EPISODE 288
Written by Bre L. Drew
May 6, 2024
Last Time on Town and Country
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Max wasn't keen to walk in on Shauna being embraced by Antoine in her office, which led to Antoine calling him out on his treatment of Shauna since the paralysis, accusing him of neglect and being unable to satisfy her due to his impotence.
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There is still no love lost between Aaliyah and Lenny, who argued about Aaliyah showing the video of Sean and Louise at her father's and Louise's engagement party while Lenny continues to deal with leukemia and threw up at Jojo's, which Tricia overheard, and Lenny promised her not to tell, not wanting her family to know how sick she's become.
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Despite the closeness she has with Sean, Louise is still insistent they won't move further until he divorces Tricia.
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Martha is allowing Murray to make up for being absent in their son's life by letting him spend time with him, though she's not completely trusting her ex.
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Tired of trying to make amends with Will after cheating on him, Emma accepted Jacques' proposal, deciding to tie the knot as soon as possible as he faces deportation. But unbeknownst to her, he is blackmailing her mother about her long-ago affair with Jimmy Saunders.
HOME FARM
Several hours later, within the day, Shauna Covington makes the overly familiar right turn in her dark blue Mercedes-Benz convertible onto the winding driveway of Home Farm Estate. She sometimes still cannot believe she lives on the property, let alone the mansion. A far cry from the young woman fresh out of college hired to decorate the interior of the once dilapidated house.
However, she can't recall the last time she felt eager to come home.
She parks her car with the rest of the other vehicles outside the multi-car garage.
On her first day back at work at Covington today, she was unexpectedly visited by her husband and Antoine. Though she found out while she had to take care of some business, the men got into an argument in her office regarding her marital issues, and Antoine, in anger, let it slip that she isn't feeling satisfied sexually due to Max's impotence caused by the accident last year that paralyzed him from the waist down.
Eventually, Shauna gets out of the car and towards the mansion, where she knows behind closed doors, they need to hash things out.
Stepping inside the mansion, she is about to head upstairs when she suddenly locates Max in his motorized chair in the expansive living room at the mini bar, drinking what looks to be vodka.
"Let's talk," she says reasonably.
Initially, Max doesn't glimpse at her, still furious at everything that took place at Covington, including seeing his wife and her first love holding each other.
"I think you've done enough of that to Antoine," he says sarcastically. "Is there anyone else who knows how unsatisfied you are?"
"That doesn't matter," she concedes.
The Covington heir drinks while maintaining a grip on the glass. "I know I've been coming up short, but if you had a problem with that, you should've come to him instead of letting me think you weren't bothered by it."
Shauna places her purse on one of the end tables, mumbling something Max tries to make out.
"What did you say?" He asks louder than anticipated. "I didn't quite catch that."
"Talking to you about anything now is becoming hard for me," she confesses.
WORLD AIRLINES: FLIGHT 1222
World Airlines Flight 1222 flies smoothly in the air. And in the first-class section of the plane, one of the female flight attendants pours champagne into the glass flute of Jacques Laurent while beside him. Emma Covington carefully gazes upon the platinum diamond engagement ring on her finger.
This morning, she finally said yes to Jacques' proposal, as she had initially needed time to think about it but ultimately decided she wanted to marry him. He is also aware that he is facing deportation back to his home country of France. They also decided to make the moment even more spontaneous, so they decided to head somewhere else entirely for their impromptu nuptials.
With a glass of champagne in his hand after tipping the flight attendant generously with cash, Jacques turns to his future bride with an endearing smirk. "I'm even more impressed with you."
"For what? Coming to my senses about marrying you?" she asks sincerely.
"That," he casually replies. "And how you were able to pack in less than twenty minutes," he discloses.
"You're forgetting I was once a citizen of the world, so I still know how to pack at a moment's notice."
