All the adults played parent to all the
childrenScarlett was grateful for Maureen's red hairAll her
children- the ones Scarlett had met next door, plus Patricia, plus
Daniel, the son at the store, plus another grown boy whose name she
couldn't remember-were at least recognizableThe others were a
hopeless muddleSo were their parentsScarlett knew that one of
the
men was named Gerald, but which one? They were all big men, with
curly
dark hair and blue eyes and winning smiles"Isn't it confusing?" said
a voice beside her"Don't let it bother you,
Scarlett, you'll puzzle them out in time Scarlett smiled and nodded
politelyBut she had no intention of "puzzling them out
She was going to ask Jamie to walk her home just as soon as borse fendi she
could
It was too noisy here with all those brats running around
The silent pink house on the square seemed like a refugeAt least
there she had her aunts to talk toHere she couldn't say a word to a
soulThey were all too busy chasing children or hugging and kissing
PatriciaAsking her about her baby, for heaven's sake! As if they
didn't know that the only decent thing to do was pretend that you
didn't notice when a woman was pregnantShe felt like a strangerJust like 34
Charleston
And these were her own kin! It made things a hundred times worse
"We'll be cutting the cake now," Maureen saidShe slipped her arm
through Scarlett's"Then we'll have a bit of music Scarlett
clenched her teethMy grief, I've sat through one musicale rolex watches ladies already in
SavannahCan't these people do anything else?
She walked with Maureen to a settee covered in red plush and settled
herself stiffly on the edge of the seatA knife clattering against a
glass demanded everyone's attentionSomething that was almost
silence
came into the crowd"I thank you for as long as it lasts," Jamie
saidHe waved his knife menacingly at the laughter
"We've come to celebrate Patricia's birthday, even though it will not
arrive until next weekToday is Shrove Tuesday, a better time for
feasting than the middle of Lent He threatened the laughter again
"And we have a further cause for celebrationA beautiful long lost O
'Hara has been found againI lift this glass for all the O'Haras in a
toast to Cousin Scarlett omega de ville men's watches and bid her welcome to our hearts and our
homes Jamie threw back his head and poured the dark contents of
his glass down his throat"Bring on the feast!"
He commanded with a sweeping gesture"And the fiddle!" There was
an
outburst of giggles from the doorway and the sound of hissing calls for
silencePatricia came over and seated herself next to Scarlett
Then, from a corner, a fiddle began to playJamie's beautiful
daughter Helen walked in carrying a platter of steaming small meat
piesShe bent over to show them to Patricia and Scarlett, then
carefully carried them to the heavy round parlor table in the center of
the room and set the platter on the velvet cloth that covered it
Helen was followed by Mary Kate, then the pretty girl mulberry bags who had been
with
Uncle James, then the youngest of the O'Hara wivesAll of them
presented the platters they were carrying to Scarlett and Patricia
before adding them to the food on the tableA roast of beef, a
clove-studded ham, a bulging turkeyThen Helen appeared again with
a
huge bowl of steaming potatoes, followed more quickly now by the
others
with creamed carrots, roast onions, whipped sweet potatoesAgain
and
again the procession came until the table was covered with food and
relishes of every kind
The fiddle-Scarlett saw that Daniel from the store was playing-played
a
flourishing arpeggio, and Maureen entered carrying a tower of a cake
liberally trimmed with huge, vividly pink icing roses"Bakery cake!"
screamed christian dior saddle bag Tim