Scarlett walked briskly from her room towards the elevators, gripping her keycard tightly in her hand. If any normal person had booked that room, she would have been annoyed. But Rhett was…Rhett. And somehow, he knew stuff. And he must have found out that she was trying to book that room or was in the process of booking that room or something! There was no room in her head for excuses or "Well-it-could-have-been" 's. Scarlett had already stubbornly whipped and crucified him on her own personal altar.

She pinned the button against the wall forcefully, and watched it light up. The numbers above the elevator doors showed all the floors, and Scarlett watched as one gradually counted down from a higher floor to her own. The doors opened and she nearly jumped out of her skin when she saw Rhett in the elevator. His hair was still wet and, for once, he was wearing a plain grey t-shirt over his dark jeans. He was bent down tying a pair of Air Zooms. Scarlett's first thought was that he must have rushed to dress and get on the elevator…

Then she huffed and walked away. He barely caught a glimpse of her before she was out of sight and he rushed from the elevator as he stated, "Ah, it seems that fate has intervened yet again. I was just on my way down to find out which room you were staying in." He stood in between the elevator doors, preventing them from closing. Scarlett turned around to face him.

"You are a jackass. How did you know I was staying in this hotel?"

Rhett threw up him hands and leaned back against the elevator shaft. "Again with the animals…"

She saw red for a moment at his insinuation, but continued. "I mean, of all the low down things…for you to maraud and stalk me to find-"

Rhett cut her off, "Before you continue your tirade of indignation, perhaps we should clarify the definition of 'marauding' and 'stalking'. Now, if someone just happened to see a brochure on another individual's counter while visiting their home and, knowing this individual as they do, this someone knows the idiosyncrasies and, shall we say, eccentricities of this individual and was able to decipher their destination down to the very room…." He shrugged. "Well, that is basic deductive research. Scientific… No, I think 'marauding and stalking' are more along the lines of attempting to expose the secret life of a stranger in order to stop the wedding of one's beloved."

Scarlett gasped.

Then she attacked him.

Her rage towards him from the whole day, for all of his stupid little tricks, the trick at the airport and his stealing her room, accumulated into a huge bubble of hatred that suddenly popped at his words. With a cry, she pushed him forcefully back into the elevator. He hit the side wall before she started punching and scratching and screaming. "You hateful skunk! You dirty bastard!" The elevator doors had closed and they were moving down towards the lobby. Scarlett got in a few good blows to his stomach before he succeeded in firmly grasping her wrists and pulling them behind her back. She looked up at his face, only to see that he was wearing that ever-present smirk. As if her outburst excited him…

…Gag…she thought, even as she wondered at the strange feeling she had at finding herself completely pressed to his body. He was holding her close, and her arms were firmly wrapped around her back, secured by his iron grip. She knew that even if she tried her hardest, she would never break free on her own. It scared her a bit. It made her angry. But something stirred in her as well, something base and earthy. Something in her core enjoyed being at his mercy…enjoyed being caught…

The elevator doors opened and an older couple entered the elevator with them. Rhett looked up and nodded as the couple stared at them strangely. Scarlett supposed that they did look rather strange. Just as the thought came to her, she felt Rhett's big fingers snake their way between the fingers of her right hand. She jerked, but he tightened his arms around her and mobility became impossible. She tightened her fist so that he couldn't try to thread his fingers through her left hand, but it didn't seem to faze him. Instead, he bent over her and eased his head slowly to her neck before placing tiny, soft kisses behind her ear. "Play along if you want those folks to believe we aren't insane."

Scarlett sucked in a deep breath, "I don't care what they think," she whispered, attempting to fight against him again, even as her body instantly reacted at the feel of his intimate touch. She pushed against him and squeezed the fingers weaved through her own, and she didn't know whether she was trying to get away…or get closer.

