Recap: We're Not Losing a Son... - Season 1 - Episode 4

It’s nighttime in the Upper East Side and Megan is preparing herself for bed. As she does, her computer suddenly pings, alerting her of an incoming video call. The call is from Kevin, telling her that he’s arrived safely at his newest deployment. Unable to give his exact location, Megan tries to guess what time zone he’s stationed in, but he tells her that those details won’t be important for much longer. Megan is puzzled but Kevin goes on to explain that he’s decided that this will be his last deployment. Kevin has a lot of reasons for making the decision but the reunion with his siblings was a key to him making this decision. Megan is overjoyed but before she can say more, the call breaks up and Kevin is gone.

The next morning in Chesapeake Shores, Abby is fast asleep when a tiny foot pushes against her cheek. She wakes to find her two daughters have snuck into her bed while she slept. Her daughters are a welcome surprise as she prepares for her first day at her new office. Shortly after, Abby walks downstairs smartly dressed in a blue Prada suit. Nell tries to get Abby to eat some breakfast but Abby passes, wanting to make sure she gets into the office early.

Elsewhere, Trace hops in his truck and drives off to work. As he does, he doesn’t notice the bright red BMW parked nearby. As Trace’s pickup pulls away, the door to the BMW opens, and out steps a beautiful woman, her wild hair falling onto the shoulders of her vintage leather coat. Bearing all the hallmarks of a new age hippie, she slings her duffle bag over her shoulder and heads for Trace’s cabin. As she makes her way up the walkway, Axel excitedly runs to greet the familiar face. Finding the front door unlocked, she walks in and gives the place a once over, while Axel makes himself comfortable in his dog bed, and they both prepare to wait for Trace’s return.

At her new office in Baltimore, Abby arrives so early that she finds herself standing outside knocking on the locked glass door. Del Granger, the office Manager, hears her knocking and escorts her inside while explaining that the staff usually don’t arrive for another two hours during the summer. As Del escorts her to her new office, he mentions that today is also casual Friday. Clad in her designer suit, Abby is hardly dressed for the occasion.

After realizing he’d forgotten something at his cabin, Trace returns home and immediately notices that Axel is no longer outside where he left him. Inside Trace hears Axel barking and when he runs in to find out how he got in, he finds the woman from the BMW sitting on his bed. His first word to her is, “Seriously!” The woman, Leigh, is a song writer who was part of Trace’s band, but the two have had little contact since Trace left Nashville. What’s more, while in Nashville, Trace and his band were signed by a record label, but Trace’s departure has left them all in breach of contract and the label is not willing to just let them walk away. Trace tells Leigh that he’s done and he’s not going back to Tennessee. He tells her that he’s got to go back to work, grabs his tools and, before leaving, tells her she can’t stay at his place.

Later in the day, Jess sits in the grass while struggling to put together lawn chairs. Behind her, Leigh drives up looking to book a room. Jess tells her that she’s not open yet, but Leigh has been everywhere else in town and this is her last resort. When she tells Jess that she’s in town from Nashville, Jess’s attention is immediately sparked. Jess asks if she knows Trace and Leigh explains that she is a song writer and that she and Trace were in a band together. As Leigh talks, Jess suddenly realizes that she recognizes Leigh’s name from Trace’s first album. Jess is a little star struck and immediately offers Leigh a room.

After unloading her bags, Leigh takes a seat on the deck and begins to sing and play her guitar. Jess sits in the doorway watching Leigh play and is so captivated by her voice that she doesn’t notice Bree walk up behind her. Initially startled by Bree, Jess grabs her sister and pushes her down the hallway. Jess gushes about the star in her midst and can’t understand why Bree doesn’t see her arrival as a big deal. At first Bree is confused as to why Jess is making such a big deal over Leigh but Jess then explains the she thinks Leigh is in town for Trace. Realizing what going on in her sister’s head, Bree turns and heads back to the cottage. Jess’s over excitement has done something Bree couldn’t do for herself…convinced her to go back to writing.

