A/N: To everyone reading this story, thank you. But to bee-327, Chelsietx, ClarisseMarie, and to the guest for taking time to leave me reviews. Thank you a million times over, I appreciate it so much!
Also, I would like to say a massive thank you to bee-327 for your advice and help, I appreciate it so so much, too. You are a superstar!
Here's the next chapter for you all. Please enjoy…
Stepping out onto the back patio some mornings later, Clarisse took a sip of her freshly poured orange juice and took a slow walk down towards the top of the steps leading down to the pool where her husband was taking a swim. That was until he spotted her standing there in her knee-length silk robe. And he couldn't get out of the pool quickly enough.
"Well good morning, beautiful," he smiled as he made his way towards the steps, grabbing his towel from the sun lounger as he passed by.
"Good morning," she smiled, watching him dab his face and chest dry with the towel as he made his way up the steps towards her.
"How are you feeling this morning?" He asked, now standing in front of her and reaching a hand out onto her side. "You were so restless last night, I'm actually surprised to see you up so early."
"I'm not feeling that great this morning," Clarisse replied and moved her hand, holding the glass to the side as he leant into her. Giving her a quick kiss on the lips before looking into her eyes. "I'm sorry if I kept you awake."
"You didn't, I wasn't able to sleep much either. I have a lot on my mind," he replied, his hand smoothing down over her hip and coming to rest on the top of her thigh a brief moment. "I'm more worried about you, though. In what way are you not feeling great?"
"Oh, I'm just feeling a little off, that's all. It's nothing that won't pass soon enough I'm sure," Clarisse said as they both turned and slowly made their way up towards the table on the patio. "But what about you? Do you wish to talk about what's on your mind?"
"Not yet," he said with a shake of his head and smiled as he turned his head to look at her walking along side him, "it's nothing to worry about, it's actually more of an idea than anything. But we will chat about it in a little while, I promise."
"Okay," Clarisse replied, full of curiosity as she stopped and turned to look out at the beautiful view of the ocean a moment. "I can't believe that we are leaving today," she said wistfully. "We have made so many wonderful memories here over the last two weeks, I'm really going to miss this place."
"Yes we have, I quite agree. And, I'm going to miss it too, of course," Joseph nodded as he turned to glance out at the view, too, before turning his head to look at her. "But I could always see if I can book it for us to stay in if you do manage to come out to join me when I'm out here helping Diego later in the year," he said and watched her turn her head to look at him, "or, perhaps, we could even look at coming back here for our first anniversary?"
"That sounds lovely," Clarisse said, giving him a small smile and glancing back out at the view before letting out a contented sigh and turning to continue on up to the table together. "I wouldn't mind coming back here again and making more memories together."
"Of course, I'll see what I can do," Joseph nodded with a smile and pulled a chair out for her once they reached the table. "Oh, look. It's Marie-Rose's hat." He chuckled, reaching down for it from the chair he had just pulled out.
"Oh my goodness, we were looking for that everywhere last night. Poor Marie-Rose was ever so upset that we couldn't find it. She was convinced that it had been swept out to sea and was lost forever," Clarisse exclaimed while setting her glass down on the table and taking the hat from him as she sat down in the chair he had pulled out for her. "We will have to remember to give it to Diego when he picks us up to take us to the airport later."
"Mhmm we will," Joseph nodded and sat down at the head of the table next to her. Watched her as she twisted the hat around a moment in her hands before placing it on the table in front of them. "Yesterday was fun, wasn't it? Having everyone over for a barbecue and party on the beach."
"Yes it was, it was a lot of fun and it was lovely seeing them all again and spending the day with them before heading home," Clarisse nodded happily and put her hands together, tucking them down between her legs as she crossed them under the table and raised her shoulders for the briefest of moments before releasing one hand and reaching out for her glass of orange juice.
"Out of the whole day though, my favourite part's were watching you with Luna and Marie-Rose looking for shells, they were so so happy that you spent that time with them doing that, and then, of course, the other was when we were dancing together on the beach. The sun was setting, and even though my family was close by, it felt like it was just us two there. Nobody else," Joseph smirked mischievously and leant forward, folding his arms together on the table in front of him as Clarisse took a sip of her drink. "That was truly magical."