From the corner of her eye, she noticed that the couple seemed to be less focused on them now. They probably just believed them to be two lovers entwined in a seemingly awkward embrace who couldn't keep their hands off each other. At that thought, reality seemed to kick in again for Scarlett and she pushed against Rhett again, attempting to free herself from the unwelcomed assault. But he refused to let go. She was about to push against him again when she felt something soft and warm touch her earlobe. It wasn't until she felt the cool air against the assaulted lobe that she realized it had been his tongue. Rhett languidly fanned the spot with his warm breath before barely taking it between his parted lips. At the feel of his warm breath and his tepid lips caressing her earlobe, she felt her fingers begin to slacken from around his even as her whole body relaxed under the invasion of his skilled mouth.

The elevator stopped again. They had reached the lobby and the couple stepped off the elevator without even glancing at them again.

"Are you ready to be rational now?" He spoke softly and directly into her ear. His thick bass thundered through her body as it reverberated throughout his chest and into her ear; his breath was scorching and it made her ear and cheek tingle pleasantly. She nodded her head and he slowly released her.

As he began to release her, her mind returned to her and she shoved him from her body. "Gosh, get off me, you nasty thing!"

Rhett crossed his arms. "You seem frazzled. It couldn't be that I swept you off your feet, could it?"

"You are so conceited…" she replied as she straightened her clothes. "And I swear before God, that if you touch me again I will-I will-"

"Never mind the rest. I follow your general idea." She wiped her mouth with her hand, immature as that was. But she felt that it was necessary to let him know that she thought he was repulsive. He still looked unrepentant though…a slight grin on his face, his eyes shining with barely contained amusement.

"What on earth are you smiling about?" She glanced at her wrists, checking to see if he had left any marks. If there is so much as a yellow spot on my body tomorrow, I'm suing him. She felt him lean over her and heard him press a button on the elevator.

"You seemed to enjoy it." She glanced up at him sharply.

"It wasn't like I had any choice but to just stand there and take it, you-you…" She allowed her words to trail off before shivering slightly, because his statement was disconcertingly true. It had been like she hadn't had a choice. Almost like…

It had almost been as if something had willed her…

I'll think about this tomorrow…

She quickly changed the subject. "How on earth could you have possibly known that I wanted to stay in the Presidential Suite? I don't understand…"

The elevator continued to ding with every floor they passed and Rhett, thankfully, let the former conversation go. "My dear, have you ever thought that you might be a tiny bit conceited in assuming that I chose this particular room solely because of you? It's a ridiculous notion really…Something that villains do in old vaudevillian plays."

She turned towards him swiftly. "You are an ass… I know you did it because of me and-"

"Because you know me so well." He interrupted. The elevator doors suddenly opened and Rhett stepped out. But not before replying with his old mocking smile, "Scarlett, if you really knew anything about me, you would know why I got this suite and why it had to do with you." He stepped off the elevator and walked towards the door down the hall. Scarlett stood in the elevator until the doors began to close before hopping out, her curiosity once again getting the best of her.

"So you admit that I was right…that you got this room because you knew that I wanted it." She followed him towards the door.

Had he been facing her, she would have noticed how his eyes began to shine wickedly at the realization that she was following him, his smirk becoming more pronounced. "No."

"But you just said-"

Rhett turned around again, "Sweetheart, all I just said was that if you knew me as you so adamantly claim you do, you would know why I got the room." He paused. "Tell me, Scarlett. Were you good with Geometry in school?"

Scarlett started at the change in subject, and at the randomness of the question. "What has that got to do with it?"

"Just answer the question."

"Yes."

Rhett's teeth showed. "You're lying."

"I am not."

"Indeed."

She wanted to stomp her foot. "What difference does it make whether or not I was good at Geometry? What does Geometry have to do with it?"

"I didn't think that you were very good with Geometry in school," he said, continuing as if she had answered his question. "You are too practical and Geometry isn't technical enough for someone with a straightforward brain like yours. Too many rules…not enough problem solving. But perhaps you do remember one of the basic rules concerning distance in geometry?"

Scarlett stared at him blankly.

Rhett sighed. "I see. Perhaps your teachers failed in teaching you correctly. Or perhaps you aren't as clever as you would like to think you are. Oh, don't get your feathers all ruffled again, please. I don't believe that I could survive another assault…not today. No, my dear, again I am not surprised that you don't know the answer to that. Or perhaps I don't give you enough credit, hmm? Answer me, Scarlett…and don't blow me off with that pout that makes you look so delectable…what is the shortest distance between two points?"

