| 3:14a |
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"Why don't you make it bigger?"
"I don't
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"Why don't you make it bigger?"
"I don't have toIt serves my purpose just as it isI have a
foreman who doesn't cheat me much, a couple of dozen laborers who
work
almost as much as they loal, and respectabilityI can spend my time
and money and sweat on what I care about, and right now, that's
restoring the gardens
Scarlett was annoyed almost past bearingWasn't that just like Rhett
to fall into a tub of butter? And to waste the chance? No matter how
rich he was, he could stand to get richerThere was no such ouIr
and got a decent day's work out of
those men, he could triple the yieldWith another couple of dozen
laborers, he could double that "Forgive me for interrupting your
empire building, Scarlett, but I have a serious question to ask you
What would it take to convince you that you should leave me in peace
and go back to Atlanta?" Scarlett gaped at himShe was genuinely
astonishedHe couldn't possibly mean what he was saying, not after
he
had held her so tenderly last night"You're joking," she accusedI've never been more serious in my life, and I want
you
to take me seriouslyIt has never been my habit to explain to anyone
what I'm doing or what I'm thinking; nor do I have any real confidence
that you will understand what I'm going to tell youBut I'm going to
try"I am working harder than I've ever had to work in my life,
ScarlettI burned my bridges in Charleston so thoroughly and so
publicly that the stench of the destruction is still in the nostrils of
everyone in townIt's immeasurably stronger than the worst Sherman
could do, because I was one of their own, and I defied everything they
built their lives onWinning my way back into Charleston's good
graces is like climbing an ice-covered mountain in the darkOne slip,
and I'm deadSo far I've been very cautious and very slow, and I've
made some small headwayI can't take the risk of your destroying all
I've doneI want you to leave, and I'm asking your pric |