The weeks he spent recuperating from Infectious Mononucleosis, a disease he had been infuriated to discover should have been confined to mostly adolescents and young adults, had Arthur Mabrey rethinking his strategy with regards to Queen Clarisse. His fury that day long ago followed by his severe illness had left him with much of the past shrouded in uncertainty. Had he REALLY kissed the queen or was that one of the strange dreams which had haunted his sickbed? He hoped the latter, but could not be sure. Suffice to say that he had finally decided to lay low for the next four years, so that when his nephew turned twenty-one and the time was right, he, Arthur Mabrey, would be in the enviable position of being able to influence Parliament, remove Queen Clarisse from the throne, and have Nicholas crowned King of Genovia before the American princess could be crowned Queen.

His restless sleep while in the grip of his illness had been disturbed with visions of the kiss he had forced upon the queen and her response both positive and negative. He had felt his longing for her growing again and had fought against it, realizing that the only way he would ever have her would be completely against her will and knowing that he really only wanted her for the power he would wield when he was married to her. He had dreamt of so much more: his nephew and the plans he had for the young man and his own part in that future, the murderous attack on the woman who had borne his only child whom he had vowed he would never acknowledge, the vague threats from the daughter who was the only living proof that he was helpless against his own body's desires, being bodily removed from a building where the doors had been barred against him, being threatened by the cold righteous anger of the very dangerous Head of Security, the entire Parliament voting in favour of something only HE knew was utterly preposterous, and not being able to do one thing about any of the horrible nightmares.

Gretchen had tended him as silently as ever, but he had paid her no mind beyond what she could do for him. His entire focus now while recovering from his illness was on how he could gloss over things with the queen and worm his way back into her good graces -- or at the very least, out of her BAD graces! After all, she was only a female, and therefore his superior mind could surely work things out to his advantage! Perhaps he could claim that many of the things he had said had been fabricated by Elsie Kentworthy? His lip curled at the thought of the red-haired woman, but he quickly acknowledged that in her position in the media industry, she could be invaluable to his future plans, so he knew he could not afford to alienate her. Reluctantly he thought of another woman he detested for her very efficiency, Charlotte Kutaway. By virtue of HER position in the palace, the queen's aide would know much and could possibly be persuaded, gently or otherwise, to reveal necessary information. Both females were the same age, both owed their present positions to anonymous aid, and strangely enough, both had been raised in the orphanage. But only one was his daughter, and he'd be damned before he ever admitted publically which one!

"GRETCHEN! MORE HOT WATER!" he howled, needing to wash the stench of years of bad memories off his skin.

O o O o O o

Although both Joseph and Clarisse were somewhat better, neither one was sleeping well. When Clarisse had first opened her eyes one night after the doctor's visit, it had been to find herself resting right beside Joseph, her head on the pillow near his, and her arm draped over him. His eyes had opened at the same time, and in the dim light they had blinked sleepily at one another. Without saying a word, Joseph had bent forward and kissed her softly on the lips. She had returned the kiss, and snuggled into his embrace again, her eyes closing drowsily.

The next time Clarisse awoke, still in his arms, she whispered, "Joseph? We shouldn't be here like this ..."

"Why not?" he returned in a whisper, dropping a kiss on her forehead. "It feels so right!"

"I know ... and I feel so guilty that I love sleeping here with you ... more than I ever did with ... Rupert."

"Oh, Clarisse ..." This time his kiss landed on her lips and lingered.

Passion, such as she hadn't even realized existed before Joseph, whipped through her body, heating her blood and her skin. Her heart was beating so fast she was sure Joseph could feel it in his own chest, since they were so close.

"I feel ... naughty ..." she murmured when his kiss ended.

"You feel wonderful ... and if this is you being naughty, I want you like this always," Joseph said huskily, running his hand down the curves of her back and pulling her even closer. "I love you, Clarisse. It's like a miracle to be able to tell you. I know I shouldn't love you, but ..."

"I shouldn't feel this wonderful ... we're over sixty, Joseph! We should know better ..." She took his hand and held it against her breast.

"Do you know that for a middle-aged, experienced, intelligent woman, you can be rather naive?" he asked dryly. "This is our second chance at love. REAL love!" His fingers stroked her lovingly, and the warmth of his love wrapped around her securely.

With a soft laugh, Clarisse cupped his cheek with her hand. "I love you, Joseph," she said and kissed him again, then sighed tiredly. As her eyes closed, she murmured, "We can't do this again until Mia is queen."

"Not unless we do it secretly," Joseph agreed. "We'll keep our relationship in the shadows ..." His voice grew weaker as he spoke.

"Friendship ..." her voice died away and she slept.

O o O o O o

When the doctor came the next morning, Clarisse was very properly on her own side of the bed and Joseph was on his, but their eyes met repeatedly, signalling to one another the message of their love.

"May I get up, Doctor?" Clarisse asked when they had both been examined.

"You can try, your Majesty. But don't stay up long," Dr. Howard warned her. Then she looked over at Joseph. "I suppose you want to get up, too ... and perhaps return to your own bed."

