Disclaimer: I own nothing regarding GWTW

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

Chapter Nineteen

As Rhett and Scarlett walked out of the jewelry store, he said, "Do you want to come and play with me this afternoon?"

"No, I have to get back to the dress shop."

"Alright. I am going to go by my lawyer's office and get a list of houses for sell. I will check them out and then only show you the houses I am willing to live in." After Scarlett had scowled at Rhett once again, he added, "I will let you have more freedom with the decorating."

"I'm not going to live in a bland and boring home."

"You live in a bland and boring home now."

"That is because I live with Ashley and Melly who are bland and boring people. Their bedroom is so boring it would put me to sleep."

"That is what you are supposed to do in a bedroom among other things."

Scarlett laughed as Rhett leered at her. She finally said, "Go ahead and find some houses for me to look at. The sooner we find a house the sooner we can get out of that tiny house."

"I will brave this cold weather, just to find you a house."

As Scarlett was getting out of the cab, she said, "At least it isn't snowing. Goodbye, Darling."

"See you tonight."

"You are coming over tonight?"

"Tonight and every night until we are wed. Then I will just be living there."

"Come after supper. There won't be enough food for you to join us for supper."

"Speaking of enough food, you are going to have to get the cook to prepare more food. What you have been serving me is not quite enough."

"How much more?"

"Probably half again."

"That much?"

"I have a hearty appetite for food and other things. You will too once we are married."

"No, I don't want to get fat."

"I would never let you get fat. Nor would I ever get fat."

Scarlett smiled up at her fiancé and just waved goodbye. Once she was in the dress shop, Rhett said, "Driver, take me to 2011 14th Street."

"Yes, Sir."

After Rhett entered the law office of Ben Matlock, he asked the secretary, "Is Mr. Matlock in?"

"He is Mr. Butler but he is with a client right now. Is there something I can help you with?"

"Yes, Cliff, you can. I need a list of houses available to buy on the east side."

"I can help you with that."

Cliff Lewis got up and walked over to a file cabinet. He opened one of the drawers and pulled a folder out. He took a piece of paper out and handed it to Rhett. He said, "They are not sorted by sides of town."

As Rhett took the piece of paper from Cliff, he saw there were ten houses listed on the paper. He said, "I guess I will have to get my map out and locate them all. Thank you."

As Rhett was walking out of the building, he hailed down a cab, when the driver asked him, "Where to?"

Rhett had a brilliant idea. He would just get the cab driver to take him to all these locations. Rhett then realized he could just ask the man where the houses were located. Three of the ten were on the west side of the city. By the time the afternoon was over, he had cleared seven houses off the list. The three that were on the west side, three that were pretty bland houses, and one that was an eyesore in his opinion because of its garishness. The three that were left were flashier than he would like but he already knew that Scarlett had bright and showy taste. They were all three in the Victorian style. For him, the houses were smaller than he would have liked but all three of them were within walking distance of the Wilkeses. They could buy a larger house later.

Rhett ate supper at the hotel. As he ate, he saw several people that he knew, even that horse's behind Paul Newman. He briefly wondered if Scarlett had still been seeing the man. Even if she had been she wouldn't be for very much longer. He wished he could be a fly on the wall when Scarlett told that waste of flesh, she was marrying him. That thought made him laugh. He always enjoyed besting another man but especially Paul Newman.

When Paul got to his table, Rhett saw that Paul's date for the evening was Jayne Mansfield. Rhett laughed. He guessed he and Paul had the same taste in women. Rhett did wonder what Scarlett had ever seen in that jerk.

Upon seeing Jayne, Rhett wondered where Paul had met her. That made him once again wonder where Scarlett had met Paul.

When Rhett thought about Scarlett, he smiled. He wondered how long it would be before he got her to move away from the Wilkeses. Probably a long time because in a weird sort of way the Wilkeses were her family.

That night after Rhett was seated in the parlor, he said, "I have narrowed the list down to three. They all have five bedrooms with servants' quarters on the third floor. They are all three within walking distance from this house. If you can get away tomorrow afternoon, I will once again buy you dinner then we will make a decision."

"Did you go inside?"

"No, but tomorrow we will just get the homeowners to let us in."

"Alright. We can just go back to Katz's. I like their food. I will get a different type of sandwich though."

"Sounds great. That is a pretty dress you have on. Simply out of curiosity, when Mrs. Chanel makes a new dress for you, do you pick the fabric or does she?"

"I do."

"Do you pay for the dress?"

"I pay for the materials used to make it. I offered to pay Coco for her labor, but she said that my wearing the dress brings in so much business that she didn't need to be compensated.

The rest of the evening the four people talked about the war, what was happening in New York, Beau because he had rolled over, Wade because he was starting to talk more, and the results of the presidential election. An election that Ashley voted in while Rhett did not.

