Tuscan Skies
Part 9
J.R. closed and locked the door, and asked Sue Ellen if she would have a seat on the sofa. Sue Ellen turned around, and asked, "J.R., what's the matter? Did something happen while I was in Milan?" J.R. said, "Yes, Don called Southfork, and talked to John Ross. He told John Ross that if you didn't call him right away that you'd be very sorry." Sue Ellen swore, "That miserable bastard! Was John Ross okay?" J.R. sat across from Sue Ellen, facing her, and said, "No, Sugar. John Ross was in tears. Sue Ellen, I have to know, did Don ever hurt you, physically?" Sue Ellen fought back angry tears, and stood up from the sofa. She threw her handbag on the coffee table and folded her arms in front of her. J.R. walked over to where she was standing, and touched her arms. Sue Ellen flinched, and started to speak. She said, in a voice strained with anger, "About two years ago, Don came home from the pub in a drunken rage. It was very late, or very early, since it was almost two o'clock in the morning. Anyway, Don stumbled through the house, and was yelling for me. I didn't want him to wake John Ross, so I put on my robe, and walked out of my bedroom, to see what he wanted. Don looked at me, and said, 'Hullo, wife. How the bloody 'ell, is my devoted spouse, eh?' I said, 'Don, you're drunk. We'll talk when you're sober.' Don picked up a vase of flowers, and threw it against the wall. He said, 'We'll talk now!' I turned around to go back to my room, and he lunged at me. He grabbed my foot, and tripped me. I tried to get away, but he held me down." J.R. urged her to continue. She said, "Don raped me, J.R. John Ross heard the commotion, and ran into the hallway from his bedroom. He saw what Don was doing to me, and tried to pull him off of me." Sue Ellen's voice was barely audible, as she continued, "I begged for Don to stop, but he said that it would be good for John Ross to see how a real man treats a woman." J.R. wanted to tear Don apart, limb from limb. He also wanted take Sue Ellen into his arms, and soothe her tears, but she put her hand out to stop his touch. She said, "I told John Ross to go back to his room, and call the police. Don eventually passed out, and I pushed him off of me, and John Ross and I waited outside for the police to arrive." J.R. said, "Oh my God, Sue Ellen. Why didn't you tell me?" Sue Ellen said, "I haven't told anyone, except the police, the rape crisis counselor at the hospital, and the attending physician. The police insisted that I have a doctor give me a physical examination, to make sure that there wasn't any permanent damage from what Don had done to me." Sue Ellen's voice gave way to silent sobbing. J.R. put his arms around Sue Ellen. She turned around and put her hands up to her face, as J.R. tried to calm her down. J.R.'s eyes were black with rage. He wanted to kill Don, at that very moment. He knew that Sue Ellen needed him, so he managed to temporarily put aside his anger. The last thing Sue Ellen needed, was for J.R. to tell her what he wanted to do to her ex-husband. J.R. held her against him, until her tears subsided, and her breathing returned to normal. Sue Ellen lifted her head, and looked at J.R. She said, "I should have told you, I suppose, but I hadn't thought about that night since it happened. J.R., I'm so sorry." J.R. was incredulous. He said, "Why are you sorry? You didn't do anything to deserve the way he treated you. No woman deserves to be treated like that. You've done nothin' to be sorry for" Sue Ellen sighed, and said, "I'm tired, J.R. I'd like to get changed, and go to bed." J.R. followed after her, as she climbed the staircase to the loft. J.R. helped her out of her clothes, and ran a warm bath for her, to help her relax.
