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<blockquote data-quote="CeeCee72" data-source="post: 215981" data-attributes="member: 5055">I don&#039;t own any of the characters in this story and no copyright infringement is intended.This is a &quot;What if?&quot; fanfic. What if in the season eleven episode &quot;Top Gun&quot; Sue Ellen had changed her mind at the last possible moment and instead of teaming up with Kimberly and Wendell to beat JR she voted her Weststar shares to make him CEO?***What IfPart 32***Cliff leaned back in his hospital bed and closed his eyes. &quot;I don&#039;t believe it, Bobby.&quot;Bobby had made the decision to tell Cliff about Pam. He was her brother and he had a right to know. Plus, it would have been disastrous if his lawyer informed him of his inheritance before Bobby had a chance to tell him.&quot;Well, Cliff I don&#039;t have any real reason to doubt it…&quot;&quot;But you DO doubt it, Bobby. Otherwise you wouldn&#039;t be going all the way to Canada to talk to Katherine and you wouldn&#039;t be having Harv Smithfield check out the law firm in Zurich.&quot;&quot;I admit something about this doesn&#039;t feel right, Cliff. But don&#039;t get your hopes up. You have to accept there&#039;s a very real possibility that Pam is gone.&quot;&quot;When are you leaving for Canada?&quot;&quot;Tomorrow afternoon,&quot; Bobby told him.&quot;I&#039;m going with you,&quot; Cliff said.&quot;Cliff, you&#039;re just getting out of the hospital with a bad concussion. You shouldn&#039;t be traveling.&quot;&quot;She&#039;s my sister, Bobby. I love her. And I&#039;m going.&quot;&quot;Alright, Cliff,&quot; Bobby sighed. &quot;I&#039;m taking the Ewing jet. We&#039;re leaving at 2:00.&quot;&quot;Fine, I&#039;ll be there.&quot;&quot;Okay, Cliff,&quot; April came into the room with a wheelchair. &quot;I have your discharge papers. Let&#039;s blow this joint!&quot;&quot;Thank God,&quot; Cliff said, climbing out of bed and sinking down into the wheelchair. &quot;I&#039;ll see you tomorrow, Bobby.&quot;&quot;2:00 Cliff. I won&#039;t wait if you&#039;re late. April,&quot; Bobby nodded at her curtly and stepped out of the room.&quot;What happens tomorrow at 2:00?&quot; April asked.&quot;I&#039;ll tell you about it in the car,&quot; Cliff told her. &quot;Right now I just want to get out of here before all the nurse Rachets change their minds!&quot;***&quot;Your blood pressure looks much better, Mr. Ewing. I wouldn&#039;t be at all surprised if you left us tomorrow,&quot; the nurse said with a smile.&quot;Can&#039;t be soon enough for me,&quot; JR said.The nurse laughed and nodded and left the room.&quot;You okay, darlin&#039;?&quot; JR asked his wife. &quot;You&#039;ve been awfully quiet since you got back from breakfast.&quot;&quot;I&#039;m fine, JR,&quot; Sue Ellen told him.&quot;I know you too well to believe that, honey. I see you chewing on that bottom lip. Tell me what&#039;s wrong.&quot;&quot;JR…&quot;&quot;Come on. Tell me,&quot; he pleaded gently. &quot;Please?&quot;&quot;Do you… do you understand that menopause means I won&#039;t be able to have any more children?&quot;&quot;Of course I know that, Sue Ellen. I&#039;m not stupid. I know what menopause is.&quot;&quot;And that doesn&#039;t bother you?&quot; Sue Ellen pressed.&quot;Now honey, we already talked about this. You have already given me a beautiful little boy. We have Christopher. Eventually Lucy will have kids and they&#039;ll be underfoot too. I told you. I am content with our life as it is.&quot;&quot;But, JR…&quot;&quot;No buts, Sue Ellen,&quot; he held up his hand to stop her. &quot;I would have liked to have more children with you, but it didn&#039;t work out and I think it probably worked out for the best. Listen here, I&#039;m further into my forties than you are. I don&#039;t have any desire for a baby. I&#039;d rather spend my nights making love to you than changing diapers.&quot;&quot;Are you just saying that to make me feel better?&quot;&quot;No. I&#039;m serious, Sue Ellen. So what if we&#039;re both getting older? At least we&#039;re getting older together.&quot;&quot;Oh….JR…&quot; tears rolled down her cheeks.