Tyler, Texas

"Nice place you've got here", looking around, Bobby complimented the European inspired white brick home as Jenna welcomed him inside.

"Thank you, we like it", accepting his compliment, her language indicated the home was shared, though she didn't specify what her situation was and the surroundings didn't give much away. From what he could tell, while it was obvious the home was lived in based on the books, pictures and other personal effects decorating the space, it was not obvious a child lived there, nor that Jenna herself lived there.

"Is anyone else home?" curious, he asked what the present situation was as they made their way through the foyer, past the home office and into the living room, a large, airy room that overlooked a manicured garden.

"You mean is Charlie here?" looking at him as if she'd caught him out, Jenna's sly smile gave no information away other than that she was enjoying their interaction.

"Or the man you're seeing", reminding her that she'd already told him long ago that she lived in Tyler because she had a life there, a life with another man, he fished for information as to whether this man was ever around, because so far there seemed to be no sign of him. There was no sign of her daughter either though, so he really wasn't sure what was going on.

"Richard", putting a name to the title, Jenna still offered no further information.

"Richard, is he here?" spotting a small framed photo on the mantelpiece, he was able to put a face to the name, though he still had no idea about whether he should expect to turn around and see the pictured man watching them.

"He's away on business. Charlie's upstairs with her babysitter, Mrs Coleman, she lives around the corner", shrugging, as if the information was of no interest at all, Jenna finally gave him what he had asked for.

"So we're alone?" assuming that that's what she was saying, he thought it best to ask specifically anyway, they needed to talk and he'd like to do it without disruption if possible.

"Yes, you wanted it that way didn't you?" continuing to give him a look of complete boredom with their discussion, Jenna confirmed she had finally done something he had asked her to.

"I thought it would be best, we need to talk", reminding her that he hadn't called her earlier to arrange a purely social visit, he tried his best to maintain some friendliness in their communication, smiling at her despite the fact that she wasn't.

Appearing to warm to him, or perhaps just to his invitation to talk, she didn't wait long before suggesting a place to do so, "let's go outside, it's no Southfork but it's pretty".

"Sure", accepting her offer, he looked around, seeing a wall of windows facing the landscaped grounds, but no door outside. His unfamiliarity with the layout of the home wasn't a problem for long though as Jenna looped her arm through his and guided them out of the room, into a hallway and through a set of double doors.

Leading them out onto a sunlit patio, past a water feature and further out into the garden, Jenna was silent until they reached the shade of a series of tall trees that offered a little relief from the heat of the day and the brightness of the sun. Leaning into him as they walked along a narrow paved path, she kept her eyes focused on the greenery surrounding them as she spoke, complimentary and critical all in one quick statement, "so, tell me, did you have fun last night? I did, but it seemed Pam wasn't fully present, unless she's always like that".

"Actually, that's one of the things I wanted to talk to you about", comfortable with how they fit together, her comments made him feel the complete opposite, reminding him why being around her could be uncomfortable at times.

"Oh?" coming to a stop, she looked up with an innocent, vulnerable expression, one that was amplified by the fact that she was still a good few inches shorter than him despite her heels, making her appear like the sweet, put-upon lady she wanted to appear as if it meant she avoided blame for situations she put herself in.

Believing for a moment she had no idea what he was talking about, because he wanted to think she wasn't playing games with him, he knew he had to be stronger with her, to remind her that even if she was genuine, her behaviour wasn't appropriate. "Jenna, I know you and I have a history, and I know you're being friendly when you do things like this", wiggling their intertwined arms, he made a point to unlink them as he continued speaking, "but it can come across as a little too personal sometimes".

"To you?" pouting at his deliberate move to separate them, she questioned whether what he was saying were his own thoughts or not.

"Yes, and to Pam", unable to deny his own feelings, he admitted too that he'd been prompted to say something because of his wife. He imagined he'd think differently about his ex-fiancée's affection if he was single, but there was no point in imagining too much because he was married now and there was no future for him and Jenna outside of being friends, which she knew, but continued to act as if that reality was a surprise.

"Does it matter? You and I know it's all innocent fun", brushing a hair off his forehead, she ran her fingers over his cheek again, completely ignoring his earlier comment about personal space.

Putting his hand on hers, he was gentle in grip, but firm in tone as he separated them again, guiding her hand back to her side and letting go to create a space between them, "it matters. Pam's my wife and how she feels about things matters to me, especially things I can control".

"So, what are you saying?" looking at him with doe eyes again, she managed to genuinely appear naïve and innocent, as if his comments were taking her completely by surprise, which of course, they weren't.

Taking a step back, separating them further, he shook his head lightly as if to clear his mind before he explained his thoughts to her. "I'm saying, I'm not going to stop you from living your life and befriending whoever you want to and I accept that we're going to end up seeing each other out socially at times, all I ask of you is that you respect me the way I'm trying to respect you, starting with toning down your affection. I know we have history, I know this behaviour is easy and comfortable to fall into, and I am trying hard to move forward, to forgive you for the past and start living in the present, but you have to understand that you have a part in that too. It upsets my wife that you're so affectionate with me and it puts me in an awkward position when I have to explain something that I didn't instigate. We can be friends, friends with history, but that's all we can be".

