A/N: I actually had to read my own fan fiction to make sure I didn't make any massive continuity mistakes.

Honestly I hate myself for "disappearing" for over five months, I hate it when other people do that, but in order to make life bearable you have to lay down priorities, and it turns out that as much as I would like it to be, fan fiction isn't one of them.
I've been working on this one for a while, and I finally decided to get my act together and caved into Alica's threats, even though I usually live by the principle: "Never give in to blackmail".

And also thank you to everyone who reviewed, this story reached and went over 100 reviews during my 'hiatus', thanks so much, they mean the world to me, you are [in the words of the great diva Tina Turner] simply the best (doo. doo. doo. doo) better than all the rest.

And to those who feel sorry for Melanie, well technically speaking, killing Ashley off saved her life, so …

Anyway, I think you all deserve a recap of what has happened so far, especially if you don't want to read the whole thing again, so …

Previously on Last Thoughts:

1. Scarlett didn't fall down the stairs

2. Ashley was savagely murdered

3. Scarlett has found out she didn't love Ashley

4. Scarlett has decided to help Melanie through her mourning

Who can spot the "Bridget Jones' Diary" reference? Anyway … enjoy?

He delicately brushed a lock of hair out of her eyes, allowing his finger to softly linger on her skin for a little longer than it was necessary.

She was fast asleep.

She had been gone all day, just like every other day for the past week, spending practically every waken moment at Melanie Wilkes and as soon as she walked through the front door at night, long past dinner time, she headed straight to the study to look over the books for both the mills and the store.

She didn't even take the time to eat. Rhett was worried about her, she was strong, but no one can go on like that forever. He was afraid that if she didn't take better care of herself she would put her life and the baby's, his baby, in danger. He would have gladly offered to take the burden of keeping an eye on her businesses for her, but the truth was, he was puzzled and confused by this new Scarlett, who, almost overnight, had went from being a stubborn spoilt child to being a woman who spent her days comforting a woman, that not so long ago, she claimed she couldn't stand.

It was starting to get late, and she was still locked up in that room with her accounts, curious about what she could possibly be up to at such a late hour, he crept downstairs and discretely pushed open the door to the study.

She had fallen asleep, her head resting on her arms crossed over the thick book, her hair messed up and falling over her eyes.

The feeling of her skin against his finger sent shivers down his spine; almost unconsciously he traced her jaw line with his index finger.

"What on earth do you think you are doing," she demanded, her eyes were now wide open.

He quickly pulled his hand away, "I was just gently waking you up, my pet. I thought you would be more at ease sleeping in your own bed."

She stared at him with a look full of scepticism, fortunately for him; she was too exhausted to start arguing. "I have to finish checking the mills' accounts before I go to bed," she mumbled as she picked up her pen.

"Scarlett, leave them until the morning," he suggested.

"I can't, I have to be at Melly's in the morning," she simply stated.

"I will take care of them for you, if you like," he suggested.

"Rhett, you once said you never wanted to have anything to do with my business, why change your mind now?"

"I'm not trying to take them out of your hands …" he said. "You can't go on like this."

"What do you mean?" she asked, barely lifting her eyes from the long list of figures she was trying to read through.

"You spend all day at Mrs Wilkes', when you eventually get home after dark, you work to all hours of the night, you hardly eat, it's just not healthy."

"Why Mr Butler, are you worried about me?" she said slightly amused. "How gallant of you, but don't burden your thoughts with my wellbeing. I'm a strong woman; I've been through rougher times."

"But Scarlett, you are going to have a baby," he protested.

"I'm well aware of that, thank you. I'm neither the first woman to find herself in such a predicament, nor the last. I will be fine; when I was expecting Ella I used to travel to the mills every single day …"

"It's not the same," he insisted.

She lay her pen down and looked up at him, half confused, for what seemed like an eternity but was in fact only a couple of seconds, they remained in silence.

"Why are you doing it?" he continued.

"Why am I doing what?" she asked.

"Taking care of Mrs Wilkes …"

"Why wouldn't I?" she said as she stood up.

