Disclaimer: I own nothing regarding GWTW

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

Chapter Fifty-Eight

A couple of nights later after supper Rhett, Robert, and Marshall were enjoying their after-supper whiskey. None of the men were having a cigar. Robert had quit in the army because of how hard cigars were to find, Marshall had quit when his money had gotten so tight. He couldn't bring himself to spend money on cigars when they didn't even have enough money for food.

Rhett said, "Do you want more children?"

"Not really but it is a consequence of an activity I'm not ready to give up."

That made Rhett smile. He said, "Being far more worldly than you, I know of some means of preventing that from happening. That I am going to share with you."

Marshall said, "Rhett a gentleman would not speak about those things."

Rhett smiled at his father and said, "Fortunately, we are no longer gentleman." Rhett turned back to Robert and continued, "I am going to tell you in order of success rate. Abstinence. One hundred percent."

"Not doing it. Go on."

"You could wear a condom."

"Condom? What is a condom?"

"Something you put over your member to keep your seed from getting to your partner. I used a condom so I wouldn't get diseases when I used the whores."

"Bloody Hell, Rhett."

"Father, surely you didn't think I was still a virgin when I married Scarlet." Rhett turned back to Robert who by this time was beginning to blush. Robert was going to stay because he wanted to hear everything Rhett had to say. When Rhett started talking about child prevention, Robert knew that was the only way he would learn about it was through Rhett. Rhett said, "It does its job, but it also dulls the sensations."

Without looking at his father, Robert said, "Alright, where do I buy them?"

"From a drug store but you have to ask the pharmacist for them directly. Or you could buy them from a bartender at a saloon attached to a brothel."

"If I buy them, it will be from a pharmacist. I don't want anyone seeing me entering a place like that."

"Next is coitus interruptus or the pull-out method. The name says it all."

"What?! I pull out before the most exciting part."

"Yes, you have to be out completely before you release."

"No, thanks. I would rather have a lot more children. Go on."

"She can get up and douche herself with warm water and vinegar right afterwards."

"That's all her?"

"Yes, that is all her. The last one I know of is the sponge method."

"Go on."

"You procure a fine sponge and cut a piece of it about the size of a walnut; then make a fine silk string by twisting some threads of sewing silk; tie one end of the string to the piece of the sponge; wet the sponge in a weak solution of sulphate of iron. This will kill the seed. Before the two of you get romantic, she needs to insert the piece of sponge far up into her person. It is completely out of the way. That is the version Scarlett and I are using."

Scarlett would not have wanted Rhett to tell anyone their child prevention method but if him doing so could prevent another woman having another unwanted child then it would be worth her embarrassment. Fortunately, Scarlett would never know that Rhett had told anyone their child prevention method.

Robert blushed even deeper with Rhett's words. He could have gone the rest of his life without knowing that, but he rallied and said, "Since Kenny has been born?"

"Yes, that has only been three months, but Scarlett is still without child."

"Thank you, Rhett. I don't know if we are going to do any of these but I certainly can't afford to support any more children."

Marshall stood up and knock down the rest of his whiskey. As he was walking out of the room, he said, "Coitus Interrupts is how we got Rosemary."

Marshall walked out of the room without looking back. The brothers looked at each other. As soon as the door was closed, they burst out laughing. They knew their father wouldn't tell them how he had learned about child prevention. Both men realized in that moment that their father was a lot more multi-faceted than they had ever thought. Maybe their mother too.

The brothers would have certainly been surprised to find out that it had been their grandfather who had educated his son on the different methods of child prevention. Then again, their grandfather had only claimed to be a gentleman later in life.

Within a week the offers on the houses had been accepted. The contracts were signed. Rhett also had his father, and his brother sign contracts in regard to their businesses. After the contracts were signed then the businesses were legally theirs. The men just had to pay off their loans. Of course, the businesses were collateral against their loans.

Rhett smiled as the men were riding home. It probably will take thirty years to pay their loans off especially at just ten dollars a month. In truth, Rhett didn't care if they ever paid the loans back, he just wanted them out of his house.

Since their wedding day Rhett and Scarlett had someone else living with them. He didn't mean Wade and Kenny either. Of course, their sons would live with them, but he wanted all these other people gone.

Over supper that night, Scarlett said, "You can take your beds and dressers with you when you move. Even the children's furniture. Something to get you started."

"Thank you, Scarlett. That is so kind of you."

"Thank you, Elizabeth. As you get money to buy more furniture, we can ride around Galveston looking for sales."

"Of course."

Rhett was not fooled by Scarlett's act of generosity. She had wanted to replace the furniture with more upscaled furniture. That furniture she had bought just to make it possible for them to move into the house. In fact, she had already bought new furniture for their bedroom. The bed frame had come all the way from Italy, and it had a matching set of dressers. Their old bedframe had been bought through her father's store. It was just a bland ordinary bedframe. Nothing fancy, at all.

Rhett said, "In fact, Father, you and mother can take that mattress and bed frame with you that is out in the carriage house."

