Dallas, Texas

After first attempting to ignore the obvious arguing down the hall, Lucy then nervously paced around her bedroom before eventually making her way down the hall to the nursery. If she was worried and upset by the shouting, then John Ross might be too. He had the advantage of a bedroom further from their grandparent's bedroom than hers was, and he was still a little too young to comprehend everything everyone said, however, she knew him well enough to know that he understood and reacted to different tones of voice, so if he could hear the argument, then he was probably upset by it.

Entering the nursery, she was somewhat surprised to see her baby cousin sleeping peacefully in his crib, even with all the noise in the house. Perhaps his parent's tempestuous relationship had had a strangely positive effect on him and he was able to sleep through anything, or perhaps he was just tired or hadn't heard anything, she didn't know, but whatever it was, she personally found some peace in his peace. Knowing her choices were to return to her own bedroom and worry about the argument her grandparents were having, or to stay as far away from their bedroom as she could, she then pulled a blanket off the shelf in John Ross' nursery and sat down in the rocking chair in the corner of the room. Avoidance wasn't a permanent solution, but for now, it was her preferred option.

Down the hall, in his and Ellie's shared bedroom, Jock Ewing's patience and tolerance for his wife's condescending attitude and pushy, ridiculous demands was growing less and less by the minute. He loved his wife, but he didn't have to listen or agree to everything or even anything she asked of him, let alone demanded. He wasn't stupid, he knew that realistically, he had no actual ability to force JR to do what he wanted, because his eldest son was a grown man, one who had his own money, his own home and land, his own family and who now had a legal guarantee of a future job and ownership of the family business. He knew his intended threats and arguments were hollow and probably a little unfair, but he didn't need his wife telling him just that and he certainly didn't enjoy being told he had to do something different to what he intended. He had allowed Ellie to sway his opinion on things in the past because for the most part, he wanted to keep the peace and he didn't particularly want to get into a power struggle with her over stupid things, but in this case, her demands were just too much. He wouldn't force JR to agree to offer his newly acquired land for purposes that benefitted Southfork ranch, but he did want to at least make him aware of the opportunity and if part of that meant reminding him of his place in the Ewing family and the benefits he could receive as well as give, then so be it.

He was not pleased to hear his wife's opinion on the situation though, especially since her opinion seemed to him to be a bit hypocritical. Somehow, she justified all of her interference and manipulation in JR and Sue Ellen's marriage but when it came to him offering their eldest son an opportunity that could prospectively be a win-win situation, suddenly he was the devil. How many times had she pushed Sue Ellen into saying or doing something that undermined JR's position as the leader and head of their small family? He didn't know exactly, but it had certainly happened more than once. Additionally, she had given JR a number of lectures about his attitude and behaviour and even though he had personally agreed with most of what she had said, because there had been many times where JR did need a good talking to and probably a harsher punishment, he was still annoyed that she didn't see how hypocritical her actions were. She couldn't tell him he was wrong for wanting to talk to JR about something that could affect his family in a positive way and she couldn't tell him he was wrong for wanting their son to act a certain way, because she herself had done the same thing many times before. It didn't matter that the context of her motivations had been slightly different, because when it came down to it, she was just as interfering and manipulative as he was, she just operated more on an emotional level rather than a business level like he did.

"Miss Ellie, when I married you I told you that I account to no woman for my time. I will speak to JR if and when I want to. You're free to do the same, but don't you dare try and control or change my actions. I've listened and gone along with your wishes many times in the past, but this won't be one of them. I told you earlier, I do not plan to steal that land away from him or force him into ranching; I just want to offer him the opportunity to contribute to part of what keeps this family afloat. I don't think that's too much to ask and I don't appreciate you telling me what I can and cannot say. Now, I'm tired, so I'm going to bed". Listening as he husband dismissed her concerns and wishes as if they didn't matter, Ellie Ewing then watched him turn away from her and climb into bed before looking at her expectantly.

She was used to Jock being bullheaded, sexist and controlling, but for some reason, the way he had made it seem as if she was no better than he was had really hurt her feelings. It was as if he saw no difference between his motivations and hers. She did though, she wanted JR and Sue Ellen to be happy and have a home life that was separate from JR's work life and she knew they longed for a life separate from the wider Ewing family too, so to push them into something involving merging their ranch with Southfork would probably not be the wisest idea. Jock didn't seem to care at all about whether JR and Sue Ellen were extremely happy together though. Of course he wanted them to be happy, but he wasn't too concerned about preventing things that put strain on their relationship. He was a businessman and he didn't seem to be able to separate his thoughts regarding the new acquisition of land adjacent to Southfork for personal purposes rather than business purposes. As far as she was aware, JR and Sue Ellen had turned down a number of other properties because they were working ranches, so she really didn't think they would want to turn their own land into a working ranch. She also knew JR though, and even though he was a strong man on his own, he also had a lot of respect for his father and was always keen to please him. If JR agreed to something simply because he felt he couldn't say no, that was a recipe for disaster in his and Sue Ellen's marriage and in his relationship with Jock. No, things had to stay how they were, they had to allow JR and Sue Ellen to make their own decisions and if one day they did decide they wanted to make good use of their land, then that would be nice, but it had to be their decision, not something they did just because they felt obligated to.

Watching his wife as she sighed and then turned and walked away from him, Jock crinkled his forehead, first in confusion and then in frustration and anger. He had ended their discussion and expected her to understand that, but instead of understanding and accepting it, she had done nothing; she hadn't even continued arguing, she'd just given up and looked disappointedly at him. It was annoying and angering; she was so demanding and judgemental, but the minute he demanded anything or tried to make a judgement and group decision, she disapproved and acted like this. It was ridiculous, she was his wife and she knew her place, but for whatever reason, she was choosing to ignore her position as well as his position as the head of the family. Watching as she walked toward the door and then left the room, he didn't even consider following her; she hadn't shouted, thrown anything at him or even threatened to use her horsewhip, but she had made her position perfectly clear. He knew she wasn't happy with him, but he wasn't happy with her either, so there was no way he was going to follow her or beg her to forgive him; as far as he was concerned, he was right, she was wrong and she would understand that eventually. For now though, he had the bed all to himself and JR would be home in the morning, so a good night's sleep and an early start to prepare his proposal was just what he needed.

To be continued…

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