Dallas, Texas

Sue Ellen sat on the edge of JR's bed, playing with her new favourite piece of jewellery as he tied his tie, "so, I was thinking, seeing as we were lucky to arrive when no one was home, how about we sneak out quickly, as if we were never here. We'll get lunch, maybe I'll take you shopping, and then we'll come back and tell everybody the good news. We'll have to make sure that we avoid downtown Dallas though; too many people know me there, and I don't want anyone to see the ring yet", JR told her his idea for their day, and she nodded. "JR?" She sounded hesitant and JR began to worry, what if she was having second thoughts? He didn't know whether he would be able to deal with that kind of rejection, "yes darlin'?" he asked, still unsure of what she was about to say. She stood up and walked over to him, squeezing his hand to reassure him as she heard the doubt in his voice; although he liked to give off a confident vibe, deep down, he was sensitive and fragile; she could almost sense his worry about what she was going to say next. "Well, I know we agreed to tell everyone the good news at cocktails this evening, but I have this awful feeling inside me. My mama will have a fit if we tell your family before we tell her; but it's also not really the kind of news that you tell someone over the phone. I'm just worried, that's all". JR sighed in relief and turned to face her, "darlin', that is nothing to worry about. There is a very simple solution to that little problem. Austin is only an hour's flight away. Call your mama and invite her and Kristin to dinner, I'll have the Ewing jet fly to Austin and pick them up at five". Sue Ellen thought about it for a second, wondering why she didn't see the simple solution, "that's a great idea. I hope mama doesn't have plans already". JR grinned, "I have a feeling that she'll be anticipating an invitation", he didn't tell Sue Ellen, but her mama already knew that he was planning to propose; he had done the gentlemanly thing and asked her permission. Patricia had a lot of power over Sue Ellen's life and as much as he hated to admit it, she could make or break their relationship, he wanted her on his side. If he knew Patricia as well as he thought he did, she would be going crazy in anticipation of the news, she couldn't wait to get her hands on more Ewing money. Sue Ellen didn't know what to make of his last comment, but just assumed that he meant in general; her mama was always asking when he was going to propose, it probably wouldn't be that much of a surprise. "I'll call now…I love you", she kissed him softly before walking over to the phone; JR smiled to himself as she walked away, he was a lucky man and he couldn't have been happier at that moment.

Fort Worth, Texas

"You always manage to find new ways to surprise me", Sue Ellen looked over the menu and laughed, she couldn't believe that she was just discovering this side of JR Ewing. "I'm glad, I wouldn't want to be boring. So, what are you surprised about?" he read the menu as he spoke, although he already knew exactly what he was going to order, he always had the same thing. She giggled, happy to be in such a good mood and happier that they were having a relaxing day; "how do I phrase it? This place, it's nice, but it's so… Not you", JR looked up at her, amused by her enjoyment of this 'new' side of him. "Story time", he folded his menu and looked at her seriously, "remember last night, when we were having dessert? I told you a little story about the maids that have worked for us over my lifetime? Well, remember Gloria?" Sue Ellen closed her menu as he began to speak, interested in how the homely little breakfast restaurant fit into his life, "the bad cook", she nodded and encouraged him to continue the story. "That's the one; well, it was actually rather lucky; for a few months, daddy and I did a lot of business with a company in Fort Worth, and we'd leave Southfork early in the morning, to beat the traffic, but mostly to avoid having to eat Gloria's overcooked eggs. Instead, we'd eat breakfast here, at this lovely little pancake house", he laughed as he remembered the story, his father had been the first to suggest breakfast away from Southfork, it had been their little secret, Miss Ellie never knew, she always thought that they were too harsh on Gloria and wouldn't have approved of them purposely avoiding family breakfast. In a way, it was one of the few times that JR and Jock bonded over something that wasn't about oil, women, money or power. "Anyway, sometimes I come here, when I want a little privacy, and good food. I thought Fort Worth would suit our needs for today, shopping and lunch where no one important will recognize us"; Sue Ellen smiled at his story, he was a hard man to analyse, he never revealed too much about himself, but she enjoyed when he did. "And here I was thinking that we drove sixty miles just for the pancakes. I like the story, and I like when you share things like that with me"; JR thought about her words, although she would soon be his wife, there were probably thousands of little things she didn't know about him, things that he liked to keep hidden. In the spirit of love and trust he made a small promise to himself to be a little more open with her, she was the one person who would always be on his side.

Dallas, Texas

JR held onto her left hand tightly, making sure the ring stayed hidden from sight until the moment when they finally told their families, "excuse me" he spoke, getting the attention of everyone in the room, "Sue Ellen and I have some news we think that you'll all be pleased about". He'd had their attention when he asked for it, but now, five pairs of eyes were staring directly at him, waiting for confirmation of the news they had all speculated would be announced tonight, especially all being gathered here like this. "I know you've all been waiting a long time to see me stand here and say what I'm about to say… I've asked Sue Ellen to marry me, and she accepted"; the next few minutes were a blur filled with handshakes and hugs combined with calls for champagne. Sue Ellen was relieved, she didn't know why, but she had been worried that something would go wrong and the Ewings wouldn't want her anymore. She realised that she had nothing to worry about as Miss Ellie hugged her and welcomed her into the family; the rest of the evening was spent showing off the ring and explaining all the details. She was happier than she had been in a long time and she had JR to thank.

To be continued…