Ghosts
Chapter 5
J.R. awoke to an empty bed. Startled, he felt the sheets. The side of the bed Sue Ellen had been sleeping on was cold. J.R looked around, straining to hear - hoping for the sound of water running in the shower. He stood up and put on his robe. He looked in the bathroom, disappointed to find it empty. J.R. opened the door to his bedroom and looked down the hallway. He heard John Ross talking to Sue Ellen in her room. He felt saddened at discovering her absent when he woke up, but relieved that maybe she had a reason for her exit. He knew she didn't want anyone to find out that they had been together, at least not right away. She should have - could have at least said something to him before she left, he thought. Frustrated by his recurring insecurities, he walked down the hall to Sue Ellen's bedroom. "Hi, Daddy," John Ross said. "I was tellin' Momma about soccer practice." J.R. said, "Is that right?" J.R. continued, "Tell you what, John Ross, why don't you tell us both all about it tonight after supper?" Sue Ellen quizzically looked at J.R., unsure of what to make of the expression on his face or the tone in his voice. J.R went on, "You go on, now, John Ross. You wouldn't wanna be late for summer camp." John Ross said, "Okay, I'll see you later." As the sound of footsteps echoed and faded, J.R shut the door to Sue Ellen's room."Where the hell were you?" J.R. demanded. Sue Ellen said, "I was right here.""Ooh, sounds like somebody woke up on the wrong side of the bed this mornin'," she teased. She tried to stand up from where she had been seated on her bed, but J.R. grabbed her hard by her wrist. She twisted her arm in an attempt to break his painfully increasing grip. "What in the world is wrong with you?" She cried. "How dare you - You have no right to come into my room, slammin' the door and makin' demands, J.R.!" "Like hell." He yelled back.
"Let go of me!" she hissed. "I let go of you once," J.R. said, "I won't make the same mistake, twice." He kissed her hard, paying no attention to the angry eyes glaring back at him. He threw her down onto her bed and climbed on top of her. Sue Ellen slapped his face, screaming at him to get off of her. "No chance, Sue Ellen." He tore open her robe and kissed her neck. "Dammit, J.R. get off me." she managed to say, as his mouth possessed hers. He continued his assault, his anger and frustration fueling his drive for her. J.R. had no intention of hurting Sue Ellen, he simply despised being teased. Sue Ellen knew exactly how to push his buttons. She should have known when she had gone too far. J.R. didn't care about anything but the woman writhing under him. "Please, J.R?" she begged, her voice muffled by his mouth. "I have waited my entire life for the way you acted last night, Sue Ellen" he said. "I have never known you to be so desirable. When I woke up and found you gone, I didn't know what to think." he continued to speak, "I do know that I get what I want, and right now, all I want is you." He pulled back when he saw the look of terror and rage on her face. He moved away from her and sat on the side of her bed.
"I'm sorry, Darlin'", he said in a raspy voice. "I..," his words failed him when he realized how he had overreacted. Sue Ellen sat up, rubbing her reddening wrist. "Did I hurt you?" J.R asked. "A little," Sue Ellen said, "You frightened me, J.R. I have no idea why you're so angry with me." J.R looked at her, not knowing what to say. He had no excuse for the way he had treated her. He had no reason to behave that way at all. God, why was she the only woman in his life to cause his jealous insecurities to get the better of him. J.R. looked down at her hands, as she continued to rub her wrist. Without saying a word, he stood up from the side of the bed and walked out the door.
Sue Ellen heard the sound of J.R's bedroom door closing. She started to cry. Angry and confused; this was a mistake, a horrible mistake she thought, I never should have let him talk me into staying here. She walked over to the closet and grabbed her suitcase. She couldn't believe how the events of the last two days had culminated in her wanting to get the hell away from Southfork. She found herself wanting to get as far away from J.R. Ewing as she could possibly go. When she finished packing the last of her belongings, she took off her robe and nightgown and climbed into the shower. Tears of anger mixed with tears of pain. She closed her eyes to the water streaming down on her. "That son-of-a bitch!" She swore. When she had finished showering, she changed into the outfit she wore when she arrived at the airport. She called for a taxi to pick her up. There would be an extra 100 tip for the cab driver, if he could get to Southfork in the next twenty minutes. Sue Ellen cautiously opened the door to her room, she found J.R.'s door was closed. Breathing a sigh of relief, Sue Ellen tiptoed down the hall and headed downstairs. She would have the hotel send for her luggage.
