Disclaimer: I own nothing regarding GWTW

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

Chapter Thirty-One

When Rhett and Scarlett got to the Harper residence, they were just going to pick up Wade and Prissy and return to the hotel. Afterall, nobody else was there except Gordon and Naomi.

After Rhett and Scarlett entered the parlor, they found Wade and Prissy in the room. Wade ran across the room and Scarlett picked him up. She hugged him so hard. It was the first time she and Wade had ever slept apart. She almost cried with the joy of holding her son. She was so happy to be holding him, she did not offer him to Rhett. Rhett knew better than to try to take the boy from her. It was in that moment that Rhett realized that another thing he wanted in his wife was for her to show her love for her children.

Scarlett said, "Prissy, have you got all of yours and Wade's clothes packed?"

"Yes, Miss Scarlett. Let me go get them."

When Prissy returned, she had her carpet bag. Most of Wade's clothes had been packed in his carpet bag and thus were already at the Hotel. The few clothes Wade had worn the day and the night before fit easily in Prissy's carpet bag. Rhett said, "Let's go."

When the group got to the foyer Prissy said, "Mr. Butler, um….."

Prissy looked at the floor and didn't say any more. She pointed to a box by the front door, then she said, "The box…"

Rhett and Scarlett looked at the box with puzzled expressions. They saw what was in the box. It was potatoes and pinto beans.

Rhett said, "Yes, Prissy."

"Mr. Butler, I am just telling you what Dr. Harper told me. Don't get mad at me."

"Alright. I will try not to get mad."

"Dr. Harper told me to tell you he doesn't want these potatoes or these pinto beans. You are to take them back to the hotel with you."

"What am I going to do with them at the hotel?"

"Um. I don't know. I just know Dr. Harper doesn't want them in his house."

Rhett burst out laughing. He said, "Good for him. Yes, we will take them with us. Come along."

After everyone was in the buggy, Rhett said to Scarlett, "I think Dr. Harper has as much pride as I do."

"I don't think anyone, but you could have that much pride. Prissy, be sure and hold Wade tight. In fact, let me have him. It isn't that I don't trust you, but I trust me more."

"Yes, Miss Scarlett."

After Wade was in Scarlett's lap, Rhett said, "Are you saying I am a prideful person?"

"You know you are. We both are."

"Yes, we are."

Rhett and Scarlett laughed.

Rhett stopped at the grocers he had purchased the food items from the day before. He and Scarlett went into the store while Prissy and Wade waited in the buggy. He set the potatoes and beans on the counter and said, "I would like to get my money back."

"I won't give you your money back, but I will let you take other food items in trade."

"We will keep the pinto beans and trade you the potatoes for some fruits and vegetables."

The couple got some tomatoes, some cucumbers, some nectarines, and some plums. As the couple got back in the buggy, Rhett said, "I'm not really fond of cucumbers but that tomato and cucumbers salad last night was good."

"Yes, it was. I wish I knew how Naomi makes it."

"Why didn't you ask her?"

"I did."

"What did she say?"

"She said it is just cucumbers and tomatoes, but I knew she was lying. I couldn't force her to tell me, so I let her have her little secret."

"You could have gotten Dr. Harper to make her tell you."

"There was no point. She would have left an ingredient out so mine was not as good as hers."

Rhett laughed. He finally said, "Probably."

"That's what women do. They won't tell you no they won't give you the recipe because that wouldn't be nice but instead, they leave an ingredient out so yours is never as good as theirs."

"I agree women tend to be passive aggressive, but they have no other choice because they personally have no power and because of society's rules around proper conduct."

"What is passive aggressive?"

"It is secretively resisting the demands of others by not doing what the other wants them to do. It is not confronting someone directly. As I said just about the only thing women can do in our society."

"You are right."

"Yes, I am."

Scarlett smiled and shook her head.

"I can hardly function that way."

"You will not have to function that way in your marriage."

"Thank you, Rhett."

At the same time the family was returning to the hotel, the telegrams were being delivered. Neither telegraph office was in a hurry to deliver the messages because it was a long way out to the plantations and more than likely there would be no tip. Furthermore, these days telegrams were usually bad news.

When the telegram arrived at Tara, Gerald was not happy with the news. Gerald had still not been sure he had wanted his daughter to marry a man like Rhett Butler. On the one hand it was obvious that Scarlett was in love with the man and Gerald could admit that Butler probably loved Scarlett also. On the other hand, Gerald was not convinced that Butler would not do something to shame his wife, Gerald's favorite daughter. The man did have an unsavory reputation after all. With another stream of curse words, Gerald went to find Ellen. When he found her, he handed her the piece of paper.

After Ellen had read it, she said, "We couldn't have stopped her. Although most of the time she will listen to sound counsel when she thinks she is right about something, you know how head-strong and stubborn Scarlett can be. This would have been one of those times simply because she loves the man."

"I know but you could have talked her out of this idea."