Joseph said yes, although his eyes told Clarisse he REALLY meant no. She smiled back at him, then said to Dr. Howard, "Tell me, what do YOU think about miracles and second chances?"

Dr. Howard spoke briskly, "I'm a woman of science. I only believe in what I see. Now then, Charlotte and Shades are both up for a short time this morning too, so you may get up, but I don't want to hear about ANY of you doing any actual work ... that means no walking even to the office, no reading letters, no meetings with anyone, no sitting at your desk and doing whatever it is queens do ... is that clear, your Majesty? Do you understand me?"

"Queens never misunderstand anything," Joseph muttered with a sly grin on his face.

Clarisse glared at him. His grin grew. Dr. Howard rolled her eyes and said, "Obviously you both are on the mend. Remember, you may stay up for a while, but if you start to feel the least bit tired, lie down again. You're going to be VERY weak for a long time, and if you overdo it right at the start, you will only prolong your agony."

"Yes, Doctor," they both said obediently.

O o O o O o

It was almost Christmas before life in the palace got back to normal. When Clarisse had finally been well enough to get back to work part-time, she had publicly acknowledged the invaluable work that Charlotte and Sebastian Motaz had done to keep Genovia on a fairly even keel while everyone was so sick. Gérald had returned from America and had confessed to Joseph that he had tried to bring Mia to rule, then had had to endure Joseph's ridicule that the young man had thought a sixteen-year-old could have possibly been able to take Queen Clarisse's place, even for a few days. After making the young man suffer for a short time, Joseph had clapped him on the back and praised him for his efforts, even though they had been fruitless. Then Gérald had returned to his studies.

Joseph and Clarisse had never mentioned their night together to anyone, and had never even discussed it between themselves. Although they had not been well enough to go further than a few kisses and some snuggling, it remained a memorable night for both. Since then they had grown even closer, if possible, and Clarisse was rarely seen without either Joseph or Charlotte in close attendance. Charlotte and Shades had apparently decided that sharing a bed was something they wanted to continue doing, so they got married in November ... and Clarisse had been delighted to be asked to be Charlotte's attendant while Joseph had agreed to stand up with Shades. It had pleased her even more when Charlotte and Shades had presented her with a tiny puppy, Maurice, as a thank you for all she had done with regard to their wedding.

It was to be another four and a half years before Joseph and Clarisse could publically disclose their own intimate relationship, and it was then that the Viscount's carefully-laid plans to secure the throne for himself through his nephew were revealed and upset. Following his arrest and incarceration the day Joseph and Clarisse were married, Arthur Mabrey was stripped of his title and lands and exiled from Genovia, with Queen Amelia's information that her grandmother had suggested he be hung by his toes in the courtyard for a week first, but the new queen didn't wish to sully the palace with his presence any more than had already been done. She also told him that his nephew, who was going to marry her the following year, had formally changed his name to his mother's maiden name, and that the name Mabrey would only be held in contempt from that moment on in Genovia.

Shortly after his exile, Arthur's daughter discovered, to her dismay, the name of the father who had repeatedly denied her. Using her investigative skills, the young woman also managed to solve a five year old murder mystery, and Arthur Mabrey was then charged with the murder of his former lover and mother of his daughter. Unfortunately for his daughter's strong sense of justice, before he could be extradited back to Genovia to stand trial for murder, he died in a fit of apoplexy. Elsie Kentworthy was so disgusted at the thought of being related in any way to Arthur Mabrey, not to mention finding out she had played into his hands by spreading the 'scandal' about Lord Nicholas and Princess Mia, that she quit her job with the television station in Pyrus and joined the Genovian Attaché Corps in order to help the monarchy instead of hinder it in the years to come.

Charlotte never DID find out who her birth parents were, but Joseph finally admitted that, when he had first come to Genovia, he had started donating anonymously to the orphanage and, after receiving reports on the children there, had decided on his own behest to contribute to Charlotte's education the way Elsie Kentworthy's 'mysterious benefactor' had contributed to hers. It had been Joseph who had arranged for Charlotte to become Clarisse's aide, knowing Clarisse's nature and having a strong suspicion that she and Charlotte would be ideal for each other. Clarisse admitted that she had always felt Charlotte was the daughter she had never had, and Joseph agreed that he loved Charlotte just as Clarisse did. Those two became honorary grandparents to the three children Charlotte and Shades adopted, as well as the many foster children who passed through their home.

Despite the ten days when Genovia was incommunicado because of the quarantine and the weeks afterwards running with partial staff, and subsequent murmurings that such a thing would never have happened had the von Trokens been ruling, the country continued to be a small but prosperous nation. The Renaldi family remained on the throne for many years after King Rupert's reign, first with Queen Clarisse's rule and then Queen Amelia with her eldest son, Prince Joseph, as a guiding light for the future. But for many years afterwards, it was said that Genovia would never again see a queen and her consort so happy and so in love as the beloved Queen Clarisse and her knight!

The End!