Dallas, Texas

"Jordan, Andy", JR nodded and shook the two men's hands as they entered Jock's office for the meeting; they were set to sign a deal between their three companies today, but he couldn't celebrate until the paperwork was actually signed, there was always something that could go wrong in business. "Julie", Jock spoke into the intercom and asked her to come in and join the meeting; he needed her to take the minutes so that they had a written record of everything that happened prior to the contracts being signed. As the meeting began, JR silently cursed his father for inviting Julie into the meeting, she hadn't stopped looking at him the whole time they'd been seated, it was distracting and was beginning to get rather annoying; she was too much like him for her own good, she was persistent. It had been over a week since he'd slipped and slept with her and he'd been trying hard to avoid a repeat of that situation, even going as far as to tell her that it couldn't and wouldn't ever happen again, but she didn't make it easy, she almost saw his words as a challenge, not a warning. Julie watched JR as she took notes during the meeting, smiling to herself as the men negotiated with each other; she would have JR again, even if he tried to claim that they were over. The fact that he'd had her more than once after he'd married Sue Ellen confirmed to her that she had been right all along; she had always known that there was no way he was happy with Sue Ellen and his actions had proven her point. JR Ewing was not a one-woman man, especially not when that one-woman was boring Sue Ellen, and if he was going to stray outside his marriage then she would be there waiting and wanting; it was a given that it would happen eventually, it was really just a matter of timing, and she had nothing but time. "Well gentlemen, how about a drink to celebrate?" Jock smiled as they finished signing the papers; the deal would be good for everyone involved, it was big, bigger than anything Ewing Oil could go in on by themselves, but partnering with some of the cartel members meant that they could mutually expand their companies; things were beginning to look up again. "Julie", he called her name and looked at her, motioning her to make drinks for everyone; of course, being the good secretary she was, she'd already laid out the glasses in advance, she knew how these meetings usually ended and was prepared.

"I nominate Sue Ellen", Miss Ellie listened to the DOA ladies as they spoke, discussing their latest charity fundraiser, a big sister program for underprivileged teenagers in Braddock. She hoped that by nominating Sue Ellen for the job of chairwoman for the committee overseeing the project that it would give her daughter-in-law something of her own to focus on, something that she could be proud of because she made it happen, not because JR had struck oil or the DOA as a whole had done something good. It was obvious to anyone who paid even the slightest bit of attention to her that Sue Ellen still didn't really have an identity of her own, she was lost in the shuffle of life as a Ewing wife, something Miss Ellie would really like to see change if it was possible, she wanted Sue Ellen to be happy. She wasn't sure whether Sue Ellen had ever really had had her own identity; she had always been Patricia's daughter, a pageant queen, model, JR Ewing's girlfriend and then wife, but all of those were just titles, roles that she played to please others, not really for herself. From observing Sue Ellen and Lucy interacting, it appeared that she enjoyed acting maternally and as a friend, but Lucy was growing up, she was asserting her independence more and more each day and the loss of closeness was beginning to affect Sue Ellen, she was getting lost again, unsure of her place in the world. The big sister program was only temporary, just for the upcoming summer, but it would keep her busy and give her something positive to focus on; Sue Ellen needed her own successes and this sounded perfect; additionally, she was one of the youngest ladies in the DOA, she probably knew modern teenagers better than the rest of the members. "I second the nomination", Mavis Anderson watched Ellie as she looked at Sue Ellen, she didn't know the depths of the issue, but she knew that if Ellie was nominating her daughter-in-law for the role then there had to be a good reason for it and she would help her make it a reality. Sue Ellen listened as Linda Bradley spoke about underprivileged teenagers in Braddock and the big sister program that the DOA was running over the summer, it sounded interesting and enjoyable and she was glad that she was on this committee and not the homeless shelter committee. It surprised her when Miss Ellie nominated her as chairwoman for the committee, but instead of shyly shrinking down, she was actually rather flattered and pleased, accepting the nomination gracefully and thanking everyone when she was voted into the role. She hadn't had much of a free social life when she was a teenager, her mother had controlled almost every aspect of her life, leaving little time for her to choose to do what she wanted, and she was determined to give the girls in the program better lives and experiences than what she had had. As she thought about it, she felt a little bad for even comparing herself to the girls they would be helping, they were genuinely underprivileged, her mother had just been controlling, but she had always made sure she had everything she needed to succeed; that didn't matter now though, she was determined to do the best job she could.

"Bobby!" Jock was genuinely surprised as his youngest son appeared in the doorway of his office; he hadn't expected him back until tomorrow afternoon, so he either had very good news, or very bad news. "Daddy!" Bobby grinned as he greeted his father, he'd returned home from San Angelo after meeting with a few refinery owners to negotiate doing business with Ewing Oil in the wake of their new deal with the cartel, the response he'd gotten down there had been overwhelmingly positive and he was sure his father would want to know ASAP. Jock listened as Bobby explained the details of his meetings, his grin growing as he realised that things were looking very good for Ewing Oil now; the overall industry was still in a bit of trouble, but Ewing Oil had still come out on top and for that he was very thankful. "So, Cattlemen's Club or Longhorn Bar?", Jock grinned at his youngest son, he was a real Ewing, a successful man in every aspect of his life, "go get JR, we're going to celebrate", he picked up his jacket and put it on as Bobby left his office; things were finally working out the way he had always planned.

To be continued…