Missed you at the restaurant.
I did call.
Abigail's fine, by the way. It was just a bad bruise.
It's not gonna work.
Stephanie, I'm a doctor.
I'm going to have emergencies come up from time to time.
Give me another chance. Dinner tomorrow?
What'd you say?
I'll pick you up, take you anywhere you want to go.
- Okay. - Great. It's a date.
That you better not break.
Cassie.
What, really?
Nick's gone too.
Well, now we both don't know where our kids are.
You think Grace is with Nick?
I have a feeling.
Well, your feelings are usually spot on,
they're not exactly best buds.
Yeah, I know, but...
- Did you try her cell? - She left it at home.
And he's not answering his.
Well, it's still early, and it's Grace.
- She's a good kid. - Yeah, Nick too.
Well, I love him, but Nick is... Nick.
Grace?
Just me.
Grace is missing.
- Missing? - Nobody knows where she is.
- She's with Anthony. - No, she left him.
She's probably studying somewhere else.
The library.
It's Grace, how much trouble could she get into?
- Any word? - No.
Abigail?
Abigail...
What were you doing at the coffee house?
Meeting someone.
Thanks for getting me home.
What were you doing there?
Hanging.
And your dad's cool with that?
What, he doesn't know...
So, you snuck out?
If he let me do what I wanted to do
in the first place, I wouldn't have to.
Well, thanks.
You did a really nice thing tonight.
In the future, be more careful. Okay?
What's that supposed to mean?
There are rule followers and rule breakers.
You're the first, not the second.
I won't always be here to help.
I don't need you to be.
You did tonight.
Grace?
Grace!
Where have you been?
You were studying, right?
At the library?
That's what I told them.
Yeah.
Yeah?
Library.
You were at the library?
Yes.
And I'm really sorry to have worried everyone.
You're never up this late.
Sorry to disappoint you and catch you.
I just went out. No big deal.
When I told you not to, it's a very big deal.
Grace wasn't with you, was she?
Can you just ground me, get it over with?
I don't know what to do with you.
When you do, let me know.
I'm going to bed.
Your father's compass.
Yeah.
That was given to him by your grandfather.
When your dad went into the Army he took it with him.
The last part of boot camp was survival training.
Your dad found himself out in the middle of nowhere
with not much more than that compass.
He had doubts of surviving survival training,
but that compass helped him find his way back.
It meant a lot to him.
Yeah. It reminded him
that we all have an internal compass
that points us in the right direction.
It's when we stray off course, we get lost.
I am so sorry for tonight.
I know.
Apparently you weren't the only one to go missing tonight.
When I was looking for you,
Sam discovered that, Nick had snuck out.
So, I got him in trouble?
Other people can't get us into trouble,
only we can get ourselves into trouble.
Since you showed up on my doorstep,
I have this feeling I can't seem to shake
that you're here just to stir things up.
Sam, Stephanie,
Grace, Lori...
Well, if you don't stir the pot, everything boils over.
But not your pot.
My pot is fine.
Your pot is stuck.
So, you're here to stir it?
Someone has to.
I know you think you're helping me...
I am helping you.
You'll see.
I don't see.
You will.
The door's open, Sam.
Tea?
Scotch.
I have tea.
Well, I'll drink it and pretend it's scotch. -
Make mine a double.
I got your text. I'm glad Grace is okay.
I'm glad Nick came back.
He did.
You know...
when they say their first words,
take their first steps
or ride a two-wheeler, first day of school...
You just never think you're going to end up...
Drinking herb tea?
Exactly.
How is it I can control everything in my life
and I can't control my own son?
Well, you can't control everything,
there are always unexpected variables that change things.
I can control the variables.
No, you can't, that's what makes them variables.
When I set my mind to something, I can do it.
That's tenacity.
I graduated from medical school in three years.
Well, that's impressive, but it's not control.
I'm a doctor.
If I didn't believe that I could control the uncontrollable,
I never would have gotten out of med school.
I believe at its core, medicine is a struggle to control disease.
Yes, see, control.
No, see, struggle.
I think I'm gonna control myself on home.
Thank you.
And now I seem to be struggling a bit.
We all do.
