and she was going to remain in control. "I know you must be busy, preparing for your deadline, but I just wanted to speak to you...."
Laura was clearly unsettled by Clarisse's calling this meeting, as well as her calm demeanour, but she recovered enough to say, just as politely:
"If you have come to try and convince me not to publish, just like your husband..." she almost spat the word out. "You are sadly mistaken- the publisher already has my final draft."
"Maybe so, but I'm curious... what proof do you have that my friendship (which was what it was at that time) with Joseph wrecked your relationship with him?"
"Surely you know... have a source that confirms you were involved while he was dating me...."
"Oh, you're suggesting Joseph conducted two physical affairs- with me and you- while he was with you," Clarisse said calmly, her expression clearly disconcerting Laura even more. "I know you don't have any proof of that, but I can tell you that Joseph signed a confidentiality agreement when he began working at the palace, and one clause in the agreement specifies that he cannot discuss me, my personal life or even my activities as Queen to anyone... which he has followed to the letter. In addition, all my staff as well as the members of parliament (both past and present) have signed similar agreements, therefore, your source probably has insider information and is violating a legal agreement between themselves and the palace... thus their information cannot be used in your book... I don't know all that much about journalism law and ethics, but if the palace solicitors wish to interview you if this ever ends up in court, you will either have to revel your source or face jail time until you do so."
Laura began to squirm in her seat, clearly uncomfortable and her lawyer was looking less and less smug as Clarisse spoke while, in a booth not far away, Joseph listened intently, growing prouder of Clarisse by every word- this was her show, and she was still very much a Queen, despite her retirement.
"You do have the right to write a book about your life, including your relationship with Joseph," Clarisse allowed, before her voice sharpened. "But I had nothing to do with you or your relationship, therefore I refuse to be used in your retaliatory war with Joseph. I understand you need people who are mentioned in this book... their permission to do so... but I do not give you permission to use my name, or even allude to me- my solicitors will be watching.... I have also discovered your so-called 'reliable'"source..." as Laura and her shoddy lawyer exchanged a glance."It's Viscount Arthur Mabrey. This man is someone not to be trusted, and since he has never been a witness to my personal life, his information is fabricated with a touch of maliciousness..."
She paused for a moment, feeling awful at the way she was speaking to Laura but, then again, she had threatened her marriage to Joseph.
"I must warn you that, if you do publish with me in it, or any lies about Joseph, my solicitors have been given permission to sue... As for my husband... yes, you did have a relationship with him a long time ago but, I don't wish to be insensitive, but he has moved on- he's married to me now, and you have to let him go- he's happy.... and you're married too."
"Actually, Stephen and I have split up," Laura admitted with an ashamed expression on her face, and Clarisse suddenly felt sorry for her.
"I'm sorry... both for that, and I know that this hasn't been a pleasant experience for either of us," Clarisse said as she stood up, ready to leave all this behind her. "I know I cannot stop you from publishing this book, but I must say that Joseph's life won't be the only one wrecked if you do so- please consider that," she finished simply before walking away, relieved that it was all over. She hoped that Laura, now knowing that Clarisse was willing to fight, would change her mind... but now it was time to speak to Joseph....
0
She sank into the backseat of the car, exhausted at the thought of what she had already done and what she still had to do... she only hoped Joseph would forgive her, or even listen to her....
Just then, as she waited for the car to pull away from the curb (the sooner she left Pyrus the better), the passenger door opened and, to her surprise, in slid Joseph.
"What are you doing here?" she asked as he sat back in his seat, buckling his seatbelt as the car finally moved away from the curb. He grinned mischievously at the question, and Clarisse relaxed slightly- he didn't seem angry....
"Following you, of course- where do you think I would be?" he replied. "Even if we were separated, I wasn't going to let you come to Pyrus on your own without me... especially when you had an important meeting," he eyed her formal attire significantly.
"I wasn't completely alone.. but I did suspect you were in the car behind me," she admitted, a small smile on her lips.
"It felt a little strange to be the observer not the observee, especially after three years, so I was a little rusty."
"Nevertheless, you would have seen and heard more than I would have," Clarisse smiled, feeling a little nervous- while they were getting along at the moment, things could deteriorate once they began their serious discussion about their separation and the reasons behind it. It wasn't a discussion she was looking forward to, but she decided to plunge in and get it over and done with.
"So... in case you were wondering why I was here...."
"You don't need to explain anything to me, sweetheart, I know all about it... and I was there when you confronted Laura... I'm very, very proud of you," he hesitantly reached out and rested his hand on top of hers, and he was relieved when she didn't move hers away.
"I'm not particularly proud of what I did or said, but Laura had to know that I... we... were going to fight this- and we will," she looked at him with determination in her blue eyes.
"Do you know that Viscount Mabrey really is Laura's source?" he asked.
