Disclaimer: I own nothing regarding GWTW

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

Chapter Forty-Four

By the end of the evening Rhett and Scarlett were looking at each other in a nostalgic manner. When they got to Hamilton House while still being in the cab, Scarlett told PittyPat, "Go on in the house. I will be right behind you."

Rhett said, "What is it?"

"I love you."

"I love you, too."

Rhett put his arms around Scarlett and hugged her tightly. They kissed and kissed. Finally, he said, "We will get married as soon as you are divorced."

With sad eyes, Scarlett said, "No, I will not marry you again, but I want you to stay in my life."

Rhett took a deep breath and said, "I will work on changing that answer. You are my true love and true loves deserve to live together whether they have a toxic love or not. Although I planned to prove we don't have a toxic love."

"Rhett…"

"Go now. I will see you later this week at the store."

"All right. Goodbye."

Scarlett hurried into the house. She didn't know what the future would hold for her, but she wanted Rhett in it with her.

Rhett called for Clarence, and he materialized. Rhett shook his head and said, "It seems that her just saying the words is not enough. She must commit to me to prove that she truly loves me."

"It would appear so."

"Can you contact Marvin and see what he says?"

"No! You no longer exist as far as Marvin is concerned. He thinks the victory is already his because of me helping you. Let's not remind him that you are alive and on the verge of success."

"Yes, that is right. Let's go get a drink to celebrate."

"All right."

When Scarlett got into her bed, she was sad. She knew her destiny was with Rhett. She was sad because she loved Patrick, and didn't want him to spend the rest of his life alone. She wanted to save Noah, Alice, and Patrick. They all deserve to live a long life. She would think about how to save Noah. He was the first domino.

On February fourteenth, Rhett stopped by Hamilton House. It was a little cold, but they sat on the porch anyway. It was easier than trying to have a conversation with PittyPat in the room. He gave her a present. It was a ring. It had small emeralds and slightly larger diamonds intermingled. The metal was yellow gold.

Scarlett stared at the ring and finally said, "It is beautiful, Rhett."

Rhett took the ring out of the box. He slipped the ring on Scarlett's left hand on her ring finger. It fit perfectly. She said, "You have bought me enough rings to know what my ring size is."

"Yes, I have. I love you. You love me. We will work through all this. I will find a way to get you to trust me again."

"I don't think I have trusted anyone since that night in August. That is not a reference to Rough and Ready. That night or maybe the next day I knew that if anything was going to get done, I was going to have to do it."

"No, you haven't. If you had trusted people, you would have let Frank and Suellen get married then been sadly disappointed when Suellen wouldn't give you the money to save Tara."

"How are you going to get me to trust you?"

"By being honest with you. By never running away from you. By taking your feelings and desires into consideration. And at the very least explaining to you what I am doing. Basically, demonstrating I am a trustworthy person."

"That is a good start."

"It works because you don't want to have children therefore, we don't really need to be married. The only benefit to being married is that your children will be legitimate. And access to my checkbook, of course."

"You said if I needed money, you would give it to me no questions asked."

"It appears you don't need access to my checkbook. Scarlett, I want you to marry me because you want to live with me for the rest of my life."

"Shouldn't that be the rest of my life."

"No, we both know I will die before you."

"Yes, you wouldn't make it if I die first. You can't take care of yourself."

"No, I can't. Do you like it?"

"Yes, much more so than the first one you gave me."

"The first one was big enough to make the peahens green with envy."

"It was big enough to make Queen Victoria green with envy."

Rhett laughed. Scarlett smiled.

Rhett knew he and Scarlett had shared too much for the day, so he changed the subject by saying, "How are your businesses running?"

"Fine."

"Fine?"

"We have had some unexpected expenses."

"Like what?"

"They have raised the property taxes on the store and my newest mill."

"Why?"

"Allegedly I have made improvements."

"Like what?"

"I put a new building on the site on the new mill because the old one was in such a sorry state it was about to fall down around us."

"Doesn't seem fair, but it is a legitimate assessment."

"I painted the building and put a new sign up at what was Kennedy's."

"Did you change the name?"

"Yes, haven't you seen the new sign."

"I guess not."

"I wish the tax assessors hadn't seen it."

"What is the name of the store now?"

"With a big smile Scarlett said, "The Emporium."

Rhett laughed. He said, "Just The Emporium."

"Yes, just The Emporium."

"How much do you need to borrow?"

"I don't need to borrow anything. I just need you to not collect on your loan until June."

"All right."

"Thank you, Rhett."

"I will be quite happy to forgive your five-hundred-dollar debt to me if…."

"If what?"

"Never mind. Of course, if you choose to bestow a sexual favor upon me I will not object."

Instead of Scarlett getting mad she simply smiled, and said, "I think not."

"I could make it as much fun for you as it is for me."

"Why didn't you?"

For once Scarlett had caught Rhett off guard. He stared at her. He honestly didn't know what to say. At the time she had been so restrictive that it was all he could do to get her to let him have relations with her. He had been gently trying those weeks before the sigh to expand her horizons, but after the sigh he knew now he had given up. He had just taken what she had been willing to give. In a lot of ways that was their entire relationship. He had only taken what she was willing to give while he had been angry that she was only willing to give so little. In truth, he had never bluntly asked her for more.