Good night, Sam.
Good night.
- I spoke with your friend Jones. - You did?
I told him I think this Keating House development
- is just the beginning. - It is?
I've asked my team to come up
with a list of properties that have potential.
Potential? -Yes, potential to be leveled.
- Martha... - You!
You got me thinking, and you're right.
I am?
Out with the old, in with the new!
But we don't really want this development
to change the face of Middleton, do we?
Middleton is a grand old lady,
but she could use a nip-and-tuck.
And with your real estate know how and my ability to... To...
Well, to do everything else, there's no stopping us.
- Us? - We make a great team.
Like... Like Butch and Sundance.
They die at the end of the film.
Do they?
Well, you know what I mean.
Hi! What happened to you last night?
I hurt my ankle.
I was all alone.
Nick was there.
Yeah.
What's wrong?
Listen,
I really hate what I did
and lying and now he's in trouble.
Well, if you wanna break the rules,
you're going to have to deal with feeling guilty from time to time.
Just ground me and get it over with.
I can't always control what you do.
But I can control what I do.
What are you talking about?
We don't spend enough time together.
Yes, we do.
No, we don't, but that's gonna change.
Because something has to.
And that's why I'm grounding both of us.
Hi. I'm sorry, I'm late.
No problem. You all right?
Yeah...
Yeah, it's just.
Martha's going all Donald Trump on me with Keating House.
Martha's a powerful force of nature.
Boy, you're not kidding.
It's hard to contain something so strong,
once it's been unleashed.
Look, I don't want Keating House to come between us.
Give me one more chance to convince you the merits of this project.
Okay.
Grey House. You talk, I'll cook.
That's kind of intimate.
It is?
Well, yeah, at a restaurant, you know, we're not alone,
but at Grey House...
At Grey House, there's Grace and Brandon...
But no Lori?
No, Lori's, investigating something.
See, right there.
Lori would have changed the dynamic of the entire evening.
We're practically going to be alone.
Practically.
What's wrong? Stephanie?
As a makeup date, I'm cooking dinner.
I need to be home with Nick.
And I can't cook.
I don't think she's coming for the food.
Still, I wanted to be...
- Special? - Edible.
I used to date a chef.
He taught me everything I know.
I can teach you.
It's the least I can do, after all the trouble I caused.
Are you sure?
Yes. Please, let me do this.
It'll be a meal Stephanie won't forget.
There we go.
Thank you.
- Hi, Stephanie. - Hi.
- For me? - Yes.
Thank you.
It's a gluten free chicken noodle soup.
With no chicken and no noodles.
So, it's a broth?
If it were just a broth, I couldn't charge $7.
I see.
So, Sam hasn't called to cancel,
and now that the dinner is at his house,
if he doesn't show,
he'll either have to leave town or move.
I have never, and I mean never,
given a man this many chances.
But I think he's worth it.
Men, they can be so frustrating!
Aw. You know,
I think the frustration comes from
not being able to get someone to do what we want
or to react the way we want.
Well then, I think Ryan is a little frustrated with you.
Well, I can't help that.
I think he really likes you.
Well, I really like him.
But...
But I think we were talking about you and Sam.
Nice deflection.
Thank you.
Nick, wait up.
I know you're in trouble.
I'm always in trouble.
But this time it's because of me.
Doesn't matter.
I'm going to tell your dad what you did for me last night.
He sees me a certain way
and that's never going to change.
Yes, it will.
Look, you feel guilty and you want to not feel guilty.
You want me to tell you, it's okay.
It is.
You're off the hook.
With me, at least.
Well, hello there.
Hi.
I know that look.
You working on a story?
I have a hunch that someone
isn't being truthful about their motives.
Who's Abigail?
You know I don't like to talk about
what I'm writing before I write it.
Sorry, you're right.
- Thanks. - Anytime.
I'm making dinner for Stephanie.
You need help?
Nope. Got it all under control.
I'm sure you do. So, what's on the menu?
- Beef Bourguignon. - Ambitious.
And French. Abigail helped me.
Did she?
If you can read, you can cook.
And she told you that?
Yup.
Well...
Bon appetit.
Well, it is either very French of me to try to make this
or it's very stupid.