&quot;You stop that honey,&quot; he said softly. &quot;No more tears for you, only smiles.&quot;&quot;But these are happy tears, JR,&quot; she stood up and took his hand. He pulled her down onto the bed beside him. &quot;You can cry happy tears. So long as you always promise to let me kiss them away.&quot;***Mandy ran from the shower, soaking wet and grabbed the phone of the bedroom. &quot;Hello?&quot; She said breathlessly.&quot;John Ross?! How did you get this number?&quot;She listened as the little boy talked, her eyes wide with shock.&quot;John Ross, I don&#039;t think that&#039;s a good idea.&quot;&quot;Wait!&quot; she cried when he threatened to hang up. &quot;Alright. I&#039;ll help. Can you get off the ranch? Good. Okay. I&#039;ll meet you there in an hour.&quot;Mandy put down the phone and shook her head. This was too perfect. Sue Ellen&#039;s precious baby boy was running away from home and asking her of all people for help.&quot;Thank you, John Ross,&quot; Mandy smiled. &quot;You just gave me the perfect way back into JR&#039;s life.&quot;***&quot;That all sounds lovely, Lucy, but a little more romantic than I&#039;m used to seeing from JR,&quot; Ellie said.&quot;I&#039;m surprised he wants to have the wedding at Ray&#039;s place instead of Southfork,&quot; Clayton remarked.&quot;He said the first two were at Southfork,&quot; Lucy shrugged. &quot;He wanted a symbol of a brand new start.&quot;&quot;Well, I think it&#039;s a lovely idea,&quot; Ellie said, &quot;Lucy, if you and Jenna need any help with planning, I&#039;m happy to pitch in.&quot;&quot;Thanks, Grandma. I can&#039;t believe he&#039;s asking my parents to come.&quot;&quot;That pleases me very much,&quot; Ellie smiled. &quot;I hope so much they can come.&quot;&quot;Me too, Grandma! It will be so nice to have the whole family together again &quot;&quot;Yes it certainly will, Lucy. It certainly will.&quot;&quot;You two don&#039;t get your hopes up,&quot; Clayton warned. &quot;Just because JR invites Gary and Valene, that doesn&#039;t mean they&#039;ll come. There&#039;s a lot of water under that bridge.&quot;&quot;Still,&quot; Ellie mused. &quot;It&#039;s a step in the right direction. And I&#039;m proud of JR for taking it.&quot;&quot;It&#039;s hard for me to believe, but I really am starting to think JR is serious about turning over a new leaf,* Lucy said. &quot;Feels kinda weird not to be disgusted by him.&quot;Clayton laughed heartily. &quot;Let&#039;s all just hope whatever is going on with him sticks. If he breaks Sue Ellen&#039;s heart again I don&#039;t know if she&#039;ll survive.&quot;&quot;Let&#039;s just pray we don&#039;t have to find that out, Clayton,&quot; Ellie sighed, &quot;for all our sakes.&quot;&quot;Well, Lucy, let&#039;s get you back to the ranch,&quot; Clayton said. &quot;Sounds like you&#039;re going to be very busy planning this wedding, so you should rest today at least.&quot;&quot;Okay, Clayton,&quot; Lucy smiled. &quot;I can&#039;t wait to get back home in my own bed!&quot;***&quot;Calm down, Christopher. She&#039;ll be here.&quot;&quot;She better come quick. Grandma and Grandpa Clayton will be back soon. If they see us, we&#039;re dead meat!&quot;&quot;Hey, here comes a car. Blue BMW. That&#039;s her. Come on!&quot;The boys ran out from behind the trees they&#039;d been hiding behind. The BMW slowed to a stop. John Ross opened the back door and threw in their suitcases. &quot;Come on, Christopher! Get in!&quot;Both boys climbed into the car and buckled their seatbelts.&quot;Hi, John Ross,&quot; Mandy smiled at him through the rearview mirror. She turned her eyes on Christopher. &quot;Hi Christopher. I&#039;m Mandy. I&#039;m going to take you two to my apartment until we figure out what to do, okay?&quot;&quot;Okay, but we should go. Our grandparents will be back soon.&quot;&quot;Okay,&quot; Mandy told him and put the car in gear. &quot;Don&#039;t worry, boys. I&#039;ll help you take care of everything.&quot;***&quot;I&#039;m going with you,&quot; April insisted. &quot;You have a concussion and you might need my help.