"That's my favourite part of yesterday too," Clarisse smiled as she set her glass back down on the table and leant forward, also folding her arms together on the table in front of her as she studied his face.
"Oh, so it wouldn't be the frank conversation that we had as we danced then?" He said and they both laughed at the memory as Clarisse looked away across the garden towards the pool and ocean with a small shake of her head before looking back at him and raising one hand up from the table, to rest her chin so delicately upon it.
Taking a swig of his beer, Joseph watched Clarisse with his two younger nieces, Luna and Marie-Rose. They were looking for seashells along the seashore together, had been for a little while now, and seeing them bonding and how excited the girls were to show Clarisse whenever they found one made his heart swell with pride. He honestly couldn't be anymore happier over how well they had taken to Clarisse than he was right at that moment. It's like she had always been part of their life's. Not just over the last couple of weeks.
Setting his beer bottle down on the tray beside him a moment later, he picked up Clarisse's glass of wine and watched as she made her way over to him while brushing the sand from her hands. "Thank you," she smiled as she stood in front of him and reached up to give him a quick kiss before taking her glass from him.
"You're welcome," he smiled, slipping his hands in his shorts pockets and watched her turn her head to the side, to take a sip of her drink. "Can I steal you away for a little while?" He whispered and leant closer to place a quick kiss to her neck.
"You can, yes," Clarisse smiled as she bent to the side, to set her drink back down on the tray next to his beer bottle before standing back upright and looking up into his eyes while putting her hands out onto his sides. "You can tell the girls, though."
"Hey girls," Joseph said as he looked over at them still hunting for shells, and smiled when they both looked over at him. "I'm just going to steal your tía Clarisse away for a little while. Is that okay?"
"But she's helping us look for seashells tío José," Luna replied.
"I know she is, but I won't keep her away for too long. I promise," Joseph smiled and glanced to Clarisse, standing in front of him with a cheeky smirk on her face.
"Will you continue helping us when you come back tía Clarisse?" Marie-Rose asked as Clarisse turned her head to look over at them.
"Oh absolutely," Clarisse nodded with a smile.
"Okay, see you in a little while then," Marie-Rose smiled before skipping away happily with Luna.
"That was easy," Joseph chuckled, and they both turned to walk away from the others. "I thought it would be a lot harder than that to steal you away."
"That's because you promised you wouldn't keep me away too long," Clarisse smiled as he moved to walk closer to her and wrapped his arm around the top of her shoulders, his hand draped over the shoulder furthest away from him.
"Actually, I think it's because you promised you would continue helping them when we return," Joseph smiled at her as she bent her arm up and grasped hold of his hand draped over her shoulder while slipping her other arm around his back. Her hand going to his side. "They really love you."
"And I love them too. They are the cutest things," Clarisse smiled as they continued walking slowly along the shore. The waves of the ocean crashing over their feet as they walked. "Now, what is the reason for you wanting to steal me away?"
"I just wanted to spend a little time with you, maybe share a dance together and there was something that I wanted to ask you too," he said as she tipped her head forward a little with a laugh.
"Alright," Clarisse smiled as they came to a stop, and she turned to him, his arm remaining wrapped around her shoulders. "Go on, what is it that you want to ask me?"
"Well, obviously a lot has happened between us here over the last couple weeks and what with us having to unfortunately return home and get back to reality tomorrow we won't be able to spend as much time together as we have done while we have been here," he said as he lowered his arm from around her shoulders and turned to face her, placing his hands now on her sides under her kimono and holding her close to him. "So I was wondering if we could make a plan, you know, so that we can keep the fires burning, so to speak." He smirked. "Because wanting to be with you isn't just going to stop, and it may become challenging with your busy schedule."
"I see what you mean," Clarisse nodded and reached her hands up to cup his chin in them. "Yes, us spending as much time together once we return home may prove a little difficult. Obviously, I will have more free time now that Mia is Queen, but she's still going to need my help from time to time, so my time may be limited here and there. But I promise I am going to make as much time as I possibly can to spend with you because, like you, I want to keep those fires burning too."
"Oh good," he said and snaked his arms around her waist as they shared a deep, loving kiss. "You should know that I want to wake in the middle of the night and pull you closer to me. Just to hold you in my arms a little while."
