EPISODE 58
Written by: Bre L. Drew
June 25, 2019
Last Time On Town and Country
-
Max proposed to Shauna in which she accepts.
-
Courtney and Steven disagreed over her hiring Tricia at Jojo's.
-
Daniel confronted Peter about giving Louise's business proposal about Franklin Farm deliving into organic dairy a chance.
HOME FARM
Max Covington makes his way down the grand staircase of Home Farm. The long ringing of the doorbell gets him down here to answer the door. On the opposite side of the entryway is his fiancée Shauna Jackson and her grandmother Mae standing beside her.
When they step over the threshold, Max received a gentle hug from Mae. He quickly informs her that she can go outside on the patio where they'll be out in a few minutes themselves. The older woman complies by heading outside.
Max and Shauna passionately kiss each other and then their lips part from one another.
"I had this dream that I proposed to you," he says in a sarcastic manner.
Shauna pulls out her engagement ring from her purse to slide back on her finger. She had kept the ring off her finger because she didn't want anyone to know about her getting married until she was the one to tell them.
"No regrets yet?"
​
"Not planning to have any, for better or for worse you're stuck with me, Ms. Jackson."
The couple was newly engaged since yesterday evening. Deciding that they will have brunch here at the estate so they can both inform their families and friends of the news over brunch.
Shauna stares at Max's eyes that look lighter in certain lights realizing he already made some of her dreams she had as a little girl come true.
"Where is Antoine?" Max asks more for his own welfare than hers.
Shauna knew that Max is still pissed that Antoine confessed that he had slept with her before.
"He had to stay back at the bar to sign for an order, but he'll be here," she answers
Truthfully, Shauna was nervous about him finding out ever since she had told him about how she wanted to be with Max over him the two finally were getting back to a good place in their friendship and not to mention him spending a lot of time with his new girlfriend too.
Max holds her in his arms, and they start kissing each other again.
​
​
"Haven't you ever heard of PDA decorum?" Tommy Covington calls out to the two from the stairs.
​
Laughter commences while he gets down the stairs to join his big brother and his lover.
Tommy embraces Shauna into a quick and friendly hug.
"Shauna, you know that you can do much better than him." Tommy teasingly says.
Max playfully swats his teenage brother before the three get out of the house.
Outside, Daniel Covington is sitting at the head of the table on the patio with his second cup of coffee. Mae is also at the table perusing Gabriella instructing the rest of the household staff to place platters of bagels, fruit, and bowls of various cream cheeses in front of them. After the goal is achieved, the staff depart back into the house.
Daniel sets aside his tablet that the business section of The New York Times across the screen.
"Do you have any idea why our children have gathered all of us together?"
Mae shakes her head. "Your guess is good as mine Daniel."
​
"Your granddaughter has made an impression on my son," Daniel tells her.
Mae is caught off guard by those particular words. "I think that I can say the same thing about your son."
The couple of the hour, Tommy, Courtney, and a recently arrived Martha Saunders take their places around the table.
​
A few minutes into brunch Max, who is at the other end of the table rises from his seat. He picks up the fork in which he uses to tap his empty glass to get everyone's attention.
"We are no longer going to keep you in suspense any longer."
Max holds his fiancée's right hand and then focuses back on the people around him at the table. "Yesterday evening I asked Shauna to marry me."
​
"And I said yes,"Shauna clarifies
Murmurs of congratulations and a few gazes of confusion were made after the announcement.
​
Shauna turns around to see Antoine Hall coming onto the scene strongly sensing that he has overheard the status of her new relationship status.
FRANKLIN FARM: MAIN HOUSE
The landscape of the late morning of the first day of summer is typical of any southern town such as Radcliffe. The sun radiating, temperature rising into the high-eighties, and the fresh smell of cut grass.
​
However, inside the Saunders ancestral home, Louise Saunders Lockhart is in the kitchen sitting at the counter with a bottle of water in front of her.
Entering into the room is her mother who is carrying SJ Saunders on her hips. He looked rather adorable in a grey t-shirt with fire engine red trucks on it.