&quot;&quot;No offense, April, but I don&#039;t know how Bobby will feel about that…&quot;&quot;I don&#039;t care how Bobby feels about it,&quot; April snapped, folding her arms across her chest. &quot;If I don&#039;t go, YOU don&#039;t go.&quot;&quot;April, be reasonable!&quot; Cliff protested.&quot;I&#039;m serious, Cliff. I&#039;m going.&quot;&quot;Okay, fine!&quot; Cliff threw his hands up in defeat. &quot;But you can explain it to Bobby.&quot;&quot;My pleasure,&quot; April shrugged. &quot;And if he doesn&#039;t like it, well that&#039;s just too damn bad, isn&#039;t it? Get him on the phone. I&#039;ll explain it to him right now.&quot;Cliff made a sour face and reached for the phone. &quot;Nothing good is gonna come from this, April. You just wait and see.&quot;***&quot;No, it&#039;s fine, Harry,&quot;JR said into the phone. &quot;Bring her on by. Thanks. See you soon.&quot;&quot;What was that all about?&quot; Sue Ellen asked when JR hung up the phone.&quot;Harry McSween found someone who knows who tried to blow up my oil rig.&quot;&quot;Really? Who?&quot;&quot;My receptionist, Crystal.&quot;&quot;The pretty little pop tart?&quot; Sue Ellen asked.JR chuckled. &quot;Now honey, when she gets here, be nice. Harry said she&#039;s scared to death.&quot;&quot;Why, JR,&quot; Sue Ellen said with mock innocence, &quot;what on Earth makes you think I wouldn&#039;t be nice?&quot;JR laughed out loud and reached out to smack her lightly on the backside. &quot;I tell you what I really want. To get home so you can be nice to me. REALLY nice.&quot;&quot;Really?&quot; she asked huskily. &quot;What exactly did you have in mind?&quot;He reached out and yanked her down onto his bed and whispered all his ideas into her ear.&quot;Oh, God, JR,&quot; she whispered breathlessly when he&#039;d finished. &quot;In the barn? Really?&quot;&quot;Why not?&quot; he grinned. &quot;Not like we never did it in a barn before.&quot;&quot;We were a lot younger then,&quot; Sue Ellen reminded him.&quot;Yes,&quot; JR admitted. &quot;But think about how much we&#039;ve learned about pleasing each other since then.&quot;Sue Ellen shivered again and blushed.&quot;Excuse me,&quot; the doctor said as he came into the room. &quot;It seems like I&#039;m always coming in here at the worst possible time.&quot;&quot;You&#039;re right about that, Doc,&quot; JR laughed, winking at his blushing wife. Her face had turned a dark shade of Scarlett.&quot;Well, at least I have good news. You&#039;re blood pressure is up and remaining steady. Your bloodwork is fine. I&#039;m inclined to discharge you in the morning.&quot;&quot;Oh, that&#039;s wonderful, doctor!&quot; Sue Ellen beamed.&quot;Yes,&quot; the doctor agreed. &quot;Now you promise me, Mrs. Ewing, you&#039;ll make an appointment for yourself as soon as possible?&quot;&quot;Yes, I promise,&quot; Sue Ellen nodded.&quot;Good, I&#039;ll see you both in the morning.&quot;JR smiled and laid back in his bed. &quot;Maybe I better call Ray and have him clean out a stall for us?&quot;&quot;JR! Don&#039;t you DARE!&quot;JR laughed out loud and winked at her again. &quot;Don&#039;t worry, darlin&#039;. I won&#039;t say a word. What we do in the barn will be between you and me. I&#039;ll even blindfold the horses if you want.&quot;***&quot;April, I&#039;m not going to fight with you,&quot; Bobby growled into the phone. &quot;If you want to come, come. But this isn&#039;t a vacation. I won&#039;t have time to baby you. I&#039;m going to Canada to find out what happened to my wife and that&#039;s all I&#039;ll be focusing on.&quot;He was silent as he listened to her reply.&quot;Fine. See you tomorrow at 2:00.&quot;Bobby slammed the phone down and rubbed his temples absently. It seemed as if April was always around lately, like an annoying puppy stubbornly nipping at his heels for attention.He understood completely why she was insisting on coming. Cliff shouldn&#039;t even be traveling at all in his condition. April was right, Cliff needed help.Bobby sat back in his chair and shook his head. The real problem was that Bobby liked having April around and he was very tempted to give her attention - a lot of attention.&quot;I can&#039;t get involved with her,&quot; he sighed to himself. &quot;Not until I know for sure what happened to Pam.