The brunette recognizes that her jet setting all over the world seemed like a lifetime ago, as she had been more stable as a business owner living in the town of her birth for the last few years now while being in a relationship with her nightclub manager Will Jackson, but that ended late last year due to her actions of sleeping with Jacques. Yet she's tired of him coming close to spitting on her every time they're in the same proximity, but for the next forty-eight hours, she'll be basking in existing miles away from him and everyone else who thinks they know best for her instead of herself.
"We also have the documents we need to tie the knot."
"All accounted for," Jacques tells her.
Emma grabs her champagne flute.
A feminine voice comes onto the speakers throughout the plane. "Flight 1222 from Radcliffe-Hudson to San Juan, Puerto Rico, is making its destination."
As she goes over the safety instructions for all passengers, the engaged couple clinks their glasses and then sips as they're hours away from becoming married.
LOCKHART LAKE COTTAGE
Not even six months ago, Louise Saunders Lockhart would have imagined she would be spending a pleasantly warm and sunny spring evening outside her home with her ex-husband Sean Lockhart barbecuing hamburgers and chicken on the grill while Alan Jackson's "I Can Be That Something" plays on his Spotify app on his iPhone.
"So, you have not gotten around to signing the papers yet, have you?" Louise queries him while standing beside him.
The smell of the smoke indicates how much better a cook he is than her, which is something she has missed since their divorce.
He moves the pieces of meat with tongs. "No, not yet; with everything going on, I hadn't had the time to look at them," he says dryly.
Sean is legally still married to Tricia, although he and Louise have been growing closer for months.
Louise puts strands of her dark blonde hair behind one of her ears, not wanting to get into it with him.
"Let's not forget why we're having this barbecue," Sean reminds her.
She nods as they decide to have a family barbecue with their twin daughters since tomorrow Lenny goes to the doctor to find out whether her chemotherapy is eliminating the cancer or not.
"I know," Louise softly remarks. "But it will be good to know where we stand."
Meanwhile, inside the cottage in the kitchen, Tanner Lockhart is tossing the salad in a bowl she just made. She then hears footsteps entering the room, noticing her sister.
"Hey, you're up," Tanner addresses her.
"I guess I was more tired than I thought when I got home," Lenny casually responds.
Since Lenny has been receiving treatment, she has begun to feel its effects, including fatigue and vomiting, which she experienced last week at Jojos, where she was having breakfast with Elijah. Though she hasn't told anyone except for Tricia, who happened to overhear her in the restroom, she managed to get her not to tell anyone, as she doesn't want anyone to know how her cancer is making her weak.
"I didn't tell you what went down between Aaliyah and me at Jojo's, did I?"
"Uh, oh, do I want to know about this?" Tanner asks trepidatiously.
The farmhand recaps the minor confrontation with her former friend regarding her showing the video of their parents in a compromising situation at her father's and their mother's engagement party and how Aaliyah is unapologetic about it.
"Sounds like she doesn't regret what she did," Tanner deduces from her ex-best friend behavior. "But you shouldn't be sparring right now."
Quietly, Lenny dwells on the fact that tomorrow she is going to find out her fate regarding her leukemia, which secretly terrifies her.
Silently, Tanner reaches out for her fraternal twin sister's hand for support.
VICTORY COTTAGE
The local evening news is playing at a soft volume on the flat-screen TV in the living room of Victory Cottage, while young at heart Jai and Mala Gupta are intensely making out on the couch.
It takes about thirty more seconds until they come up from the air, leaving them both amused.
"How come every time we're near each other, we act as if we're nineteen again?" Mala verbally points it out to him.
Jai smiles broadly at the beautiful woman he has known all his life. "Well, hopefully, I've gotten a lot better since then," he quips.
"True," Mala replies good-naturedly.
After finding out his ex-fiancée still had unresolved feelings for her ex-husband, the former married couple found their way back toward each other again. For months, their rendezvous had been kept a secret; however, they finally told their children, who were elated by their reunion.
Their romantic interlude continues while Aaliyah Gupta enters the living room faintly elated, seeing her parents back together, which she had wanted since they first separated.