"You better," Clarisse smiled up at him as she moved her hands to rest on the tops of his shoulders a brief moment before smoothing them down his arms, now wrapped around her. "I actually want to wake to you kissing me in the middle of the night, not you just pulling me closer and holding me a little while."
"I can certainly do that," Joseph smiled and buried his face in the crook of her neck, her perfume intoxicating his senses, as they began to sway slowly together to the song that was playing in the distance.
"And you should know that after you have woken me up with those slow kisses, I then want the passionate kisses as you climb oh so deliciously on top of me, followed by the neck kisses, the biting, the grabbing, the heavy breathing and the pauses as you gaze into my eyes. I want the touching, the feeling each other." Clarisse whispered and briefly closed her eyes as he began to kiss her neck and along her jaw. "Then after all that, I want you to take me and make love to me in the middle of the night."
"We need to behave," Joseph whispered against her jaw and watched as she pulled her head back, his arms still wrapped around her waist holding her close, and looked up into her husband's sexy desire filled eyes for the briefest of moments before he leant in close to her. To kiss her deeply on the lips.
Breaking the kiss a moment later, Clarisse smoothed her hands back up his arms and snaked her arms up around his shoulders as she buried her face under his chin. "I can't help being a hopeless romantic with a dirty mind and high standards." She said, and he laughed, his hands now moving up and down her back as they continued to sway slowly together. "I want to be treated like a lady in public, ravaged oh so deliciously in private, and wooed, by you, for eternity."
"You asked me about setting a plan so that we can make time to be together once we were home and back to reality," Clarisse laughed with a small shrug. "I was only being honest."
"You were tipsy more like," Joseph teased and laughed as she gasped. Pretending to be offended. "Alright, can you sit there and tell me right now that you would have said those things to me had you not had a drink or two beforehand?"
"Yes… maybe," she laughed and glanced down to his lips as she leant closer to him, to kiss him slowly a moment before pulling back just enough to gaze into his gorgeous blue eyes. "What can I say? You bring out my naughty side."
"Mhmm, I certainly do, and I love that I do," he smiled and moved his face closer to give her a quick kiss. "Honestly though, my love, in case I didn't say it to you yesterday. Thank you," he said softly.
"What ever are you thanking me for?" Clarisse asked. "I haven't done anything."
"Yes, you have," Joseph said as he reached out for her hand that was resting on the table in front of her. Holding it in both of his hands as he continued. "Even though we are on honeymoon, you were happy for us to spend time with my family, even suggesting that we spend our last proper day here with them yesterday. Inviting them over for a family barbecue so that I could see them before we head home."
"Of course, they are your family, and I know how important they all are to you," Clarisse said softly as she gazed into his eyes. "They are important to me too now, and as I said before, it was a lovely getting to spend the day with them and getting to know them a bit more."
Studying her face a moment, Joseph nodded. "Did you mean what you told Luna and Marie-Rose when they came over to us as we danced?"
"Yes I did, absolutely," Clarisse nodded and gave him a small smile. "I meant every word I told them."
"Look tía Clarisse," Marie-Rose exclaimed a little while later as she and Luna made their way towards them dancing. "We found another shell."
Pulling her head back from where her face had been buried in her husbands neck, Clarisse looked down at the girls, now standing beside them. "Oh, let me have a look," she smiled as she lowered her arms from around Joseph's shoulders and turned to them.
"It's a pretty colourful one," Marie-Rose smiled and held out her hand to her excitedly, showing her the shell in the palm of her hand as Joseph watched on from beside Clarisse. His hand smoothing back and forth across the bottom of her back.
"Oh, that is pretty," Clarisse smiled as she bent forward and put her hands up together under Marie-Rose's hand. "That looks like a special one."
"Sí," Marie-Rose nodded and smiled up at her as she stood back upright. "Can you keep hold of this one? I don't want to lose it."
"Of course I can," Clarisse smiled as she held out her hand to her, her palm facing upwards and watched as Marie-Rose placed the shell in the palm of her hand. "I will put it in my pocket for you."
"Thank you," Marie-Rose smiled up at her as Clarisse put the shell in her trouser pocket.
