A/N: Hey everyone, thank you all so very much for reading this story and to danniso, Chelsietx, and bee-327 for taking time to leave me lovely reviews on the latest chapter. I'm so very thankful to you for the support, especially since it's been a struggle lately for me to keep going with this story and my other story, Married Life, but please know that I think you, as well as all the other reviewers who have left reviews previously, are the absolute best and I appreciate you all!
Here's the next chapter for you…
After signing the marriage certificate with their two chosen witnesses and posing for photos together and, of course, with the rest of their family, everyone sat down for a delicious four course meal in the dining room before gathering back in the ballroom for a chat and a spot of music, courtesy of Pierre and Philippe, who had spent hours the previous day with one of the other security guards and trusted friend, Shades, putting together a few of their favourite songs, as well as a few of their mothers and Joseph's favourites, too, for everyone to enjoy, dance or sing along to.
And later on that night, after taking a long sip of her drink, Mariana watched Joseph carefully dip his new bride and stand her back up straight as the song they had shared their first official dance together too as husband and wife came to an end before he wrapped his arms around her waist, to lift her off her feet and spin her around, making her laugh and briefly tip her head back as she locked her arms around his neck.
'They look so happy and content together,' she thought happily to herself with a smile before lowering her gaze, to give them their privacy as he stood her back down on her feet in front of him a moment later with his arms remaining wrapped around her waist, holding her close while her arms were now wrapped loosely around the tops of his shoulders, with one hand resting against the back of his neck and her other hand placed lovingly on the back of his head as they stood talking in the middle of the ballroom a moment.
"Mother," Sofia said quietly, pulling her mother from her thoughts, as she moved into the seat next to her with her daughter, Elena, in her arms, while her father sat talking to her brother, sister, Béatrice, Valérie and Isabelle at the other end of the table. "Has Joseph said anything to you about how they came to get married so quickly, or how he got that black eye? I know he gave us a heads up about that before we came, but he never explained how he actually got it."
"No, he hasn't said anything to me about either," Mariana said with a shake of her head and set her glass back down on the table in front of her while looking down at her granddaughter smiling happily up at her. "We will have to ask him about it when he comes back over here, won't we, Elena? Yes we will," she smiled and reached her hands out to take her from Sofia, as she giggled in delight, before she and Sofia both looked across the room at Clarisse and Joseph still stood talking in the middle of the ballroom together.
Smiling, Clarisse smoothed her hands from the back of his head to cup his face in them as she leant in close and pressed her lips to his in a lingering kiss before kissing him a couple of times while moving her hands down now over the tops of his shoulders and slowly down his arms, to take his hands briefly in hers, as she took a few steps backwards and slowly turned away from him, to make her way across the ballroom and out of the door as Joseph stood with his hands now in his pants pockets, watching her.
After watching her leave the ballroom, Joseph momentarily looked down at the floor with a happy sigh before turning to make his way back over to join their family at the table. "Where's Clarisse going?" His mother asked curiously as she looked up at him now standing beside her chair.
"She's going to get changed out of her wedding dress and into something a bit more comfortable for the drive to the Winter Castle," he replied with a smile and reached his hands out to take his niece from his mothers arms as a feeling of relief washed over him, relief that now they were married they could finally be open and free about their feelings towards each other, and everyone else around them. No more keeping secrets.
"You're leaving?" Mariana asked and watched him with her granddaughter as he held her in his arms grasp. Secretly hoping that, now he was married and settling down, one day he and Clarisse might have a baby of their own. Blessing her and José with another grandchild.
"Yes we are, for a couple of nights," he nodded and turned his head to look down at her, "you are all, of course, still welcome to stay here tonight and spend time with the boys as originally planned before heading back home tomorrow. But Clarisse and I won't be here."
"Oh, you're going on a minimoon?" Sofia smiled while standing to her feet and stepping out from between the chairs as both her brother and mother looked at her. "There you go. You can sit down with Elena now."
"Thank you," Joseph smiled and moved between the chairs to sit in the seat that his sister had just vacated for him and sat his niece in his lap so she was facing him with his hands on her sides, holding her upright, "and yes, we are going on a minimoon for now. But we do plan on going on a proper honeymoon later on when we have more time, just like we plan on having a proper wedding too at some point and inviting more of our families and friends."
"Oh yes, I was wondering if you were going to do that," Mariana nodded and relaxed back in her chair while loosely folding her arms as Joseph looked down at his niece sitting in his lap and began making her laugh. "You know that you're going to have a fair few upset family members when the news finally breaks that you and Clarisse got married, don't you?"
"I know, but this was all very last minute and had to be kept hush hush," Joseph said and looked up at her as the rest of the family turned their attention to them, "what could I do?"
"I know, darling, I know," Mariana nodded and reached her hand out onto his arm. Giving it a pat or two. "I'm sure they'll understand when you explain that to them."
"I sure hope so," Joseph said and studied her a moment before looking back down at his niece giggling happily in his lap.