Well, good luck.
Luck's not a factor.
Hi.
Hello.
I think you and I need to talk.
- Really? - Yeah.
Well, I have a date.
Sam made you wait.
Maybe it's his turn now.
Sam? Is everything okay?
- Turn it off! - I can't.
- Well, do something! - I am!
Watch out.
Need some help?
He set the kitchen on fire.
You can't be serious.
But I am.
You want to tear down every building on this list?
Tempus fugit, Ryan. Tempus fugit.
We want to bring in young people, new blood.
They don't want drafty old Victorians.
They want what we're offering.
"We"?
"Small town with great economic development."
My, this is how big political careers get started.
I probably shouldn't tell you this because it's not official,
but I am thinking of exploring...
...higher office!
How does "Governor Martha Tinsdale" sound?
I know!
Just takes your breath away, doesn't it?
Yeah. -This development is actually
going to develop me straight into the Governor's mansion,
and the whole state will have you to thank for it.
You know I'm not interested in Sam.
You seem interested.
But I'm not.
Let me ask you something.
Would a man who is truly interested in you
let me or anything get in the way of being with you?
Boy...
You don't pull any punches.
I call it like I see it.
And I think you see it, too.
So, this is some kind of public service you're offering?
A kind of anti-Match.com?
You deserve someone who's totally into you.
- The oven is on broil. - Yeah.
You don't broil anything for two hours except logs on a fire.
How exactly did Abigail help you?
She gave me the recipe.
Okay, Beef Bourguignon is really complicated.
Abigail thought I could handle it.
Julia Child's Beef Bourguignon recipe is three pages long.
Yeah.
So, did you follow the recipe?
Well, it was kind of complicated so I just decided to wing it.
Did you, read any books
before you performed your first surgery or did you just wing it?
- I was doing just fine until... - The fire.
The fire, and that's when the wheels came off.
I've got to call Stephanie and cancel.
I can't feed her this burned mess.
Don't call. Don't cancel.
Well, I have to!
Look, one Merrywick woman got you into this,
so another one's going to get you out.
I can't take all your food for my dinner date.
I bought plenty.
What are you making?
Well, give a man a fish, he'll eat for a day,
but teach a man to fish...
But this is chicken.
You're loving this, aren't you?
What, that you burned down your kitchen and are taking my dinner?
That you're in control.
I don't believe in control.
What do you believe then?
Your ability to peel and chop a pound of carrots.
Who's coming to dinner, Bugs Bunny?
Would you rather carve and sear the chicken?
No, I think it's best to keep me away from open flames.
Hi.
You okay?
No.
You want to talk?
Yeah.
You know, anything you tell me will stay between us.
Thanks.
You lied about the library, didn't you?
- How did you know? - I'm your sister.
I feel terrible.
I can tell.
You wanna tell me what really happened?
I don't know how to thank you.
You just did.
I hope I didn't mess up your night.
No, it's all good.
I know this isn't easy.
You know, right after my divorce,
I had a lot of first dates.
Not much repeat business.
For some reason, women didn't want to hear about
my issues with my ex.
And for some reason that's all I could talk about.
Your ex?
Tough marriage, tougher breakup.
I guess in the end we just wanted different things.
She never really wanted kids.
Me, I wanted a whole baseball team.
It's funny how you can think you know someone
when you don't, really.
What about you and Jake?
I loved him till the day he died.
I still do. I miss him every day.
Lucky.
I mean, just to feel that way about someone,
even for a short period of time.
Yeah, I am lucky.
Stephanie is not like any woman I ever dated.
Well, opposites attract.
I will go out the back,
and you can take a victory lap in the kitchen.
Okay.
- Have a good night. - I will.
Thanks to you.
Come on in.
I had some help.
- Cassie? - Yeah.
She's a good friend.
So, how's your food?
Well, I love the carrots.
I did the carrots.
How'd you know?
Well, they're half-peeled and mostly al dente,
and when I say al dente, I...
I mean raw.
Half-peeled and not cooked, that's my trademark.
Well, I love that you made the effort.
I love that you're here.
Just... Out of here.
You don't have to leave.
I want to leave.
No, Nick...