&quot;***&quot;Okay, boys, is there anything else I can get you?&quot;John Ross and Christopher were sitting at Mandy&#039;s kitchen table devouring the burgers and milkshakes she&#039;d bought for them. They both shook their heads in answer to her question.&quot;Boys, it won&#039;t be long until your family figures out you&#039;re gone. It will be all over the news. We need to figure out what we&#039;re going to do.&quot;&quot;We have plenty of time,&quot; John Ross told her. &quot;It&#039;ll be hours before they know we&#039;re missing. We could be halfway to Mexico by the time they figure it out.&quot;&quot;What makes you think that?&quot; Mandy asked.&quot;Easy,&quot; John Ross told her. &quot;We told Teresa we were going to the stables and Uncle Ray was gonna meet us down there. If anyone misses us before dinner, Grandma will just think we went over to Uncle Ray:s house. She won&#039;t bother to call until we don&#039;t show up to eat dinner.&quot;&quot;You&#039;re telling me you could be gone for hours and no one would notice?&quot;&quot;Yeah,&quot; Christopher said in between bites of his hamburger. &quot;Aunt Sue Ellen is the only one who really pays attention to us and she&#039;s not around.*&quot;Why did the two of you run away in the first place?&quot;&quot;Because our parents are big, fat, stinking liars!&quot; Christopher declared.*What do you mean?* Mandy pressed.&quot;They told us Christopher was my Mama&#039;s real nephew. His real mama was my mama&#039;s sister. Then they promised no more secrets.&quot; John Ross told her.&quot;But then we heard grown up talk,* Christopher chimed in, &quot;and we found out my real daddy is John Ross&#039;s daddy!&quot;&quot;JR is your father?&quot; Mandy asked him. &quot;And your mother is Sue Elllen&#039;s sister?&quot; Mandy&#039;s eyes were wide.&quot;Yeah!&quot; Christopher exclaimed.&quot;But...John Ross? Why did you call me for help?&quot;&quot;You were always nice to me,&quot; John Ross shrugged. &quot;My daddy has lots and lots of girlfriends, but you&#039;re the only one I really ever met. I know you hate my mama and are mad at my daddy too. My daddy days the enemy of my enemy is my friend, so I knew you&#039;d help us.&quot;&quot;I see,&quot; Mandy breathed out. &quot;You boys finish your hamburgers. I&#039;ll be right back, okay?&quot;Both boys nodded and Mandy walked from the kitchen to her bedroom. She sat down on the edge of the bed and buried her face in her hands.What a mess. JR had fathered a child with Sue Ellen&#039;s sister? And Bobby was raising that child? And Sue Ellen had stayed with him? And John Ross knew about all of JR&#039;s other women?Christopher&#039;s words repeated through her mind…&quot;Aunt Sue Ellen is&nbsp; the only one who really pays attention to us…&quot;And poor John Ross! &quot;I know you hate my mama…&quot;&quot;The enemy of my enemy is my friend,&quot; Mandy repeated to herself.Mandy had always known things were bad at Southfork, but she&#039;d always assumed the problems all stemmed from Sue Ellen&#039;s drinking. JR had always painted a picture of Sue Ellen as a drunk and an unfit mother. After hearing what the boys had to say, Mandy realized it was no mystery why Sue Ellen was an alcoholic.JR had an affair with Sue Ellen&#039;s sister - and worse, he&#039;d fathered a child by her - a child that was being raised under the same roof where Sue Ellen lived. &quot;A constant reminder of JR&#039;s infidelity,&quot; Mandy muttered.Mandy didn&#039;t understand why Sue Ellen accepted such an arrangement. She was aware that JR had cheated on Sue Ellen many times before he met Mandy, but Sue Ellen&#039;s SISTER? How could that ever be forgiven?&quot;Because that&#039;s how much she loves him,&quot; Mandy sighed. For the first time, Mandy realized that she could never love JR as much as Sue Ellen did. She also understood finally why JR would NEVER leave his wife.&quot;Mandy, you should know by now JR would never leave me for another woman.