Alliances

Part 22

The usually calm showroom floor of the Valentine Lingerie boutique, located next to the Galleria on the Dallas Parkway, was filled with a barrage of eager shoppers waiting to get their hands on the new line of upscale merchandise. Sue Ellen was busy reviewing sales figures from the Chicago store when she was interrupted by a frantic cry from her senior Assistant, Kehly.

"Sue Ellen, please hurry…we need your help on the sales floor."

Sue Ellen looked up from her stack of papers, and said, "Where are all of the sales associates?"

Kehly replied, "They're helping customers. It's a madhouse out there."

Sue Ellen pushed her paperwork aside, and rose from her desk. She adjusted her attire, and followed Kehly out of the backroom, onto the sales floor. The number of customers crowded inside the store shocked Sue Ellen. The peaceful atmosphere of the showroom was a nerve-wracking din, as customers shouted their requests to the sales associates.

Sue Ellen had acquired grace under-pressure over the years as the driving force behind the success of Valentine Lingerie, and calmly told Kehly that she would handle the cash register, as long as the other assistants, and sales associates would take care of the customers. Kehly uttered a sigh of relief as she gratefully accepted Sue Ellen's offer.

Lingerie rolled out of the door, almost as soon as it was brought out from the stockroom to the sales floor. Sue Ellen had her work cut out for her as she operated the cash register, and answered the telephone simultaneously. Sue Ellen took advantage of the short-lived opportunities between customers to glance around the showroom floor, secretly thrilled by the increasing demand for product.

Kehly emerged from the stockroom, and asked Sue Ellen if she needed any more help.

Sue Ellen smiled at Kehly, and said, "No, I'm doin' great, as long as my feet hold out."

The two women laughed at Sue Ellen's remark. High heels were never intended for standing in one place for any amount of time, period. Sue Ellen turned back to the register, and diffidently looked up from the cash register, as she heard an all too familiar voice.

Cliff Barnes covered Sue Ellen's hand with his hands, and asked, "How are you, Sue Ellen?"

Sue Ellen was stunned, and jerked her hand away from Cliff's grasp, and said, "I'm fine, thank you. What are you doin' here, Cliff?"

Cliff smiled at Sue Ellen, and said, "I'm here to formally invite you to lunch."

Sue Ellen shook her head in dismay, and said, "I told you the other day that I was too busy Cliff, and as you can see, that hasn't changed."

Cliff turned around, and absently glanced around the showroom of the boutique.

He shrugged his shoulders, and said, "You have to eat sometime. Let me take you to Madison's for a quick bite. It'll give us a chance to get to know each other, again."

Sue Ellen knew Cliff Barnes better than she cared to. She and Cliff had a bittersweet affair before Sue Ellen discovered that she was pregnant with John Ross. Sue Ellen knew that getting involved with Cliff would be the best revenge she could have had against J.R., for openly flaunting his illicit affairs.

Sue Ellen waited on a customer, after she asked Cliff to politely step aside so the customer could place the items that she wanted to purchase on the counter. Cliff stepped away from the counter, impatiently waiting for Sue Ellen to finish helping her customer, and give him an answer to his invitation for lunch.

Sue Ellen handed the customer her shopping bags that were filled to overflowing with the items she had purchased, and turned to attempt to plead with Cliff to leave her alone, and unless he wanted to buy something, to kindly leave her store.

Cliff was unmoved, as he said; "I'm not going anywhere, until you agree to have lunch with me."

Sue Ellen knew from the tone of Cliff's voice that he wouldn't back down from his request. She reluctantly agreed to join him for lunch, on one condition, Cliff had to promise to leave her alone, and let her and J.R. live together, without any interference from him, or Marilee Stone.

Cliff laughed at Sue Ellen's request, and said, "I can't make any promises for Marilee, but I promise I'll do my best to let you and J.R. try and make a go of things."

Sue Ellen took Kehly aside, and told her that she would return to the boutique as soon as she could placate Cliff, after she joined him for a quick lunch.

Kehly glanced around the boutique, and smiled as she said, "Take your time, Sue Ellen. It looks like the rush of customers we had this morning is thinning out. We'll call you if we need you, alright?"

Sue Ellen rolled her eyes at Kehly, and turned around to tell Cliff to follow her through the stockroom to her car in the employee parking lot, behind the boutique. Cliff leisurely followed Sue Ellen through the stockroom, scanning the room for ads or posters of the new Valentine model.

Sue Ellen donned a pair of sunglasses before stepping out of the boutique into the parking lot. Cliff lifted his hands to shield his eyes. He had left his sunglasses in his car, in front of the boutique. Sue Ellen was once again reminded of what an awkward man Cliff Barnes really was. Sue Ellen pulled her mobile phone out of her handbag, and dialed J.R.'s mobile number.

