| This was the best part of being The O'Hara
They
had all worked, each in his or her own way, and now they were all
together, the whole population of the town, to celebrate the results of
that workThere was food and drink, sweets and a small carousel for
children, a wooden platform for dancing later in front of the
unfinished innThe air was golden with afternoon light, the wheat ?
golden on the table, a golden feeling of happiness bathed in shared
repletionIt was exactly what Harvest Home was meant to beThe
sound
of horses coming made mothers look for - younger childrenScarlett's
heart stopped for a moment when she couldn't find CatThen she saw
her sitting on Colum's knee at the end of the tableHe was talking to
the man beside zucca spy fendi bag himCat was nodding as if she understood every
wordWhat a funny little girl her daughter wasA group
of militia rode into the end of the streetThree men, three officers,
their polished brass buttons more golden than the wheatThey slowed
their horses to a walk, and the noise around the tables died away
Some of the men rose to their feet"At least the soldiers have the
decency not to gallop past, stirring up dust," said Scarlett to Father
FlynnBut when the men reined in before the deserted church she fell
silent, too
"Which way to the Big House?" said one of the officers"I'm here to
talk to the owner"I am the owner," she said
She was amazed that her suddenly dry mouth could make any sound
at
all
The officer looked at her tumbled hair and quilted chanel bag bright peasant clothes
His lips curled in a sneer"Very amusing, girl, but we're not here to
play games Scarlett felt an emotion that had become almost a
stranger to her, a wild, elated angerShe stepped up onto the bench
she'd been sitting on and put her hands on her hipsShe looked
insolent and she knew it"No one invited you here-soldier-to play
games or anything elseNow what do you want? I am Mrs
A
second officer walked his horse forward a few stepsHe dismounted
and
came on foot to stand in front of and below Scarlett's position on the
bench"We're to deliver this, Mrs He removed his hat and
one of his white gauntlets and handed a scrolled paper up to Scarlett
"The garrison is going to second a detachment to Ballyhara for its
protection white chanel purse Scarlett could feel tension, like a storm, in the warm
end-ofsummer atmosphereShe unrolled the paper and read it slowly,
twiceShe could feel the knots in her shoulders relax when the full
meaning of the document was clear to herShe lifted her head and
smiled so everyone could see herThen she turned the full force of
her smile on the officer looking up at her"That's mighty sweet of
the colonel," she said, "but I'm really not interested, and he can't
send any soldiers to my town without my agreementWill you tell him
for me? I don't have any unrest here in Ballyhara at allWe get
along real fine She held the vellum sheet down to the officer
"Youall look a mite parched, would you like a glass of ale?" The
admiring expression on her face uhr rolex had enchanted men just like this
officer from the day she turned fifteenHe blushed and stammered
exactly like dozens of young men she'd beguiled in Clayton County,
GeorgiaO'Hara, but-uhregulations-that is,
personally I'd like nothing better-but the colonel wouldn't-um-he'd
think-"
"I understand," said Scarlett kindly"Maybe some other
time?"
The first toast of Harvest Home was to The O 'HaraIt would have
been
the first toast anyway, but now the salute was a loud roar
Except for riding there was nothing active to do, and she needed to be
busyThe new fields were cleared and manured by the middle of
November, and then what did she have to think about? There weren't
even many complaints or disputes brought to her office on balenciaga twiggy First
Sundays |