"I don't really think that you have anything to worry about, Katherine. We've already gone over how we are going to approach things this early with John Ross. And besides, how could he possibly end up not liking you?" JR asked Katherine as they drove to Southfork.
"No matter how we explain it, he's going to at least have an idea of what is going on between us, JR. I don't want him to think that I'm trying to take over the role of his mother. Because he's your son. And Sue Ellen's. Not mine. I'm just…worried that he won't like me." Katherine said.
JR gave Katherine's hand a reassuring squeeze. "Don't worry. We'll take this one step at a time. You're just meeting him today. That's all. Okay?" JR said.
Katherine gave JR a warm smile. "Okay. Thanks, JR. I know I'll be fine as long as you are with me." She said.
Yesterday, JR had decided that it would be a good idea for Katherine to come with him to Southfork sometime during the weekend so that she could meet his son. While it was true that they had only been dating for a week now, JR thought that it would make things easier in the long run if Katherine and John Ross got used to each other sooner rather than later. He didn't want to just drop things onto his son right before the wedding plans, whenever they might be. But JR was still nervous. He had discussed his worries with Sue Ellen about how John Ross might react to him being with another woman. Even though John Ross got along quite well with Sue Ellen's second husband, Dusty, the truth was that the transition had mostly worked out so well because John Ross said been too young to really understand what had been going on at the time. JR and Sue Ellen had agreed that it would be better to introduce Katherine as a friend, but also to not lie to him if he had any questions about the true nature of their relationship. They weren't sure if he was really old enough to understand the concept of what it meant to be "boyfriend and girlfriend" as opposed to being married. Sue Ellen had also suggested that it might be a good idea to mention that Katherine was Pam's sister. Even though Pam was divorced from Bobby (and JR fervently hoped that they would remain that way), it might help John Ross to trust Katherine more if he knew that she had some kind of family connection to him.
About half an hour later, JR and Katherine were seated comfortably in the kitchen at Southfork with some of the family. Even though JR had already told them last week that he and Katherine had started dating, there were still plenty of questions for them.
"I knew that you guys would end up together! So, when is the wedding?" Lucy asked mischievously.
"Um, well… We haven't really discussed that yet. We're just enjoying being together right now." Katherine said. She was blushing a bit from Lucy's question.
"And we're enjoying every moment! Isn't that right, sweetheart?" JR asked Katherine gently.
"More than anything…" Katherine answered softly. For a moment, both she and JR seemed to have forgotten that they were still in the kitchen with other people. They both just continued to stare into each other's eyes with a smile on their faces.
"Wow, Katherine! I don't know what you did to my uncle, but I sure hope that it is permanent!" Lucy joked.
"Oh, I assure you that it is!" Katherine said. She shot JR a playful grin that he couldn't help returning.
"So, how exactly did you two first meet? I'm interested in hearing about how you both got together, if you're okay with talking about it, that is." Jenna asked politely.
"That was-" JR and Katherine both started to speak at the same time and ended up laughing at each other.
"I'll let you take this one, Katherine!" JR joked.
"We first met at the Ewing barbecue about two years ago while I was visiting my mother. And that was when this guy right here decided to pretty much proposition me after about five minutes of conversation!" Katherine said with a laugh.
"Well, I knew that you would say no, but I just couldn't resist seeing your reaction!" JR teased. It was easy for them to joke about it now, but JR knew that he had been a different man then, and that it had been hurtful and frustrating for Katherine to have so many men only be interested in her sexually and not as a person.
"Oh, wow. Just how did JR manage to redeem himself after that!?" Jenna asked in amusement.
"I was just as surprised as you when it started happening. When I came back to Dallas again for my mother's funeral, JR was there for me. He made it clear that he didn't want me to go through it alone. He was genuinely worried about me. We started meeting each other whenever I needed to talk about how hard things were, and we became really good friends. And eventually, it became a lot more than that. I never would have guessed that the creepy guy I met at a barbecue would actually turn out to be a real sweetheart!" Katherine said.
"That's right! But it took someone like you to reveal my real charm!" JR joked.
"That's quite a story! I have to admit that I was a bit surprised at first, but you two make a really cute couple!" Jenna said.
"Thank you, Jenna. It took us a while to get there, but now I know that we have finally gotten things right." Katherine said.
JR was relieved to see that Katherine was being genuinely polite to Jenna, and that she had been happy to answer her questions. After Katherine had complained to him about some of Jenna's comments during the Oil Baron's Ball, JR had been worried that they were off to a bad start. She didn't ever talk about it, but JR suspected that Katherine's feelings of resentment towards Jenna were due to her developing bond with her sister. JR sometimes felt like Katherine really regretted helping him destroy Pam's marriage. But he was glad that she was making an effort to be nicer to Jenna.