"So, are you going to explain it to us?" Sofia asked as she reached her hand out towards the table for her drink and took a sip of it before looking back down at her brother sitting in the chair in front of her. "How did this all come about? This whirlwind of an engagement and marriage to your best friend and our Queen, all in a space of four days."
"Yes, and how did you end up with that black eye, too?" Alonso laughed as everyone looked at him.
"Oh yes, and that too," Sofia said as she set her glass back down on the table and placed her hands down on her brothers shoulders. "How did you end up with a black eye?"
"Oh, he got that from protecting Clarisse from a pompous ass the other night," Béatrice said and took a sip of her drink as everyone looked down at her still sitting at the other end of the table.
"It's true, and part of the story to how we are now married," Joseph nodded, bouncing Elena on his knee, as everyone looked back at him and listened intently as he began to explain to them how, in just a space of four short days as his sister had said, he had gone from being a single man, to getting engaged and to now being married to his best friend, the woman he had always loved, and their Queen.
He explained to them how, after being told on her birthday of all days that in order for her to continue her reign as Genovia's Queen that she would have no choice but to find herself a new husband and marry all within thirty days, and how her trusted assistant, Charlotte, had put together a file with potential suitors for her to look through, where she'd had a disastrous dinner with one of them on Monday night, which had, of course, resulted in him getting the black eye protecting her.
And he explained how, after Clarisse had insisted on personally getting him an ice pack for his eye they had sat talking together in the kitchen a while, where he, not wanting to lose her again and knowing that this would probably be his only chance to do so, had asked her to marry him, followed with him finally declaring his true feelings for her. Feelings that he had kept buried from her for such a long, long time. Taking not only her but himself by surprise too. That he had finally been honest. That he had finally confessed how he truly felt for her.
He explained then, while they were talking up in his suite a little later that night, that she had told him she felt the same way about him too but was scared of ruining the close friendship that they had built over the years if they were to get together, but after a bit of convincing that everything would be okay between them if they were to marry, telling her that she was the one he wanted to spend the rest of his life with, no matter what happens, and after a bit of encouragement from her mother and her two sons, she finally agreed to become his wife.
"And here we are now, just four days later," Clarisse smiled as she stood, newly changed, behind her husband with her hands behind her back and watched as he turned in the seat to look up at her in surprise while Sofia took Elena from him, "husband and wife."
"And I couldn't be happier," Joseph grinned from ear to ear as he got to his feet and stepped out from between the seats as she turned to him.
"Me too," Clarisse smiled contentedly and studied his face a moment as he stepped closer to her while reaching a hand out onto her side.
"That really was a romantic story, Joseph," Sofia smiled as everyone nodded in agreement. "Thank you for sharing it with us. We understand so much more now."
"Yes it was, and I'm so glad that you agreed to marry him after all that, Clarisse," Alonso said as everyone looked at him and nodded once again.
"Yes, us too," José agreed as everyone looked back at Clarisse and Joseph still standing behind the seats.
"Hey, I just had a thought," Alonso suddenly exclaimed while looking from his father to Joseph and Clarisse and watched as they both looked back at him. "With you being Queen, Clarisse, does that mean Joseph is now King?"
"Unfortunately not, no," Clarisse said with a shake of her head and smiled up at her husband. "He'll be Prince Joseph."
"Prince Joseph Elizondo," Ana smiled as Clarisse glanced over at her before smiling back up at her husband. "Clarisse's very own Knight in shining armour."
"Yes he is," Clarisse said as she and Joseph smiled happily at one another before she leant in close to whisper in his ear. "And I wouldn't want it any other way. Not now."
"Me neither," Joseph replied as she pulled back to gaze up into his eyes.
"Well, all I can say is thank god for that years old rule," Mariana said as everyone looked at her, "because had there not been this rule of you needing to find a husband in order to keep the throne, we wouldn't be here celebrating your marriage today."
"That's right," José nodded thoughtfully, "we wouldn't be."
"Yes, and Joseph wouldn't have told you how he truly felt about you either," Alonso said as everyone looked at him. "And probably never would have either."
"Oh I don't know," Clarisse said as she turned her head to look back up at her husband. "I think he would have told me eventually. Well, at least I would like to think that he would have told me at some point." She smiled and watched as he tipped his head forward to look down between them with a nervous laugh.
"I would have told you at some point, yes. However, when that time would have been, I don't know," Joseph said as he looked back up into her eyes and smiled. "Anyway, how long were you standing behind me for?"
"Oh not long, only for a few seconds," Clarisse smiled as he leant in closer to her while smoothing his hand from her side around to now rest against her lower back.
"You look gorgeous," he whispered in her ear and pulled his head back to look briefly into her beautiful sparkling blue eyes before averting his gaze down to admire the knee length, sleeveless v-neck, royal blue dress that she had gotten changed into for their journey to the Winter Castle. A dress that suited her and the colour of her eyes oh so perfectly. "Are you nearly ready to leave?"
