Disclaimer: I own nothing in regard to GWTW
Author's Notes: Thank you for all the reviews and feedback.
Chapter Ten
In the middle of the night Rhett had heard Thad crying. Quickly Scarlett had the baby pressed against her breast. There was so much love on her face for his son that Rhett was jealous. Despite everything that had happened, he still loved her so very much. He looked at them together and thought it was a beautiful picture. He also felt left out which he never had liked feeling. He wondered if that was how she had felt when Bonnie had first been born. Probably. He had been totally focused on his daughter. No, not his daughter. Their daughter. He had said all that crazy talk about Bonnie being only his. He had said Bonnie was his because she had two other children. What the hell had that meant anyway? He had Bonnie and he had Thad. They were both his children. He could have twenty children and they would still be his. All of them.
Rhett said, "Do you need anything?"
"Some water would be nice."
"I will get it for you."
"Thank you."
When he came back, he placed the water on her nightside table, and she had just smiled at him. Not a coy smile, not a sexy smile, not a come-hither smile, just a smile of thanks. A smile so simple that it almost broke his heart. He got back in the bed and watch the two of them. She looked at him and said, "Tell me of your adventures in the last year."
Rhett said, "Let me tell you about my first-time sailing."
Scarlett smiled and said, "Please do."
Rhett started telling her about his first-time sailing. When she closed her eyes, he stopped talking. She opened her eyes and said, "We can't let him sleep between us. We might roll over and crush him."
"I will stay awake. You go on back to sleep while he nurses."
"Thank you, Rhett."
For the first time in his marriage, Rhett felt he and Scarlett were working toward a common goal. He would let her sleep. He would protect her and their son. He would start defending her when the matrons said something unkind about her and he would definitely claim his son. He had read in Greek Mythology that the greatest misery in Pandora's box was hope. He had to agree. He would be so much better off if he had no hope that Scarlett would ever love him.
In a few minutes Scarlett switched the baby to the other breast like she had been doing it for years. She was so smooth with the action that Thad didn't even seem to notice. Rhett laid there and continued telling the story of him sailing. After a while he noticed that Thad's little cheeks weren't going in and out and Rhett decided the baby was finished. Rhett slowly picked the child up and placed him in his bassinet. He changed his son's diaper. He looked at it and thought, 'Probably nowhere near as well-done as Mammy but good enough.'
Rhett looked at the child and looked at his wife. Scarlett had said she no longer loved Mr. Wilkes. If that were true, then maybe this could be a time of new beginnings. He couldn't think about that right now. He had to go to sleep. He got in the bed and Scarlett snuggled up to him. His last thought was, 'New beginnings indeed."
The next morning Rhett was awoken by Scarlett getting her child and nursing him. When he turned over, she didn't cover herself up or act embarrassed at all. He had noticed it last night but hadn't really thought about it but now in the morning light he could see all of his wife's charms. He was suddenly and dramatically aroused. It had been a while since he had engaged in any carnal activity. Mostly because he hadn't wanted anyone else but his wife but also because it had seemed so pathetic to him. He pretended to still be asleep.
Scarlett knew the instant Rhett was awake because his body developed a tenseness to it. It was ever so slight and if she hadn't been staring at him, she wouldn't have noticed it. When he was asleep, he and Thad had looked exactly alike but once he was awake his face took on a slight hardness to it. Scarlett thought, 'He is not as immune to my charms as he would like me to believe.' She finished nursing the child then the two of them left the room.
That surprised Rhett because his wife didn't like to get up early. He decided that she was taking Thad to Mammy then she would come back to bed. He would stay right here until she came back. Unfortunately for Rhett his wife didn't come back.
Unlike with her other children Scarlett knew she loved Thad from the very beginning. Right now, she was not leaving him with anyone since he spent most of his time sleeping. She tied a shawl around herself and placed Thad in it. Dilcey had showed her how to tie the shawl so it became a sling, and she could carry Thad around with her.
Scarlett no longer wanted to sleep late. Her daughters were at their best early in the morning. She had discovered this while at Tara. She was having trouble sleeping during the last part of her pregnancy and found herself waking early in the morning. Since she knew she was not going back to sleep she went ahead and got up. She would walk around Tara and think. She had thought more in the last year than she had ever thought in her entire life.
She would join her daughters for breakfast. She found Bonnie to be calm and restful and she found Ella to be quiet but happy. It was one of the few times she felt she could talk to them, and they both were listening. She was going to continue eating breakfast with them. They would have it in the nursery together.
Wade wanted to have breakfast downstairs in the dining room. She knew that he was too big to do anything in the nursery anymore. She would let him have breakfast with Rhett. There was some fence mending that needed to be done between Wade and Rhett.
Scarlett spent the morning talking to the staff members that they had. There were too many for this little house, but she would find out from Rhett if he wanted to move or stay here.
She had sent Melly a note yesterday telling her that she was back in Atlanta. Just as Scarlett had expected Melly was on her doorstep at nine that morning. Nine was the earliest it was considered proper to call on another lady. When Pork showed Melanie into the parlor, Scarlett got up and hugged this wonderful woman. This woman that liked her. This woman liked her in spite of all the ugly things she had done to her. This woman found a way to justify everything she had ever done. This woman who was grateful for everything Scarlett had ever done for her. This woman who had never criticized her. This woman who was willing to cause a division in her family for her.
After carefully hugging Melly so as to not crush Thad, Scarlett lifted him out of her sling and handed him over to Melly.