Soon, Mala and Jai notice their youngest offspring in the room.
"I think we have an audience," Mala notes.
"Oh, don't mind me," she says informally. "I'm just taking a break from packing, that's all."
"That's right, your mother told me you're going home for a few days to visit Lorenzo." Jai summarizes.
Aaliyah is flying out early tomorrow to surprise her boyfriend, who's spending a few days in their hometown of Chicago while he's working on social media content for a band with Murray Hirsch's talent agency.
Aaliyah can spot her mother giving an unflattering look towards the mention of Lorenzo since she knows she has never been a big fan of him, thinking she deserved someone else who doesn't think education should be considered an alternative.
"What?" Mala is feigning innocence. "It doesn't matter what I think, and besides all the hard work you've put in for four years, you deserve a holiday."
"No doubt about that," Aaliyah acknowledges. "I also deserve a vacation for not choking Lenny the other day."
Mala and Jai exchange bewildered gazes.
"Why would you want to attack someone, especially a friend going through cancer?" Jai questions.
Aaliyah takes a seat on the couch in the middle of her parents. "Because she can't let go of the fact that the video showed her parents in a less flattering light."
"No one is perfect," Mala reasonably vocalizes. "But at what expense was showing that video in front of everyone at the party worth it for you? I'm not talking about us being back together, but in your own life as a person."
"You mean that I went through my senior year of college without any of my friends around, and the only people who don't want to throw me down the stairs when I see them are you two, Samuel and Elijah." Mala expresses. "I just wish. You know what? It doesn't matter; I need to finish getting my things together. I haven't even settled on what to wear to surprise Lorenzo."
Her parents watch her head out of the room; their attention gets to the television.
FRANKLIN FARM: MAIN HOUSE
Getting out of his vehicle, Samuel Gupta walks up the porch of the two-story home his girlfriend, her son, and the rest of her family reside in on their ancestral farmland. He presses the doorbell and steps back while waiting until the front door opens.
Sarah Lynn Saunders opens the door, standing in the doorway with her usual cheerful smile, which he had seen in photos during her pageant days.
"Samuel, hey, come on in," she says welcomingly.
Samuel greets his girlfriend's mother while stepping inside the always-hospitable home.
"Is Martha here? I thought I would stop by to take her out to dinner."
"She and Murray decided to take SJ to the street fair since it's the last day, and he had a ball the last time they all went," the Saunders matriarch informs him.
"Oh, okay," the psychiatrist says awkwardly.
Sarah Lynn notices her daughter's boyfriend's slight discomfort. "Well, Murray wanted to do something nice for his son, and it's good for them to spend time together."
From conversations with Martha, he knew that Sarah Lynn had been championing Murray getting to know her grandson and them being closer.
Before anyone can say anything else, the door unlocks, and SJ Saunders' excitement becomes audible while Murray walks next to him. After Martha shuts the door behind them, she sees her boyfriend standing there with her mother.
"Hi, Samuel!" The five-year-old boy runs up to him while the doctor rapidly embraces him. "I went to the fair."
"Yeah, your grandmother told me; did you have fun?" he asks.
"Sure did, the little boy answered. "And my dad won me this."
Samuel notices the large, tiger-stuffed animal in the talent manager's arms—nearly half the little boy's size.
"It gave me a chance to showcase my Skee-Ball skills." Murray humbly brags.
Samuel resists, rolling his eyes at him.
Realizing that her daughter and boyfriend need to talk, she decides to get her grandson's attention. "Sweetie, how about we go upstairs, and you tell me about the fun you had at the fair?"
"Okay," the little boy says, unwise of anything else. He and the older woman head upstairs, telling her about the cotton candy he got, which his mother is holding in a plastic bag.
Martha is now in the living room with her current and past loves.
Samuel plants a kiss on his girlfriend's lips, which Murray takes in.
"Hey, what are you doing here?" Martha wonders
"I thought I would take you out to dinner."
