Dallas, Texas

"Patricia", escorting his wife and in-laws toward the house, JR took advantage of the brief moment he had to get Patricia alone, asking her to hang back for a second before they entered the house. He needed her to understand the new rules before he left for the day, but he knew that his opportunities to communicate the new order of things would be few and far between once they were grouped together with his family. Looking at him blankly, Patricia gave nothing away, not a glare, not a smile, not a thought, she appeared to be receptive to what he had to say and that surprised him, she wasn't usually the type of woman who liked to let other people speak and make the decisions. However, in this case, she was smart enough to know that JR Ewing was one of her primary benefactors and she would be stupid to openly defy his requests.

Wandering inside the house with Kristin by her side, Sue Ellen noticed that her mother and husband didn't follow and in a moment of selfishness, she was glad that JR had taken the initiative to pull her mother aside. She knew her mother would never really change and even if JR persuaded her to act nicely and politely, deep down, she would still be thinking the exact same way she always had and the congenial act would be just that, an act, however, she wasn't at all upset by it. She didn't want to hear her mother's criticisms and if her mother didn't say them aloud, then it was easier to pretend that they didn't exist; all she wanted was a nice, quiet family life and with a newly faithful husband and their baby arriving very soon, she wasn't prepared to allow her mother to ruin that fantasy anymore. Pleased that Lucy was in a good mood and offered to bring Kristin upstairs show her her new dolls and outfits, something both girls enjoyed, even if they tried to pretend they were too old for things like that, Sue Ellen wandered back downstairs to find JR and her mother. JR and Patricia were similar in a way, they both liked to be in control and they hated to lose; Sue Ellen had accepted it a long time ago, she was the pawn in the game when it came to their negotiations. Although she liked to make her own decisions and be independent sometimes, it simply wasn't who she was when it came down to it; she hated to be alone and she hated to have to control everything in her life, her time alone in Austin had proved that to her. As long as she wasn't being forced to do anything she absolutely did not want to do, she didn't mind having someone make the big, hard decisions for her, in fact, it was a relief to not have to worry about the most simple parts of living life; she liked being able to just live. With the way she and JR were now, she actually enjoyed the give and take of being his quiet, submissive wife in some aspects, because they'd come to an understanding that realised that just because she wasn't the decision maker, she wasn't a weak woman either. She could and would say something when she really had an opinion and she could act dominantly if she wanted to, however, she never felt the need to in most aspects. The fact was that most of the time she was content to allow him to make the big decisions himself; she didn't like worrying about money or business problems and she didn't like being responsible for supporting herself, it was stressful and she didn't deal well with stress. Of course, there were things about their life together that she worried about, she shared her worries about, and sometimes it did feel as if JR didn't understand, however, for now, their lives were good and if she was seriously discontented in the future, she knew she wouldn't have a problem asking JR to change things. It was different when it came to her mother though, because as much as she wanted to assert her independence, she knew she was no match for Patricia's dominance and she hated the way fighting with her mother about her life choices made her feel, so if JR was willing to handle it for her, then she wasn't complaining.

"…insurance agent, financial advisor, lawyer, you know, the kind of people that deal in securing our future as a family, a family of three and our extended family…" Sue Ellen walked toward the patio door and paused, she knew it wasn't right to eavesdrop, however, she also knew that if she asked JR about exactly what his arrangement with her mother was, she'd only get a very simple answer, one that wouldn't completely satisfy her curiosity. Standing a few feet away and behind a door, she wasn't able to hear exactly what they were saying, they were already speaking in hushed tones, even without knowing of her presence, however, she was able to get the general idea of the direction of their conversation and she smiled to herself as her husband spoke, reasserting his position. "…reconsidering how I divide my fortune…" she'd always known that he was funnelling money to her mother in one way or another and she'd never really approved of that, however, it did pleased her that he was able to use his financial control as a bargaining chip sometimes. As much as she knew how horrible it was to be financially manipulated into a decision, she couldn't help but feel that her mother deserved it, she was a gold-digger and she was getting exactly what she deserved. No one was forcing Patricia to accept JR's generosity and she always had the power to remove herself from the agreement if she didn't like the deal, however, she was greedy and as much as she disliked when JR tried to call the shots, she enjoyed the benefits of his financial support and wasn't ready to live without them. "…I trust that we both have the same goal; we both want to see Sue Ellen happy and healthy…" smiling at the fact that he mentioned her happiness as one of his goals, Sue Ellen found herself daydreaming for a moment, zoning out and missing the next few sentences of their conversation. As she tuned back in to what they were saying, she was annoyed at herself for missing the connecting sentences, because it appeared that the conversation was coming to a close and the tone had changed completely. "…I expect to return home to the same bubbly, happy wife that I am leaving and if I don't, you can say goodbye to the privileges our marriage affords you. I've said it before and I'll say it again, if you upset my wife, you will have me to answer to and I can guarantee that that will not be pleasant". Knowing that it was time to make an appearance, before things got really nasty, Sue Ellen stepped back a few feet, throwing her voice as if she were just entering the room, looking for her husband and mother, "JR? Mama?" stepping outside onto the patio, she stood by her husband's side and looked at her mother, "there you are, Miss Ellie's making some tea, come inside?" looking at the two, she gently nudged them out of their former conversation and back into the present events and was pleased when they followed without argument, their conversation was over, for now.

After about half an hour of polite socialisation with his in-laws, JR was about ready to leave; where he was heading, he had no idea, however, he'd never intended on staying at Southfork for the baby shower and being around Patricia and Kristin for more than an hour was enough to push him toward making his excuses. Looking at his watch and then at Bobby, JR was grateful that his youngest brother was socially adept and understood exactly what he wanted simply from the look he gave him; they hadn't really made any solid plans, but they both knew when it was time to depart. Traditionally, a baby shower was a women's event and even if Sundays were usually family days, the Ewing men knew when to stay and when to leave and today was certainly a day where leaving was the preferable choice. Looking at his own watch, Bobby took JR's cue and spoke a few words, apologising for their hasty retreat and wishing the ladies a good day before leaving the room, giving both JR and Jock a reason to follow soon after. Less tense about leaving Sue Ellen with her mother now that he and Patricia had an understanding, JR made his own apologies and joined Bobby as he walked outside to his car. Since reconciling with Sue Ellen, he'd spent the majority of his free time with her and it had been a while since he'd spent any real time with the Ewing men. He wasn't upset about it, because he loved spending time with his wife, especially now that they'd redefined and improved their relationship, however, it did pleased him that Sue Ellen was occupied today. The baby shower gave them time to be apart to do their own things for a while, but not time for Sue Ellen to get lonely or upset because JR was occupied with activities of his own, ones that didn't include or concern her. Although he and Bobby weren't on the best terms in business, they understood each other enough to know that solidarity was the best thing right now and a little family bonding was probably exactly what they needed to mend their bruised relationship, and in a way, JR was actually looking forward to spending time with his family.

To be continued…