In New York, Megan sits at a busy café waiting for Connor. Connor arrives and apologizes for being late. The noise in the café makes conversation difficult, but Megan is able to learn that Connor lives across the street and is leaning towards practicing criminal law. While completely disengaged through most of their conversation, the mention of Connor’s brother Kevin causes a distinctive change in Connor’s attitude. After Megan tells Connor that his brother is on his last deployment, Connor sarcastically cracks a joke about Kevin being a conquering hero. The snide remark is more than Megan can stand and she demands Connor explain himself. Instead, he quickly dismisses her concerns and tries to end the meeting a quickly as possible.

After lunch, Megan crosses the street to Connor’s apartment. As Connor escort her inside, he remarks that he never expected her to visit. Megan tells him that he’s never invited her to his apartment. When Megan walks in, she finds the place in complete shambles. She jokingly remarks that it’s not bad for rent free. Her mocking tone immediately sets Connor off and he begins to berate his mother. Surprised by his response, Megan asks him why he is so mad at her, but Connor is unable to stop himself. Her son’s anger brings Megan to tears and she angrily grabs her bag, tells Connor that this was a mistake and walks out. Megan hurries out and down the stairs, leaving Connor to feel a terrible wash of emotions.

Back at the B&B, Jess and Bree hop in the golf cart and discuss telling Abby about Leigh. While skeptical at first, Bree is starting to worry that something may be going on between Leigh and Trace. Just then, as they come around a corner, Abby jumps from behind a tree, scaring Jess and Bree half to death. After a good laugh at her sister’s expense, Abby jumps in the cart and they all drive over to the main house. When they arrive, Bree finally breaks down and tells Abby about Leigh. To Bree and Jess’s surprise, Abby isn’t mad about Leigh’s arrival or that Trace hadn’t mentioned her. Instead, Abby appreciates her sisters telling her but insists that she and Trace are still just friends.

Later that night, Trace and Leigh sit outside his cabin talking about their current situation. Leigh insists that she’s not trying to drag Trace back to Nashville, but she wants to know why he’s so willing to throw all their hard work away. Trace says that the two of them are no good together and in the ensuing argument, it’s revealed that a mistake Trace made almost killed someone. Leigh tells Trace that he needs to forgive himself, but Trace can’t move on. Leigh offers to stay, if Trace thinks that will help. Upon hearing those words, Trace cannot speak, only stare at her, showing her the pain that he’s feeling inside.

The next morning, Abby drives through town, running a series of errands. She sees Trace’s pickup parked outside of Sally’s Café and decides to stop in and see what he’s up to. But when she walks into Sally’s, Abby finds that Trace is not alone and is as surprised to see Leigh as Trace is to see Abby. Abby introduces herself and Leigh invites her to sit down. Abby thanks her for the invitation, but she already has plans to spend the day with her girls. The two women exchange awkward small talk before Abby makes a hasty exit. Leigh then turns to Trace and asks if Trace and Abby are seeing each other again. Trace quite unconvincingly tells her no, they are just friends. Leigh then asks how long he and Abby were together and what happened that ended their relationship. Uncomfortable with her questions, Trace tells Leigh that maybe they should skip brunch. Leigh refuses to let up and says that after all they’ve been through they should be able to talk about this. Trace relents and tells Leigh that Abby left him over 16 years ago and chose a different life. Leigh tells him that Abby’s plan obviously didn’t work out since she’s now divorced. Her glib response makes Trace even more uncomfortable and this time, Leigh agrees to let it go. Instead, she grabs his hand and asks if he’s got room for one more friend.

At the end of the day, the O’Briens sit together for family dinner. As Abby and Jess bring out the last of the food, the phone begins to ring. In unison, the girls, Mick and Nell shout “no phones at the table.” The ringing stops and they all sit down to bless the food. But midway through Nell’s prayer, Mick’s phone begins to ring. He mutes the call and Nell continues her prayer. Nell finishes the prayer just as the phone beings to ring again. This time Mick gets up and takes the call. On the other end of the phone is a liaison from the military. While details are scarce, the military lost contact with Kevin’s FST unit and at this moment, he is now listed as missing in action.