"Tío José," Luna smiled as she put her hands together behind her back. "Can Marie-Rose and I stay here with you and Tia Clarisse tonight?"
"Oh yes, can we?" Marie-Rose exclaimed excitedly and clapped her hands together as Clarisse turned her head to look up at her husband.
"Not tonight I'm afraid," Joseph replied.
"But we usually stay with you a couple of times while you are visiting, and we haven't stayed once this time," Luna said sadly.
"Yeah, and you are leaving tomorrow," Marie-Rose said.
"I know we are," Joseph said and lifted Marie-Rose up into his arms as Luna moved to stand next to Clarisse. "But we will be back again soon, and I promise that the next time we are here, you can both stay over."
"But why can't we stay tonight?" Luna asked and wrapped her arms around Clarisse's waist as she looked down at her and wrapped her arm around her shoulders.
"Because this trip is different to my past trips here. It's been a special trip," Joseph said and glanced to Clarisse before looking down at Luna snuggling close to her, then up at Marie-Rose. "And because we are leaving tomorrow, we have to pack all our clothes tonight so that we are ready to go when your padre and abuelo arrives to take us to the airport."
"Oh," Marie-Rose said.
"We both promise that you can come and stay with us the next time we visit, but in the meantime, how about I make arrangements so that you can all come visit us next month before you return to school after summer break?" Clarisse said as they all looked up at her.
"We can stay at the palace?" Luna smiled.
"Yes, you can stay at the palace," Clarisse smiled down at her then up at Marie-Rose. "We can get the ramp out and do some mattress surfing, we can take bike rides around the grounds, and we can even go out for rides on the horses."
"Really?" Marie-Rose exclaimed excitedly.
"Yes, really," Clarisse smiled as Joseph stood Marie-Rose back down. "I will talk to both of your padres and madres about it."
"Yay," both Luna and Marie-Rose exclaimed in unison before running off.
"Thank you," Joseph smiled and wrapped his arm around her shoulders as they both turned and began making their way back towards his family. "You have really made their day."
"Anytime," Clarisse smiled and lifted her hand to grasp hold of his hand draped once again over her shoulder. "But packing, really?" She laughed.
"What?" Joseph shrugged with a laugh as she turned her head to look up at him. "I couldn't tell them the real reason why they couldn't stay, could I?"
"True," she smiled and started laughing as he pulled her closer to him and buried his face in her neck. "Why do I get a feeling that no packing will be done tonight."
"I mean you can pack if you want to, but I can think of another way to spend our last night here," he whispered and nuzzled her neck, making her laugh, as she let go of his hand and put her hand up onto his chest.
"Joseph," she whispered and laughed as he lifted his head to gaze into her eyes.
"I even talked to Vee and Juana about it after we finished dancing." Clarisse smiled.
"You did?" Joseph said and slumped back in his seat in surprise. "I didn't know you did that."
"Ahh, so I can still manage to keep some things from you then," she teased and laughed as he sat back up in his seat, so he was close to her once again and reached one hand up to brush her hair back behind her ear before cupping her cheek. "They will be coming for a week sometime next month. And honestly, I can't wait."
"Neither can I," he all but whispered as he leant closer and kissed her a couple of times. "I love you."
"I love you too," Clarisse said, smiling and biting her bottom lip as she studied his face a moment.
"Right," Joseph smiled and sat back a little with a small nod. "I know you're not feeling that great this morning, but you do need to try and eat something. And it might make you feel a bit better. So, would you like to have a bowl of the fruit salad that I made us for breakfast earlier?"
"Oh, yes, please," Clarisse smiled as she slumped back in her chair, her hands folding together against her stomach, and watched her husband get to his feet. "I would love some."
Stepping closer to her, Joseph bent forward and placed his hands down on the armrests of her chair on either side of her as she tipped her head back to look up at him. "Coming right up," he whispered and leant in to kiss her. A lingering kiss first, followed by several quick kisses. "I'll be back."
"Okay," Clarisse smiled and watched him make his way towards the open patio doors before she turned her head to look back out at the gorgeous view. Oh, how she wished that they could stay there. Even for just a few days more. But it wasn't to be. Because in just a few hours, they would be leaving to head back home to Genovia and back to reality.