Disclaimer: I own nothing in regard to GWTW
Author's Notes: Thank you for all the reviews and feedback.
To my guest reviewer who asked if the story was over. No. I think I have about ten more chapters and the alternate ending.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
When they got to Atlanta, Rhett got them a bigger suite in the National Hotel. They had supper in their suite with Wade. When Wade called him 'Daddy', Rhett didn't think he could get any happier. Yes, that had been the pivotal point of his entire life. Yes, he had been a coward and a stubborn bastard not telling Scarlett he loved her. Yes, he had to let go of his pride in order to have a happy life. He was going to become a better person. He knew how he would save his mother and his sister's lives. He would make sure they weren't in Charleston the summer of seventy-three.
The next morning Rhett had gotten them breakfast and brought it back to the suite. After the children had finished eating, Mammy had taken them to a park nearby. As Rhett and Scarlett were finishing their coffee, Rhett said, "Go get the emerald ring I gave you. I want that to be your engagement ring. I will take it with me when I go buy our wedding bands."
"I sold it."
Rhett said, "You sold it!" Rhett got furious. He was thinking, 'Had she not known that was his way of telling her he loved her too? No, she had not. Am I not always telling myself how obtuse she is? No, I will have to spell it out for her.
Rhett looked at her expressive face and knew she was nervous. She knew he was mad, and she didn't really know why. He walked over to her and put his arms around her and said, "Didn't you know that was my way of telling you that I loved you?
She broke away from him and shouted, "Your way of telling me you love me? Why would I? You never said anything about love. Why would I make a connection between a ring and a declaration of love? You didn't even give it to me in a romantic way. You walked in the parlor and handed it to me as you were walking by. I opened the box and when I asked you, 'What is this?' You said in a mocking way, 'It looks like a ring to me. What do you think it is?' That statement hurt my feelings. If you recall I got up and walked out of the room because I didn't want to start crying in front of you. A declaration of love doesn't make a woman cry.
No! No! That was not clear. Not clear at all. I barely understand about half of what you actually say, and you expect me to understand what you are implying by a gesture especially that pathetic gesture. Were all those gifts you gave me your way of telling me you loved me?"
Rhett knew she was right. It had been a pathetic gesture. He wanted her to know he loved her but not how very much he loved her. Not how hopelessly in love with her he was. He was such an idiot. How could she ever know he loved her by his gestures if he was so busy negating the gesture. He said, "Yes, you know how much I love you by how much I give you."
"You may have a way with women in the bed, but you are a bumbling idiot outside of it. It would be a lot cheaper and better understood if you just said the words. What were you so afraid of? That I would use your love against you? That is what happens when you love someone you become vulnerable. True love is about trust and allowing oneself to be exposed in front of the other person. Did you ever think how hard it was for me to continue telling you I loved you without you saying the words back? You never even told me you liked me or that you were fond of me."
"You should have known that I liked you and that I was fond of you."
"Yes, I remember now because of all the presents you gave me. I should have known that was you telling me you loved me not you trying to buy my affections."
Rhett ignored the sarcasm and said, "Yes, if you weren't so obtuse you would have realized it."
"I've gotten presents from a lot of men and I'm pretty sure that most of them didn't love me."
"The presents I gave you were a lot more expensive than candy, flowers and stationery."
"Rhett, that's not the point and you know it. So, every present you have ever given a woman was because you loved her?"
"No, of course not. You are the only woman I have ever loved."
Scarlett sighed and said in a longsuffering voice although she was barely holding on to her temper, "Then how was I supposed to know what you meant by giving me all those presents. The presents are nice, and I appreciate them, but I need the words more. I need you to say you love me in plain easy to understand words."
Rhett was surprised. This was the maddest he had seen Scarlett in an awfully long time. Maybe since the Fire House. He was going to change the subject. He had been too long without her to continue a fight on the second day of their honeymoon especially since he was in the wrong. He said, "You are right. I am going to buy that ring back and when I put it on your finger you are never to take it off again."
Scarlett was stunned. Rhett had said she was right. All she could say was, "Alright."
He just smiled at her. He said, "Who did you sell it to?"
"I don't know. Uncle Henry took care of it for me."
"I am off to see Mr. Hamilton to find out who he sold your engagement ring to." He kissed her and walked out the door.
Scarlett had been mad. She had been madder than she had ever been before. No wonder their marriage had gone down the tubes. He was doing all these half-assed gestures and then been hurt when she hadn't understood what he was trying to tell her. He then pretended to not be hurt by her obtuseness. Every time in the previous timeline she had asked him if he loved her, he had denied it in the cruelest possible way. Of course, she wouldn't interpret those gestures as signs of love. To further muddy the waters, she had been focused on Ashley and not Rhett.
