Dallas, Texas

"JR", breaking their kiss as she felt his fingers moving down her back, untying her dress and allowing it to fall to the ground around her feet, Sue Ellen breathlessly whispered her request, "bedroom. Now", and hearing his wife's words, JR needed no further prompting, making moves to do exactly that. Quickly shrugging his unbuttoned shirt off his shoulders, allowing it to join his shoes, jacket, belt and tie on the floor, he then took her hand, pulling her into the bedroom with him before quickly resuming their passionate embrace. Consciously, neither of them was thinking about anything other than their present actions, however, subconsciously, it soon became clear that there were deeper motivations and considerations behind their everyday actions, ones that didn't become obvious until they took a break from their regular routine. The alcohol they'd consumed over dinner probably influenced their behaviour, allowing them to be free of their inhibitions and considerations for those around them, however, a bigger factor in their current behaviour was the knowledge that they were all alone in a penthouse suite at one of Dallas' finest hotels. Aware that they were free to do what they wanted, without limitation, their subsequent actions came naturally, with great enthusiasm and heightened mutual enjoyment and satisfaction.

Letting out a happy sigh, breaking the euphoric silence they had fallen into post-intimacy, Sue Ellen turned toward JR so they were facing each other, and kissing his lips softly, she settled into a comfortable position before speaking. "Remind me again why we share a house with the whole family?" half-joking, but also half-serious, she looked him in the eye as she spoke. Their dinner date had been romantic, fun and subtly sexy, and returning to their hotel room after dessert, their excitement, love and need for each other had only intensified, leading them straight to where they wanted to be, with amazing results, ones she wouldn't mind replicating in their regular life. "Right now darlin', I can't think of one good reason", chuckling softly as he answered her question, JR's signature grin reappeared as he mentally relived their earlier activities, though her words did cause his mind to go to other places too, ones he wasn't sure he was ready to face just yet.

Although their first separation had allowed them to talk through their issues and come to a mutual understanding regarding wanting and needing a more varied and exciting sex life, and that understanding had led them to break down the barriers of impropriety and awkwardness, it was still strikingly obvious at times that their regular sex life was still somewhat subdued. No one at Southfork had ever directly said anything, however, after enough of Lucy's comments about not being able to get a good night's sleep, the way the rest of the family stayed silent during those conversations and her eventual move into a bedroom that didn't share a wall with her theirs, it wasn't too difficult to work out. Plainly put, reigniting their love and lust for each other may have been fun for them, but to the rest of the occupants at Southfork, it was just an uncomfortable new reality. For JR and Sue Ellen, it wasn't something they'd ever discussed together or even really acknowledged to themselves, but it had obviously registered somewhere in each of their unconscious minds, because if the trips they had taken away from Southfork in recent months were any evidence, their location and known privacy definitely affected the depth and breadth of their actions.

"Neither can I", laughing as she agreed with his statement, Sue Ellen moved to snuggle closer to him; it felt wonderful to be so close physically as well as emotionally. Laying in silence for a few moments, they both found themselves considering their recent actions, her question and the general context of their lives, and almost unintentionally speaking aloud, Sue Ellen said what they were both thinking, "so, why do we stay?" Crinkling his forehead as he thought about how to answer her question, JR waited a few seconds before letting out a small sigh and resignedly answering, "I don't know darlin', tradition I suppose. Southfork is the Ewing family home and we're Ewings, so naturally, we live there too…" knowing his explanation was fairly weak, JR left his sentence hanging, because honestly, he couldn't think of many reasons why they did what they did, it was just how it had always been and he'd never really questioned it before.

"Mm", murmuring to confirm that she'd heard and understood him, Sue Ellen leaned up to look at him, before changing the subject for a moment, "I like being a Ewing. Specifically, I like being Mrs JR Ewing, because I love you and I love our life together". Giving him another soft kiss, she then moved their conversation back to their previous topic, "traditions can change though". She wasn't entirely sure what she wanted to gain from their conversation, but she saw no harm in at least approaching the topic, especially since it was clear that they were both on the same page about a lot of things now. "I love you too darlin', and I don't and wouldn't want or have anyone else as Mrs JR Ewing", returning her kiss, he then moved on to responding to her second comment, "as for traditions changing, yes, they can change…", pausing for a moment, he then spoke more directly, "is that what you want? For us to change the family tradition?" speaking in a soft, caring tone, he waited patiently as she quietly considered how to respond to his question. Thinking about it, Sue Ellen knew in her heart that the answer was yes, but she also knew that despite the fact that JR probably agreed with her, there were a lot of other things to consider before they made a decision and before they were in a place where they could move forward with that decision. Knowing that none of that was really necessary to be thinking about right now though, she finally broke her silence; "well, yes and no", whispering her response, she took a small pause and the completed her sentence. "I still want the Ewings to have a family home, but I want it to be ours; you, me and John Ross, I want us to have our own home, I want us to make our own traditions".

To be continued…