Sorry, we couldn't be at a restaurant.
I understand, you're a single father.
I also understand you're a doctor.
I am.
So, how are things going with Nick?
Too soon to tell.
But I'm hopeful.
How are things going with us?
It's too soon to tell.
But I'm hopeful.
I'm sorry I was late tonight.
Considering my track record, don't worry about it.
Abigail?
I've been looking for you.
Here I am.
We need to talk.
Found something out about me, did you?
I did.
Enlighten me.
You are actually telling the truth about your life.
Yes, I know.
You do have a job in New York and an apartment.
You thought I was lying.
I did, because that's what you do.
Excuse me?
When I was Grace's age,
you'd say you were coming to town
but then, you'd never show up.
You'd show up and say
we were going to spend the day together,
and then you'd blow me off.
You'd take me shopping and then you'd ask me for money.
Well, it's probably good that you're back now,
living in Middleton,
protecting Grace,
being her big sister.
You don't look well.
I'm not. It's not the food.
What's wrong?
I unleashed Martha on Middleton.
How?
She's ready to tear down the whole town.
Isn't that what you want?
No.
But now, that's what she wants.
She's got this whole list of buildings
that she's just itching to demolish.
- Help. - I can't.
What?
Only you can really help yourself out of this.
Okay.
But I'm open to pointers.
Any advice, really. Please.
It sounds like Martha thinks
that you two are going in the same direction.
She's wrong.
But I can't reason with her. No one can!
She's Martha.
No, Martha won't listen to you,
but I bet there's someone who will
listen to you.
I have to tell you something,
but I don't want you to be disappointed in me.
I know.
I lied to you.
About the library. About everything.
I know.
Well, if you knew that, then why didn't you bust me?
Well, some stories we can tell, and others need to be told.
And just so you know,
Abigail did help me,
but it was my idea to go and meet her.
And Nick,
he didn't do anything but help get me home.
Disappointed?
Well, it's not your best day...
I really am so sorry.
Look, a mistake is like a bump in the road.
One bump is not so bad.
But if we keep making mistakes,
eventually we change the shape of the road forever.
Nick was actually really nice to me.
Surprisingly decent.
Well, that seems like a story worth telling.
I don't know what to do.
You will.
So, are you gonna punish me?
Well, looks like you're washing and drying tonight.
Accepted.
It doesn't look too bad.
I think I need to do something about it though.
Maybe I should see a doctor.
Good thing we have one right next door.
Would you like me to go with you?
I have to do this on my own.
I called your developer friend to discuss some other properties,
and he told me that he is no longer interested in Keating House.
He said that you convinced him
to take his business to Blairsville.
Why?
Because Cassie got me to see how to save us both.
I don't need you to save me, Mr. Ryan Elliott.
I needed you to do your job.
I did my job, and I did it well.
And the developer is very happy,
because Blairsville offers better tax benefits,
a bigger population
and zero community resistance.
We don't have any community resistance.
Yet! Even though you got the property rezoned...
...nobody in town wants to see Keating House
torn down and replaced with modern town homes.
But the whole point was to bring more people into town.
But it's the people living here that should matter the most.
And face it, once the town council got involved,
and they would have gotten involved,
because there would have been unhappy citizens
who were wondering who allowed their quaint and beautiful town
to be cut up and re-developed.
And it would not have taken those people much time
to figure out that you were at the center of everything.
- Well, you were too. - Yes.
But they can't recall me...
Because I'm just a realtor and you are the mayor.
Recall?
My heavens!
Martha, we were both wrong,
and now we're both right.
You don't have to thank me.
Well then, I don't think I will.
Okay.
It doesn't seem that deep but...
Well, it's good thing your mom sent you over.
It was.
- No stitches? - No, just some glue.
Glue?
Medical grade.
Okay.
Mom didn't send me.
No?
I wanted to come over.
I know that Nick's in trouble.
He is. I'm just glad he didn't drag you into his mess.
He didn't drag me.
I dragged him.
I know that Nick snuck out, but...
He helped me that night.
He got me home safe and he didn't ask for anything in return.
I mean, we're not even friends, really.
He puts on a good show,
but he's not as bad as he wants everyone to believe he is.
