I just want to say thank you so much if you have been reading this story. I am trying to update and improve things, but I hope you are still enjoying it.
I am sure that you have been waiting on something that will happen in this part haha Happy Reading!
ooOoo
Christmas Day.
Last night was a late night for both Clarisse and Joseph. First they attended a friend of Joseph's Wedding, then had to leave the reception to attend Midnight Mass at the local Church with Amelia, who met them there. Getting back really late, they was all surprised that they managed to get up early today.
After breakfast with all the family Clarisse and Joe headed back upstairs to get ready for the day. Joseph got ready first followed by Clarisse, after getting dressed she stayed in her closet doing her make up while Joseph messed around with something in the bedroom.
"Clarisse" he called out
"Hmmm" she answered from her closet
"Do you remember what happened 20 years ago on this very morning?" he called out "Though I admit it wasn't the same as now, but still do you remember?"
"Joseph, I can't even remember what happened last Christmas let alone 20 years ago" she called back "Why?" she asked
"Oh know reason" he smiled down at the puppy he held in his arms and whispered "She will remember soon enough" he chuckled as the puppy looked up at him
From in her closet she checked herself in the mirror while running her hands down her sides and turned from side to side then grabbed her jumper to wear over her shirt. Starting to slip it on as she headed out into the bedroom and stopped when she saw the bed covered with rose petals and Joe smirking while holding a puppy.
"What?" she asked in amazement "Is going on?" she finished while taking the jumper off and walked over to stroke the puppy "And who is this little fella?" she asked while smiling at Joe
"He is actually a little girlie" he smirked and looked at her "She's one of your Christmas presents" he smiled as she gasped
"Awww thank you" she kissed him then took the puppy "What is all the petals for?" she asked while stroking the puppy and looked down when she felt something touch her hand "What's this?" she asked taking hold of the ribbon around the collar to see the ring attached to it "Joseph" she looked up while holding the ring
"I realize you may not be ready just yet, but I am gonna try again anyway" he said taking her hand "Mi vuoi sposare?" He asked while taking a deep breath and looked into her eyes "It's ok if you don't want to" he smiled to carry on, starting just as Clarisse answered him "I just thought I would ask anyway" he stopped missing what Clarisse said
"Joseph, I said ok" she smiled
"What?" he looked at her in surprise "Really?"
"Sì" she laughed
"Wow" he smiled while untying the ribbon and removed the ring "Are you sure?" he asked while looking up at her as she nodded, with that he slowly slipped the ring on her finger and kissed her
"Ti amo" she smiled while putting her hand up onto the side of his neck and kissed him a couple times
"I love it when you talk to me in Italian" he smirked and kissed her again
she smiled "I remember now, you asked me to marry you on Christmas morning 20 years ago" she grinned as he nodded
"Indeed I did" he smiled back while taking the puppy "Ti amo" he whispered putting the puppy down and kissed her back against the bed
As she lay back on the bed putting her arms around his shoulders he kissed her and pulled the shirt out of her skirt, undoing the buttons with each kiss. After a second he kissed her neck while running his hand up her side stopping under her breast as she closed her eyes.
"Joseph, we will be late for Church" she whispered then bit her bottom lip as he started kissing down her chest "Mmm Joseph" she moaned "How could you do this to me" she whispered and laughed with him
"MOM, DAD" Sofia called from the hall way and looked at Pierre and Stephen "COME ON, WE ARE GONNA BE LATE" she shouted out
"Alright alright" Joseph said appearing at the top of the stairs and started heading down while whistling
"Where's Mom?" Sofia asked while watching him come down the stairs
"She is just finishing getting ready, she will be down in a few minutes" he said standing next to her and kissed her cheek while putting his hand on her back "Don't panic" he smiled
"Doesn't she remind you of someone?" Pierre laughed while looking at Joe
"Indeed she does" Joseph smirked while looking at Sofia
"Right, let's go" Clarisse smiled as she started coming down while pulling her gloves on
"Finally" Sofia exclaimed as they started making their way out the door
Joe stood waiting for Clarisse and pointed to her hand "When are we going to tell them?" he asked while putting his hand on her back as they made their way over to the door "Your swaying your hips again" he grinned
"Of course" she smiled to herself as she led the way out the door
"Your such a tease" he whispered shutting the door behind them as Clarisse laughed
"For you I am and to answer your question, later on, I think it would be better" she said looking back at him as they started heading down the stairs to the car
"I agree" he smiled as they reached the bottom, with a cheeky smirk he slapped her ass making her jolt forward while putting her arms back to grab his hand as she laughed
turning to him "Behave" she whispered as Sofia and Olivia looked at each other
"Teenagers in love again I see" Sofia smirked as Clarisse stood next to her
"Pardon?" Clarisse asked while looking at her
"You heard me" Sofia smirked and got in the limo
Clarisse looked back at Joseph then climbed in the limo after Sofia, followed by Joseph.