"Thank you, Rhett. How are we going to get all the furniture to the house?"

"As I did for Ashley and Pa, I will rent a wagon for the day, the footmen will load the furniture into the wagon, and you can figure a way to get it into your house."

"Thank you, Rhett."

"As I did with Pa and Ashley, I will even come along to help unload the wagon."

"Thank you, Rhett."

Scarlett said, "When are you planning on moving out?"

"This Sunday."

"You will have to come to supper to celebrate Wade's birthday next Wednesday."

That Sunday instead of everyone joining Rhett and Scarlett for dinner they came for supper. Everyone was talking about how excited they were to be in their own home.

Ellen said, "It is certainly different. I think it took me and the girls awhile to get used to having to do for ourselves."

Careen said, "When one has to wash all the plates themselves, one doesn't freely pass them out."

Suellen said, "It has amazed me how hard it is to make money although, Pa is doing a great job of making money."

Scarlett said, "Everyone seems to be succeeding. A bunch of hard workers in this group. Thank goodness, my husband, was brave enough to run the blockade and make money that we sorely need now. All of this is only possible because of Rhett's generosity."

Scarlett smiled at Rhett. He felt like a million dollars when she did.

Everyone at the table acknowledged that her statement was true.

Daphne said, "We are going to start a garden and later build a chicken coop so we can keep chickens."

Rhett quipped, "What about a cow or a pig?"

"No, they would be too much trouble."

Rhett said, "When is your next business trip?"

"In a couple of weeks. I'm not sure Mrs. Toklas is quite ready to handle the office all by herself."

"I am here if she needs help."

"Yes, of course. You could drop by a couple of times once we set sail."

"Alright but be sure she knows this is your idea. I don't want her to think I don't trust her."

"You don't."

"True but then I don't trust anyone except maybe the people in this room."

Everyone knew Rhett was lying. He didn't trust anyone except maybe Scarlett.

As everyone was getting ready to leave, Scarlett said, "Remember, we are celebrating Wade's birthday on Wednesday. He will be four. No presents."

Scarlett's words had disappointed Wade, but he knew he would get lots of presents from his Mama and Dada, so he didn't make a fuss. He didn't make a fuss because he was afraid that if he acted up Mama wouldn't give him any presents. He knew Mama loved him, but he also knew it was important to her that he be well-behaved.

Later that night while getting undressed, Scarlett said, "Are you ever going to buy us a carriage?"

"Yes, but I am waiting for the prices to go down."

"I have a problem. Whenever I take just Wade and Kenny out in the buggy there isn't anyone to hold Kenny. It wasn't that much of a problem before but now that he is getting mobile I either need to get a driver to drive us around or another nursemaid to hold Kenny while I am driving around. She could help Mammy in the nursery also."

"Which would you prefer?"

"I don't know. Mammy could use the help, but will she accept it or instead take it as an insult. Like we are questioning the quality of her work. A driver would be nice but what else is he going to do when he isn't driving me around."

"Work in the stables. The stablemaster, which is a strange term to use considering he is the only person working in the stable, anyway I digress, he has told me he needs some help. He probably only needs help part-time so this will work out fine. I will hire someone new in the next couple of days. Good?"

"Good."

The next day at the breakfast table there was only Rhett, Wade, Meg, and Rosemary. There wasn't much conversation. Meg and Wade were chatting about some nonsense. Both Rosemary and Rhett were reading the paper. Rhett took several papers every day. They were the Galveston Gazette which he got on the day of publication. There were four more that were mailed to him weekly. They were the Charleston Daily Reports, the New York Dispatch, Atlanta Journal, and the Boston Globe. The siblings read them all cover to cover. All the Butlers except Scarlett read the Charleston Daily Reports cover to cover.

Scarlett read the Atlanta Journals cover to cover then took the papers over to Melanie to let her and Ashley read them. Eventually, the Atlanta Journal would end up at The Luck of the Irish but nobody there was really interested in what was in the paper. The O'Haras got their own copy of the Galveston Gazette, sort of. Gerald sold the paper out of the store. Therefore, he would read the paper then fold it neatly back up and put it on the counter to sell which he usually did.

Rhett read every paper cover to cover. He started with the financial section then read the local news and ended with the sports section. Rosemary read every paper in the same manner as Rhett. Scarlett read the local news and occasionally the entertainment section of the out-of-town newspapers except the Charleston Daily Report. If there was anything of interest to her in the paper either Rhett or her in-laws would tell her about it.

After Rhett finished his breakfast, he said to Wade, "Are you through eating?"

"Yes, Dada."

"Meg?"

"Yes, Uncle Rhett."

"Then come along. I will walk with you to the nursery. See you this evening, Rosemary."

"Goodbye."

Rosemary would walk to her office. It was two miles to her office therefore she always took her dinner with her. She walked right by Miss Stein and Mrs. Toklas' boarding house. They would always wait for her to show up then the three of them would walk to the office together. Rosemary had no idea how much her walking to work just like them had endeared her to her employees.