&quot;The memory of Sue Ellen&#039;s words, spoken when she had revealed herself to be the force behind Valentine and the movie deal shook Mandy to her core.Sue Ellen was right. JR wouldn&#039;t ever leave her. How could he when she loved him so much? JR needed Sue Ellen&#039;s devotion. He thrived on it. That&#039;s why he always ran back to his wife when he needed emotional support.He would never need Mandy as much as he needed Sue Ellen. Sue Ellen had multiple affairs. She embarrassed him repeatedly by being drunk in public. Yet he always forgave her and held onto her. He&#039;d tossed Mandy aside over some lingerie pictures, but for Sue Ellen, he always seemed to be willing to forgive the unforgivable.&quot;He loves her because she loves him so much,&quot; Mandy said.&quot;Aunt Sue Ellen is really the only one who really pays attention to us…&quot;Christopher&#039;s words ran through her mind again. &quot;Unfit mother, my ass,&quot; Mandy sighed. Seemed to her that Sue Ellen was the only one around Southfork who gave a damn about those boys.Mandy shook her head, picked up the phone by the bed and quickly dialed the number.&quot;Yes, is this Southfork? Mr. Farlow? This is Mandy Winger. I have John Ross and Christopher here at my apartment.&quot;***</blockquote>

[QUOTE="CeeCee72, post: 215981, member: 5055"] I don't own any of the characters in this story and no copyright infringement is intended. This is a "What if?" fanfic. What if in the season eleven episode "Top Gun" Sue Ellen had changed her mind at the last possible moment and instead of teaming up with Kimberly and Wendell to beat JR she voted her Weststar shares to make him CEO? *** What If Part 32 *** Cliff leaned back in his hospital bed and closed his eyes. "I don't believe it, Bobby." Bobby had made the decision to tell Cliff about Pam. He was her brother and he had a right to know. Plus, it would have been disastrous if his lawyer informed him of his inheritance before Bobby had a chance to tell him. "Well, Cliff I don't have any real reason to doubt it…" "But you DO doubt it, Bobby. Otherwise you wouldn't be going all the way to Canada to talk to Katherine and you wouldn't be having Harv Smithfield check out the law firm in Zurich." "I admit something about this doesn't feel right, Cliff. But don't get your hopes up. You have to accept there's a very real possibility that Pam is gone." "When are you leaving for Canada?" "Tomorrow afternoon," Bobby told him. "I'm going with you," Cliff said. "Cliff, you're just getting out of the hospital with a bad concussion. You shouldn't be traveling." "She's my sister, Bobby. I love her. And I'm going." "Alright, Cliff," Bobby sighed. "I'm taking the Ewing jet. We're leaving at 2:00." "Fine, I'll be there." "Okay, Cliff," April came into the room with a wheelchair. "I have your discharge papers. Let's blow this joint!" "Thank God," Cliff said, climbing out of bed and sinking down into the wheelchair. "I'll see you tomorrow, Bobby." "2:00 Cliff. I won't wait if you're late. April," Bobby nodded at her curtly and stepped out of the room. "What happens tomorrow at 2:00?" April asked. "I'll tell you about it in the car," Cliff told her. "Right now I just want to get out of here before all the nurse Rachets change their minds!" *** "Your blood pressure looks much better, Mr. Ewing. I wouldn't be at all surprised if you left us tomorrow," the nurse said with a smile. "Can't be soon enough for me," JR said. The nurse laughed and nodded and left the room. "You okay, darlin'?" JR asked his wife. "You've been awfully quiet since you got back from breakfast." "I'm fine, JR," Sue Ellen told him. "I know you too well to believe that, honey. I see you chewing on that bottom lip. Tell me what's wrong." "JR…" "Come on. Tell me," he pleaded gently. "Please?" "Do you… do you understand that menopause means I won't be able to have any more children?" "Of course I know that, Sue Ellen. I'm not stupid. I know what menopause is." "And that doesn't bother you?" Sue Ellen pressed. "Now honey, we already talked about this. You have already given me a beautiful little boy. We have Christopher. Eventually Lucy will have kids and they'll be underfoot too. I told you. I am content with our life as it is." "But, JR…" "No buts, Sue Ellen," he held up his hand to stop her. "I