In the Beginning, Part 4

They married the next afternoon before a judge and two witnesses brought from outside, and Scarlett inwardly shuddered when she recalled that this was how she had married Frank. Later, when she tried to recall details, she could never quite remember her wedding day. She only knew that she swallowed hard when the judge pronounced them married. They stopped briefly by Pitty's house, where she and Melanie shyly wished them congratulations, and Ashley was mysteriously absent. Mammy stoutly refused Rhett's offer of a ten-dollar gold piece and hurried the children away after Scarlett told them good-by.

"What a lovely suite!" Scarlett exclaimed as they entered the bridal suite in the National Hotel. "I haven't stayed in a hotel like this since before the war," she said, admiring the plush wool carpets and mahogany furniture.

"I thought as much. That's why I reserved it." Rhett laughed suddenly. "This may be your third marriage, but this is your first honeymoon, isn't it?"

"Yes--I hadn't thought of that." Now that they were alone, she felt awkward. She walked about the sitting room taking in her surroundings and absentmindedly twisting the ring around her finger. She wondered--with some alarm--whether he would try to take her to bed now. Surely he wouldn't in broad daylight!

Rhett lounged to a chair and lit a cigar. He watched her amusedly through a cloud of smoke before finally asking, "What would you like to do, Scarlett?"

She stopped. "Do?"

"We've several hours still before our supper reservation. What would you like to do in the meantime?"

She sat in the chair opposite him and said, "I--I don't know. I'm awfully tired. I didn't get much sleep last night."

"Oh, why not? The excitement of our nuptials keep you awake?" His eyes danced mischievously.

She frowned but raised her chin and said defiantly, "No, I stayed awake all night trying to think of how to get out of marrying you."

The light went out of his eyes, but he raised one eyebrow and grinned at her. "Well?"

"Well, what?" she replied tartly. "I wasn't successful. I married you, didn't I?"

"Indeed you did, Mrs. Butler." He extinguished his cigar and changed his tone to a more serious one. "Why not rest before supper? How much time will you need to dress?"

"An hour. Really, Rhett? You don't mind?"

"Not at all." No need to tell her he had not slept either--but for entirely different reasons. He showed her into the bedroom and said, "Your luggage is already here. I'll send for a maid to help you undress." He would have liked to have undressed her himself, but he was a patient man and he had the rest of his life to undress Scarlett O'Hara.

"What will you do this afternoon, Rhett?"

"I shall find some way to amuse myself, my pet."

After nearly an hour, he felt certain she would be asleep, and he crept into the bedroom. She was sprawled on her side and he nearly laughed when he realized that if she always occupied this much space on the bed, he would be forced to jockey room enough for himself every night. He had never seen her hair down, and he had not realized how long it was, or how thick. He studied her face and caught his breath. It was utterly relaxed and held a softness he had never seen. She really was beautiful when her jaw wasn't squared and her brows furrowed with strain. He intended to take over some of her worries, to make her laugh and enjoy life again.

He glanced at the clock and saw that it was time to wake her. He hated to disturb her, but she had asked for an hour to get ready. He walked over to the bed and gently brushed the hair from her face. She didn't stir. He knelt down. "Wake up," he whispered, his mustache tickling her ear.

Scarlett was vaguely aware of someone beside her, but she was enjoying the first real sleep she had had in a long time too much to bother waking up. She was back at Tara--fifteen years old, she was--and Ashley was taking her to all the parties. Ashley called on her every week and the sunlight glinted off his blonde hair and made him look so handsome. Then something was tickling her ear. She raised her hand to brush whatever it was off, but her hand grazed a mustache and the man laughed. Ashley didn't wear a mustache. Rhett did! Mother of God! My new husband is trying to wake me up, and I'm dreaming about Ashley. She willed Ashley to go away, and then she opened her eyes and found Rhett crouched beside the bed.

"Time to get up, Miss Sleepyhead. Dining and dancing await us downstairs. Champagne, too, if you're a good girl."

She rubbed her eyes with her fists, and Rhett thought how young she looked. How old was she anyway? She never had told him.

"Sleep well?"

"Yes. I didn't mean to sleep that long, but I was so tired," she said sheepishly.

"Better to sleep now than to embarrass me by falling over in your soup."

"Could you hand me my wrapper, please?"

He retrieved her wrapper from the vanity chair and turned away before she could ask. This modesty of her was most unexpected and if the proof weren't in her children, he would question whether her two marriages had been consummated.

***

"Tell me about New Orleans," Scarlett said as she took a bite of her second dessert.

Once again, Rhett marveled at the gusto with which Scarlett ate, relishing each bite as though she expected her plate to be taken away momentarily. "I know you will love the food, my gluttonous little pet."

Scarlett stopped eating long enough to stick her tongue out at him before she resumed her concentration on the rapidly disappearing profiterole.

Rhett paid no attention to her and continued smoothly, "There's seafood to be had at every restaurant. I'll bet you haven't eaten much seafood, have you?"

She shook her head.

"And the shopping. New Orleans has glorious shops."

Scarlett put down her fork. "Really? Oh, Rhett, I can't wait to go shopping! When do we leave tomorrow?"

"I thought it best to book an afternoon train," he said silkily.

She did not blush as he thought she might, but the large quantity of champagne she had drunk went a long way to remove her inhibitions. She laughed. "You will find that I like to sleep late."

"Do you? And you will find, Mrs. Butler, that I like to get up early."

The orchestra began to play a Strauss waltz. Rhett stood and with an excessively gallant gesture, bowed and asked her to dance.

Scarlett smiled and smoothed her dress. "You're my favorite dance partner, you know," she said as he led her to the dance floor.

"I had better be. And if you continue to eat like this, I shall have to dance with you every night so you won't lose that tiny waist of yours."

Her brows rushed together in a frown. "Listen," she said sharply, "if you had nothing to eat except for dried peas and hominy--"

He silenced her by gently kissing her forehead and cupping her chin with one hand. "I like to see you eat. You will never want for anything again. Understand?"

She nodded and rested her head on his shoulder as he pulled her closer. Rhett could be so nice. Why didn't he treat her this way all the time? She tightened her grip on Rhett's shoulders when she recalled that Ashley had once told her he liked to see girls with healthy appetites. Why couldn't she stop thinking about Ashley? He had been so distant with her since she announced her engagement to Rhett. He had avoided seeing her for days prior to the wedding and then had not been at Pitty's house this afternoon.

Rhett interrupted her thoughts. "What are you thinking about?"

She smiled, but her eyes glittered as she said brightly, "Nothing at all. Let's dance."

Rhett had untiring energy for dancing, and he skillfully led her across the floor for the next several hours. When they went up to their suite at midnight, Scarlett's eyes sparkled with excitement and her cheeks were flushed.

Rhett adjusted the lights, and Scarlett swept past him and kicked off her shoes. Unused to so much champagne, she had to steady herself against the back of the sofa. Then she swallowed the lump in her throat. They were really and truly alone. Had Rhett ever been a predictable man--a gentleman--she would not have been apprehensive. She had been married twice before, after all. What would he expect of her?

He came and stood in front of her and tucked a loose curl behind her ear. With one finger, he traced her jaw line from her ear and stopped at her lips. Then he drew her to him and kissed her softly. Scarlett wanted more. Even as her mind screamed that her thoughts were indecent, her body responded hungrily to Rhett and she slid her arms around his neck and whispered his name between kisses.

To be continued...