After the Church service, they mingled with the others who attended for a while. Then Clarisse went to lay flowers on Philippe's grave with the rest of the family. After staying there a while they headed back to the Palace, where everyone sat down to dinner and dessert, while everyone chatted around the table.
After a while Clarisse sat with her elbow resting on the table, her hand resting on her cheek as she chatted to Joseph, laughing when he said something funny and cupped his cheek as Stephen looked at them then away while shaking his head.
"How you managed to hide this for so long is beyond me" he smirked while taking her hand and kissed her fingers as she tilted her head and smiled at him "Please can I tell them now?"
"Ok" she smiled with a nod as he smiled back at her
"Thank you" he grinned and kissed her cheek before turning to everyone "Everyone, can I have your attention please" they all stopped chatting and looked at him and Clarisse as he held onto her hand, while holding it out to show the ring "She finally said YES" He exclaimed as everyone gasped
"Oh my god" Sofia said jumping up and rushed around to Clarisse and took her hand, Olivia came around a few seconds later and hugged her
"This is amazing" Olivia smiled checking the ring "Great choice Daddy" she smiled hugging him
"Thank you" he smiled up at her and watched as she hugged Clarisse
"This is awesome" Sofia smiled at them while putting her arm around Clarisse's shoulders
"Congratulations" Greg smiled while shaking Joseph's hand then hugged Clarisse
Hannah moved and hugged her and checked the ring "I did notice the ring earlier, but didn't want to ask just in case" she giggled with Clarisse "Congratulations"
"Thank you" Clarisse smiled and noticed Stephen looking at her as his Wife stood next to Clarisse
"Congrats to you both" Mary smiled kissing both Clarisse's cheeks as she looked at her
Mary sat next to Clarisse and chatted to her for a few minutes before returning to sit next to Stephen as Clarisse looked back at him as he shook his head again. Clarisse tilted her head in surprise then felt Joseph's hand on her thigh, making her look at him.
"Are you ok?" he whispered in her ear then looked at her as she nodded "I saw what he did" he said looking into her eyes "Your happy right?"
"Oh of course" she nodded with a smile and cupped his face with both her hands "How could I not be?" she asked and kissed him
"Good" he smiled taking her hand and sat back, sipping his drink then started talking to Peter who sat next to him
Clarisse looked at Stephen who was talking to Mary, then turned and started talking to Hannah who moved next to her, trying to ignore what she saw.
After a little while Clarisse saw Stephen leave the room, so she excused herself and headed out after him, stopping in the hall when she saw him leaning over the table with his hands resting on it.
"Stephen" she said slowly walking over to him as he looked towards her
"Engaged?" he asked "Can't you see it's another Rupert?" he snapped
"Don't compare Joseph to Rupert" she snapped back "I love Joseph, more than I ever did Rupert" she said standing next to him and put her hand on his arm "The two are very much different, Rupert never loved me" she whispered while watching him look back down
"And Joseph does?" he said looking back at her while standing up straight "I think your crazy for getting engaged to him" he started to turn away but stopped and turned back "He will cheat again Clarisse"
"Why can't you just be happy for me instead of doing this?" she asked feeling slightly upset at his reaction "I'm so happy Stephen, can't you see that?"
"I don't think I can" he lent on the table again "Not when my sister is going to make another mistake in her life" he said looking into her eyes
She locked eyes with him for a few seconds then looked away while putting her hands together in front of her "I see" she whispered and stepped back "Stay here a moment" she said hurrying away
He watched her rush up the stairs then turned, sitting on the edge of the table. She returned a several minutes later and walked over to him placing a couple gift bags on the table behind him, not knowing Joseph was stood in the door way watching.
"If you can't be happy for me" she started while standing back as he looked at her "You are not welcome in my home anymore"
"What?" he exclaimed
"That's your Christmas presents for you, your wife and family" she pointed to the bags "You need to leave"
"Clarisse you can't be serious" he stood up and went to step forward
"Don't" she put her hand up to stop him "I am really really happy Stephen, I love Joseph and I will marry him" she said shaking her head "I just wish you would accept that" she turned and started walking back up the stairs
"Clarisse" Stephen gasped and noticed Joseph stood looking at him
"No" she snapped and disappeared
Joseph shook his head then followed Clarisse, finding her slumped on the couch with the puppy resting on her.