"I wish I would've known that a few hours ago before we all loaded up on junk food," she says regrettably. "How about a rain check?"
"Sure," he says lowly.
Murray remains holding the stuffed animal after hearing the breakdown of their plans. "Not a lot of guys would be cool in your position."
"And what exactly do you mean by that?" the doctor states.
Martha prepares herself to calm her boyfriend down, knowing he's becoming upset over nothing.
"I'm just saying not too many guys would be cool to have their girlfriends hang out with their ex, that's all." Murray clarifies.
"Well, I trust Martha," he says, notifying his lover's past fling.
Murray bobs his head toward the staircase. "I'm going to say goodbye to SJ before I take off."
"He'll love that," Martha says.
Murray goes up the stairs carrying his son's stuffed animal as Martha's focus gets on her boyfriend. "What is going on, Samuel? And don't tell me it's all because I turned down dinner with you tonight."
"I don't know the guy, and I don't want to, if I'm being honest," he confesses. "But can you be sure that Murray's ultimate goal is to get to know SJ?"
Martha sets the bag of cotton candy on the coffee table and then turns to him.
"Look, the situation isn't normal. I'll give you that, but I'm doing this for my son because he's grown attached to him, and I won't break my son's heart. Is this going to be a problem because if it is?"
She stops talking as the tension is starting to weigh heavily between them.
"I'll see you later," he tells her.
He walks out of the house to his car while Martha stands, trying to comprehend what happened.
Martha strides upstairs to her son's room, where she finds the young boy and her father laughing about something. She likes the view of this, wishing it would've happened before now, but she must admit it's great to see now.
"It's bathtime, young man," she calls out.
"Can dad read to me after my bath? Please?" SJ pleads
"Yeah, mom, please," Murray adds playfully.
Martha starts to detect the similarities between father and son, including the same shade of brown hair and the ability to convey emotion through their eyes.
"Okay, then," she warmly permits.
LOCKHART LAKE COTTAGE
Ooh, to feel the way I feel with your arms around me (I melt and spin and fall again)
I only wish that you could see
The way you love me (Love me)
Whoa, whoa, whoa, the way you love me
The pop-country tempo of Faith Hill's "The Way You Love Me" now plays on Sean's phone as he takes the chicken off the grill. Louise finishes setting the table on the patio while Tanner and Lenny step out of the sliding door.
Sean puts the platter of meat onto the table, along with the salad and buns, a pitcher of lemonade, glasses, and bottles of mustard, ketchup, and barbecue sauce.
"I can't remember the last time we had dinner, just the four of us," Tanner says as they all take their place around the table.
"Me neither," Lenny notes.
"Before we eat, I want you all to know that whatever happens tomorrow, we will never give up on you, Lenny," Sean says wholeheartedly.
"I second that," Louise says, lifting her glass of lemonade and exchanging a glance at the man she still loves and then at their now-grown daughters.
"Well, enough about me; let's eat," Lenny tells them, wanting to avoid feeling like the center of attention. They partake in passing around dishes to fill their plates.
CONDADO VANDERBILT HOTEL - BILTMORE OCEAN VIEW SUITE -SAN JUAN, PUERTO RICO
After deboarding from the plane with only their carry-on luggage, Jacques and Emma went to their Uber, which drove them minutes away to the Condado Vanderbilt Hotel. The luxurious beachfront resort is even more exquisite in person, as evidenced by the expansive suite they are staying in.
Now dressed for their impending ceremony, Jacques looks himself in the mirror and takes in how good he looks in his tailored suit.
He looks down at the Rolex on his wrist that he got from his father on his twenty-first birthday to notice the time.
"We should get going soon."
"Babe, relax; I'll be ready in a few," she says from her current station in the bathroom.
Jacques attempts to do so, as in a matter of time, he will be permanently tied to the woman he regrets losing once before, and it also means he gets to stay in America. It seems all of his misfortunes are turning around.
