Is She Really Going Out with Him?

Anna’s cat, Katniss, dies. Will calls, and she tearfully tells him about Katniss. Will races over and helps Anna deal with the cat at the vet. On the drive home, Will comforts Anna and says he likes her. The blonde, Deedee, left the Hay with calls, and Will said he’d call her back later. Will apologizes, claiming he was confused in Hay, but Anna, assuming that he is now dating Deedee, says she isn’t confused and blames the night on alcohol. Will looks slightly hurt, but Anna ends the conversation. The children take the news about Katniss well, and Anna curls up with them on the couch to watch The Aristocats and cry.

Anna and the children go to Dan and Sylvie’s house for dinner, and she is shocked at how young and perfectly beautiful Sylvie is in person. Dan and Sylvie’s house is impeccably neat and decorated in a beige, minimalist style, opposite of Anna’s house. Pictures of Dan and Sylvie cover the walls, and Anna wonders how they’ve built this life together so quickly. Anna witnesses Dan washing dishes and the children obediently putting away their toys, and she wonders into whose life she’s slipped. Dan digs at Anna about drinking during the week and the messy house. She bites her tongue but can’t help responding that Dan should be helping her more with the kids’ laundry. Sylvie isn’t drinking and serves a delicious vegetarian meal, claiming she doesn’t mind adhering to conventional gender roles since “Daniel” works and she’s at home.

Sylvie asks Anna if she’s dating, and Ethan says she’s dating Ryan Stirling. At first, Dan and Sylvie think she’s joking, but Dan gets jealous when she says she is seeing Ryan tomorrow night. When she returns home, Michael has sent her a charming handwritten invitation to tea at the Jane Austen Centre. Jess sees something on her phone that upsets her, but she won’t tell Anna what it is and disappears to her room. Alone, Anna thinks about her life with Dan and all her compromises, including the color of the kitchen cabinets. She’s genuinely happy that Dan has found someone because seeing him happy is good for the children. After scrolling social media and finding it brings her no comfort, she begins searching for paint colors to refinish the kitchen cabinets in a color she likes.

Noah tells Anna she received a large package he kept in his shed for her. He also gives her a council complaint form about the hedge and says he’ll share the cost with her to “mediate” their disagreement. Anna says she hasn’t trimmed the hedge since their last conversation. She shreds the form and opens the package to find that Will has sent her sculpting supplies. She feels a mix of emotions, wondering what it means. At work, Anna thanks Will for his gift. His date with the older woman went well. Will asks Anna to text him when she gets home from her date with Ryan. He touches her wrist near the covered tattoo.

Crispin arrives to conduct the individual interviews. He first makes a speech to the group, explaining that any changes his company makes to the staff are to improve Bath Living. In her meeting, Crispin is blunt and to the point, telling Anna that she needs to make her columns more emotional and relatable to the younger generation, who are accustomed to people on TikTok openly sharing their lives. Anna feels that her new dating column accomplishes this, but Crispin says she must “[…] crack this open and bleed words, feed the vampires” (174). Anna leaves the meeting uncertain that she can deliver.

Anna discovers Ethan and Jess have lice on the night of her date with Ryan. After assuring the babysitter that she can’t get the lice and covering the children’s heads with caps, Anna leaves and stops by the store for lice treatment. She grabs a silk head bonnet in case she has nits, too. 

She attends Ryan’s Shakespeare performance, and a woman named Loretta sits next to her. Loretta also wears a turban and mistakenly thinks Anna has cancer; Anna doesn’t correct her. After the performance, Loretta gives Anna her number. Anna explains she’s divorced but is close with her sister. Loretta encourages Anna that post-divorce is her “rock era” and describes the reference to Fleetwood Mac’s transformation after Peter Green left the band. She suggests Anna listen to “Go Your Own Way” for inspiration.

Anna meets Ryan after the show and is surprised that he is shorter in real life but still stunningly handsome. He takes her to a private club, where they are alone. He gloats over his performance of King Richard and touches Anna’s arm and hair several times, which makes her uncomfortable. She dismisses the nonconsensual touch as she’s still a bit starstruck. Anna mentions his role on Port, Starboard, Murder and his co-star, Faye Carraway. Ryan says Faye is a “bitch,” and his mood sours. He moves closer, grabs her thigh, and demands she fix his bad mood by telling him her fantasy. Anna freezes, unsure of how to react, and exclaims that she has nits. Ryan backs away and curses her for coming. Before leaving, Anna tells him he shouldn’t treat women this way, and Ryan retorts with an insult about her looking older in person.

