Hello everyone, I just wanted to say thank you to you all for reading the latest chapter, with a special thank you going to Chelsietx, bee-327, ClarisseMarie and happygolucky12 for taking the time to leave lovely reviews for me. I really do appreciate them and can't thank you all enough.
And to answer your question, you will find out soon enough ;)
Now, here's the next chapter for you. Please enjoy and remember, do let me know your thoughts at the end. Thank you :)
"We're back," Isabella smiled as she and Joseph returned from the pharmacy a short time later and stood next to their table.
"Welcome back," Vee smiled and looked up at them as Isabella picked up her drink from the table and took a sip of it. "Did you get what you needed?"
"Yes, I did," he nodded and looked down at her, "where's Clarisse?"
"She's out there dancing with Diego," Vee smiled and pointed towards the beach just as the song changed to a different one.
"Oh my god, yes!" Isabella exclaimed loudly while setting her drink back down on the table, "I absolutely love love love love this song," she said and raised her hand up in the air above her head, her other hand remaining down at her side, as she started jumping up and down on the spot and singing along to the song now playing.
Laughing at his niece jumping up and down beside him, Joseph turned his head to look out towards where Vee had pointed and watched as Diego took a step back from Clarisse, his hand still holding onto hers and raised their arms up above them, for Clarisse to twirl under, before he pulled her back close to him, and while keeping hold of her hand at their sides, he wrapped his other arm around her waist, his hand going to her back, holding her to his six foot frame as she tipped her head back and laughed as they continued to dance together.
"She's really enjoying herself now, after the earlier mishap with Gigi," Vee said as Joseph looked back down at her and picked up his drink from the table.
"Yes, she is, at last," he said, half smiling at her before looking back up at his wife and Diego dancing and laughing together. Watching them intently a moment while taking a long drink of his scotch.
"Diego's in his element, isn't he?" Juana smiled as she returned to the table and stood next to her brother. "Dancing with Royalty."
"So is Clarisse," Joseph smiled and turned his head to his youngest sister before placing his glass back down on the table. "She loves to dance."
"We can see," Vee smiled.
"Excuse me, I'm going to go and see if I can steal her away from your husband to dance with her myself," Joseph smirked and turned to walk away from the table, and over to where they were dancing on the beach.
"Good luck," Vee called after him and looked up at Juana and Isabella before looking at him slowly approaching Clarisse and Diego dancing.
"May I steal her away?" Joseph smiled when he reached them and watched as they both turned their heads to look at him.
"Oh, absolutely. She's all yours," Diego smiled as he stepped back and looked to Clarisse, "gracias for the dance," he said, kissing the back of the hand he was still holding onto.
"Oh, de nada," Clarisse smiled up at him as she placed her free hand up on her chest before averting her gaze to her husband and bit her bottom lip. Contemplating to herself over how incredibly handsome he looked standing there waiting for her hand.
"Here you go," Diego smiled and passed her hand into Joseph's hand before stepping closer to him. "When you get a minute later, can we talk? There's something I want to ask you."
"Of course," Joseph nodded and watched as Diego turned to Clarisse to bow his head to her before walking away. Leaving them to dance. Smiling, he turned to Clarisse and stepped closer while letting go of her hand and reaching his hands out onto her sides. "Hello you."
"Hello handsome," Clarisse smiled and raised her hands up, cupping his face in them as she reached up to kiss him. His arms now snaking around her waist, holding her close as they started swaying gently together from side to side a little. "When did you get back?" She asked, looking up into his eyes.
"Just a few minutes ago," Joseph smiled as she snaked her arms around his neck and grasped the back of his head with one hand, "and I must say, it was rather an interesting trip. Not only because of the conversation Isabella and I had on the way, but because it was rather awkward purchasing what I went for with my twenty-three year old niece in tow." He laughed.
"Oh of course," she said quietly, trying not to laugh. "Did she see it?"
"She did yes, she recommended which one to get actually," he said, and Clarisse gasped before they both laughed. "Next time, I will have to think before agreeing to someone tagging along."
"Yes, you will," Clarisse said, her cheeks burning in embarrassment. "She won't tell anyone, would she? I mean, it was meant to be private. What you were going for."
"Oh gosh, no, she's very trustworthy," Joseph said and shook his head. "She actually said, and I quote, 'good for you'," he laughed.
"She didn't?" Clarisse exclaimed in surprise and bit her bottom lip.
"She did," Joseph smirked cheekily and watched as Clarisse briefly covered her eyes with one of her hands as she laughed. "I wouldn't be embarrassed about her knowing, though, my love. She gets it. We are here on honeymoon after all. It's to be expected. Even at our age."
"I know," Clarisse smiled and studied his face a moment as she put her arm back up around his shoulder, and they continued to sway slowly together. "I guess after years of not having to worry about this sort of thing, or getting this kind of attention, I'm still trying to get my head around the fact that people will know what's going on and that there's nothing to be embarrassed about. It's only natural."
"Exactly, it's natural," Joseph smiled and kissed her before looking back into her gorgeous sparkling eyes. The lights from the bar reflecting in them. "While we are here on our own, I want to thank you."
"What for?" Clarisse asked as he smoothed his hands up her back.
"For talking to Isabella earlier, and for encouraging her to talk to me about her and Mateo," he said. "I was shocked, of course, but I'm glad that she told me instead of letting me find out the way you did."
"I knew you would be," Clarisse smiled up at him. "Did you go all protective mode on her," she asked and laughed as Joseph smirked. "Take that as a yes then."