"Nearly, yes," she nodded and briefly turned her head to look at an envelope that she held up in her hand at the side of them before looking back up at him. "I just need to give this to Charlotte, talk to the boys and say goodbye to everyone, then I will be ready to leave."
"Alright," he smiled and leant in close to give her a quick kiss on the lips before looking at the envelope in her hand as she lowered it down next to them. "Is that for the Prime Minister?"
"It is, yes, I'm going to get Charlotte to give it to him for me at the start of session in the morning," she nodded and watched as he looked back up at her. "I also included one of the instant photos that Philippe took on his camera of us."
"Oh, how I wish I could be a fly on the wall tomorrow," Joseph said and they both laughed as they now pictured how the Prime Minister will react when he gets given her note and the photo of them from their wedding in the morning.
"His face is going to be a picture, that's for sure," Clarisse smiled and raised her free hand up to briefly cup his face before snaking her arms around his neck. "Anyway, I better go find Charlotte and give her this so we can set off. I won't be long."
"Alright," he smiled and wrapped his other arm around her waist, holding her close as they shared a couple quick kiss before he stood, watching her make her way back out of the ballroom to find her assistant.
"Let's have some champagne and make a toast to our future," Joseph said while grabbing the bottle of champagne from the ice bucket down by his feet in the footwell and a glass from the holder as the limousine they were travelling to the Winter Castle in left the palace grounds.
"And what a wonderful future it's going to be," Clarisse smiled as she watched him pour some champagne into the glass he had just picked up and carefully handed it to her before picking up the second glass from the holder, to pour himself a glass, "getting to spend everyday of the rest of my life not only as your best friend, but as your wife now too."
"I can't wait," Joseph smiled contentedly as he set the bottle back in the ice bucket and turned to face her on the back seat of the limousine before raising his glass up close to hers. "Here's to us and our future."
"Here's to us," Clarisse smiled as she averted her gaze to their glasses before they carefully clinked them together and each took a sip of their champagne. "I'm not going to drink to much of that," she said a moment later and leant forward, to set her glass back in the holder before removing her jacket and draping it over the seat in front of her. Ready to put back on when they arrive at the castle.
"Why not?" Joseph asked curiously while watching her settle back in the seat next to him. "I thought you liked a glass of champagne?"
"I do, yes, very much so," she nodded and turned her head to look at him, "but since I have already had a glass or two tonight, I don't want to be tipsy drunk when we arrive. I want to have a straight head for our first night together."
"I see," he chuckled and nodded while looking at his own glass of champagne.
"Anyway," she said, pulling him from his thoughts, as she reached down to grab her handbag from down by her feet in the footwell and lifting it into her lap. "I think I'm going to remove all these bobby pins and brush my hair through while we are on our way to the castle."
"Is that to save a bit of time later on?" Joseph smirked while leaning to one side and setting his glass down in the holder next to hers before sitting back and looking up at her.
"Maybe," she replied with a mischievous smirk while looking back up at him laughing beside her a brief moment before looking back down at her handbag resting in her lap, to retrieve the small tub that she had brought with her to put all the pins in, so they wouldn't be loose in the bottom of her bag, and opened the lid. "It can be time-consuming, especially if they get tangled up in my hair."
"I remember," Joseph nodded and started to undo his tie, letting it hang down over the front of his shirt, as she began to carefully remove all the bobby pins holding her hair in place.
Once she had removed all the pins and had brushed her hair, she bunched it all together, twisted it up against the back of her head and attached a hair claw to hold it in place before putting the tub and hairbrush back in her handbag and leaning forward, to put it on the seat in front of her before relaxing back in the seat she was sitting in and smiled up at her husband. "I know what love is now because of you."
"What do you mean?" Joseph asked as he tucked his foot behind his ankle and watched her turn in the seat so she was now facing him.
"Never before have I felt the way that I do right now, and have done for the last four days," Clarisse replied, studying his handsome face a brief moment before looking down at her hands resting together in her lap and continuing. "Never before have I felt so loved, so warm and fuzzy inside, so excited over being with someone. Never before has my heart raced as much as you make it do. Yes, I have felt love and been loved in return, but by my sons." She said, looking back up at him now. "Yes they have made my heart skip a beat and burst with pride, many many times. But it's all different. It's a different feeling. A different kind of love. And I have never felt this way before. This kind of love before. Ever."
"Well, I'm going to make sure that you feel this way every single day for the rest of our lives together," Joseph smiled as he reached his hand up onto the side of her neck, his thumb resting against her jaw, "I will never stop loving you. I will never stop making you feel all warm and fuzzy inside, ever," he smiled, "for as long as I live."
"Thank you," she smiled and leant in close to kiss him while closing her eyes. A kiss so deliciously perfect and slow, so powerful and heated, it left them both wanting more. Much much more. If only they weren't in the back of the limousine.
"I love you," Joseph said, smiling seductively as he pulled back just a little to gaze into her desire filled eyes. A reflection of his own, that he knew.
"I love you too," she whispered her reply and leant in closer to kiss him once again while reaching a hand out onto his chest.