J.R. picked up his mobile phone, and said, "Hello, J.R. here."

Sue Ellen's voice was music to J.R.'s ears, as she said, "J.R., it's me. I won't be able to come to your office for a while, we're very busy at the boutique this mornin'. Is that going to be a problem, Darlin'?"

J.R. leaned back in his chair, and put his feet up on his desk, saying, "No, take however long you need to, Sugar. Call me when you're on your way, and I'll meet you in the lobby."

Sue Ellen turned her head towards the window of her Mercedes, and whispered, "I love you, J.R."

J.R. closed his eyes, savoring the sensual sound of Sue Ellen's voice, and said, "I love you, too, Honey. I'll see you soon."

Sue Ellen put her mobile phone inside her handbag, and placed the key to her car in the ignition, and started the car. Cliff glanced at the interior of the stylish, German-engineered convertible. The black leather trim appealed to Cliff on a level he didn't even understand. Cliff had yet to achieve financial success in any of his business ventures, and typically wound up losing more money than his initial investments would yield.

Sue Ellen parked in the covered parking terrace at the restaurant, hoping that no one who knew her would recognize her car, or whom she was dining with. Cliff stepped out of the car, and offered his arm to Sue Ellen.

Sue Ellen smirked at Cliff, and said, "No, thank you. I'm sure that I can manage walkin' by myself."

Cliff grumbled, and said, "Suit yourself, Sue Ellen…I'm just trying to be a gentleman."

Cliff Barnes had been labeled many things, but a gentleman was an unusual term he applied to himself, much more readily than Sue Ellen would have. The Cliff Barnes she used to know, was truly a gentleman. He had a quiet dignity, in spite of his impoverished upbringing. He had been kind, and gentle to Sue Ellen, everything J.R. wasn't at the time.

Sue Ellen glanced at Cliff, saddened by his outward appearance. He was a pathetic shell of the man he used to be. Cliff blamed J.R. for the way his life had turned out. Sue Ellen disagreed. Sue Ellen knew as well as anyone that the only person responsible for the twists and turns of their life, as a result of decisions they made was the face staring back at them when they looked into a mirror.

The hostess in Madison's asked Cliff if they wanted a table or a booth. Cliff requested a private booth in a dimly lit corner. Sue Ellen disagreed and suggested a table, near the entrance. It offered a better view of the landscaped exterior of the restaurant. Sue Ellen had a legitimate reason for requesting a table near the entrance. A table close to the door would provide Sue Ellen with a better opportunity for a hasty retreat from Cliff.

Cliff ordered a scotch on the rocks, and a club soda for Sue Ellen. Sue Ellen asked if the waitress would bring her an iced-tea, instead of a club soda.

Cliff said, "You are certainly in a disagreeable mood, Sue Ellen."

Sue Ellen replied, "I'm not bein' disagreeable, Cliff. I just don't trust your motives. That's all. Besides, it was you who spurned my attentions before I left for London, not the other way around. Or have you forgotten?"

Cliff had clouded memories of the last conversation he and Sue Ellen had before she left Dallas with Don Lockwood. He remembered that Sue Ellen suggested they could both get revenge on J.R. by getting involved with each other, again. Cliff declined her offer. He refused to play into J.R.'s hands. Cliff had been beaten too many times by his nemesis, the formidable J.R. Ewing.

Cliff had other motives for getting reacquainted with Sue Ellen. He was infatuated with the model he had seen on the billboards for the new Valentine Lingerie campaign.

Sue Ellen sensed Cliff withdrawing from her, and asked, "What is the underlyin' reason for your invitin' me to lunch, Cliff?"

Cliff snapped back from his reverie, and said, "I wanted to talk, is that so wrong?"

Sue Ellen shook her head, and said, "No, not if your motives are genuine. Somehow, I have the distinct feelin' that you want to talk to me about my relationship with J.R."

Cliff waved his hand and said, "No, I don't give a damn about J.R., you know that. I do still care about you, though. How's the lingerie business treating you?"

Sue Ellen exhaled, and smiled for the first time since her phone call to J.R.

Sue Ellen said, "Busy, my business keeps me insanely busy. I had to fly to Chicago for a press review just the other day."

Cliff said, "I know. I saw you on the news. You have a new product line on the market, right?"

Sue Ellen responded, "Yes, we're tryin' to expand our consumer base to the more affluent customer. The lingerie will have a more sophisticated, and elegant look."

Cliff said, "Ah, you mean a higher price tag, right?"

Sue Ellen grinned, and said, "You do tend to get what you pay for, wouldn't you agree?"

Cliff grunted, and said, "Not always."

Sue Ellen brushed off his negative comment and said, "If we're goin' to eat, I'd like to order so I can hurry, and get back to my boutique."

Cliff motioned for the waitress to take their lunch orders.