Even in this timeline when she thought he had loved her she had not interpreted those gifts as a declaration of love. She had thought they were Rhett being Rhett. Rhett loved to give presents. She remembered what he had just said about the number of gifts he gave was an indication of how much he loved her. She had never made that connection. She had always just seen them as gifts. She had always just thought Rhett like giving gifts. He was always giving everyone in the family gifts. Bonnie had gotten the most but even when things were bad between them, he had still continued giving her gifts. Maybe if she was as insightful as Melly she would have seen the connection. She would never have made that connection, not as unperceptive as she was then.
She wondered if she had ever left Rhett in the first timeline if he would have come after her. If he would have told her he loved her to get her to come back. She decided that it was a moot point for she would never have left Rhett in the first timeline. That would have meant leaving Ashley and she would never have done that. Luckily in this timeline she had been willing to leave him. It had only been her leaving him that had made him actually say the words even though she had done everything she thought she could do to make him feel safe to tell her he loved her while they were in London.
As Rhett walked to Henry Hamilton's office, he was smiling. He was happy.
Rhett went to see Henry Hamilton and found out who he sold the emerald ring to. The man was a jeweler. With some shrewd negotiating Rhett had managed to buy the emerald back at a decent price. He had bought a set of matching wedding rings also.
When he got back to the hotel room, he found her in the common room sitting on the sofa. He sat down next to her and slipped the wedding band on her ring finger. He said, "With this ring I thee wed. I love you, Scarlett." She took his ring and slipped it on his ring finger and said, "With this ring I thee wed. I love you, too." He took her left hand and slip the emerald on her ring finger. Rhett saw the tears in her eyes and wondered about it, but he was close to tears himself, so he just smiled at his bride. She had smiled back and said, "That was so much clearer. You know I don't understand anything unless it is in ten feet tall letters and right in front of me."
Rhett had smiled but he was a little stunned. He had thought that about her so many times. That exact phrase. Wow! He continued to look at Scarlett. He smiled at her. He couldn't help smiling especially at her. She really loved him. It was incredible.
His mood was then ruined by Mammy walking into the common room with Ella. It seemed Ella was crying for her mother. That isn't what ruined his mood. It was Mammy still giving him the stink eye. Rhett sighed. Now that things were resolved with Scarlett, he would have to thaw Mammy's heart toward him. He wasn't worried. There wasn't a woman alive that he couldn't charm.
Melanie had called on Scarlett the next afternoon. When they were seated in the common room Scarlett said, "Melly you are the first person in Atlanta to know. Rhett and I got married last year when we were in London."
Melly acted surprised and got up to hug Scarlett when she did, "This is a much better story than that rape story."
When Melly sat down she said, "Scarlett what you have done is highly improper. You should have waited at least a year."
"Rhett and I have been in love for a long time. You know I only married Frank for his money."
"Dear, you shouldn't say things like that."
Scarlett saw the twinkle in Melly's eyes like she was enjoying a good laugh. She said, "Not even to you. My best friend. The woman who knows all my secrets. No there will be no pretending between us anymore."
Melly had smiled. She thought, 'Scarlett is not as unaware as she used to be.
Rhett felt like he was missing the joke and when he looked at the ladies, he knew he was. He also knew they weren't going to fill him in.
Over breakfast the next day Scarlett said, "I need some new dresses if we are going to live in Atlanta."
"What happened to all those dresses I bought you when we were in London.
"I sold them."
"You sold them? Why?"
"I needed the money. I was never going to go anywhere that I would need most of those dresses for or any of that jewelry."
"You sold all the dresses and all the jewelry?"
"Yes, the only thing I kept was the paintings and the blue earbobs."
"I would have thought that if you loved me, you would have wanted to keep every present, I had ever given you as a memento of our time together."
"I kept the ear bobs, and I had all the pictures. I did keep some of the dresses, but I didn't need all that jewelry."
"You are not to sell anything I give you ever again."
"I won't need to ever again because I will have access to your money now."
Rhett had scowled. Scarlett had smiled.
"I'm never buying you anything again."
"Yes, you will. You love giving gifts. Besides how will I know how much you love me if you don't ever give me any gifts."
Rhett had smiled and said, "You will know how much I love you by my repeated declarations of love."
"I would like that."
"You will like the presents also."
"Of course, my love. Now let's go to the modiste and milliner."
"I should make you pay for your own dresses and hats."
As Scarlett stood up and walked to the door, she said, "But you won't. Come along, Rhett. Don't dawdle. We haven't got all day."
Rhett stood up and smiled to himself. Yes, she was greedy. Yes, she could be hard. Yes, she could be stubborn. All traits she would need to deal with him. He got his hat and followed his wife out the door while smiling the entire time.