"No, Honey, I could not, and you know it. Just as nobody would have been able to talk me out of running away with Phillipe if he had asked me to."

With an alluring smile while displaying all his charisma, Gerald said, "And I thank God every day that he didn't."

Ellen laughed and said, "I know my life is better with you than it would have been with Phillipe."

Gerald beamed. Ellen knew what she had said was true but that didn't mean she still didn't wish she could have been married to Phillipe and had a life with him.

At Middleton Acres the news was received quite differently. After Marshall had read the telegraph, he was smiling ear to ear. He went to find Elizabeth. He found her in the kitchen. She spent a lot of her time there these days. As it happened, Daphne and Rosemary were there also. Marshall thought, 'This is wonderful. I can make a grand announcement.'

Everyone in the room turned to look at Marshall when he had entered the kitchen. He said, "Rhett has taken a wife."

"Really! Is it Eulalie and Pauline's niece?"

"I believe so. Isn't her name Scarlett Hamilton?"

"Yes. How wonderful. Such a good match."

Daphne said, "Who is Scarlett Hamilton?"

"She is my friends' niece as I just said. Her mother is Ellen Robillard from Savannah."

"Wow!"

Rosemary said, "Do you think it is a love match?"

"That is the only reason Rhett would ever have remarried."

Daphne said, "This was quick. Just three or four months."

"No, Rhett has been calling on her since November of sixty-two. That was why he was making all those trips to Atlanta. That was why he moved to Atlanta."

"I wonder when we are going to get to meet her."

"Not for a long time."

"We can tell the children over supper."

Marshall said, "Not that I think any of them are going to care."

Sadly, Rosemary said, "I don't either."

A sadness fell upon the group when they all recall how Meg had not been sad or unhappy when she found out her father was dead. It was simply because he was a stranger to her.

Daphne said, "I got a letter from Robert last week. He has been promoted to be one of Commander Hampton's aides de camp."

Elizabeth said, "Is that safer?"

Marshall said, "No place is safe when one is in the army."

"True. It is such good news about Rhett though. I hope he will finally be happy."

The Butlers had supper at the hotel restaurant. It was one of the few restaurants in Atlanta that was still in business, although there weren't very many food choices. They brought food back upstairs for Prissy. As soon as Wade was in bed, Rhett said, "Let's go to bed."

"Let's give him fifteen minutes to be sure he is completely asleep. We can drink our champagne that you have chilling ever so nicely over there."

"And eat our chocolates."

"Of course."

Rhett opened the bottle of champagne, and Scarlett noticed he wasn't very competent at it which surprised her. He usually did everything well. He finally got the bottle open, and the cork flew out. Some of the champagne bubbled up and ran down the sides. Rhett smiled at Scarlett and said, "This is the first time I have ever opened a bottle of champagne."

With laughter in her eyes, Scarlett said, "I would never have known."

Which made Rhett roar with laughter. Scarlett shushed him by saying, "Hush, you don't want to disturb Wade's sleep."

"No, I don't."

The couple drank two glasses of champagne each and they ate all four pieces of the chocolate in the box. By then fifteen minutes had past, Rhett stood up and held out his hand. Scarlett took his hand and they hurried into their bedroom. It was as good as the two nights before. In fact, to Rhett, it was even better for Scarlett had touched his member. It had been a fleeting touch, but she kept returning to touch his member time after time. Scarlett had whispered, "It feels so good to touch it."

"It feels so good for you to touch it. You can touch it as much as you want."

That had made Scarlett giggle, but she did continue to give his penis soft delicate touches which Rhett had enjoyed very much but had also frustrated him. He had wanted her to just hold it in a firm grasp. He calmed his frustration by thinking one step at a time. Remember she is practically a virgin.

As Rhett laid there afterwards, he briefly thought about his cigars that were still in the common room. He smiled into the darkness. He thought, "Maybe I will just quit smoking for I am certainly not leaving this nirvana now or ever."

Scarlett went back to work at the hospital the next day. Wade spent a lot of time with his dada. No matter how hard Rhett tried to coach the little boy into calling him Daddy the boy continued to call him Dada. Scarlett and Rhett had supper out every night usually at the hotel restaurant. Rhett had the restaurant make Scarlett a box lunch every day so she would have something to eat. She often brought at least half of it home with her and shared it with Wade after he got up from his nap.

Wade had started telling Scarlett when he had made use of his diaper but always after the fact. The only thing that gave Scarlett hope he would soon be potty trained was that he was correctly identifying what he had just done. Although Scarlett truly didn't need his help after he had pooed. Man, that was some ripe stuff.

Scarlett thought herself extremely lucky she wasn't the one having to change that mess. Scarlett had a thought, 'If I leave Prissy in Atlanta, who will take care of Wade while Rhett and I are traveling. Maybe I should just take Prissy with me. No, I just can't do that to Prissy. Besides, she is lazy, and she would be even lazier if she was mad. No, I will just have to think of something.'