would have liked to have more children with you, but it didn't work out and I think it probably worked out for the best. Listen here, I'm further into my forties than you are. I don't have any desire for a baby. I'd rather spend my nights making love to you than changing diapers." "Are you just saying that to make me feel better?" "No. I'm serious, Sue Ellen. So what if we're both getting older? At least we're getting older together." "Oh….JR…" tears rolled down her cheeks. "You stop that honey," he said softly. "No more tears for you, only smiles." "But these are happy tears, JR," she stood up and took his hand. He pulled her down onto the bed beside him. "You can cry happy tears. So long as you always promise to let me kiss them away." *** Mandy ran from the shower, soaking wet and grabbed the phone of the bedroom. "Hello?" She said breathlessly. "John Ross?! How did you get this number?" She listened as the little boy talked, her eyes wide with shock. "John Ross, I don't think that's a good idea." "Wait!" she cried when he threatened to hang up. "Alright. I'll help. Can you get off the ranch? Good. Okay. I'll meet you there in an hour." Mandy put down the phone and shook her head. This was too perfect. Sue Ellen's precious baby boy was running away from home and asking her of all people for help. "Thank you, John Ross," Mandy smiled. "You just gave me the perfect way back into JR's life." *** "That all sounds lovely, Lucy, but a little more romantic than I'm used to seeing from JR," Ellie said. "I'm surprised he wants to have the wedding at Ray's place instead of Southfork," Clayton remarked. "He said the first two were at Southfork," Lucy shrugged. "He wanted a symbol of a brand new start." "Well, I think it's a lovely idea," Ellie said, "Lucy, if you and Jenna need any help with planning, I'm happy to pitch in." "Thanks, Grandma. I can't believe he's asking my parents to come." "That pleases me very much," Ellie smiled. "I hope so much they can come." "Me too, Grandma! It will be so nice to have the whole family together again " "Yes it certainly will, Lucy. It certainly will." "You two don't get your hopes up," Clayton warned. "Just because JR invites Gary and Valene, that doesn't mean they'll come. There's a lot of water under that bridge." "Still," Ellie mused. "It's a step in the right direction. And I'm proud of JR for taking it." "It's hard for me to believe, but I really am starting to think JR is serious about turning over a new leaf,* Lucy said. "Feels kinda weird not to be disgusted by him." Clayton laughed heartily. "Let's all just hope whatever is going on with him sticks. If he breaks Sue Ellen's heart again I don't know if she'll survive." "Let's just pray we don't have to find that out, Clayton," Ellie sighed, "for all our sakes." "Well, Lucy, let's get you back to the ranch," Clayton said. "Sounds like you're going to be very busy planning this wedding, so you should rest today at least." "Okay, Clayton," Lucy smiled. "I can't wait to get back home in my own bed!" *** "Calm down, Christopher. She'll be here." "She better come quick. Grandma and Grandpa Clayton will be back soon. If they see us, we're dead meat!" "Hey, here comes a car. Blue BMW. That's her. Come on!" The boys ran out from behind the trees they'd been hiding behind. The BMW slowed to a stop. John Ross opened the back door and threw in their suitcases. "Come on, Christopher! Get in!" Both boys climbed into the car and buckled their seatbelts. "Hi, John Ross," Mandy smiled at him through the rearview mirror. She turned her eyes on Christopher. "Hi Christopher. I'm Mandy. I'm going to take you two to my apartment until we figure out what to do, okay?" "Okay, but we should go. Our grandparents will be back soon." "Okay," Mandy told him and put the car in gear. "Don't worry, boys. I'll help you take care of everything." *** "I'm going with you," April insisted. "You have a concussion and you might need my help." "No offense, April, but I don't know how Bobby will feel about that…" "I don't care how Bobby feels about it," April snapped, folding her arms across her chest. "If I don't go, YOU don't go." "April, be