"You despise her. You can't stand her, she gets on your nerves, you mock everything she stands for," he replied.

"No, I certainly do not," she countered back.

"When exactly did this enlightenment occur?" he questioned.

"She has been nothing but good and kind to me," she said.

"You didn't answer my question," he insisted.

"I don't see why I should," she stated. "What business is it to you when or why I realised how important Melly was in my life as long as I did."

"It just does, answer the question," he asked again closing the space between them.

"The other day," she said evasively.

"Just like that?"

"Just like that," she replied. He cast her a look which urged her to go on, "I was thinking back and all of a sudden it was clear to me that she had always been there for me. She is the only one that has always been there for me, and I'm sure will always be. My mother died. My father died. One of my sisters hates me. I have no true friends, but Melly, come heaven or high water, no matter what I did or didn't do, stood by me. She loves me for who I am, and she is the only person who ever has."

He looked at her incredulously for a moment, slightly taken aback by this rather spontaneous confession, partly saddened by her words and a little bit disappointed by the fact that she was unaware that he liked her, just the way she was, but then again, they were not exactly going through the most blissful times of their relationship. Nevertheless he couldn't resist the temptation of asking, "What about the golden Ashley Wilkes?"

"What about Ashley?" she asked.

"He's dead,' he said plainly.

"I'm well aware of that. I was at his funeral the other day, and since then I have been taking care of his widow," she stated flatly.

Rhett looked at her in disbelief, "Do you really have no heart at all? A moment ago, I thought you had finally changed and grown out of your spoilt childish egocentric ways, but you haven't, you are still the same ice queen, who marries men for their money and then parades around town flaunting her new found wealth in the faces of good people, all while openly chasing another woman's husband."

She looked at him as if he had just slapped her hard across the face, "You are nothing but a vile cad for attacking me for no reason …"

"No reason? No reason!" he sniggered sarcastically. "The man you have claimed to love for the past decade with undying passion is brutally murdered, and you're not even mourning, you're not even the least bit heartbroken, hell, I'm sure you're not even sad. If that isn't proof enough that you have no heart, I don't know what is."

She muttered something under her breath that Rhett didn't quite catch, "What was that my dear wife? Some excuse for and excuse to explain your heartless behaviour? Such as it wouldn't be proper for you to mourn another woman's man, more than you mourned your own combined? Since when have you given a damn about the commodities of society Scarlett?"

"Actually," she said uncharacteristically calm. "I am sad, I am heartbroken. Just not in the way you are suggesting I should be. I am not sad because I lost a love, I am sad because I lost a friend, one of the very last links to my childhood, to my parents."

"What are you talking about?"

"I don't love Ashley, and I'm not sure I ever truly did," she let her voice trail off.

All at once various emotions and feelings merged inside him –surprise, hope, delirium, and joy, but instead of allowing Scarlett to read them off his face, he buried them in the depths of his soul and asked coldly, "When exactly did you realise this?"

She stepped back, and sighed, "Rhett, I am tired. Actually I am exhausted. I am in no mood for bickering with you over Ashley right now."

She attempted to push past him, "Let me go to bed Rhett."

He stopped her, and held her by her shoulders, he looked into her eyes, he could see the exhaustion, but he could also see that she wasn't lying to him.

"Scarlett," he said softly as he pulled her into his arms and held her tightly, at that moment he wanted to protect her from the rest of the world, at that moment he was sure everything would be alright.

He loosened his grip and slightly pulled away; he put both hands on the side of her face and leaned down to kiss her.

"Mister' Rhett! Mister' Rhett!" Mammy's voice bellowed from the hallway.

"Not now mammy," he muttered.

"Mister' Rhett, Miss Scarlett is home from Miss Melly's," she said as she popped her head through the crack of the half open door.

He looked up at her drowsily, his empty whiskey tumbler in one hand, he had dozed off while waiting for Scarlett to come home.

"If only dreams came true," he sighed as he rose from his chair to go and greet his wife.

TBC …