"Tell me, does it upset you that I'm friendly with Jack?" Nodding, as if she was thoughtfully considering his comments, Jenna's reply and subsequent coy smile told him they still had a long way to go before they could really consider themselves platonic friends, because even after reminding her he wasn't interested, she still seemed to want to try to make him jealous.

"I'm not going to get into that, my opinion holds no weight", telling her what he knew to be true, he was annoyed as he said it, annoyed that she knew how to push his buttons, because the thought of her and Jack together did displease him, and annoyed with himself for feeling that way. In a way, he knew exactly how she felt seeing him and Pam together, and he hated that if he thought hard enough about it he could justify her interference now, because that wasn't a healthy place for his mind to be able to wander to.

"Good, because we are friendly", stating the obvious, she held his gaze, her eyes sparkling with the hint of a secret, the invitation to dig deeper, whether there was actually anything to find out about or not.

"How does Richard feel about that?" taking the bait, he turned the conversation back on her, not wanting to play her game, but still undeniably interested in how she lived her life.

"Richard knows Jack", resuming their stroll along the paved path, she responded to his question in a way that provided few answers.

"That's not what I asked", shaking his head, he found her avoidance of the question both frustrating and amusing. It wasn't his problem what her older lover thought of his cousin, but his curiosity got the better of him and he wanted to hear what she had to say.

"No, it's not", admitting she had avoided answering his question, she made no effort to further elaborate, not on her avoidance nor on the real answer.

"So…?" embarrassingly interested, he asked again, realising when she responded, "so, Richard is a man and all men are the same when it comes to the affection of other men", that he'd walked straight into the trap she'd set.

"We don't like it", muttering his answer under his breath, he wasn't prepared for the delighted giggle she let out upon hearing his admission, though he supposed he ought to have been considering she'd led him to the answer she wanted.

"So Jack's interest does bother you", completely giddy at the thought that he was still carrying a torch for her, her bright smile was endearing, though again, completely inappropriate in context.

Giving her a half smile, he felt at a loss for words, he'd already said what he had to say, or he thought so anyway, but she wanted more from him, likely something along the lines of a confession of love, which he wasn't going to give her and she knew it. "What do you want me to say?"

"I want you to admit your comments about not telling me what to do are nonsense. If that was true you wouldn't be here. Just say it, the way Pam feels about you and me is the way you feel about me and, well, anyone else", telling him how she saw the situation and how she assumed he did too, her conceited comments continued to sit somewhere on the border of amusing and irritating.

"Jenna", stretching her name out exasperatedly, he was sick of their discussion about her intimate escapades. Sure, he had thoughts when it came to her and Jack, or her and Richard, but those thoughts wouldn't have been half as detailed as they were now if she hadn't told him as much as she had.

"Am I wrong?" reacting to his annoyance with surprise, she pushed him further for an answer, looking to stroke her ego more than anything else he suspected.

"It's not the same. Pam has reason to feel that way, she's my wife and your flirting bothers her, in her eyes it isn't harmless fun. I might feel some way about you because of our history but it's not because I have feelings for you now. Like I keep trying to tell you, I'm married, I have my life, you have yours, we can be friends, but I'd appreciate if you stopped doing things to get a reaction from me", trying to be kind, because he didn't want to hurt her, even if she was pushing his buttons, he felt he was still firm with her.

Looking as though she was considering what he had to say, he knew it wasn't going to be that easy, and when she spoke again, his thoughts proved to be right. "So it wouldn't bother you if I told you that after your wife dragged you off early and JR and Sue Ellen left a couple of hours later, I left with Jack", completely ignoring part of his comment again, she did the one thing he'd asked her not to, said something to him with the clear intention of riling him.

"Did you?" unable to shut down the discussion without knowing, he was annoyed with himself for being so predictable.

"I might've", smirking, she looked satisfied with her continued ability to lead their conversation, which annoyed him even further, because he knew he was participating in a game he'd continually told her he wasn't going to play.

Sick of letting her control their discussion, he was straight with her, shaking his head and stating firmly, "well, if you did then that's Richard and Jack's problem".

"Yes, I suppose it is", agreeing with him, she sounded distant, as if she hadn't been expecting their discussion to end there and his abruptness had thrown her.

Noting her silence, he took the opportunity to move things along, clearing his throat and announcing, "well, now that we've settled that, I have something else to say, something important, something I'd appreciate your honest help with".

Quick to recover from her confusion at the hint of a new topic of conversation, she looked up at him and smiled, appearing friendly and ready to talk again, "do tell, you've got me intrigued now".

"It's about Charlie", holding his breath, he braced himself, waiting for her defensiveness and urge to deflect to resurface.

Nodding slowly, she appeared thoughtful, surprising him with her calm, measured response, "I thought it might be".

Taking her attitude as an indication to move forward, he posed the important question, the driving factor for their meeting, "so, is she mine?"

To be continued…