Dallas, Texas

"Shall we have our coffee outside?" following Sue Ellen's quick, silent nod to Francisca as she cleared the last of their plates, JR suggested they continue their evening elsewhere. So far, they'd had a nice dinner as three, he'd intended them to be four or five but as it had worked out both Jack and Richard were away on business, so tonight he and Sue Ellen had the pleasure of entertaining Jenna alone, which he didn't mind at all.

Assisting his wife first, then Jenna, their dinner guest, the three of them made their way outside, the heat of the summer night hitting them as soon as they stepped out onto the porch.

"I've always loved dusk here at the ranch", leaning against one of the six large, white, square pillars, Jenna admired her family's former land, her words likely more nostalgic than based on what was actually visible considering it was almost too late and too dark to consider it dusk anymore.

"Just think, if things had been different it could have stayed yours", not really intending to bait Jenna into regretting her past behaviour, he reminded her of what could have been, much to Sue Ellen's disapproval if the look she gave him was any indication.

"If I'd married Bobby?" turning around to face him, she smirked, nonverbally telling him that unlike Sue Ellen assumed, she didn't mind the topic of discussion.

"Yes", nodding, he matched her smirk.

"I guess it was always destined to be Ewing land, one way or another", not giving him the satisfaction of hearing again that she regretted leaving Bobby or Dallas, she brought their conversation back to the original topic. If she'd married Bobby she would've been Jenna Ewing and that likely would have saved her family property from being foreclosed on after her daddy's death, so she would have kept the land and being a Ewing it would have been Ewing land. As it was, she was still Jenna Wade, she wasn't married and she didn't own any property, least of all her childhood home, it didn't have to be that way though.

Accepting a cup of coffee from Francisca, he twisted Jenna's words to suit the point he was trying to make, "I don't know much about destiny, but I know you could still be Mrs Ewing if you wanted to". He didn't intend to give up ownership of the property beneath their feet, his family were very happy there, but he did think his brother could do better than Pam; Bobby didn't agree but that didn't matter, having Jenna around already riled Pam and the idea of making Jenna a part of the family was sure to bother her.

Thanking Francisca for her coffee, she turned back to him and raised an eyebrow, asking, "do you know something I don't?"

"Unfortunately not", shaking his head, he confirmed that as far as Bobby's availability went, he wasn't looking for a new wife, not yet anyway, but he had it on good authority that things weren't as pleasant as they appeared with his brother and sister-in-law.

"Then what?" curious, she sipped her coffee and waited for his explanation as to how he proposed she become Mrs Ewing.

"Well, there's always Jack", suggesting she turn her attention to his cousin, he didn't really expect her to take him seriously, he knew Jenna, she was motivated by love, but she put money above all else and Jack didn't have nearly enough of it to satisfy her desires.

"I like Jack", surprising him, she sounded almost as if she was considering the idea of becoming Mrs Jack Ewing.

"And Jack likes you", finishing her sentence, he wondered what would happen if she did marry Jack. He wouldn't mind having her in the family, and he knew it would annoy Pam to no end having Bobby's ex-fiancée as family, but in the long run pairing her with Jack wasn't what he had in mind and didn't satisfy his plan to eliminate Bobby's need to keep Pamela Barnes in his life.

"JR, do I really need to say it? I wasn't planning on marrying anyone soon, and I don't see how it benefits you if I marry anyone other than Bobby", questioning his intentions, she didn't go as far as to tell him to mind his own business, but her tone did indicate she found his fixation on her relationship with his cousin boring.

"What about children?" ignoring her lack of enthusiasm, he pushed forward with another question.

"JR!" hissing his name, Sue Ellen looked and sounded horrified that he'd ask Jenna such a personal question, whether he had a good reason to or not.

He could understand why his wife found his question in bad taste, he wouldn't be best pleased if his brother was as nosy about their life as he was about his, he didn't hold himself to the same standards he did Bobby though and there was a point to his curiosity, so he gave himself a pass.

Shooting Sue Ellen a grateful smile, Jenna turned her attention to him next, asking, "what are you getting at?"

Grinning, he could tell Jenna was torn between wanting to tell him he was being a little too invasive this time and wanting to know everything he knew and what he thought about it, and knowing it was best for him if she swung more towards the latter, he answered her with a small snippet of information. "Well, I have it on good authority that Bobby might be in the market for a second wife soon, one who can give him what he really wants".

"What he really wants?" shaking her head, she looked bemused. Seeing as Bobby had repeatedly chosen Pamela over her, it probably wasn't completely clear what she could offer Bobby in the future that would swing his affection back in her direction.

"Children", saying it as if it was obvious, which it was if she'd been paying attention to their conversation, he didn't explain why he thought she'd be of any benefit to Bobby soon.

"Isn't Pam already pregnant?" confused, she stated the obvious, asking whether she'd missed something, which she had, but she had no way of knowing what he knew.

"Mhm, yes, but if I'm correct, there's something not quite right there. I can't say for sure, but I have a feeling that if Bobby wants longevity, he might need to start looking around for a wife with a history of healthy childbearing". Alluding simply to what he'd told Sue Ellen he'd noticed, that Bobby tended to hover over his pregnant wife and Pam hadn't cracked a genuine smile when talking about the future once since announcing her pregnancy, he avoided any mention of the little bit of research he'd done to confirm his suspicions.

He didn't think Sue Ellen would approve of him leaving a message with their health insurance provider to enquire about 'Mrs Ewing's' specialist invoices under the guise of balancing his chequebook, deliberately not correcting the medical biller when they called the office, asked for Mr Ewing and gave him a summary relating not to his own wife but Bobby's. It wasn't his fault that Pamela Ewing had the most recent medical specialist charges, it wasn't his fault that Bobby was Pam's insurance billing contact, it wasn't his fault that Bobby hadn't updated his phone number from the office, and it wasn't his fault that the secretaries had directed a call for Bobby through to him, it suited him though.

"JR, that's a terrible thing to say", shooting him a glare, Sue Ellen was clearly uncomfortable with what he was suggesting, which was no surprise considering she was sensitive to the subject of healthy childbearing after her miscarriage almost three months earlier. His wife had no reason to be so sensitive about her ability to produce healthy children though, her miscarriage had been an accident and she was otherwise perfectly fine, unlike Pam. If the information he'd been given was correct, over the last week Pam had seen more than three different specialists and been for a plethora of tests, tests he knew for sure Sue Ellen had never been required to undergo during her normal, healthy pregnancy with John Ross.

"Now darlin', you know I don't mean it to be. I only want what's best for my little brother and I happen to think Jenna is just that, don't you?" setting his coffee cup down on the patio table, he reached out to take Sue Ellen's hand in his, attempting to calm her mind and bring her back to his side.

"I…" stumbling on her words, she looked looking down at their hands, up at his face and then over at Jenna.

"It's ok Sue Ellen, I know you like Pam", smiling at Sue Ellen, Jenna turned her gaze to him, narrowing her eyes and shaking her head as if to ask why he insisted on putting his wife in an awkward position.

"Think about it", not wanting to upset Sue Ellen any further, he didn't push, just left the idea with Jenna to consider.

Shrugging and returning to her coffee, Jenna accepted his suggestion without digging too much deeper. He wouldn't be surprised if he heard from her at a later date, when they could talk without upsetting Sue Ellen, but for now, they'd shelve the discussion. Anything could happen to Pam, but they probably didn't need to discuss it immediately.

To be continued…