Up until this afternoon, Rhett Butler had been happy.

That fact, in and of itself, was quite foreign to him. He'd been a hedonist and a libertine, going from one pleasure to another, but he'd never been able to call himself happy. He'd been sated and satisfied but never happy. At least not until the day he'd said "I Do".

The irony was not lost on him. Most married men looked back on their wedding day as the beginning of the end. They would have gladly traded their domesticity for one night of the debauchery that Rhett had once reveled in. It had been a surprise, albeit a pleasant one, for Rhett to discover how much he really enjoyed married life.

It wasn't the house that so pleased him. The truth was that he felt like he was living in a particularly gaudy brothel with its bold colors and rich fabrics.

And marriage hadn't exactly meant settling down. Scarlett had kept him busy with parties and dances and events that lasted all hours of the night. He probably got more rest during his bachelor days than his married ones, at least before Scarlett fell pregnant.

He couldn't help by smile at the thought of his newborn daughter. The moment he held that little angel in his arms he felt so unbelievably lucky. More so than anytime he'd managed to draw into an Inside straight. Marrying Scarlett was a gamble but he'd hit the jackpot.

Family. That was the one thing that had always been missing in his life. Even before his father disowned him Rhett had never thought much of family. They were just people who tried to change him and limit him in the name of propriety. He'd spent so many years trying to not put down roots that he never realized what he'd been missing.

He'd married Scarlett because he couldn't imagine having to see her with someone else. But the unexpected pleasure came from creating a family with her. Wade was a smart and sweet young man who looked up to Rhett with more respect than anyone else on Earth had ever given to him. And he'd wanted Ella to be his daughter from the moment he noticed the bump through Scarlett's clothing. Bonnie was just the icing on the cake, a new life he would get to mold and shape from day one. His children would be a legacy that would outlive his bad deeds and give him a chance at immortality through them.

At least that had been the plan until this afternoon when Scarlett so coolly announced that there would be no more children. Three children would have been fine if that was what fate had planned for them. Even if Scarlett had come to him to discuss her concerns, they could have talked it over they way they used to talk about everything. But the fact that she and Ashley Wilkes were now dictating his future, well that was the galling part.

He'd come to Belle's tonight to live up to his. He'd gone to his old room, the one that had sat unused since the day of his engagement, as Belle cooed and soothed him as he knew she would.

"You're distraught," she said, patting his hand. "I can't say I'm

surprised to see you here today. Hell, I'm surprised it took you this long to show up. But now you're here and I'll fix you right up. You tell Belle exactly what you want and she'll make it happen."

Rhett smiled. What he wanted. How long had it been since Scarlett asked him what he wanted? His smile turned bitter as he realized that was what he wanted. He'd trade anything to have Scarlett here right now showing some concern for his desires.

An image came to his mind of Scarlett, dressed in her mother's green portieres, begging him to help her with Tara. In this fantasy they were not in the jail, but in his hotel room at National, where he leaned in a fine leather chair and watched Scarlett plead her case.

"I have the money," he said absently, as if it was nothing to him.

"I'll do anything. Anything you want Rhett, just please help me. I'm begging you."

"Begging? I might believe that if you were on your knees."

There was a flash of furry in her green eyes before she gave in. Looking like a broken stallion she slowly sank to her knees. Her voice trembled, on the edge of tears as she looked down at the plush carpet of the room.

"You're the only person left in the world who can help me. If you don't… I don't know what I'll do."

Still looking down she saw his fine black leather boots before her.

Rhett reached out his hand deftly removed her hat. His fingers started running through her thick straight black hair, pulling pins carefully as it went.

She was like a feral cat, at first nervous about being pet but soon leaning into each caress. The sight of the Scarlett kneeling before him looking so vulnerable, so completely at his mercy, was stirring him greatly. When she finally looked up Scarlett was face to face with a buldge in his pants.

The shock on her face only lasted a moment before she licked her lips. "Rhett, you know how much I love Tara. I would do anything for it. Anything that you want."

"Rhett," Belle's sharp voice said, taking him away from the fantasy.

"Sorry. What were you saying?"

"That I felt sorry for you having to put up with that woman. Now, you let me take care of you. I can get you anything you want, you just say the word."

Rhett downed another shot. He couldn't get her the one thing he wanted. Scarlett. What a strange position he was in; a married man who wanted to have an affair with his wife. But that was the situation. There was no whore that could sate his need for her. Besides why should he have to pay for favors from Belle's girls while still paying the bills his wife created? Didn't she owe him something? In a flash the answer was obvious. Even in his drunken state he could recognize the simply brilliance of the arrangement. He dismissed Belle with the remainder of the Whisky bottle as he began to put the plan together.