Scarlett thought for a moment. She was sure she had heard this question before but couldn't remember the answer. He had been right…Geometry had been one of her most challenging subjects in school.

"Perhaps I should help you. The shortest distance between two points is a straight line…"

Of course! How could she have not remembered that? "I still don't understand what Geometry has to do with anything…you are insane."

"Ah, Scarlett. Never until I met you had I ever seen a woman who could look so damned sexy when they are supposed to look so unbecoming. Anger and agitation look so good on you. It's one of the reasons I love to see you so rallied up. And Geometry has everything to do with it." He unlocked the door, opened it and turned towards her again. "Whenever you have a goal…you know: getting into a good college, getting a good job, crashing weddings and the lives of others…that sort of thing…you accomplish it by the most accommodating means possible. The shortest distance between where you are and where that particular ambition is. Perhaps that is what I did, Scarlett. I accommodated myself to reach my personal objective with the least amount of effort and in the quickest way."

Scarlett stepped into the proffered doorway and stared at the beautiful interior. But she had no interest in any part of the suite at the moment but one: the bathroom. Rhett continued to speak as she headed for the backroom, towards the bedroom and the bathroom…and the bath. He followed her as she walked into the bedroom and leaned into the bathroom doorway, spotting the beautiful, heavenly tub. "Well, you certainly accomplished your goal, alright. You are a pain in the ass. Give yourself a pat on the back." He strode slowly behind her.

"Once again, I marvel at your insistence at knowing me so well when you are so completely wrong. I would never go to any trouble just to be a pain in the ass… too provincial. Remember something about me, Scarlett: I don't do things for amusement. I do things for compensation. Reward. And I always get paid."

She turned to look at him again. "Well, then it looks like all this was for nothing."

"Indeed, no." He smirked as his eyes darkened and he inched closer to her. "You're in my bedroom, aren't you?"

Scarlett looked around her and realized that he was right…she was indeed in his bedroom…And then suddenly, his reasoning was clear. She felt her face grow hot at his insinuation, but not in shame. She was angry. Did he think she was stupid? That he could lead her to his room and botta-bing botta-boom? Good God!

"You are awfully thick if you thought I would waltz in here and straddle you just like that with no dinner and no wooing?"

And there it went. Her mouth had taken off and left her brain on the runway.

His face suddenly transformed, showing his sense of shock at her words, before he burst into peals of loud, obnoxious laughter. She huffed, wanting to slap herself for running off at the mouth, before power-walking from the room, straight into the living area and towards the dining room. She thought of the way she reacted in the elevator, sure that had something to do with his disgusting implication. His guffaws could be heard throughout the large suite, and she cringed as it followed her even as she walked away. How dare he? Who does he think I am? One of those perverted office girls who sit around doing nothing but dreaming about laying him? Of all of the God awful insinuations…as if I, Scarlett O'Hara, would simply jump into bed with him just because I had the chance…

Several powerful emotions were at play within her at the moment. The first was a just a smidgen of anger at herself for allowing him the opportunity to laugh at her. But that was easy to channel into her second emotion, which was also anger but directed towards the absolutely disgusting thing he had just said to her. The second was anger…again…directed towards the fact that he had just used her bathtub (it was a left over emotion, to be sure, but it was easy to channel it into this new anger too. And anyway, it made her feel better to be extra angry at him). The third was a strange excitement, sparked by some equal mixture of finally seeing the lovely bathtub and envisioning Rhett in it. The fourth? More anger for the strangely excited feeling. So, she supposed that all in all, she was just very angry. But what was new? Sometimes she was sure that it was the most prominent emotion in their rocky relationship, on her part at least. He-well-he would just always sit there with that abhorring grin on his swarthy face. As if he hadn't a care in the world.

And what could she do about it? He had the upper hand. He was the only way she could get what she wanted…Ashley. Rhett was the only person in the world who could help her, so what could she say? "I am leaving at once and never talking to you again because of an insult to my vanity?" No, she had to weigh her options. And her best option was to play up her indignation, let him know she was so not interested, and then let it play out from there.