Scarlett said, "Thaddeus Kennesaw Butler this is your Aunt Melly. The best aunt in the world."
"He looks just like Captain Butler."
Scarlett smiled, "Such a blessing he looks like his father and not me."
Melly blushed and said, "Yes, it is."
Melly oohed and aahed over Thad. The women talked. They laughed. They had an incredibly good time.
Melly asked, "Is this your home now?"
"I don't know. We haven't talked about it. Whatever Rhett wants."
"You don't care."
"Unbeknownst to me my husband has an opinion about the décor of our home so he can decorate the next one."
"That would be unusual."
"We are an unusual couple."
The ladies laughed about that. Soon Melanie had to leave.
Scarlett said, "I will be in my confinement for another two weeks. Come see me tomorrow, please? I have missed you so much."
"I have missed you too. I will be back tomorrow."
Scarlett walked Melly to the door. She took Thad up to their room and sat in the big chair and let him start nursing. About ten minutes later, Rhett came bustling in making so much noise he frightened the baby.
"Sorry, I didn't know you were in here."
Scarlett soothed the baby and he when back to nursing. Scarlett said, "I thought this would be the quietest room. I didn't think you would be back to your room before supper."
"Our room," As Rhett was watching Scarlett soothe their child, he noticed the huge diamond was gone. He said, "Where is your engagement ring."
"I have no idea. I sold it. I sold all your gifts"
"I hope you don't expect me to buy you another one."
"No, I do not want another practical joke played on me."
"Don't you think we should have talked about selling the mansion before you sold it?"
"Why? You hated it. Besides, you said it was mine."
Rhett smiled and said, "You are right. I did hate it and I did say it was my gift to you. Where are we going to live since you sold the mansion?"
"Wherever you want Rhett. I don't care. This is fine."
"You don't want a mansion to make all the Peahens jealous."
Scarlett smiled her sweet smile and said, "They were never jealous. This is fine although we don't need as many servants because of how small the house is."
Rhett stared at Scarlett. Who was this woman? It was not the woman he had left in April of last year. She was kind and sweet. She was very involved with her children. She even seemed to be interested in him.
Rhett was right. This was not the Scarlett that he had left in April of eighteen seventy-one. That woman no longer existed. She no longer thought she loved Ashley Wilkes. She knew the truth was she had never loved Ashley Wilkes. He had been a figment of a fourteen-year-old girl's mind. He had been a means to a goal. The goal of being the most socially acceptable woman in Clayton County. She would and could behave like a lady, but her true nature was much wilder, than these tame, boring people. She had a je ne sais quoi that would always make men want her and women hate her. Because of that specialness Rhett would always be enthralled with her especially if she made him think he was so incredibly special. She was that twelve-year-old little girl that had been bullied when she was at La Fayette Academy. She was finally safe. Rhett would protect her and take care of her if she let him. He had always come back to her. He always would. She was going to make sure of it.
Scarlett smiled at Rhett and said, "Do you want to continue living in this house?"
"No, I want our own home. Atlanta is where we will live until I can talk you into moving away from Tara."
"That will be a cold day in Hades."
"Yes, it will be."
"I will use the profits from the sale of the mansion to buy our new home."
"Only if you want to. I can afford to buy you another home."
"No, it is only right."
They talked the rest of the time Thad was nursing and Rhett wondered if he was going to make it until they could be intimate again with her exposing her breast to him so frequently. It was going to be a long two weeks.
With Scarlett's arrival she had immediately taken over running the house. She had fired several of the maids and footmen. She had even fired one of the stable boys because he had sassed her. She said to Rhett, "We are at a manageable level now. We could afford to lose one or two more, but I will wait to see who is the laziest."
"Don't fire Prissy. She is the only nursemaid that didn't quit on me.
"I would not fire Prissy. She may be lazy, but she is loyal. Also, she is part of my family."
"She is not as silly or ditzy as she would want us to believe."
"I know."
Rhett just looked at his wife and waited for her to go on. Scarlett had always been quite the chatterbox. She didn't go on. She picked up a book titled Emma. She found her book marker and opened the book. She appeared to be reading the book. Rhett just watched her.
Rhett went to the toy store to buy presents for Bonnie's birthday. Scarlett made Rhett promise he would buy no more than three presents for Bonnie at the toy store. He reluctantly agreed. When Rhett came back with four presents, Scarlett just gave him a disapproving look, but she was actually proud of him. She knew it had taken a lot of restraint on Rhett's part to only buy four toys.
Beau and Melly came over for dinner and they had the party after everyone had finished eating. After the presents were opened Bonnie said, "Daddy can Ella and I have matching dresses?"
Before Rhett could say a word Scarlett said, "Daddy and I will talk about it later tonight. It is time for your naps. Let's go, girls. Bye Melly."
Rhett said, "Why don't you leave Beau here and I will take the boys to the park to play. I will walk him home afterwards."
"Thank you, Captain Butler. I need to check on my aunt."
Later that night, Scarlett said to Rhett, "I don't mind if they have matching dresses, but we need Bonnie to learn that a yes is not automatic."
"Yes, Dear."
"You can take them to Mrs. Krause's tomorrow and let them pick something out."
"Yes, Dear."
"And don't let Bonnie bully Ella into accepting her choice."
"Yes, Dear."
When Scarlett scowled at him, he gave her an unrepentant smile. She shook her head and walked away but she was smiling. She thought, 'That's my aggravating Rhett.'