reasonable!" Cliff protested. "I'm serious, Cliff. I'm going." "Okay, fine!" Cliff threw his hands up in defeat. "But you can explain it to Bobby." "My pleasure," April shrugged. "And if he doesn't like it, well that's just too damn bad, isn't it? Get him on the phone. I'll explain it to him right now." Cliff made a sour face and reached for the phone. "Nothing good is gonna come from this, April. You just wait and see." *** "No, it's fine, Harry,"JR said into the phone. "Bring her on by. Thanks. See you soon." "What was that all about?" Sue Ellen asked when JR hung up the phone. "Harry McSween found someone who knows who tried to blow up my oil rig." "Really? Who?" "My receptionist, Crystal." "The pretty little pop tart?" Sue Ellen asked. JR chuckled. "Now honey, when she gets here, be nice. Harry said she's scared to death." "Why, JR," Sue Ellen said with mock innocence, "what on Earth makes you think I wouldn't be nice?" JR laughed out loud and reached out to smack her lightly on the backside. "I tell you what I really want. To get home so you can be nice to me. REALLY nice." "Really?" she asked huskily. "What exactly did you have in mind?" He reached out and yanked her down onto his bed and whispered all his ideas into her ear. "Oh, God, JR," she whispered breathlessly when he'd finished. "In the barn? Really?" "Why not?" he grinned. "Not like we never did it in a barn before." "We were a lot younger then," Sue Ellen reminded him. "Yes," JR admitted. "But think about how much we've learned about pleasing each other since then." Sue Ellen shivered again and blushed. "Excuse me," the doctor said as he came into the room. "It seems like I'm always coming in here at the worst possible time." "You're right about that, Doc," JR laughed, winking at his blushing wife. Her face had turned a dark shade of Scarlett. "Well, at least I have good news. You're blood pressure is up and remaining steady. Your bloodwork is fine. I'm inclined to discharge you in the morning." "Oh, that's wonderful, doctor!" Sue Ellen beamed. "Yes," the doctor agreed. "Now you promise me, Mrs. Ewing, you'll make an appointment for yourself as soon as possible?" "Yes, I promise," Sue Ellen nodded. "Good, I'll see you both in the morning." JR smiled and laid back in his bed. "Maybe I better call Ray and have him clean out a stall for us?" "JR! Don't you DARE!" JR laughed out loud and winked at her again. "Don't worry, darlin'. I won't say a word. What we do in the barn will be between you and me. I'll even blindfold the horses if you want." *** "April, I'm not going to fight with you," Bobby growled into the phone. "If you want to come, come. But this isn't a vacation. I won't have time to baby you. I'm going to Canada to find out what happened to my wife and that's all I'll be focusing on." He was silent as he listened to her reply. "Fine. See you tomorrow at 2:00." Bobby slammed the phone down and rubbed his temples absently. It seemed as if April was always around lately, like an annoying puppy stubbornly nipping at his heels for attention. He understood completely why she was insisting on coming. Cliff shouldn't even be traveling at all in his condition. April was right, Cliff needed help. Bobby sat back in his chair and shook his head. The real problem was that Bobby liked having April around and he was very tempted to give her attention - a lot of attention. "I can't get involved with her," he sighed to himself. "Not until I know for sure what happened to Pam." *** "Okay, boys, is there anything else I can get you?" John Ross and Christopher were sitting at Mandy's kitchen table devouring the burgers and milkshakes she'd bought for them. They both shook their heads in answer to her question. "Boys, it won't be long until your family figures out you're gone. It will be all over the news. We need to figure out what we're going to do." "We have plenty of time," John Ross told her. "It'll be hours before they know we're missing. We could be halfway to Mexico by the time they figure it out." "What makes you think that?" Mandy asked. "Easy," John Ross told her. "We told Teresa we were going to the stables and Uncle Ray was gonna meet us down there. If anyone misses us before dinner, Grandma will just think we went over to Uncle Ray:s house. She won't bother to call until we don't show up to eat dinner." "You're telling me you could be gone for hours and no one would notice?" "Yeah," Christopher said in between bites of his hamburger. "Aunt Sue Ellen is the only one who really pays attention to us and she's not around.