She marched around the beautiful furniture and sat down at the dining room table, crossing one leg over the other before crossing her arms. From the corner of her eye, she could see that he was slowly sauntering towards her. The ever-present grin etched into his face. Her arms tightened around her when he finally did speak, still walking slowly towards her. "It's a wonder that you are still here, Scarlett. Any other girl would have stormed out of the room as she yelled-er- a few choice words at suggesting an assist in the subjugation of her character. Either that or she would have jumped me. I'm more familiar with the latter reaction." His grin deepened as he considered his own comment. "But not you. You simply amble away and seat yourself at my table. You cross your legs in that fashion that shows them off beautifully and then you proceed to wait for me to speak. That is why you are so intriguing to me, Scarlett O'Hara. And I imagine it's why you are so cunning in writing and so good at what you do. I wonder if anyone has ever known what really goes on behind that deceptively sweet face but me…"

She turned towards him and replied coldly, "And just what makes you think that you know what goes on in my head, Rhett Butler?"

"Just a moment ago, when I spoke, shall we say, less than gentlemanly; you stood there for a moment, as if you were pondering your words and your options. Which is so like you. You are much too practical to be honorable in any way, my dear. If two roads diverge in your wood, you wouldn't be the kind to choose the road not taken, and that makes all the difference." He smiled. "I imagine that the day that you do choose the road that bends into the undergrowth will be the day that I get bored with you. But you won't ever choose that road. Just like you didn't today." Suddenly he sat down. "Now, let's not let your sacrifice of face have been in vain. I imagine that one of the reasons that you came up here was because you wanted to see if I had found anything about your very best friend, Melanie Hamilton. And it's lucky for you I have dug up a few things on her…and your darling Ashley, of course."

He lifted a folder from the other side of the table, next to his laptop and opened it up. But though Scarlett's anger had partially vanished at the sight, her pride was still fully intact and she felt the need to not give in completely.

"Alright, I'll stay and see what you found, but only if you stop mentioning Ashley as if you know him. You don't know him and you don't understand him." She leaned forward, ready to move on from the conversation.

"I am glad that you are staying, but we will speak of him whenever and wherever I choose. It is my reserved right in helping you to save him from himself. But not now…he is a terribly boring fellow and I am very hungry. I should like to get dinner soon, so let us continue." Scarlett blanched at his words. Rhett was rarely ever so blunt. His statements and insults were always cleverly veiled. She wanted to argue but was given no time to. He immediately continued on with his discourse, scanning the contents of the folder.

"School files. Criminal background check. Birth and medical records. Bank account numbers and balances. Magazine subscriptions. You name it…"

Scarlett immediately perked up at his words and all her consternation was completely put away at the words "Criminal Background Check". All anger concerning his former transgression was put from her mind and it mattered little now. He was going to help her get Ashley back again, and that was all she could process.

"Rhett!" She jumped up and leaned over him looking at the papers in the folder. "You said criminal background check? What does it say!" She gazed eagerly, waiting for what she was sure would be a positive response, at least for her.

Rhett looked at her strangely before grinning. "It says that she has had one traffic violation. She was going five miles over the speed limit in a school zone." Scarlett's face fell.

"That's it?" She was suddenly downtrodden.

"That is, indeed."

"What about school files? What do they say?"

"While she was in school she was given a total of five demerits. They were given to her in tenth grade for not locking her locker over night."

"That's it?"

"That is, indeed."

"Well…what about her medical files? Any unusual incidences? Strange accidents that were unexplainable? She could have been involved with something at some time and just never been caught. But perhaps she got an injury and-"

Rhett interrupted her. "Unless having chicken pox at fourteen counts as a strange incident, then you are out of luck there as well, my dear."

She wanted to stomp her foot now. "Well…what kind of magazines does she subscribe to?" Please subscribe to "Playgirl"…Oh! Or "Bikers" magazine. That would work…

"'Good Housekeeping' and 'Country Living'."

"What?"