"I saw what happened" he said shutting the suite door and walked over
"Why can't he just be happy for me" she whispered as he sat on the couch beside her
"I don't know Clarisse" he sat back and put his arm around her shoulders as she moved resting her head on his shoulder "Your not having doubts are you?"
"Oh god know" she looked at him "I am still going to marry you" she whispered and snuggled back into him
"Ti amo" he whispered against her hair
"Ti amo" she whispered back
After a while he headed back downstairs, just as Pierre and his family arrived back.
"Where's Mom?" Pierre asked as Sofia and Olivia came out
"I am here" Clarisse smiled from the top of the stairs while leaning on the banister
"Grandma" James smiled and started rushing up the stairs followed by Lilly
"Careful Lilly" she called down as Joseph rushed over grabbing hold of her and rushed up the stairs with her as she laughed
"I missed you Grandma" James exclaimed while rushing over and hugged her waist as she took Lilly from Joseph
"I missed you too" Lilly smiled and hugged her
"I missed you both too" she kissed Lilly's cheek while putting one of her arms down, placing her hand on James' back as Pierre and the girls came up "How about we go and open some presents?" Clarisse smiled at them
"yay" James exclaimed and rushed of to their suite as Joseph took Lilly from Clarisse
"Are you feeling better?" he asked while taking her hand
"I am" she smiled and reached up giving him a kiss while putting her other hand on his arm
"Where's Uncle Stephen gone?" Olivia asked as they walked towards them
"Oh they had to leave" Clarisse answered while looking at her then Charlotte who appeared behind Pierre
"What's going on?" she asked
"We are just about to go and open presents" she smiled
They all headed over to their suite, where presents were handed out to everyone. When Charlotte noticed the ring on Clarisse's finger as she stood next to her, Charlotte reached over and tapped Pierre on the shoulder, and smiled when he looked at her.
"Look at your Mom's hand" she mouthed while pointing to her own wedding ring
Pierre raised an eyebrow and looked to see what she was on about "Alright, when did that happen?" he exclaimed while standing up as everyone looked at him as he took Clarisse's hand "When?" he smirked
"Oh this morning" she smiled as he hugged her
"This is great news" he smiled kissing her cheek "Congratulations" he smiled while stepping back and watched Charlotte hug her
"Thank you" Clarisse smiled
"Hey" Pierre suddenly noticed the puppy "When did you get a puppy?"
"Where?" James exclaimed and noticed her "Awww" he rushed over and picked her up
"She was a present too" Clarisse smiled "We still need a name for her though" she watched James and Lilly pet her
"What about Holly?" James asked "It is Christmas after all" he smiled over at them
"I like it" Clarisse smiled "Holly it is then" she walked over and crouched down next to them "Thank you James"
"Your welcome Grandma" James smiled
"Hey I know you only just got engaged this morning" Sofia smiled "But I just want to make sure you won't be getting married while I'm still pregnant right?"she grinned "I want to be able to toast my parents with Champagne, not Orange Juice" she giggled
"Oh of course not" Clarisse smiled standing next to her "It won't be for a while yet, so you don't have to worry"
"Good" Sofia smiled and hugged her
They carried on opening presents and all sat talking and having a laugh in their suite. As the evening went on, they started going back to their own suites, until Clarisse and Joseph was alone, Olivia claimed the puppy for the night and took her back to her suite.
"Why don't you leave the tidying up till morning?" Joseph asked while standing next to Clarisse
"Because I won't be able to sleep" she said looking at him "You should know that" she smirked and kissed him before carrying on
"Alright" he chuckled and watched her "Do you want a drink?" he asked while watching her crouch down next to the Christmas tree
"Yes please" she replied while kneeling "Someone forgot a present under here" she moved sitting on her bum, her legs tucked next to her and noticed her name on it "Joe" she looked up at him as he stood next to her
"What?" he asked crouching down with a smile
"You have got me enough already" she said playfully tapping his forehead with the box
"I haven't" he smirked "Hence why you got an extra present" he smiled while putting his hand on her back
"You have, you gave me this ring" she smiled holding up her hand "The puppy, the shoes, the necklace and earrings" she smiled "The sexy lingerie, plus all the other little things" she chuckled while looking at him
"Open it, please" he smiled
"Ok" she smiled while unwrapping it, opening it to find a set of keys "Ok, I'm lost" she said taking them from the box
"This" he said taking hold of them and showing her the photo keyring "is our new private pad" he smiled as she gasped
"What?" she exclaimed while looking at the photo "Really?"