* "Why did the two of you run away in the first place?" "Because our parents are big, fat, stinking liars!" Christopher declared. *What do you mean?* Mandy pressed. "They told us Christopher was my Mama's real nephew. His real mama was my mama's sister. Then they promised no more secrets." John Ross told her. "But then we heard grown up talk,* Christopher chimed in, "and we found out my real daddy is John Ross's daddy!" "JR is your father?" Mandy asked him. "And your mother is Sue Elllen's sister?" Mandy's eyes were wide. "Yeah!" Christopher exclaimed. "But...John Ross? Why did you call me for help?" "You were always nice to me," John Ross shrugged. "My daddy has lots and lots of girlfriends, but you're the only one I really ever met. I know you hate my mama and are mad at my daddy too. My daddy days the enemy of my enemy is my friend, so I knew you'd help us." "I see," Mandy breathed out. "You boys finish your hamburgers. I'll be right back, okay?" Both boys nodded and Mandy walked from the kitchen to her bedroom. She sat down on the edge of the bed and buried her face in her hands. What a mess. JR had fathered a child with Sue Ellen's sister? And Bobby was raising that child? And Sue Ellen had stayed with him? And John Ross knew about all of JR's other women? Christopher's words repeated through her mind…"[I]Aunt Sue Ellen is the only one who really pays attention to us…"[/I] And poor John Ross! "[I]I know you hate my mama…"[/I] "The enemy of my enemy is my friend," Mandy repeated to herself. Mandy had always known things were bad at Southfork, but she'd always assumed the problems all stemmed from Sue Ellen's drinking. JR had always painted a picture of Sue Ellen as a drunk and an unfit mother. After hearing what the boys had to say, Mandy realized it was no mystery why Sue Ellen was an alcoholic. JR had an affair with Sue Ellen's sister - and worse, he'd fathered a child by her - a child that was being raised under the same roof where Sue Ellen lived. "A constant reminder of JR's infidelity," Mandy muttered. Mandy didn't understand why Sue Ellen accepted such an arrangement. She was aware that JR had cheated on Sue Ellen many times before he met Mandy, but Sue Ellen's SISTER? How could that ever be forgiven? "Because that's how much she loves him," Mandy sighed. For the first time, Mandy realized that she could never love JR as much as Sue Ellen did. She also understood finally why JR would NEVER leave his wife. [I]"Mandy, you should know by now JR would never leave me for another woman."[/I] The memory of Sue Ellen's words, spoken when she had revealed herself to be the force behind Valentine and the movie deal shook Mandy to her core. Sue Ellen was right. JR wouldn't ever leave her. How could he when she loved him so much? JR needed Sue Ellen's devotion. He thrived on it. That's why he always ran back to his wife when he needed emotional support. He would never need Mandy as much as he needed Sue Ellen. Sue Ellen had multiple affairs. She embarrassed him repeatedly by being drunk in public. Yet he always forgave her and held onto her. He'd tossed Mandy aside over some lingerie pictures, but for Sue Ellen, he always seemed to be willing to forgive the unforgivable. "He loves her because she loves him so much," Mandy said. [I]"Aunt Sue Ellen is really the only one who really pays attention to us…[/I]" Christopher's words ran through her mind again. "Unfit mother, my ass," Mandy sighed. Seemed to her that Sue Ellen was the only one around Southfork who gave a damn about those boys. Mandy shook her head, picked up the phone by the bed and quickly dialed the number. "Yes, is this Southfork? Mr. Farlow? This is Mandy Winger. I have John Ross and Christopher here at my apartment." *** [/QUOTE]

Verification

What month follows July?