"Hey, sweetheart, how it is going?" Sarah Lynn Saunders inquires in her usual friendly demeanor.
Today she is wearing multi-color printed lace scalloped hem top and a pair of blue jeans that in spite of being in her sixties manages to have a shape in them.
Louise gets out of her chair to go over to the two of them. "You don't want to know mom."
She reaches out for the chubby yet tiny bare foot of her infant nephew who displays a big grin on his face.
"Take it from me SJ, don't be in such a rush to grow up because life right now for you makes the most sense."
​
SJ begins to use some unintelligible syllables, whilst pointing up the ceiling like only a baby does.
The two women laugh as Grandma Sarah Lynn brings the baby's arm down.
On top of meeting with her father to discuss her idea of the farm going into organic dairy she still was dealing with the fact that one of her twin daughters is being sexually active with her first boyfriend.
Just as Louise is about to tell her mother what is happening, she sees her father coming towards the side door which he uses to come inside the house. He wipes his dirty shoes on the mat at his feet.
Peter Saunders crosses over to his wife and grandson, whom he takes in his arms. As he talks to his grandson, SJ babbles a bunch of Oh's.
Father and daughter stare at one another, knowing what must be said.
"Uh, Sare, I need to talk Louise alone," Peter informs her.
Sarah Lynn obtains the baby back into her arms.
"Just remember that family is more important than whatever will be said here."
​
She then tells SJ calmly that they're going to the laundry room to get started on a load when they leave out of the room.
"Look, dad."
"What were you thinking about confiding in Daniel Covington of all people?"
ESTHER SAUNDERS STABLES
Inside the office on the grounds of her stables. Esther Saunders is filing away invoices behind her desk.
The most recent hit by Maren Morris is playing from the online country radio station from her desktop.
She becomes delighted when she sees her son Steven Sullivan walks in the entrance.
"Are you too busy to have a visit from your beloved only son?" Steven inquires.
"Never. now sit," she commands. "Whatcha doing all the way out here?" she adds.
​
Steven sets himself down in front of his mother. "I had a call out at Aldridge Farm, and since I wasn't far so, I decided to come to see you, momma."
Esther begins to intuitively sense something is heavy on his mind not really buying he dropped in just because he was a few miles close by examining animals either.
"What's wrong?" she asks not biting her tongue,
Steven rubs his chin before he fills in his mother about how he and Courtney came to the disagreement over her hiring Louise's ex-husband 's mistress to manage JoJo's Café. He was disappointed that she didn't have any reservations in letting a woman who has had an everlasting effect on his own family. The last thing they need is a constant reminder at a place they frequent.
​
Esther taps her blue ink pen in the palm of her hand. "She did what?!" I'm sure Danny Boy probably isn't too pleased."
​
From the get-go, Esther hasn't been a fan of her son dating the granddaughter of Patrick Covington in addition to their families long standing bad blood against one another. Not to mention Steven is a forty-year-old man who already has been married and is a father whilst Courtney is only twenty-four.
"We haven't spoken since our ill-fated lunch at The Waterfall," he remarks. "I didn't mean to question her skills as a businesswoman, but she had to understand why I disagree with her choice."
​
"Can't believe that this is coming out of my mouth," she tells him.
"Don't think I'm going to enjoy where is this conversation is going."
"At the end of the day you're not going to like the outcome, but you don't have the power to tell Courtney she is wrong." she said, "Poor girl is probably under pressure to do well and on top of trying to impress her father which I can understand from experience."
Steven is taken back by her own mother's response of defense for his girlfriend.
​
"I didn't think about about it from her perception."
Esther slightly beams. "And maybe this girl has more talents other than opening her legs to married men."
FRANKLIN FARM: MAIN HOUSE
Louise hadn't thought Daniel would go notify her father, that she confided in him about wanting to get the farm to be involved with organic dairy, which is something that her own father has been against.
"Dad, I felt like I had no other option you weren't going to consider it. No matter how much stats I looked into how this opportunity can be beneficial," she explains to him.
Peter knows he hasn't been fair about this situation he had, but he had promised Sarah Lynn and his sister that he would hear his eldest daughter out.
