February 1999

"You okay, mama?" Eleanor peered over her shoulder and squinted to look beyond the cloud of dust.

"Just fine," her mother replied, as she shifted uncomfortably in her saddle. Sue Ellen hadn't ridden a horse in the ten years since her departure from Dallas. Nevertheless, she refused to let the ache in her derrière deter her from the first day Eleanor spent solely in her company. "Such a shame Ann couldn't join us." In fact, she and Bobby's wife had concocted the perfect excuse for Ann to bow out of the rendezvous last minute.

Eleanor hummed in unison, "Sure is." Her brother was also conveniently occupied elsewhere. If Eleanor were the suspicious type - and, at times, she was - she would have accused her mother and Ann of conspiracy.

"You know, I still remember when you first learnt to ride. You were a natural from the very start," her mother complimented and swiftly lined her American Quarter to walk parallel to Eleanor's Appaloosa Stallion. "Clayton and I would ride with you and John Ross every Sunday. Those were the best of times," Sue Ellen fondly resolved, as they bypassed the burial site of deceased family members. She didn't pay attention to the lack of response from Eleanor, who sealed her lips shut and often found the bad memories overshadowed all else. "I miss him," she sadly mourned the loss of a friend and father figure, and expertly batted away the threat of tears. "So, do you - uh - have a boyfriend?" Eleanor was co-captain of the cheerleading squad, President of the student council, excelled in all of her studies and worked part time for her father but Sue Ellen understood very little of how Eleanor lived her life.

"I do not," Eleanor replied openly, if not uncomfortably. The boys in school were exactly that - boys - and their relentless immaturity bored her, especially since she had started to move in her fathers more formal business circles. "Hunter and I broke up."

"I'm sorry, sweetheart," she softly exhaled. She had been so out-of-touch from all of their lives whilst in London, Eleanor's especially. At least John Ross seemed to confide in her. Eleanor, on the other hand, held her cards desperately close to her chest. "No doubt your father was pleased." She privately recalled the once volatile rivalry Carter McKay shared with the Ewing family.

"Why do you think we broke up?"

They completed the circular trail around Southfork in relative silence and returned their respective horses to the stable. As they wandered the path back toward the house, a jeep rolled down the drive and a little boy, who Sue Ellen estimated to be seven or eight years old, leapt out and into Eleanor's arms.

"Hey, little man," she embraced the child with a squeeze.

An answer to the question Sue Ellen internally pondered arose when a familiar face climbed from the driver's seat. She was eternally youthful and her smile radiated kindness, "Sue Ellen… hi."

"Hi, Cally," she reflected the warm welcome. Of all the other women J.R. had been romantically involved with, Cally was her favourite. It was an odd genre to play favourites in but Cally had been like a breath of fresh air from the moment she entered their lives. She had also played an instrumental role in John Ross and Eleanor's early adolescence after Sue Ellen relocated to London with Don.

"Sue Ellen, I'd like you to meet my son, Harper," Cally beckoned the small child and placed two hands on his shoulders. "Harper, this here is Sue Ellen Lockwood, your daddy's first wife and John Ross and Eleanor's mama."

"Hello," the little boy shyly peered at her beneath wisps of platinum blonde hair. He was the vision of J.R. in his childhood, as if someone had carbon-copied an old black and white photograph of him in his youth. Miss Ellie had always described her eldest son as a shy boy and Sue Ellen had been unable to fathom that before but Harper was exactly the vision she would have imagined J.R. to be.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Harper."

"C'mon, let's find daddy and let him know you're here," Eleanor stretched out an arm to ruffle his hair and escorted Harper into the house via the French patio doors.

"Thanks, babydoll. Bye, honey," Cally waved her child off and returned her full attention to Sue Ellen. "J.R. didn't tell me you were back in Dallas. How long will you be stayin' for?"

"Uh - it's a permanent move," Sue Ellen nervously replied. "Don and I are divorced."

"I'm real sorry to hear that, Sue Ellen," Cally bit back her surprise but continued to beam her usual happy smile. "Well, John Ross and Eleanor must be happy you're back. I'm sure J.R. is thrilled too," she playfully remarked but quickly fell serious. "I hope he's been kind to you." In her few years at Southfork, Cally had come to understand the complicated relationship J.R. and Sue Ellen shared.

"He's been wonderful, actually." Sue Ellen couldn't quite believe the words herself but J.R. had been a reliable source of comfort in the difficult re-adjustment period which was in stark contrast to the bitter silence from Don, who preferred to communicate via the more official channel of his attorney.

"That doesn't surprise me. He's always been one to chase what he wants," Cally cocked her head, amused.

"What d'you mean?" Sue Ellen played dumb but it was hard to dismiss the weekly floral deliveries of her favourite freshly cut yellow roses and the oh-so-casual phone calls in the evening hours.

"I don't know, I guess I always believed you and J.R. were soulmates and would find your way back to each other." The end of her sentence faded somewhat as Cally suspected she had put her foot in it. "Maybe that's just me bein' silly, but you were always my Jolene when J.R. and I were married."

Sue Ellen delicately raised her brow, "Excuse me?"

"You know, your beauty is beyond compare with flaming locks of auburn hair," Cally recited lyrics to the Dolly Parton tune and Sue Ellen consciously brushed a strand of dyed blonde hair behind her ear. She had never seen herself in that light after so many years of playing the neglected wife. "Well, anyway… I'd better head on home. Would you tell J.R. I'll be there to pick Harper up from school on Monday?" Sue Ellen nodded her head and Cally flashed a smile, "It was nice to see you, Sue Ellen."

Her jeep roared away from the ranch and Sue Ellen watched speechlessly, while their conversation played on loop in her head. "All okay, sugar?" She twitched in surprise when J.R. appeared from behind and brushed his hand on the small of her back. He hadn't addressed her that way in years.