After all, they are going to be sisters eventually. We might even be able to plan a double wedding! JR thought to himself with a smile.
As everyone in the room continued to talk, JR couldn't help comparing Katherine's interactions with his family to how Sue Ellen was back when he had introduced her as his new girlfriend years ago. Back then, Sue Ellen had been polite, but at the same time, almost painfully shy. Because of the strict upbringing from her mother, Sue Ellen had been desperate to please everyone she met. But Katherine was a different story. Sure, she had been a little nervous when she had met everyone for the first time before they had started dating. But Katherine seemed perfectly at ease now. In fact, she seemed to thrive on being the center of attention and was able to actively engage in conversations with everyone.
While JR was still marveling at how easily Katherine had adapted to his family, he saw John Ross, up from his afternoon nap, walk into the kitchen. Suddenly, Katherine didn't look so confident anymore. In fact, she seemed almost shy.
"John Ross, why don't you come over here? There's someone I'd like you to meet." JR said gently.
John Ross looked curiously at Katherine after he had taken a seat next to JR at the table.
"Who is that?" John Ross asked his father.
"This is Katherine. She's your Aunt Pam's sister and a good friend of ours. So why don't you say hello to her, John Ross?" JR asked.
John Ross turned to look at Katherine again. JR could tell that his son was suspicious. Despite his age, John Ross could be very perceptive about things when he wanted to.
"So you're my Aunt Katherine?" John Ross asked. Katherine cringed at the title.
"Yeah, I guess I am! It's nice to meet you, John Ross!" Katherine said with a nervous smile.
"If you're my aunt, then how come I never saw you before?" John Ross asked Katherine bluntly. JR knew that John Ross wasn't trying to be rude, he was just curious. But Katherine still looked nervous.
"Well… That is… Um…" Katherine trailed off helplessly.
"Katherine has been trying to get used to a lot of new things lately, and it's been hard for her. It's sort of like how you feel about getting ready to go to school right now. And she also runs a big company just like your daddy does with Ewing Oil!" JR explained.
John Ross nodded carefully at JR's explanation. JR could tell that this would take time, but was relieved that John Ross was being so calm about it right now.
A few minutes later, when John Ross was engaged in his favorite coloring book, Katherine took another stab at being friendly with him.
"You sure have a lot of different crayons! Is it all right if I color, too?" Katherine asked John Ross quietly.
John Ross stared at Katherine for a minute before replying. "Okay." He answered solemnly.
"Thank you. Wow. There weren't this many different colors for crayons when I was your age! Since there are so many, why don't we play a game? How about we both try to color one picture with all of the crayons here? That means we would have to use every color. What do you say?" Katherine suggested brightly.
John Ross looked intrigued by Katherine's idea. "Okay. That sounds fun." He said with a smile.
Katherine looked relieved. JR smiled at her to let her know that she was doing alright. He knew that this was just the start for the long road ahead of them, but he had hope that things would work out for them all.
It was about an hour later now. JR and Katherine were both sitting under the willow tree that was their favorite outdoor spot on Southfork.
"Do you feel a little better now?" JR asked Katherine gently.
"I do, now that I've gotten past the first step and he has actually met me. But I don't know how things will be in the future." Katherine said.
"We'll take things one step at a time, just like we did today. You were great with him." JR said.
"Really? I tried to not sound too much like an adult, but I don't know if that was good or bad. I honestly don't know what I'm doing. I haven't really had much experience with children." Katherine admitted.
"Well, we could always do something about that!" JR teased. He pulled Katherine into his arms and started kissing her.
Katherine laughed and playfully swatted JR on the arm. "You never stop teasing me!" She said in amusement.
"Nope!" JR said mischievously. He then paused for a moment. "But aside from John Ross, how would you feel about that someday for us?" He asked seriously.
Katherine looked thoughtful. "It's hard to really say right now. I can't pretend that it's something I can afford not to think about. After all, I'm going to need someone to take over things at Wentworth for me eventually, and I would like to keep it in the family line. And having my own family is something I've always dreamed about ever since I was a little girl. I want to be just as happy as my parents were with me when I was still growing up. It's just hard to actually think about myself being a mother when I think of everything that's involved. But eventually, yes, I do want that for us." Katherine said.
JR couldn't help smiling in delight Katherine's answer. Just imagining everything in their future made him feel ecstatic.
"I'm so happy that you feel the same way that I do. I know that it is still way too early for anything like that to happen, and I wasn't trying to pressure you or rush into anything. But I'm glad that we talked about it." JR said.
Katherine leaned towards JR and kissed him softly on the cheek before answering him. "I'm glad that we talked about it, too. Now, how about we head back inside and have some of that great dessert that your mother made before I go home?" She suggested with a smile.
"Of course. One step at a time, right?" JR asked. He then helped Katherine up and they both headed back to Southfork, hand in hand.