This, I know.
So, should he still be in trouble
if what his trouble did ended up helping someone?
Me?
Hi, cuz.
You look very satisfied.
I've done what I came to Middleton to do.
- Have you? - Yes.
- And what is that? - Help.
You've been helping?
Well, I guess it's true that, you helped Grace
lie to me and sneak out.
I helped Grace realize that for some people, like her,
being a rebel is far more fun in theory than in practice.
And as a bonus, I helped Lori too.
Lori?
Lori is now totally renewed in her very important role
as Grace's big sister and protector.
And who is Lori protecting Grace from?
Me.
Well, there's no doubt that you helped Sam
with his dinner date with Stephanie.
- That's on you. - Excuse me?
Sam doesn't belong with Stephanie.
And if you hadn't stepped in and worked your magic in the kitchen...
And you don't belong with Ryan.
I tried to help you,
but you're a strong force to take on, even for me.
You can't control who ends up with who.
Fate needs to play its hand out.
Fate needs a little push from time to time.
A gentle push, not a forceful shove.
Fate may need a gentle push, but you,
I think you need a shove in the right direction.
Look, I'd love to do this all night,
but I should get to bed.
I start my new job tomorrow.
Stephanie hired me.
You're gonna help Stephanie?
She's much easier to help than you.
And what about your job in New York?
I emailed my boss, gave notice.
I told him my family needed me.
Stephanie really hired you?
I think it's a case of,
"Keep your friends close but your enemies closer."
And which are you?
I'm just listening to music. I didn't do anything wrong.
No, I did.
I've been trying to control you, and it's not working,
and it's not working because it's not what I should be doing,
it's not what you need.
What do I need?
You need me to help you find a way to control yourself,
to make better choices yourself.
What are you talking about?
Grace told me what happened.
At the coffee house.
She said that you helped her.
It wasn't a big deal.
Why didn't you tell me?
You never would have believed me.
You just see me as a screw-up, or bad, or both.
That's how you feel?
Well, it's the truth.
It's not even close to the truth.
Look...
We came here to get a fresh start.
Let's try starting over.
Man, how many times can we start over?
As many as it takes.
But you have to give a little too.
Can you do that?
Just meet me half way?
Hi.
There.
Abigail said that you weren't home
but then I got your text saying come around the back.
How did you...
Never mind. Never mind, I'm here.
Good. Come in.
Thanks.
So, what happened with the project?
Well, I told Jones that if he had the mayor
and the zoning on his side, well, that's one thing,
but if the project really isn't wanted in Middleton,
and I think we both know that it's not...
It's not smart business to anger the community
in which you're trying to sell something.
I thought that Blairsville might be a better fit.
They have more money, less trouble, and he agreed.
So, you lost the deal?
Yes.
But Jones said that he liked my integrity and honesty,
so he would like to work together on something else.
Sounds win-win.
Thank you.
What did I do?
The same thing you always do,
you point me in the right direction.
And even when I don't want to,
you find a way of making me see the truth.
You are a good friend.
You too.
Well, I was wondering...
Yes?
Well...
This friend would like to take you out for dinner.
Well, this friend would like to accept your offer.
- Yeah? - Of course.
That's like two dinners out in a row.
We eat out all the time.
Yes. But I was thinking these last two dinners were different.
I'm thinking...
You might be right.
Call you tomorrow?
See you tomorrow.
Even better.
Yep?
- Hi! - Hi.
I got your message.
I didn't make the dinner, but I did clean the kitchen.
All your stuff is right there on the counter.
- Thank you. - Thanks.
I... I didn't know you could play guitar.
Yeah. I used to be in a band.
I used to have long hair, really long hair.
And an earring.
I don't have any herb tea,
but I can steep some oregano for you.
Tempting, but I think I'll pass.
Stephanie called me,
and she told me she had a really great time.
Your chicken worked its magic,
date disaster averted.
- Thanks. - Glad I could help.
I'm sorry. Excuse me.
Dr. Radford.
It's been a while. What's up?
When?
Any particular reason?
What...
Okay.
Yeah, bye.
My ex-wife.
Is everything okay?
She's coming to Middleton.