J.R stared through the drapes in his room, watching as the driver shut the door to the taxi and the yellow car sped away. He was leaning his arm against the window, shaking his head. "You jackass," he muttered. Why did he overreact? Why couldn't he have simply walked over to her room, and not made an issue out of finding his bed empty? Damn! He needed her so badly, why couldn't he leave his doubts out of their relationship? Where would she go? What if she decided to go back to London? What about John Ross? J.R. felt somewhat more optimistic, knowing that Sue Ellen would have to see John Ross. She'd have to tell their son why she decided to leave Southfork. J.R. reached for the telephone. The operator asked, "What City?" "Dallas, Texas. The Hyatt Regency, please." he said, "One moment." J.R. heard the ring as the operator put him through to the hotel desk. Please, let her be there, he thought tapping the phone in his hand as he waited for an answer. "Hyatt Regency, Dallas, How may I help you?" came the voice from the other end of the phone. "J.R. Ewing here, I'm tryin' to locate a Mrs. Sue Ellen Lockwood." he said. He could hear the reservation clerk typing the information he had just said into the desks' computer. "Yes, sir, Mrs. Lockwood checked in a few minutes ago. Would you like me to ring her room?" Lord no, he thought. She'd hang up the phone as soon as she heard his voice. "Would you just tell me what room she's stayin in?" he asked. "I'm sorry, Mr. Ewing, sir. That information is confidential." Think, J.R., think. "It's not for me, it's for our son, he'd really like to come and see his Mamma and I'd like the information for him, that's all." was his quick response. "Room forty-two seventy six? Thank You." J.R. smiled as he hung up the phone.
Sue Ellen threw her purse and room card on the chair by the bed in her hotel room. She stared off into space wondering what had gotten into J.R. Angrily, she walked to the other end of the room and looked out the window. She was only four stories off the ground, but it may as well have been four- hundred stories. She felt so alone. "Damn him!" she said, as she continued to rub the wrist J.R had bruised when he grabbed her. "To hell with him!" she cursed aloud. Her tirade interrupted by a voice outside the door to her hotel room. "Delivery for Mrs. Lockwood." came the voice outside the door. Sue Ellen walked over to the door and loosened the security chain. The delivery boy stood outside with the largest bouquet of yellow roses Sue Ellen had ever seen. She accepted the bouquet, and politely thanked the young man who had delivered them. She fumbled for a card to see who had sent the beautiful flowers. She smelled the heady aromas as she searched for the tiny envelope. Maybe it fell off? She pondered as she opened the door to see if she could find the card. She couldn't see any trace of a card, so she turned around and shut the door. She phoned the desk to see if they knew any information about who might have sent her the flowers. The concierge had no idea.
Sue Ellen hung up the receiver and heard another knock on the door. "Yes?" she asked. Another knock followed. "Who is it?" she asked, annoyed by the rude lack of response. She went to the door and opened it, J.R. stood in front of her door. "God, Sue Ellen, I am..." he started to say but she cut him off as she attempted to slam the door in his face. Quickly, J.R blocked the door with his cowboy boot. He winced as the weight of the door crashed against his foot. Serves you right, she thought with a smirk. J.R. opened the door and hobbled into her hotel room. She laughed , in spite of her anger when she saw him limping. "What now?" she flared. "I owe you an apology, Sweetheart," J.R. said in a low, gravelly voice. "You owe me nothing but a promise to turn around and leave!"she retorted viciously. Praying that he would go, wanting him to stay.
"I'm serious, Sue Ellen, I owe you an apology." J.R said, again. "You told me the other day that you were tired of living with a ghost, remember?" "Of course I remember, what does that have to do with an apology?" she fumed, as she stood with her arms folded in front of her. J.R. hesitated, the continued, "I've been fightin' a ghost, too, Sue Ellen." "Hell, I need a priest to perform an exorcism, or somethin'" he said. The look on his face was ashen. "I have tried for years to put you out of my mind and out of my heart, but I just can't do it, Sue Ellen." "If you wanted me out of your life, J.R. why did you meet me at the airport?" "Why did you encourage me to stay at Southfork?" she went on, her voice rising as she asked, "Why did you take me to bed?" Why? Because he needed her. J.R needed to feel her body against his skin. He needed to reclaim the woman he used to call his own. She knew the answer to her question as well as he did. J.R. chose his words carefully and said, "I died the day you left me in that theater after you showed me that movie you and Don made about our life together, Sue Ellen. I died another death when I found out you had remarried. If I lose you again, I might as well put a gun to my head and pull the trigger,'cause there won't be any reason to continue this farce called 'life' if you're not a part of it." His words cut her to the quick. Her anger dissolving as she considered the conviction in what he had said.