Rhett knew in that moment as far as their intimate time was concerned, it had not been her refusing to give more. She didn't know there was more to give. Not until that night. He sadly smiled. His behavior afterwards had ruined any progress that may have been achieved that night.

"You know during that time I had some crazy ideas. After you sighed, I got it into my head that you were imagining I was Mr. Wilkes. …"

"No, never."

"Thank you for saying that. Anyway, I guess I gave up after that."

"Gave up."

"All right. You have to remember I was having some crazy thoughts. I didn't want you to have a great time while we were being intimate and then give all the credit to Mr. Wilkes."

Scarlett laughed and said, "That was some crazy thinking, but I might have, except I never thought of him while we were being intimate." She laughed self-consciously and said, "It was too sordid for Ashley to ever do anything like that." On seeing Rhett's shocked face, she added, "Remember I had him on a pedestal since I was fourteen. Fourteen-year-olds think relations are sordid and nasty."

Rhett laughed and said, "I see your point."

Rhett and Scarlett were quiet for a while until she said, "I love you, Rhett."

"I love you, too."

The couple talked about other things. Rhett told Scarlett the latest gossip about everyone even them. She said, "How do you know the gossip about us?"

"Belle tells me."

"How do you know she is telling you the truth?"

"I don't. In fact, I have never questioned what she has told me about anyone."

"You know she wants you."

"You are correct. She does want me, but not the way you mean. A better statement is she wants my check book." Scarlett stared at him with doubt written all over her face. Rhett finally said, "No matter what harebrained idea I came up with and I came up with some doozies she was agreeing with me. She didn't care about me only about my checkbook. When I came back to check on you a year after we signed our divorce, she welcomed me the same way she would have if she had seen me the night before. Admittedly, she asked where I had been, but the same way a person would ask what the person had for supper the night before."

"I don't like you and her having a relationship."

"All right. I will sell my half of The Painted Lady and never visit the establishment again."

"Really?"

"If that is what you want, but I do make a lot of money from that establishment."

Scarlett stared at Rhett with a cold face. She said, "I want it done as soon as possible."

"I think what you meant to say was: Thank you, Rhett, for selling that money maker just to make me happy."

Scarlett awkwardly laughed and said, "Isn't that what I said?" Rhett smiled, but there was a coldness in his eyes that for once she noticed.

Scarlett said, "Why don't you sell it to Belle?"

"Why would you want me to sell it to Belle?"

"She deserves something special. She has done fairly good for herself considering."

"Considering what?"

"That she is just a stupid, illiterate whore."

"Is that something I called her?" Scarlett smiled and nodded her head. Rhett said, "She isn't stupid, and I am sure she is functionally literate. I can assure you she does not have a good heart. Yes, I will sell her my half of the saloon."

"Thanks, Rhett."

"Your wish is my command."

Scarlett smiled and changed the subject by asking, "What are they saying about us?"

"The same thing they said last time except a few of the verbs are different. Mr. Kennedy hasn't even been gone for six months and she is already carrying on with Rhett Butler. I feel honored that they used my name and not just some other man. Etc., etc., etc."

"If I cared about my reputation, I would have to marry you to salvage it."

"For once, I think it is a shame you don't care about your reputation."

"Thank you, Rhett, for the engagement ring."

Rhett smiled. He said, "Are you agreeing to marry me?"

"Yes, but I won't set the date until I am positive my children and I will be happy."

"All right. Can I refer to you as my fiancé?"

"Yes, after I am divorced from Frank."

"Very good." Rhett stood up and said, "Good night.

Scarlett stood up and said, "No, don't leave quite yet. I have a question. You came back to check on me?"

"Yes, when I finally dug up the courage to admit I had made the biggest mistake of my life. When I was finally ready to beg you to take me back. You had already moved to Boston."

"Yes, I moved to Boston in May of seventy-four. When did you visit?"

"April of seventy-five."

"By then, I had already married Patrick. We married in March of seventy-five."

"On the train back to New York I resolved to forget about you and find someone better. I quickly found out there wasn't anyone better than Scarlett O'Hara. Not that I stopped trying for the next couple of years. Finally, I settled for my Scarlett substitute."

"Scarlett substitute?"

"Too long a story for right now. Good night, Sweetheart."

Good night, my love."

Scarlett stood on the porch and watched Rhett walk away. When he was out of sight of Scarlett he said, "What do you think?"

"You are going to have to do something over the top to convince her that you are trustworthy."

"That's what I think also."

The man and the angel walked along for a couple of blocks. Rhett said, "I know you are dressed the way Buddy would have been dressed to complete the image, but when you are in heaven do you wear robes?"

"No, we are usually in the buff."

Rhett stopped and stared at Clarence. He finally said, "Really?!"

"Yes, really. Rhett, we are spirits. We don't have a body the same way you humans do. We are more gas and light. We are beautiful in our natural form."

"What about the demons?"

"They are ugly in their natural form but like us they can appear anyway they want to appear. Although they say that Lucifer was the most beautiful angel of them all, before he revolted."

"That's right. The demons are just angels gone bad."

Clarence sighed and said, "That is a very simplistic way of looking at the entire picture, but we have bigger problems than worrying about what demons were before they were demons."

"True. How to get Scarlett to trust me completely."

"Yes. Come on let's put our thinking hats on."

Rhett laughed at Clarence's statement, but he did put his thinking hat on.