Dallas, Texas

"Darlin, I'm the vice president and although you're right, my contract does include a very generous benefit package, including a number of paid vacation days, it's not that simple. I am very happy to agree to make the final weekend of every month time just for our family, or just for the two of us, but I don't think it's realistic for me to extend those weekends into three or four days. Maybe every once in a while, but not every month; I cannot take what adds up to between eleven and twenty-two days over the year, plus ten days in the summer, it's just not realistic. I'm not Bobby, I actually work for a living, so to be out of the office, not on a business trip or attending business meetings, doesn't look good and won't do me or Ewing Oil any good".

"Now, I before you say it, no, I'm not putting Ewing Oil before our family, I'm just trying to be realistic. I'm the vice president of a large company, financially, whether I take paid or unpaid vacation time is irrelevant, we have more than enough to support our lifestyle, but with the workload I have and the expectations other people have for me, I can't afford to be absent so often. A day here and there is acceptable, but if it spreads around town that JR Ewing is predictably absent on certain days of the month, other people will try to take advantage of that. I cannot have Martin Hurst and Seth Stone, or Wade Luce and Jordan Lee thinking they can just exclude Ewing Oil from important discussions because I'm not around to keep them in line. As well as that, I cannot have it appear to anyone who needs to make an appointment with me that I don't work on Friday's or Monday's; a little bit of negotiation for a meeting time makes me look important and busy, but constant unavailability is a guaranteed way to make sure potential deals never see the light of day. Do you understand? I'm not saying no, I'm just saying you're going to have to temper your expectations a bit".

Engaging in and maintaining eye contact with his wife as he spoke, JR couldn't help but wonder what she was thinking as he finished speaking; she was so easy to read sometimes, but for some reason, now was not one of those times. Waiting for her to respond, his mind moved through what he had said and what he had intentionally not said. He had purposely avoided mentioning how his father would react to the news of his intention to actually use a majority of the paid leave his employment contract entitled him to, and he still had no intention of bringing his father into the conversation until they had negotiated the number of days down. In explaining everything to her too, he had purposely left out his personal insecurity about his position within Ewing Oil, though his silence on that topic had been because of Diane's presence rather than because he didn't want to be honest with his wife. If he left town for too long, he didn't want anyone, especially Bobby, thinking that he was less dedicated to the oil business or less powerful. It was a somewhat irrational fear, he was guaranteed the presidency in a few years and realistically, a day of leave here or there was more of a big deal to him and his workload than to anyone else, however, it was still something on his mind and something he couldn't quite let go of. As far as everything he had told her though, he had been being honest; he did business with men who were only truly loyal to themselves, he had to be present and aware to stay on top of his personal and Ewing Oil's business success. Additionally, he was a busy man and his work often involved consulting with other people, it would be frustrating for everyone involved if instead of being available for the standard 160 business hours a month, he was forced to fit his weekly, monthly and unscheduled meetings into much less time. He hoped Sue Ellen understood the position he was in and why he had to say no to her first request and he hoped she would be open to accepting the way things were and working within those parameters.

Listening to her husband as he explained why he had to say no to her request, Sue Ellen had to force herself to hold back a smile. She wasn't at all surprised about his response to her first request; she knew how important he was to Ewing Oil and she knew how hard he worked during the week, so she wasn't under any illusions that he would be able to easily pause his responsibilities while he enjoyed a little vacation time every four weeks. "I understand. You're a busy man, I know that, and I know how hard you try to get everything done at work so you don't have to bring it home. I respect you and I love that you try so hard to be the best in everything you do", conscious of Diane's presence, her demeanour remained more reserved than relaxed, however, to show JR she did mean what she was saying, she reached out to softly touch his hand. Staying silent for a few moments, she then turned her attention to Diane to ask her to flip back to the yearlong calendar inside the agenda she kept on her desk to keep track of JR's professional, and personal, comings and goings. Looking at the calendar, jotting down a few numbers and then considering what she was looking at, she then turned her attention back to JR and broke the silence, this time speaking in a less emotional and more energetic tone than she had been just moments ago; "I have a proposal, one I think will work for everyone".

Starting out smiling as she explained, Sue Ellen's smile then turned into a grin as JR began to nod and make a few interested sounds. She had always known her earlier proposal was too much to ask for, but she hadn't known the limits of what JR could and couldn't do and she hadn't wanted to directly ask him in case he decided to consider it too deeply and ended up talking himself out of taking what was rightfully his. By starting with a larger request than was realistic though, she knew she could get him to think more generously toward himself than what he would have if she had just asked him otherwise. She had no intention of making a habit of tricking him into agreeing to things, because she wanted their relationship to be more honest than that, however, in this situation, it did seem appropriate and harmless to use one of his own methods of negotiation 'against' him. Starting high and negotiating things down rather than the other way around meant that in the end, everyone got what they were happy with, and that was all she wanted.

To be continued…