She bridged the distance between them with a few strides of her extraordinary, long legs. "Why the tantrum, this morning? She asked. "Why were you so angry?" Her arms still folded, as she looked for an answer from him. "I don't know. I woke up and you weren't there and I thought that you had left for good." he told her. "I couldn't bear the thought of losin' you, after what we've shared these past couple of days." "Then why did you push me away?" she asked, her anger giving way to concern. J.R. said. "I want you to stay with me and our son at Southfork, forever if you'd like," he said. "But, I want it to be your decision." " I had no right to make demands on you, no right at all," J.R. paused, waiting for her response. She looked at him, wanting to hold him in her arms and console the hurt little boy inside the only man she had ever truly loved. "Did you send me the roses?' she asked, pointing to the bouquet on the table in the corner of her suite. "Yes." he was staring at the ground like a rebuked child. She almost laughed, watching him standing in front of her, holding his white Stetson in his hands. Chastised and contrite. He looked up after a moment and saw a delicious smile flash across her face. "Can you ever forgive this little boy?" he shyly questioned. "J.R.," she started, "we've both matured to the point in our lives where we should be able to talk each other about whatever might be bothering us, before flying off the handle, don't you agree?" "I'm a fool, Darlin'. Nothin' but a damn fool." he said, tossing his Stetson aside, and opening his arms to her. She accepted his invitation and his apology, as she put her arm around his waist and her finger to his mouth. "Kiss me, you fool,"she said with a grin.
John Ross' stepped off the bus that had brought him home from summer camp. He looked for his Daddy's car as he walked down the drive to the house. He smiled to find it wasn't there, hoping his Mamma and Daddy were off somewhere... A devilish smile crept upon his face as he gained new hope at the possibility of his parents' reconciling. He remembered watching his Daddy looking at the diamond rings in the jewelers' case at Tiffany's. That would be so cool, if his Mamma and Daddy were to remarry, he thought. That would make him the happiest boy in the whole world. John Ross opened the sliding patio door and walked inside the house. He looked into the parlor, finding it deserted. He called out, "Is anybody home?" No answer. He walked upstairs. Knocking on Sue Ellen's door first, then J.R.'s door. No answer. He went into his bedroom and dialed J.R.'s cellular phone number.
J.R. had left his cell phone in the car. He had one solitary goal. He wanted Sue Ellen to listen to what he had to say, and didn't want anything interfering with what he needed to tell her. Sue Ellen stood by the bed, wearing nothing but his crumpled shirt. He gazed at her, taking stock in everything about how seeing her like this thrilled and excited him, like no other woman ever could. He could see through the shirt she wore, as the sun filling the corner of the room highlighted her sinewy figure, making him want her , once more. She turned around when she heard a heavy sigh escape his lips. "Are you hungry, J.R.?" she asked. "Mm-hmm," he said with a growl. She couldn't believe that he could want her again, so soon after their last passionate romp. "I'm serious," she said. "What makes ya think I'm not?" he asked, leering at her as he reached across the bed. He grabbed her thigh and she let out a surprised yelp. She told him to stop. She was shaking with hunger, she hadn't had anything to eat in two days. J.R. turned over and picked up the telephone. "I'd like a pitcher of iced-tea, some strawberries, whipped cream, a loaf of bread and some Camembert delivered to Room forty-two seventy six, please?" He sat the receiver back on the base of the phone. Sue Ellen smiled, how romantic, she thought. "You are just full of surprises, aren't you, J.R." she purred. "I do try, Darlin'. I do try." was his response.
Sue Ellen walked into the bathroom of her spacious suite just as Room Service arrived at the door. J.R. put on his discarded shirt, and slipped on his trousers before he answered the door. J.R. thanked and tipped the concierge, who had delivered their meal, personally. He shut the door behind him as Sue Ellen came out of the bathroom. She walked toward him, wearing nothing but a towel . She walked over to the tray of food and grabbed a strawberry from the tray J.R held in his hand. Sue Ellen took a bite of the strawberry, savoring the taste. She put the remaining part of the berry up to J.R's gaping mouth. "Damn, you are so beautiful, " he said, hoping that his words fell silent to her ears. J.R. offered her a chunk of the French cheese he knew she enjoyed. He had made a special effort to request it for her from the hotels' amply stocked kitchen. Sue Ellen stuck her perfectly manicured finger into the bowl of whipping cream. She put her cream covered finger to his lips. J.R. sucked the delicately flavored cream from her fingertip. He pulled her to him and offered her the same "courtesy." She languidly sucked at his outstretched finger, closing her eyes as her tongue expertly maneuvered and removed the entire amount of whipping cream he held out to her eager mouth.. J.R could hardly believe his eyes as he watched her. Sue Ellen was seducing him and he was in ecstasy.
His ragged breathing caught her attention, and she opened her eyes. She gave him the same wicked smile she had before. J.R dropped the pitcher of tea he was holding, as Sue Ellen reached for a piece of bread. J.R. caught her around the waist and pulled her to him. He voraciously covered her mouth with his. He was consumed by this woman. He wanted... needed to make love to Sue Ellen - as if they were the only people left in the world. He picked her up and let her fall to the bed. She reached for the button of his trousers, as he removed his half-buttoned shirt. He straddled her as he ardently kissed her neck. Devouring her. She exhaled as the feeling of his hands on her skin sent her reeling. She arched her back, as she met his hips with her own ferocious need. J.R. gasped for air as the towel Sue Ellen wore fell to the floor.