"Obviously, yes, and I told her that I'll be having words with him too before we leave to go back to Genovia, just like I did with her father when he and her mother started dating, and with Pedro and Carlos too," he chuckled as she moved one hand down onto his chest while leaving her other arm up around his shoulder.
"I knew you would," Clarisse laughed, her fingertips toying with the lapel of his jacket. "Isabella may be the wild child of your family, but she's really sensible too."
"Yes she is, just like her mother and Lucia," Joseph smiled and studied her a moment while putting his hand up onto hers, resting on his chest. "Shall we go sit down, have another drink?"
"Okay," she smiled and moved her hand from the back of his shoulder to grasp the back of his head once again as she reached up to kiss him. A long lingering kiss. Before stepping back and taking hold of his hand. Turning, she led him away from the beach and back over to their table while putting their entwined hands together against her back.
Reaching their table, Joseph let go of her hand and moved to stand close behind her while putting his hands onto her sides as she placed her hands down on the table in front of her and carefully slipped her shoes back on before standing back up straight in front of him and smiling contentedly as he kissed the top of her shoulder while snaking his arms around her waist. Holding her back against him.
"Are you okay?" Clarisse asked softly while putting one hand on his arms wrapped around her waist and her other arm up, her hand cupping his cheek as he rested his chin on her shoulder. Just as the song changed to one of his favourites.
"Mhmm, yes, I am," he said, flashing her a flirty smile and rocking his hips from side to side slightly against her bottom as she turned her head to look at him. "I just wanted to hold you a moment before we sit down with the others, but now I want to dance with you."
Smiling, Clarisse turned to face him as he loosened his arms from around her waist and smoothed his hands onto her hips. "We can dance, if you want to dance," she said, her gaze fixated with his as she slipped her hands in the opening of his jacket and around to his back as she stepped closer to him. So their bodies were touching. And buried her face in his neck.
Wrapping his arms around her shoulders, Joseph moved one hand to rest against the nape of her neck, his finger tips brushing back and forth over the side of her neck, as they began to move slowly together next to their table a moment before Clarisse lifted her head to look up into his eyes. "You're really hot, why don't you take off your jacket?"
"I can't, I have too much in my inside pocket," Joseph smirked at her as she moved her hands up his back under his jacket. "And I don't want to lose anything."
"You can put them in my handbag?" She smiled up at him and kissed his jaw.
"Do you have room?" He asked, "you already have so much in there."
"Yes, of course I do," Clarisse smiled as she stepped back from him and moved around to the back of her seat, to get her handbag from under her blazer on the seat next to Vee before walking back around to him while opening her bag to show him. "See? There is plenty of room."
"Oh you do. It's like a magic bag," he smiled while slipping his hand into the inside pocket of his jacket and pulled out his phone first. "Thank you."
"You don't need to thank me, silly. You can put anything in here anytime you want," she smiled as she watched him tuck his phone, wallet, and the thing he purchased from the pharmacy into her bag. "Is that everything?" She asked while looking back up at him.
"Yep it is," he nodded, removing his jacket and draping it over the back of his seat as she done her bag back up. "Oh, that feels so much better."
"I imagine it is," she smiled and put her handbag back on the seat, covering it back up with her blazer, before moving to stand back in front of him and putting her hands on his sides. "I know it's a different song, but shall we finish dancing now?"
"Oh, yes," he smiled and stepped closer to her while wrapping his arms back around her shoulders, pulling her body flush with his as she laughed. "I know it's a different song, but I like this one too," he whispered in her ear.
"Me too," she smiled and reached up to kiss him while wrapping her arms around his waist as they began to sway slowly together once again. Their gaze fixated on one another a moment before she buried her face back in his neck.
Sitting at the back of the u-shaped sofa, Isabella took a sip of her drink and smiled when she spotted them dancing together at the end of their table. A moment of pure love between two newlyweds. Two newlyweds that were practically perfect for one another. And very much in love.
"Aww madre, look," Isabella said as she leant closer to her mother sitting beside her and gestured towards them dancing. "Isn't that romantic? They are so cute together."
"They are," Vee smiled and turned her head to look at her daughter sitting beside her. "You should take a photo for them."
"Do you think?" Isabella asked as she looked back at her. "What if they think I'm invading their privacy?"
"They won't mind. If anything, they'll love it," Vee nodded with a smile. "Besides they already said that if any of us see a photo opportunity to grab the camera. So try it on your phone. If it doesn't come out okay, then I'll grab the camera from Clarisse's bag for you."
"Okay," Isabella smiled and got her phone from her purse. Looking back up at them a moment later, she took a photo or two of them on her phone when they stopped swaying, and Clarisse lifted her head to look up at her husband with a small laugh.
After putting her phone down in her lap, to hide the fact that she had been taking pictures of them dancing, Isabella picked up her drink from the table and took a long sip from it as she continued watching them stood talking and laughing together when she noticed that Clarisse was leaning more on one leg, while her other leg was forward a little. Her foot discreetly positioned between her husbands legs.
Smiling, Joseph loosened his arms from around her shoulders and smoothed his hands slowly down her back and onto her sides as she stood up straight and slipped her arms up around his neck. "I think it's time we sit down, don't you?" Clarisse smiled up at him, her hand grasping the back of his head.
"Yes, I think it is," Joseph smirked and kissed her a couple of times before she slowly stepped back, one of her hands smoothing down his arm until she could grasp his hand in hers and turned to the table behind her. To finally join Vee, Diego, Isabella, Juana, and Pedro.