"Yes, Mia was very sure... as much as I trust Scott with all security issues, this time Mia had the connections to confirm this... Mia has already contacted the palace solicitors in regards to this, and all we have to do is stay out of it.... But I am sorry I thought you were having an affair," she said, looking ashamed, and Joseph squeezed her hand gently.
"I know I shouldn't be suspicious of you- I have no right to think that you would cheat on me... yes, I was irrational when I considered that, but I was hurt and angry.... but I promise never to expose my insecurities like that again- I shouldn't have doubted you..."
"It's not that I was saying not to be completely invulnerable... but just that you don't need to constantly worry about my faithfulness to you- no other woman is ever going to tempt me."
"Deal," Clarisse squeezed his hand in response. "But...."
"Before you say anything, I am sorry I didn't tell you about Laura when I found out about it- it was unfair and cruel on my part... I should have come to you in the first place- yes, I agree that married couples need to work their problems out together, and there's no one else I would want to work out my problems with than my wife," he said in a soft voice as he unbuckled his seatbelt and slid over into the middle seat, re-buckling his belt when he did.
"I'm sorry I hurt you- it wasn't my intention at all- I just wanted to protect you."
"I now appreciate that," she cupped his cheek with her hand for a moment. "I'm very sorry too- I just hate being lied to, and I jumped to the wrong conclusions when you didn't talk to me after that phone call... but I also know I made you frustrated by demonstrating that I didn't trust you... but I DO trust you," she murmured before leaning over and kissing him. "I trust you with my whole life, always will, and I'm sorry for suspecting you..." she paused for a moment before smiling again. "Mia told me off for being as silly as to suspect you of infidelity... she said, and I quote, 'As if Joe has eyes for anyone else but you, Grandma!' "
"Now I know why I liked that girl when we first met," Joseph chuckled easily. "Scott told me not to give up- as if I would have- as you'd fight hard when you calmed down."
"Dear Scott," Clarisse smiled fondly before there was a long pause as they looked at each other, brown eyes on blue, and then Clarisse whispered: "I've missed you."
"I've missed you too," he replied just as quietly before leaning over and kissing her lovingly.
There was still an hour and a half till they got home, but Clarisse was more than content to rest her head on his shoulder, and Joseph was more than happy for it to be so, kissing her gently on the top of her head from time to time.
"What about Laura?" he finally asked as they drove up their driveway, and Clarisse sat up and smiled at him.
"If nothing I said appealed to her, then... we fight," she said calmly, her eyes never wavering from his, and he relaxed slightly- he now had Clarisse behind him, which was all that mattered- before hurrying out of the car to help her out.
"You really are one in a million," he said quietly, pressing his lips on top of her hand.
"The same applies to you," she replied gently, her eyes full of love for him, and he laughed as they walked, hand in hand, into the house, Shelley greeting them in the doorway. "Thank goodness the press never found out about our mini separation"
"Scott and Mia would have killed anyone who printed it if they had found out!" Joseph joked with a laugh before turning to Clarisse and stroking her cheek gently. "But, at the moment, all I'm really worried about is you..."
"Really?" she blushed at the intense look he was giving her- almost three years after their original wedding, and he still drove her crazy. "What is it about me that you're worried about?"
"That you haven't been kissed enough (or at all) this week.... but I'm going to amend that..." he leaned over and kissed her again, this time more passionately. "Again and again and again."
"How fortunate for me," she smiled dreamily at him before he led her upstairs....
000
A couple of hours later, Joseph (clad in his bathrobe) came back downstairs for a snack and two cups of tea, and discovered that 'the boys' had left his luggage in the kitchen... he hadn't even heard them come in....
"I see you've moved back in," Clarisse said as she followed him into the kitchen, also wearing her bathrobe. "I don't remember saying that I was taking you back," she teased as she sank into one of the counter chairs and watching him turn the jug on.
"I thought that was mutually agreed upon before," he frowned at her momentarily before grinning. "Unless you've changed your mind...."
"Oh no, it's fine,"Clarisse looked alarmed before realizing he was joking.
"I thought so... by the way, you'll need to call Julie- she was rather hurt that you didn't respond to any of her calls... Of course, I explained what you're like when you're upset."
"Poor Julie... Yes, I'll call her, Annie and Lynn tonight... I only took Mia's calls...."
"I figured you might....
Once the tea was ready, he sat down next to her at the counter and poured two cups. "I have an idea...."
"Oh?"
"After the year we've had, I was thinking that, once Mia has her twins, we might go travelling for a while... yes, Shelley can come with us as well as our bodyguards... and we can always come back to the beach house, but...."
"Bored, are we?"
"No... but maybe we just need some time to be anonymous and away from everyone... yes, we'll visit and keep in contact, but for while, maybe we could just be the two of us... no one else's problems to worry about...."
"That sounds like a wonderful idea, darling," Clarisse said enthusiastically. "I wholeheartedly agree to that, and we should do it... but lets just wait and see what the next four or five months bring...."