Disclaimer: I own nothing in regard to GWTW

Author's Notes: Thank you for all the reviews and feedback.

Chapter Twenty-Two

As the men were sitting there in awkward silence Rhett told a joke about bondage just to make Wilkes uncomfortable. Stuart noticed how uncomfortable Wilkes was getting so he told a raunchy joke himself. Rhett and Stuart had laughed uproariously at these jokes although neither joke was particularly funny.

Rhett said to Stuart, "Did I tell you that Bullock told me that he has found some clues to where the Confederate gold is hidden?"

"Wow. That must be a small fortune."

Ashley was so shocked that he blurted out, "I thought you stole the Confederate gold?"

"No, not I. All I know is whoever stole it, hid it some place in Virginia. If I can wheedle the information out of Bullock, Stuart, you and I can go to Virginia and find it."

"I'm in. Wouldn't that be a nice nest egg?"

"It certainly would," Rhett put out his cigar and stood. He said, "Shall we join the ladies?"

Stuart put out his cigar and said, "Let's."

Ashley was furious. In his role of host, he was the one that should decide when they joined the ladies. It was a moot point for the other two men were already heading toward the parlor.

The atmosphere was much more festive in the parlor. Rhett sat next to Scarlett and took her hand. She smiled a loving smile at him. Ashley stared at the couple. Was Butler making headway in his pursuit of Scarlett. Probably. Scarlett was so earthy and low-class that Butler could bind her to him with sexual pleasure. Ashley fumed. He could have done that if he had married Scarlett instead of Melly. Why? Why? Why hadn't he chosen Scarlett instead of Miss goody-two-shoes over there.

They talked about the wedding. Stuart said, "We were able to get the minister of the Episcopal Church to agree to marry us."

Melly said, "It is the church we attend."

Rhett said, "They do have better music."

Rhett got a smile for that comment from everyone but Ashley. Ashley thought, 'Is nothing sacred to this man?'

Scarlett said, "Have you chosen a date?"

"Yes, the first Saturday in June."

"How nice."

India said, "Captain Butler thank you for the generous gift of a reception. Scarlett thank you for use of your home."

Rhett said, "Think nothing of it. Scarlett and I are more than happy to do it. There is nothing Scarlett likes better than to plan a party.

Scarlett said, "That is true. I love planning parties especially with Rhett's checkbook."

Everyone laughed.

Rhett smiled and said, "Be sure and invite everyone you wish to attend."

Scarlett said, "Is Honey going to be able to attend?"

India said, "I hope so. She is going to be my matron of honor. I don't know what I will do if she can't make it."

Scarlett said, "Melly would be honored to stand with you."

"I would be proud to have Melly stand with me, but I really want my sister beside me."

"Of course. Of course."

Soon Rhett stood up and said, "Thank you, Mr. and Mrs. Wilkes for inviting us for supper. Scarlett and I will be leaving now."

Goodbyes were said all around and Rhett and Scarlett walked to their coach. On the ride home Rhett told Scarlett about making Mr. Wilkes believe that he was going to find the Confederate gold. Scarlett said, "Isn't it already in your Liverpool bank account?"

"Yes, it is. That is the best part of having Mr. Wilkes searching for it."

They laughed and Rhett pulled her close to him in an improper way. Scarlett didn't mind at all.

Rhett guided them into the kitchen. Scarlett said, "Do you want a sandwich?"

"Yes, thank you."

"You showed great restraint by not commenting on the lack of food."

"That would have embarrassed Wilkes, but it also would have embarrassed Miss Melly. I couldn't embarrass Miss Melly because her husband is a poor provider."

"No, you couldn't." Scarlett knew that she would never understand Rhett's feelings for Melly. She just knew that they weren't sexual in the least. She didn't even think Rhett understood his feelings for Melly.

Scarlett put the sandwich in front of him and sat down across from him at the little kitchen table that the servants ate at. They talked about the evening. They laughed about Ashley taking umbrage when she said the boys got their brains from the Hamiltons. Rhett said, "I think India and Melly thought that was funny also."

"Me too."

"I don't think he is very nice to India."

"I don't either."

"He has told me he hates her."

"That is sad."

"How does that happen Rhett? I wouldn't say I hated Suellen, but I know I don't love her."

"I don't know, baby. I haven't been part of a family in many years."

"You are now."

"I am now."

"You done?"

Scarlett nodded.

Rhett got up and put the plates in the sink. They walked up the stairs. They got ready for bed. They got in. Rhett knew that Scarlett just needed to be held right then. She was feeling remorse about her relationship with Suellen. Her marriage to Frank had not been the first blow to their relationship. It in fact had been the last blow.

Instead of telling Scarlett stories from his life Rhett said, "Sibling rivalry is as old as time. Remember Cain and Abel?"

"Yes."

"The very first two brothers experienced sibling rivalry to the point of fratricide."

"Huh?"

"Murder. Dear, please read a book and improve your vocabulary."

"I do like that last book you gave me."

"I'm glad but I don't think it is going to improve your vocabulary."

"That's not true. I've already learned lots of new words."

Rhett laughed and said, "I would like for you to learn new words that you can say in polite company."

"I will think about it."

"Thank you. Do you remember me telling you about the Roman Empire?"

"Yes."

"Legend has it that it was founded by the twin brothers Romulus and Remus. Supposedly they were abandoned by their mother in the woods. They were found by a mother wolf, and she allowed them to nurse from her for several months. They were then found by a shepherd, and he took them in and raised them. When the brothers were young men, they decided to form a city, but they had an argument over which location was better. In the end Romulus killed Remus over the argument. I tell you this, so you know not liking your sibling is quite common."