"It's not that I think you ain't up to managing this place or running anything you want," he informs. Peter puts both hands on his hips. "I don't wanna rock the boat that's all."
​
"Other farms around here are struggling because of tariffs making hard to make any money, we're thriving," she says with strong emotion.
"Because I remember a time when things got so bad we almost lost everything and it was a damn long time before things became solvent again," he reveals. And I don't want history to repeat itself."
​
In between low sales and Peter and Esther's father Jimmy Saunders using whatever profits that were made on alcohol. It took his father getting a costly loan from a man he despises to ensure Franklin Farm to stay in his family for generations to come.
​
Louise moves closer to her father. "I'm not talking about dropping conventional dairy farming altogether, but I want us to expand into organic."
The limbs of his body start to loosen up. "If this isn't a success,"
​
"It'll be a success dad I will guarantee it."
"I hold you to it since we got all of that squared away cause there is banana nut bread in the fridge that your mom made calling both of our names."
"Sounds good to me," Louise replies joyously
HOME FARM
People were gathering in various areas on the patio, conversing and some were piling their plates with food.
Max is drinking his second glass of mimosa when Courtney walks up to her with a nervous smirk holding a flute of Peach Bellini. "I can't believe my brother is getting married."
"You are not going to give me a hard time, are you?"
Courtney places strands of her long brown hair behind her ear. "Just as long as she does not break your heart."
The siblings embrace one another when Daniel heads their way.
​
"Dad before you say I'm rushing into marrying Shauna."
​
"Maximillian, I couldn't be any more proud of you. She is a wonderful young woman."
Max is touched by his father's words.
His father pats his oldest son's shoulder instead of a hug.
At the table, Mae and Martha were eating brunch both were talking about the surprise announcement of Shauna's engagement.
"Martha, did you know about any of this?" Mae asks
Martha rises her head from her small saucers of bagel, fruit, and some quiche. "Nope, I just found out with everyone else around I didn't even know they were at this point in their relationship."
"They ain't been together for a year, yet it's too soon. "
The heels clack along the ground, which gets them to stop talking.
​
"Don't all talk at once it's not like my best friend and my grandmother think I'm making a big mistake," Shauna says sarcastically.
Martha plops a green grape in her mouth then starts chewing. "We didn't say that Shauna."
"Don't all talk at once it's not like my best friend and my grandmother think I'm making a big mistake," Shauna says sarcastically.
Martha plops a seedless green grape in her mouth then starts chewing. "We didn't say that Shauna."
Shauna wraps her arms onto her chest. "Oh, I know you didn't say out loud, but if I know my grandma, she said it in so many words."
Mae lowers her voice and narrows her eyes on her granddaughter. "Don't get fresh with me girl, I have every right to be concerned, about you getting married so young."
​
Shauna takes a seat in the center of the two most important women in her life. "Grandma with all due respect you and grandpa got married not much older than I am now," she said.
​
"We just want you to be happy, that's all Shauna." Martha vocalizes rationally.
"It's your decision, so I will respect it, and I wish you and Max all the best."
​
Antoine is drinking a glass of vodka at the bar trying to accept the fact that the one that got away is marrying the rich white boy. As he consumes the clear alcohol, he sees Courtney approaching him.
"Hey," Courtney says
"How are you?" Antoine asks. He is trying his best to be civil.
​
"Been better, although it doesn't have to do with my brother marrying your friend."
Antoine cursed himself, knowing he has a girlfriend whom he has grown closer to over the last few months. He can't explain why he felt this way about someone who has made it clear that she wants them to be simply friends.
"If you need someone to conversate with I can lend you an ear," Antoine tells her.
"Thanks," Courtney replies back
Antoine spots Max and Shauna laughing with Martha and Tommy.
He takes another sip of vodka trying to put this afternoon behind him.
END OF EPISODE
ON THE NEXT EPISODE OF TOWN AND COUNTRY
Jojo's Café re-opens with a few hitches.
Antoine wishes Shauna well.
The teens hang out at the community center.
​
Leave your thoughts here, on the T&C forum