Dallas, Texas

"How was my day? My day was good", answering JR's question as they entered the dining room for dinner, Sue Ellen considered how much to tell him before reminding herself that it didn't do anybody any good to keep secrets, especially if she ever wanted to be taken seriously. "I did some charity work this morning then I had lunch with Bobby and your mama and then afterwards your mama and I had a nice talk and played with John Ross. I also had a message from Pamela when I got home; she wanted to know whether I was free for lunch any time this week, so we're going to meet tomorrow. I'm telling you because I don't want it to be some dirty little secret, but if you're going to say something nasty in response, please don't; I'd prefer if you kept those thoughts to yourself". Pausing for a second to gauge JR's reaction, she was surprised when he looked back at her blankly, saying nothing for a few seconds before responding to her, though not to the part she expected him to respond to.

"You had lunch with Bobby and mama? Does that brother of mine ever do any actual work here on the ranch?" Hearing his comment, it took her a few seconds to comprehend what he'd just said and when she did, she couldn't help but smile; he'd made no secret of his complete confusion about why exactly she would want to be friends with Pamela, however, they were making progress, because he hadn't reiterated those feelings. She could work with a sceptical husband, she could even probably try to do as he recommended and branch out to seek friends that were in similar situations to her, because that wasn't a terrible idea. There was a lot to be said for JR just being quiet while she worked on things at her own pace though, because she valued his opinion, but she respectfully disagreed with him; they knew each other's positions and at this point, before any real developments had occurred in her friendship with Pamela, there wasn't much more to discuss.

"Well I'm not sure you can compare your work to his work… It was nice though, I like that he chooses to spend time with John Ross, and I like Bobby, especially now that he's given up his fight with you at Ewing Oil, you now have one less thing to worry about at work, well I guess at least until you decide whether or not to hire Jack. Even then though, things might not be so bad, Jack would be travelling a lot, and since he doesn't live at Southfork, there is some separation from the family, which is a good thing, even if Jock doesn't understand why it's necessary…" Answering JR's question, despite knowing he was just making a jesting comment, Sue Ellen paused as she found herself moving away from the Bobby topic and toward the Jack and Jock topic. JR was beginning to warm to Jack, but she didn't know how much he wanted to hear about how 'not bad' things could be with him around.

"Don't even mention Jack living at Southfork…" seeing JR make a displeased face and hearing his response to her comments, she had her answer to the Jack situation without even really having to ask. "That's a good point about him travelling though; he can't get his grubby little hands on what's mine if he's not here in Dallas…" Smiling to herself again as he continued to speak, making another comment that wasn't exactly as she expected, she let go of some of her hesitations; JR was more sensitive than people would think, but he wasn't weak and he wasn't nearly as easily emotionally affected by things as she was. "As for Bobby, I guess it's not so bad him working at the ranch, it gets him out of Ewing Oil and since I have no interest in ranching, whether or not he's any good or even needed at the ranch is beyond my level of caring. He and daddy can talk ranch business all they want, Bobby's no good at business anyway, so daddy will soon bore of that, plus, the ranch is a hobby project meant to please mama and my granddaddy's wishes more than anything else, so it's no competition on a profit level when compared to Ewing Oil".

Seeing her husband's mood improving before her eyes, Sue Ellen's own smile grew. JR wasn't easy to understand sometimes, but this was, he was frustrated by certain things, but in the very same instances, he could see an alternative perspective. In this case, he saw that Bobby's new career and Jack potentially replacing him at Ewing Oil weren't real threats to his business power, his personal relationship with Jock was a different story, but even then, he was already calculating how different things could be with Bobby ranching and Jack travelling. "Exactly, you're the vice president of Ewing Oil and that's a much more important position than the roadman or assisting with ranching; you're already on top in business, I don't think you have anything to worry about where power is concerned. I think you'd get more out of keeping an eye on Bobby and Jack's business pursuits for your own peace of mind, but focusing on your personal relationships with them instead of trying to interfere with their careers"

"If Jack's out-of-town for days or weeks at a time, that will give you the distance you wish to maintain as well as the closeness I think you might benefit from and actually enjoy, provided of course that he sticks to his assigned role at Ewing Oil and doesn't try to branch out or overly impress Jock. The same with Bobby, with him doing his own thing on the ranch, you don't need to think about his business ideas, they don't overlap yours. I think you enjoyed Saturday and I think you'd benefit from more relaxed time with men you're not doing business with or competing with, just like you think I would benefit from friends other than the ones I've attempted to make so far". Not missing an opportunity to reiterate the potential positive side of the situation, she had a feeling her final request was probably pushing things a bit, but she said it anyway, she didn't really see the harm in reminding JR that there were areas he could improve in just as much as she could. Of course, she actually had a desire to make friends, he didn't, but he did seem to actually enjoy times where they socialised, either as a couple or him with other men, so it wasn't as if he didn't understand the purpose and benefit of positive relationships outside of marriage and fatherhood.

"Mm, that's what I was saying darlin', it's inconvenient to have to go through the hiring process, but Bobby going off to pursue ranching, leaving Ewing Oil open for my taking is just about the best thing he's ever done. As for Jack, I'd prefer if he'd never come to Dallas in the first place, but if he's going to stay and I can't force him out, the next best thing might actually be to hire him in a role that sends him away from Dallas for long periods of time. Daddy can't fawn over him if he's in Midland or Galveston... I don't know about the other part, it seems a little too perfect and convenient and I don't know if I believe things can really work that way, but I guess if the opportunity arises again, there's no harm in saying yes". Listening to him reiterate the points she had just made, she allowed her happiness to really show in her smile; progress was slow, but it was happening, and that was a good thing. "Is it that surprising darlin'? I know I can be the devil, but I'm not always that way; I know a good thing when I see it, and this has the potential to be a very good thing…" Grinning as he spoke, she wondered whether there was more to his comment than him just agreeing with the points they'd discussed, before she had time to ask him though, he'd turned the conversation back to her, "speaking of good things, you said you had a nice conversation with mama, anything I should know about?"

To be continued…