The next day for dinner, Rhett had a pastrami sandwich and Scarlett had a grilled cheese sandwich. When their plates were laid in front of them, Scarlett reached over and took all Rhett's cauliflower. She said, "I don't want you to be annoyed that there are awful vegetables on your plate."

"Thank you, Dear."

Soon they were in the cab visiting the houses. The first house they stopped at, Rhett told the cabdriver, "We won't be long. Just wait for us."

The house was lavender, and Rhett said, "If we choose this one, we will have to paint the exterior."

"I like the color."

"No, I will not live in a purple house."

"It is lavender."

"Or that color either. The house had a porch that went around the front of the house."

Rhett knocked on the door. A woman answered. Rhett said, "We are thinking about buying this house and would like to look inside the house."

"No."

"If we can't look at the inside, we won't buy the house."

"No."

"You must not want to sell your house."

"No, I don't."

The woman shut the door.

As Rhett and Scarlett walked back to the cab, she said, "What was that about?"

"Probably her husband wants to sell the house and she doesn't."

"Smart woman."

"Indeed. Smart woman."

"That is what Coco did sort of."

"What do you mean?"

"She put her shop on the market but then she overpriced it so it would not sell."

"How did you manage to get her to sell part of it to you."

"I offered to buy half of the shop. I think she thought she could boss me around and then she would have free labor."

"What happened after she found out that wasn't true?"

Scarlett paused as they climbed into the cab. The cab driver said, "When you said you would be right back, I didn't think you meant you would be right back."

Rhett replied, "The woman didn't want to show us the inside of her house. So, let's go to the next address. 1118 Lexington Ave." Rhett turned back to Scarlett and said, "Go on."

"The first two weeks were rough but after Coco figured out that I intended to be an equal partner, she started working with me. After a month, Coco figured out that I would take care of the business side of our shop and all she had to do was create beautiful dresses. She began to appreciate my talents."

"It is hard for me to believe that someone so young would be so good at business."

"I couldn't fail. I had no one to support me. I couldn't go home because of the war. So, I had to make it work. We were both so happy when that first month when we had made a profit. Coco said at the time it was the largest profit she had ever made."

"What did you live on while you were building the business."

"Charlie had some money from when we moved up here. Almost five hundred dollars. I didn't spend it all, but I spent more than I wanted to spend."

"That is your money. I will never ask for it."

"Thank you, Rhett."

"As is the dress shop."

"Thank you, Rhett."

"It appears we are at our second stop. I like the yellow."

"I can live with the yellow."

Rhett said to the cabdriver, "We will be right back."

The cabdriver said, "Hopefully not as quickly as you were before."

This time the woman who answered the door was happy to give Rhett and Scarlett a tour of the house. There was a foyer, a parlor, kitchen, library, dining room, music room, and five bedrooms upstairs. As they walked back to the cab, Rhett said, "Well?"

"I like it well enough but let's go ahead and look at the other one."

"Alright."

After the couple had gotten into the cab, Rhett said, "805 Delaware."

"I am going to need one of those downstairs rooms as my office."

"You can have the library."

"I want to have a library."

"I want to have a music room."

"Which instruments do you play?"

"The piano and the violin."

"We can make one of the rooms a music room and my office."

"No."

"Why not? You aren't going to be home during the day, and I won't need an office at night. At night I will be in the same room you are in."

"Alright, Honey."

"Thank you, Dear. As the cab stopped, Rhett said, "How do you feel about beige?"

"We will have to repaint the exterior."

"Alright."

As Rhett helped Scarlett down from the cab, he said to the cab driver, "We will be right back."

Rhett and Scarlett were allowed admittance to the beige house. Although there were five bedrooms, the bedrooms were small. The downstairs only contained a parlor, a kitchen, a dining room, and a library. They thanked the woman for showing them around her house and left.

As Rhett and Scarlett were walking to the cab, he said, "I like the yellow one better."

"Me too."

"I will go see my attorney after I drop you off at the shop unless you want to go with me."

"No, that all sounds boring. I will go back to work."

As Rhett and Scarlett climbed into the cab, he said, "2275 Beaver St."

"Yes sir."

As Rhett and Scarlett rode to the dress shop, he said, "Are you getting a new dress for the wedding?"

"No, I am going to wear my green dress and hat that was made from the material you gave me."

"I am touched."

"I was hoping it would have a special meaning to both of us."

"Although I am surprised you didn't throw it away after I behaved so cloddishly."

"Of course not, I look too good in it." Rhett laughed and Scarlett added, "I didn't get rid of the yellow shawl either."

Rhett laughed and said, "For the same reason I assume."

"Of course."

"Kiss me."

"Of course."

Rhett and Scarlett kissed the rest of the way back to the shop. Far too soon the cab stopped in front of the dress shop.