"Yes" he nodded as he knelt beside her "I figured we needed our own place again, you know for fun weekends" he chuckled
"Naughty weekends you mean" she giggled and kissed him while putting her hand on his thigh
He smiled against her lips "If you want to call it that, then yes" he laughed
"Thank you" she said looking up at him
"Your welcome" he whispered between kisses, gently pushing her onto her back
"The door?" she asked while putting the keys down under the tree
"Is locked" he whispered back while pushing her skirt down, gently resting himself on her as he kissed her
"Good" she answered while moving her arms, locking them around his shoulders "Mmm" she giggled "Twice in one day" she smiled looking at him "Haven't done that for a while"
"Well it will happen more often from today" he smiled and kissed her slowly
He ran his hand down her side, gripping her thigh as she rested it against his hip making her moan just as the suite phone started ringing.
"Oh what" he gasped while pushing himself up a little
"Leave it" Clarisse whispered as he grabbed the phone and moved back over her "Its never important anyway" she whispered while pulling his shirt out from his pants and kissed his neck
"It might be seeing though its nearly 11" he answered back, giving her a kiss as he answered the phone "Hello" he said taking the call as she sighed and watched him, after a second he sat back "It's for you" he held the phone out to her
"Who is it?" she asked taking the phone while sitting up
"Your Brother" he stood up and walked over to the bedroom
She watched him with a sigh then took the phone call. After she was done talking to Stephen she hung up and turned the Christmas tree lights off, put the phone on the table and headed over to the bedroom.
She looked over at Joseph while pulling the door up behind her and wondered over to his side of the bed as he sat reading.
"Are you mad at me?" she asked while sitting down on the edge of the bed
"No" he shook his head while looking up at her
"Ok" she watched him for a few seconds as he looked back at the book
"What did he want anyway?" Joseph asked while closing the book
"Just to apologize" she said standing up and headed over to the bathroom
She came out a few minutes later ready for bed, climbed in next to Joseph and turned the lamp off.
"Good night then" she whispered while laying down and pulled the covers over herself
"Yep, goodnight" he answered while watching her, and put the book away "I know you think I'm mad at you" he moved as she turned over "But I'm not, I'm mad at myself" he moved his arm under her head as she snuggled into him
"You have no reason to be" she whispered while resting her head on his chest as he kissed the top of her head
Not long after Clarisse was fast asleep. Turning over a couple hours later to find Joseph wasn't in bed, she sat up and noticed the curtains to the french doors were slightly open, she climbed out of bed and slipped on her robe while walking over to the doors, doing it up as she headed outside to find Joseph smoking a cigar.
"You could of done that in the suite you know" she said walking over as he looked at her
"Hey you" he nodded as she sat on the edge of the lounger he was sat on "I know, but it was such a clear night I fancied sitting out here instead"
"Ahh ok" she nodded and turned to look up into the sky "Lovely isn't it?" she asked with a smile
"Indeed it is" he nodded while rubbing her back "I've finished now, do you want to sit with me a while?" he asked as she turned to look at him
"Yea" she nodded while standing up, and moved sitting on the lounger between his legs and rested back against him as he wrapped his arms around her shoulders, covering her up with the blanket
"I was thinking about the Wedding" Joseph smiled as he rested the side of his head against hers
"Really?" she asked while looking up into the night sky
"Uh huh" he smiled "I think we should do it next year, and was thinking maybe 1st July" he grinned as she put her hands down on his thighs "It won't be too hot and not to cold then, it would be just right"
"I like that idea" she nodded
"And Sofia won't be pregnant then too, so it works just fine" he chuckled
"Indeed" she nodded with a smile "1st July it is then" she smiled and sat up "Ok, it's getting really cold now so I am going back inside" she said turning and stood up
"I will come with you" he said looking at her while standing up
"Good, I hoped you would" she smiled while taking his hand and started leading him over to the doors
"Wait" he stopped as she stopped and looked at him
"What?" she asked and watched him step closer to her "Ahhh" she exclaimed then laughed as he scooped her up in his arms "Joseph" she gasped while putting her arms around his neck
He didn't answer her, just carried her back inside and over to the bed. Where they stayed for the rest of the night, Loving each other.