Rhett laughed softly as he closed the folder. "Scarlett, did it ever occur to you that this girl is just genuinely a nice, sweet girl and might even be a good match for your darling BFF?"

Scarlett fumed. "Absolutely not! We are just not looking hard enough. There is something there…I know there is." She grabbed the folder from his hands and sat back down before practically ripping it back open. He uttered an amused sigh and sat back as she scavenged the folder for any support of her suspicions. And she could find nothing. The girl was as clean as a whistle. "I know I am not wrong. She isn't right for him."

Rhett smirked at her obstinance. "You seem especially motivated today..." Something in the atmosphere changed and a strange energy flowed from Rhett. His face had darkened slightly before it became strangely blank as he turned to stare at her. "What was so special about today, I wonder?"

"It's nothing. I just got to see Ashley for the first time in a long time and…and I can't let him go through with this, is all…"

"Indeed," he said softly. He smiled unpleasantly, so different from his normal smug smile. "I am sure that you and your Mr. Wilkes had much to catch up on, eh?"

She gripped the folder between her fingers before beginning to straighten the papers inside by tapping it continuously against the table, attempting to make the edges align perfectly.

"You know, I know why you do that."

Scarlett didn't look at him. "Do what?"

"Straighten things and fidget when someone asks you a question you don't want to answer. Or when you are in a predicament that you don't know how to handle. You manage the only thing you can at the time. Whether it be silverware, when I asked you about your excitement at the restaurant on Friday or now, when I ask you what transpired between you and Ashley this afternoon. You sit there and straighten the folder because you must be in control of something."

"Well, thank you for the diagnosis, doctor. Can I have my prescription now?"

Rhett stared strangely for one more moment before grinning slightly and then laughing. "Indeed. But let's eat first. I am starving." He rubbed his hands over his stomach. Scarlett swallowed.

"Are you asking me to dinner? You know it doesn't mean that I will do anything with you…" She mentioned, thinking about her stupidly blatant comment earlier.

Rhett let out a single, "Ha!" and said, "Indeed, I do. Perhaps I am simply being chivalrous in not allowing a lady to dine alone."

Scarlett snorted unattractively but said, "I get to choose where we go."

Rhett showed his bright teeth. "Alright."

She started for the door. "Wait…where are you going?"

"I thought you said you were hungry?"

"I am, but I need to change." He glanced down at his grey t-shirt.

"Why? You look fine," Scarlett said, without thinking.

Rhett looked up at her and smirked hideously. "I do, do I? Just how fine?"

"Presentable." She rolled her eyes and turned for the door again.

Rhett sighed as he grabbed his coat and headed for the door behind her. "I don't know why you don't just let it off your chest. I imagine that it eats you up inside, your desire for me. If you would just let go of your inhibitions, admit your passionate feelings for me and then help me christen every inch of that Presidential Suite, you would feel so much better." He put his hands on her shoulders and kneaded only once before she pushed his hands off. She was glad that she was turned away from him because she couldn't wipe the smile off her face. Sometimes he was so ridiculous, it was much too hilarious. And she didn't know whether to be offended by his forward behavior or amused. This time, she decided that she preferred to be amused. And after all, he was taking her to dinner. And she knew exactly where she wanted to go.

They took the elevator down to the lobby and Rhett went to the valet desk to request his car. "You have a car here?" Scarlett questioned.

"I rented one. I prefer to have the freedom of my own car when I am in smaller cities. Er, that is, cities that are not New York. It's more convenient. And anyway, I hate taxis." He made a face and she laughed at his stuck up attitude. They stepped outside of the hotel and, after a few moments of waiting, a solid black Audi R8 Spyder pulled up next to them.

Scarlett smiled happily. "Sweet…" She climbed into the passenger seat and Rhett jumped into the front seat.

"Yeah, it's sweet. I am seriously considering getting one of these when I get back to NYC."

"Why don't you already have a car, Rhett?" she asked, noticing how his eyes practically glowed when he mentioned buying the vehicle.

"They aren't convenient in New York." He revved the engine and smiled. "Hold on…"

Scarlett giggled excitedly as he took off, leaving a cloud of burnt rubber behind them.