At home, Anna takes a long bath to wash away the awful night and treats her hair for lice. Will texts that he’s found a date with a semi-celebrity. She tells him that Ryan is a creep. Will instantly calls to check on her since he knows about Ryan’s reputation. When she confesses being hurt by Ryan’s age insult, Will says she’s “[…] the most beautiful woman I know” (188). They end the call after a long pause. Anna plays “Go Your Own Way” and dances around her room in her pajamas.

Anna sees Will at a coffee shop with Deedee, but he lies, saying he’s at the dentist after being late to work, and he doesn’t take the bait when Anna tries to catch him in the lie. Will and Anna meet with Jonathan, and he loves their newest column. Anna chooses to focus on the humor of the situation with the lice instead of revealing Ryan’s disgusting behavior, and she knows she didn’t deliver the emotional appeal Crispin asked for. Will says that the Times, a national newspaper, wants to collaborate with them on a story. Jonathan is thrilled, but Anna is angry since Will didn’t tell her. 

After Jonathan leaves, Will reveals that he sent his resume and their story to the Times because he’s interested in working there. They want Will and Anna to attend a tech-free couples’ retreat in Mendip Hills, where couples can reconnect without their devices. The tension is thick as Anna is frustrated with Will lying to her, but she doesn’t tell him. She agrees to go to the retreat. Will helps her open the door and touches her hand.

At Ethan’s field hockey game, Lottie encourages Anna to stop overthinking the situation with Will and enjoy the weekend away. Lottie reminds Anna that she is “hot” and deserves to enjoy herself with no strings attached. Neil is there, and the wound on his face is infected. He says he told his ex-wife that he and Anna are dating to make her jealous. The awkward exchange reminds Anna why some people enjoy online dating because “[…] it’s easier to never see people again” (198). Jess is upset because Penny told their classmates she uses they/them pronouns, which isn’t bad but also isn’t true. Jess hasn’t told the teacher because she doesn’t want further embarrassment. Lottie encourages Anna to support Jess and wait for her to talk more because there’s likely more to the story.

Anna’s band-aid falls off, and the kids and Lottie see the tattoo. Jess loves it and asks if she can get a tattoo. Lottie thinks it’s cool and that Anna should keep it. Anna retreats to the garage at home and pulls out the sculpting set. While molding the clay, Anna reflects on new possibilities and realizes that Lottie is correct and that she deserves to be happy and fulfilled.

Anna meets Michael at the Jane Austen Centre, and he is dressed in full Regency-era clothing as Edward Ferrars from Sense and Sensibility. Anna learns that Michael works part-time at the Centre and is a Jane Austen aficionado. Anna admits to Michael that her knowledge of the novels comes mostly from viewing film versions. Michael is offended and explains that his first marriage ended because his wife didn’t accept that he enjoyed Regency cosplay nor would she attend Bath’s annual ball.

Anna reluctantly borrows a Regency-era costume from the Centre, and she and Michael walk through Victoria Park. At first, Anna is self-conscious, worrying about what people will think of her in costume. However, the walk is intellectually stimulating as she and Michael converse about marriage and relationships in Austen’s era. Though modern dating is challenging, Anna appreciates that she lives in a time where she has agency over whom she dates and marries. Michael quotes Austen, saying that friendship is an antidote to heartbreak, and asks if they can be friends.

Suddenly, Anna sees Will approaching her, arm in arm with Loretta. Will stifles shock and laughter at her costume and explains that he and Loretta are on a charity committee together. Loretta still thinks Anna has cancer, and Anna quickly explains the misunderstanding. Anna is relieved, and Loretta finds it humorous, insisting they get together soon. After some persuasion, Anna convinces Michael to let her create a dating app profile for him. She explains that it might be the ideal way for him to find a fellow “Janeite” who fits perfectly with his interests. Michael agrees to try online dating if Anna reads Pride and Prejudice.