Approaching the sleek desk where their documents, including their marriage license, are on which they need to exchange vows, his eyes randomly lay upon Emma's birth certificate. At first, nothing out of the blue pops up at him until he gets to the date of birth.
"1986?" he mutters.
Somehow, the small detail gets him to reflect on Deirdre being paranoid about him blackmailing her over her long-ago affair with Jimmy Saunders. Soon, he does the math, remembering it happened over thirty years ago, and wonders if the older farmer could be Emma's father instead of Patrick Covington.
He collects their documents, keeping them in his possession.
His thoughts become disrupted when the door to the bathroom opens as he gazes at Emma wearing a white pleated one-shoulder midi dress, pointed-toe heels, her brown hair in an elegant top bun, silver post earrings, and her face beautifully made up, carrying a small bouquet of lavender and white flowers courtesy of the gift shop downstairs.
Worried that he's not saying a word, Emma finally breaks the ice between them. "What?"
"You look breathtaking," Jacques says admiringly
The heiress happily smiles at him while going over to him. "You don't look half-bad yourself." she remarks. "Are you ready to make me an honest woman from this day forward?"
"I do,"
Emma wraps her arm around his as the two depart the suite, and Jacques lets the discovery he made aside for now.
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HOME FARM
"I got nothin' but time for you," he impersonates Antoine from this morning.
Shauna does her best to be sensible in this interaction.
"We've been avoiding this conversation for the longest," she surrenders. "I never once told you how I felt about losing our child the way that we did. And I've been holding onto it because I thought you didn't need anything else affecting your recovery, but I can't hide it anymore. And it doesn't help that the man responsible for it lives in this house too."
Max instantly sees the sadness coming through his wife, and part of him wants to go to her and comfort her, but the other part that is still pissed wouldn't allow him to do so, though he is aware of the fact that his father's actions caused this since he blackmailed Jordan's therapist to overmedicate her, and it was the reason why she was in the middle of the road that night and why he swerved his car in the ditch to avoid her with Shauna in the passenger seat.
"You blame me too, don't you?" Max said it abruptly.
"What are you talking about?"
"If not for me wanting to take you to the cabin, we would be parents to our baby by now."
Shauna remains tight-lipped, as she necessarily doesn't hold him accountable.
"Don't you know if I could, I would redo everything that night?"
Shauna stands across from him, crossing her arms and giving him eye contact. "But you can't," she says in between sniffs.
"Don't tell me you don't wish I never got injured."
"I wish for that, and I wish I didn't miscarry!" she exclaims. "But we gotta accept reality, Max, and you holding onto this bitterness is turning you into someone I'm starting not to recognize anymore."
"Well, you're in good company because I don't know who in the hell, I am anymore either?" he responds. "I guess it's someone who can't even have sex with his wife."
"There are other ways to have sex," she corrects him. "Maybe it's not physical; it could be psychological."
"You got a medical degree now, too?" he says cynically.
Shauna sways her head, trying not to lose her cool with her husband. "I'm just being truthful with you, Max."
"Since we're being truthful, you should know I went behind your back and convinced Courtney to hire you back at Covington."
Shauna steps back slightly, seeing the pleasure he's taking in hurting her, like he must've felt when he saw her with Antoine this morning.
"Well, if you wanted to get back at me, you succeeded. Enjoy being alone tonight." Shauna coldly remarks.
With that, the interior decorator scoops up her bag and rapidly exits the house, slamming the door behind her.
Max hits his hand on the armrest of his chair while the rage builds inside him at his father, at Antoine, at his paralysis, at Shauna, and then at himself.
Without a second thought, he throws the glass in his hand, causing the shards to disperse in the room they met six years ago.
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END OF EPISODE
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ON THE NEXT EPISODE OF TOWN AND COUNTRY
Jacques and Emma celebrate their union.
Max lashes out at Daniel.
Shauna tries to find solace.
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Join us from May 6–10 for a week of episodes celebrating the series sixth anniversary.
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