"Tell me a story from Greek Mythology. You make all that boring stuff interesting."

"Thank you, my dear."

He told her about the god Zeus and his children. When he knew she was asleep Rhett thought about his siblings. Rhett had no relationship with his brother and truly little of one with his sister. He knew his mother loved him, but he wasn't sure she would welcome him into her home if he wasn't paying all the bills. He didn't want to think about his life and his mistakes. He pulled Scarlett close and followed her into the land of nod. He was awfully glad he had her.

As Ashley laid in his bed, he thought about the evening. Could the confederate gold be available for someone to find? If he could find that gold, he would have enough money to leave this life behind. He could probably coax Scarlett into running away with him. When he thought of Scarlett it made him think of that comment she made about where the boys got their brains from. He was mad at her too because he knew that she had taken all his reading material. It had to be her because she was the only other person with a key to the office. Those were some of his favorite books especially Fanny Hill. If she wasn't careful, he would tell her what he really thought of her and destroy her. That made him think of his picture. Where was the picture? He hoped Scarlett hadn't seen that picture although he would love for Scarlett to do that to him. He fell asleep and dreamed about Scarlett doing just that.

Mrs. Anderson did ask Rhett to buy tickets to the supper and dance. He did. Rhett had flattered the older woman and made her laugh. Mrs. Anderson had been smiling when she left the bank. She thought, 'That Captain Butler is so amusing.'

Of course, Rhett was going to buy tickets to a fund raiser held by polite society. There would be people at their table that he and Scarlett could charm.

They got dressed up although both of them were usually very stylishly garbed. When Rhett saw Scarlett in her red dress, she took his breath away. He had often wondered how she could still be so sexually exciting to him after they had been intimate so many times. Yet each time it was as exciting to him as their first time. The truth was it was more exciting to him now than their first time. She had been so shy and nervous that the whole act was difficult. It had taken him so long to get her to relax. It had been better the second time because she had known it wouldn't hurt. Now he knew she wanted him as much as he wanted her. It still amazed him that she loved him. When he walked into the parlor and she turned toward him, his heart skipped a beat at the love showing there.

Scarlett turned when she heard Rhett enter the parlor. For once she was ready before him. The sight of him took her breath away. How could she have ever not thought him handsome? It amazed her that this worldly man loved her. After all she was just a country bumpkin from Clayton County. Yes, she had been the belle of five counties, but they had been country bumpkins too. This sophisticated man who had been all over Europe had married her. This man who could live anywhere he wanted to live, lived in Atlanta because it was where she wanted to live. That amazed her.

The hall was decorated with red hearts and streamers. Mrs. Anderson greeted them and told them where their table was. As she was escorting them to their table Rhett made a couple of jokes which made the older woman laugh. Scarlett thought, 'Rhett can be so charming. I wonder why he was never charming with me until he knew I loved him. That was simple it was his way of standing out from the other suitors. Not really a particularly good plan. I only fell in love with him after he started being sweet, kind and charming.'

There were four other couples at their table. None of them were the cream of society but they were nice people. Rhett and Scarlett were very polite and respectful with them. Even when Irvin Erving made the inanest statements Rhett didn't make fun of him. Scarlett had known how extremely hard that had been for Rhett because she had wanted to mock him herself. Although Mr. Erving did make an inane statement that Rhett determined was actually a particularly good suggestion. Mr. Erving had said to Rhett, "You need to attend one of the Democratic Political Meetings. We meet at Mr. Baker's house every Wednesday at seven."

Mr. Baker said, "Yes, do come. I live at 44 Maple Street."

"I will certainly think about it.

Mr. Baker said, "We do get into some interesting discussions."

The men made several unkind comments about Republicans, Scallawags and Yankees. Rhett brought up topics like: When did they think the men would get the vote back; When did they think Georgia would be admitted back into the Union; How much longer did they think the South would be under Yankee rule and; Didn't they think the clan was doing more harm than good.

Rhett had enjoyed those discussions and he decided that was an incredibly good idea for him to join the Wednesday night meetings. He missed having intellectual discussions.

He smiled at Scarlett and thought, 'If I could ever get her to read a book, I could have intellectual discussions with her.' Rhett then knew how he would get Scarlett better educated. He would start giving her mini lessons in the evening. If he made the subject matter interesting enough, she wouldn't even know she was being educated.

The couple enjoyed their meal and dance several dances. All in all, it was a nice evening. Not a great evening but they felt they had done well at redeeming their reputations. They had a lovely time together. They made a point of talking to the matrons.

After the fund raiser, they went out to Ashley's mill. They talked about their evening on the way out to the mill. Rhett explained to Scarlett in a simplistic way why the men getting the vote back was so important.

They had supposedly been going out to the mill to look for reading material but they both knew the real reason they were going out there. The couple were going to have relations on Ashley's desk. That had been so exciting to both of them they just had to do it one more time. It was just as exciting the third time.

People were talking about the Butlers positively. They were talking about how kind Captain Butler was. They were talking about how Scarlett had said that if Rhett was going to open their home to India and Mr. Townsend to have their wedding and reception at it, then it would be done right. They were talking about how Scarlett had apologized to Fanny for her part in the whole disastrous raid. Everyone was happy but suspicious.

They were still talking about how Mr. Wilkes was using whores. That he had been seen coming out of one of the rooms at Belle's, not once, not twice but at least three times.