Sue Ellen ordered a shrimp salad, and Cliff ordered the liver and onions platter. Sue Ellen tried not to cringe as she reacted to Cliff's menu selection. Sue Ellen had always considered liver to be a poor man's delicacy. Perhaps that was the reason for Cliff's selection from the menu, she mused? They talked back and forth, in between eating lunch.

Cliff said, "I've seen a couple of your billboard ads, the model is a very pretty lady. I can't get it out of my mind that I've seen her somewhere before."

Sue Ellen stiffened, fearing that Cliff had made the connection that the model in the new ads was in fact, Sue Ellen.

Sue Ellen tried to sound aloof, and said, "Oh? Well, she used to model when she was younger, maybe you remember her from some of the work she used to do?"

Cliff asked, "What's her name?"

Sue Ellen nearly choked on her iced-tea, and lifted her cloth napkin to cover her mouth while she coughed and sputtered.

Sue Ellen coughed to clear her throat, and said, "I'm not sure, I'm not involved at that level."

Cliff said, "It's your company, Sue Ellen. Don't you have some say in who gets chosen to model in your ads?"

Sue Ellen was becoming irritated, and defensively said, "Of course I do, but you can't expect me to remember the name of a model when I've got so many other aspects of runnin' a business to deal with."

Cliff was persistent, and asked, "Well, do you know what modeling agency she works for?"

Sue Ellen's tone of voice was rising along with her temper, as she said, "I already told you, I wasn't involved at that level."

Cliff asked, "Do you know who I could talk to, so that I can find out her name?"

Sue Ellen did her best to sound distracted, and asked, "Whose name?"

Cliff rolled his eyes, and said, "The model's name. Haven't you heard a word I've said?"

Sue Ellen said, "Yes, I've heard every word you've said, I just don't know who would be able to provide you with that information."

Cliff finished the contents of his glass, and ordered another scotch and soda. He glanced at Sue Ellen, and asked, "Would you like more tea?"

Sue Ellen said, "No, I'm fine thank you. Look, Cliff, it's been real nice talkin' to you, but I have to get back to the boutique."

Cliff paid for his lunch, and offered to pay for Sue Ellen's meal, as well. Sue Ellen insisted on paying for her lunch, and added a tip for the waiter to the credit card receipt she signed at the register. Sue Ellen turned around, and accidentally bumped into a man on his way into the restaurant.

Sue Ellen glanced at the black cowboy boots on the feet of the man standing in front of her and swallowed hard. Oh my God, she thought.

J.R. glared at Sue Ellen, and pointed at Cliff, saying, "So, this little weasel is the reason behind your not bein' able to meet me at the office, huh? I thought you were busy at your store, Sugar?"

Sue Ellen lifted her hand to stop J.R.'s inquisition, and said, "J.R., if I had told you that Cliff invited me out to have lunch, you would have reacted exactly like you're reactin' now."

J.R. roughly grabbed Sue Ellen's arm, and said, "Barnes, don't you have a company to run into the ground?"

Sue Ellen tried to break free from J.R.'s grip on her arm, and hissed, "J.R. let go of me. You're makin' a scene."

J.R. pulled Sue Ellen outside, underneath the terraced entrance, and asked, "What the hell are you doin' with that idiot, Barnes?"

Sue Ellen jerked her arm away from J.R.'s stronghold, and angrily spat, "I told you, Cliff insisted on invitin' me out to lunch. I agreed to join him, because it was the only way I could get him to leave the damn store."

J.R. grumbled, "What the hell does that useless worm want with you? I thought he and Marilee Stone were seein' each other."

Sue Ellen raised her voice, and said, "If you think for one minute that I am seein' Cliff behind your back, J.R., you're crazy,"

J.R. said, "You tell me, 'cause it sure as hell looks that way, Sue Ellen."

Sue Ellen raised her hands in the air, and said, "I have nothin' to explain to you, J.R. I haven't done anything wrong."

J.R. said, "The hell you haven't. You lied to me about the reason why you couldn't stop by the office. How do you think that makes me feel?"

Sue Ellen shouted, "You have a lot of nerve, callin' me a liar, J.R. In fact, I'm gettin' real tired of all of your accusations and assumptions."

J.R.'s voice was deep, as he pulled Sue Ellen aside, and growled, "You're my wife, Sue Ellen. I have every right to know what you're doin' and who you're with."

Sue Ellen folded her arms across her chest, and said, "I am not your wife, J.R."

J.R. barked, "Whose fault is that? I asked you to marry me months ago, but you were the one who wanted us to live together."

Sue Ellen said, "If you're not happy with our livin' arrangements, J.R. I'd be more than happy to change things."

J.R. pushed Sue Ellen up against the terrace wall, and said, "Like hell you will."

Sue Ellen's words were lost on her lips, as J.R.'s hungrily lunged at Sue Ellen's mouth...