J.R waited in the loft bedroom, while Sue Ellen took a bath. He was at a loss for words, after finding out that Don had raped her. J.R.'s sorrow for what Sue Ellen had to endure when she was married to her ex-husband was exceeded only by his contempt toward Don Lockwood. J.R. knocked on the bathroom door several minutes later. He wondered if Sue Ellen was all right. She said, "Come on in." J.R. slowly opened the door. She was sitting in the garden tub, surrounded by bubbles. She bathed by the glow of candlelight, and the moon shining down into the room through the overhead skylights. She looked more beautiful to J.R. than he had ever seen. J.R. carried her robe, and a towel over to the tub for her. Sue Ellen looked up at him, and smiled. She said, "I hope that what I told you about Don, doesn't scare you off, J.R." He said, "No, of course not. I'm just worried about you, Honey. The thought of anyone hurting you in any way makes my blood boil." Sue Ellen stood up in the tub, as J.R. handed her a towel. J.R. couldn't take his eyes off of her. The water glistening in her skin, combined with the shadows playing on her body from the candlelight was the most erotic image J.R. had seen in his entire life. She reached for the towel in his hands, and said, "Thank you, J.R." Sue Ellen dried off, while J.R. held her robe for her. She slipped her arms into the sleeves, and wrapped the robe around her waist, tying the sash. She looked J.R. directly in his eyes, before kissing him. She was profoundly relieved to discover what she saw in his eyes. He put his arms around her waist, and held her, saying, "I love you, Sue Ellen. Do you know that?" She smiled at him, and kissed his lips. She said, "I love you, J.R." She deepened her kiss, as she put her arms around his heck. He picked her up into his arms, and carried her into the bedroom. He gently placed her on top of the mattress, as he asked, "Are you sure this is what you want?" Sue Ellen said, "Yes, J.R. I need you. I need to feel you. I need to know that you still want me." Did he still want her? He wanted her more than he dared to admit. The love he felt for her was even more intense, after her confession about what Don had done to her. J.R. reached for the sash of her robe. Sue Ellen grinned at him, as he pushed the robe over her shoulders. She pulled his head toward her face, and huskily said, "Make love to me, J.R." J.R. kissed her waiting mouth, as she moved her hands through his hair, She pulled his head to her chest, and arched her back. J.R. silently thanked God for the woman in his arms. J.R. answered her need for him, again, and again.
They awoke early the next morning. J.R. smiled as he pulled Sue Ellen into his arms, and said, "You'll never know how happy you made me last night, Sugar." Sue Ellen grinned at him, and said, "I have a pretty good idea, Darlin'. You were incredible." J.R. kissed her, as he ran his hands down her back. Sue Ellen touched his mouth with the tips of her fingernails. She asked, "Did you have any plans for today?" He said, "No, I took care of all of my business calls yesterday, so whatever you want to do today will be fine with me." Sue Ellen asked, "How would you like to go snorkeling?" J.R. brushed her hair away from her eyes, and said, "I've never been, but if you're willing to teach me, I'd love to learn." Sue Ellen said, "I think you'll enjoy it, J.R. You get a Zen-like feeling when you're under the water. It's so, I don't know, emancipating." J.R. gazed at her as she described her feelings to him. She was so animated, and so enthusiastic, he was eager to go snorkeling from just listening to her. He said, "There's just one thing I need to do, before we go." Sue Ellen looked at him, and asked, "What's that?" J.R. said, "This," as he kissed her, and rolled her over onto her back. Sue Ellen smiled at him, taking great delight in how romantic he had become, and how much she enjoyed his lovemaking. They showered, dressed, and grabbed a quick bite to eat, before taking a ride in the limousine to the S322 Highway, to the road to Punta Ala at Pian d'Alma. The limousine drove along the highway bordering the North Eastern sandy beaches. They drove until the limousine reached a park-like village. Sue Ellen picked a location on the south end of the Golfo Follonica, which was close to Castiglione della Pescaia, a well-known tourist haven. Punta Ala is located in a relatively quiet village. The harbor offered excellent shopping facilities, and a shop that provided the tourists with all of the necessary snorkeling equipment. They walked inside the shop, and a young man asked, "How may I help you, Signor e' Signora?" J.R. said, "We're going snorkeling, and need to rent some equipment." The young man said, "Fantastico, sarĂ² giusta parte posteriore con tutta l'apparecchiatura che avrete bisogno di." J.R. glared after him, as the young man walked away. Sue Ellen said, "He said that was fantastic, and that he'd be back with all of the equipment we'll need." J.R. said, "Oh, I wish these people would say something that I could understand. Sue Ellen said, "Amo come ritiene quando facciamo l'amore." J.R. said, "I have no idea what you just said, Honey, but the way you said it was incredibly sexy." Sue Ellen said, "That's because I said that I love how it feels when we make love." J.R. pulled her to him, and kissed her neck, as the young man returned with fins, masks, vests, and 'j' type snorkels. The items cost less to buy, than to rent, so J.R. bought all of the equipment.