****

As most things that happened in her life, the details of evicting Rhett from her bed happened without any attention from Scarlett. That afternoon Rhett had gone back to the children, where he spoke to them in the polite and interested voice he never spared for his wife, and she went down to her office to work. By the time she came out all of Rhett's thing had been moved to the room across the hall and it was as if he'd never been there in the first place.

There had been a time, not so long ago, when Scarlett had been obsessed with the smallest minutia. From exactly how many seeds were planted at Tara, to every penny in the till at Frank's store, even to the size of the fringe on in the hall of her new home. But now that she was firmly married to Rhett she no longer had to be concerned about these things. She didn't have to worry about anything really. It was almost as if she was a child again living at home and having parents who took care of the mundane details of life while she could just have fun.

It had been so long since she'd been forced to actually think about the details that at first she wasn't sure what to do when, at breakfast, there was no longer chocolate pastries waiting for her. Or what to say about the fact that there was only vanilla ice cream instead of strawberry served after dinner. It wasn't until an order of dresses arrived with all of Ella's little gowns but missing everything Scarlett had ordered for herself that she couldn't avoid the détails anymore.

When she stopped by to inquire, loudly, what had happened she was told that Mr. Butler had canceled her order. It was the same answer she heard when she came home and asked about the new menu. It appeared as if Rhett had finally tightened the reigns. When she confronted him about it Rhett had only looked disappointed. "It took you long enough to notice," he remarked. "Oh, stop looking so disgruntled. The part of the wronged wife has never suited you. Besides, I married a businesswoman. I assume you know enough about contracts to understand what is going on."

"I understand that you are acting like one of the children. Which I suppose is only appropriate since you spend all your free time with them."

"Not all my time," he interrupted with a glint in his eyes. Scarlett just knew he was trying to taunt her about where he was spending his evenings these days, but she refused to think about that.

"Stop going behind my back and playing these silly games. I'm going to have the things I want and you are not going to stop me."

"Of course not. I never could stop you. But I will refuse to pay the bills. After all, darling, we did have a deal. Surely you remember our arrangement? The day of our engagement I admitted that I wanted you more than any other woman and you admitted your deep feelings for my money. We entered a verbal contract that moment, sealed with a kiss. You got access to my money and I got access to you."

"You make me sound like some type of... well, like I'm no different from one of those girls that you…"

"A woman of easy virtue? One of General Hooker's girls? A member of the world's oldest profession?"

"You are disgusting!"

Rhett shrugged. "I suppose, but I'm also the one in control here. Now I'll continue to support your children. Wade and Ella shouldn't be punished because of your misdeeds. But you will need to pay your own way, at least as long as you refuse to hold up your end of our arrangement."

Scarlett wasn't listening anymore, her mind too busy running numbers. She wanted to tell Rhett that she had plenty of money of her own, and she was well off, but that was only on paper. She'd never heeded Rhett's warning about keeping money liquid, and so all of her money was locked up either in land or investments in the store and mills. She'd come to expect Rhett's money taking care of her personal expenses and so she hadn't planned on needing anything from the businesses. Oh, she could get it. But it would mean losing out on opportunities to grow the businesses. Besides, the truth was that she missed Rhett in her bed. She'd hardly been able to sleep with him gone. Now that she had the big bed to herself she no longer sprawled across it the way she had when Rhett was there. Instead she slept in a ball on her side of the bed, as if she was afraid to tread over to his side and realize he was really gone.

"Fine," she said with an oddly satisfied smile on her face, "you can move back in."

"No. I don't think so. Don't look so hurt, sweetheart, it isn't that I don't want to share your bed. I just don't have much use to sleep in it. No point in confusing the situation like that."

Feeling unusually helpless Scarlett lashed out. She grabbed a glass from the table and threw it at Rhett. He laughed as he dodged it, and two more that followed.

"That's my girl!" he said cheerfully. "Be aware I will have to add the cost of that little outburst to your bill. Now, would you like to start working it off tonight?"

"I'd rather kiss a Yankee."

Rhett allowed himself to look at his wife, high color on her cheeks and nostrils flaring. God, she looked beautiful. In these moments when she was totally without any façade she was more desirable than any other woman in the world.

"Scarlett," he said, lust turning his voice into an animalistic growl. "Tonight I'll be dining at the National. If you have any desire on keeping your side of out marital bargain I suggest you join me."

He was out of the room when he heard another glass shattering against the wall.