J.R. and Sue Ellen walked to the reef, Sue Ellen glanced around, and said, "This is perfect, J.R. Just look at the color of that water." The water was a clear turquoise, and matched the color of the bathing suit Sue Ellen wore. Sue Ellen instructed J.R. how to wear all of the snorkeling equipment, and told him that walking in fins, feels strange, at first, but he would get used to it. Sue Ellen held J.R.'s hand as they walked into the waters of the reef. She put her snorkel in her mouth, and waited while J.R. put his snorkel into his mouth. They put their heads under the water, and J.R. was amazed at what he saw. The richness of the coast, surrounding the island was a sight to behold. Rocks covered the reef, and several types of brilliantly colored seaweeds, sponges, molluscs, crabs, sea urchins, and sea stars were on display, almost as if Sue Ellen had planned it. Damsel fish, and elegant wolfish swam in front of them, as they explored the treasures of the reef. The colors, and sights of the reef's underwater garden were truly spectacular. Sue Ellen pointed to a school of royal blue and yellow fish swimming underneath them. The coral in the reef was the color of a sunset, shifting from dark reddish-orange, to magenta, then back again. J.R. was enjoying himself, and it really surprised him. Sue Ellen was right about how free a person could feel when they were snorkeling. They continued swimming around the reef, until they were tired, and hungry. They resurfaced, near the part of the reef where they started their adventure. J.R. said, "That was fun, Sugar. Thank you. I don't think I ever would have done this, if it wasn't for you." Sue Ellen smiled at him, as she removed her snorkeling equipment. She said, "There was a restaurant a few doors down from the place where we bought all of this equipment, let's give it a try." J.R. reached for her hand, as they walked across the beach to the restaurant. The quaint little establishment displayed their menu on an easel on the sidewalk for the locals, and the tourists passing by. Sue Ellen read some of the menu items aloud, and answered J.R.'s request for translations, when he needed them. They ate their meal on the patio in the back of the restaurant. The views of the surrounding landscape were different from the landscape at the villa. J.R. lifted his glass of iced tea into the air, and said,"To you, for changing my life." Sue Ellen tapped her glass against the side of his glass of tea, and said, "Thank you, Darlin'. I can say the same for you. You have been so thoughtful and romantic. You're spoilin' me." J.R. said, "You can't spoil someone you love, Honey." They finished their meal, and went for a walk along the shore. J.R. held Sue Ellen in his arms, as they watched the tantalizing colors of the sunset on the Italian Riviera.
J.R. leaned back on the seat in the limousine on their drive back to the villa. Sue Ellen asked, "Why don't you lay your head in my lap, J.R?" J.R. lifted his legs onto the seat, and put his head in Sue Ellen's lap. She ran her fingers through his hair, as he closed his eyes, enjoying her touch. It wasn't long before J.R. was asleep. Sue Ellen looked at him, taking inventory of how he looked. He was tanned, and handsome. The humid Italian weather had added a youthful appearance to his skin. He slept the entire drive back to the villa. Sue Ellen was hesitant to wake him, he seemed so peaceful. She kissed his forehead, and whispered, "J.R. we're back at the villa." He opened his eyes, and smiled at Sue Ellen. He slowly sat up, and kissed her lips. He said, "I hope the drive back here wasn't too boring for you, Honey?" Sue Ellen said, "No, I had thoughts of you to keep me company." J.R. opened the limousine door, and held it open, while Sue Ellen stepped outside, in front of the gate to the villa. J.R. thanked the driver, as he and Sue Ellen walked through the main gate to the courtyard. J.R. yawned, then apologized. He asked Sue Ellen, "What thoughts did you have about me?" She turned a slight shade of red, and J.R. smiled. He said, "I might have known you were havin' impure thoughts about me , Sugar." Sue Ellen laughed, and said, "J.R., I can't believe you." Sue Ellen put her arm around him, and said, "Let's get you inside, and we can shower off, and go to bed." J.R. said, "I wouldn't mind goin' to bed, but I wouldn't count on your gettin' much sleep." Sue Ellen looked at him and grinned. "Is that a fact?" she asked. He said, "I wouldn't take it lightly, Honey. I've got all sorts of energy from that nap I had in the limo." Sue Ellen shook her head at him, and said, "You know, you surprise me more and more, the longer we're here in Tuscany." J.R. smiled, as he admitted to himself that he did feel better than he'd felt in years. He also knew that it had a lot more to do with the woman in his arms, than the mountain air, or the salty sea water.
