By: Atiya Irvin-Mitchell
Isabella (Belissa Escobedo) is trying to sneak into the house without waking up Bobbie (Reba McEntire). It doesn’t work, and she ends up startling Bobbie, who has been worried. Isabella reminds her that she’s been taking that management class in the evening, and Bobbie says she knows, but most night classes don’t go until midnight. Isabella says she was studying with people, and Bobbie guesses that she’s been dating one of her classmates. At first, Isabella denies it, but then she admits she’s been on three dates so far. This triggers more questions from Bobbie, which is unfortunate for Isabella, who just wants to sleep. Bobbie wants to know who the guy is, says she’s happy for her, but she’d like to meet him. Isabella says she hasn’t introduced her to any of the other guys she’s gone out with since she’s been her,e and Bobbie is surprised she’s been dating this whole time without her knowing. At Bobbie’s insistence, Isabella agrees to bring the guy to the tavern.
At Happy’s Place, Takoda (Tokala Black Elk) informs Steve (Pablo Castelblanco) and Gabby (Melissa Petterman) that he found a phone in the bathroom. This leads to a mini discussion about who the phone could belong to. The phone gets a text, and they’re curious about who it could be, but Takoda puts it in the lost and found and thinks they should leave well enough alone. He walks away and Gabby and Steve go into the lost and found box and start reading the text messages. The unknown person is telling the phone’s owner that they drove by the owner’s place and saw they werne’t home and that they’d better not be with “her.” Takoda hears this and takes the phone away from her and announces that he is putting the phone in his locker.
Later, Gabby wrote up a note for Bobbie to sign off on that says lost and found items shouldn’t be locked away. Emmett (Rex Linn) comes in, informs Bobbie that the lunch rush is over, and offers to make her a burger. Also, Bobbie tells Emmett that they’re on for their antiquing trip and Gabby teases them about it. Before Emmett heads back to the kitchen, Bobbie asks if Isabella brought the guy she’s been seeing in yet. She hasn’t and Bobbie asks Gabby if she can believe Isabella is trying to hide her date from her. Gabby can believe and says it’s because Bobbie can be a bit judgemental. Bobbie doesn’t help her case by telling her that, that’s the stupidest thing that she’s ever heard. Gabby tries to soften the delivery by explaining that Bobbie is usually judgemental because of how protective she is of the people around her. Before the conversation can go further, Emmett returns and says Isabella and Lucas (Will Ropp) have arrived. Bobbie isn’t a fan of the name Lucas, but changes her tune when Gabby points out that, that’s kind of judgy.
Introductions are made and it’s a little awkward. Gabby calls them lovebirds and Bobbie tries not to judge and offers them beer. At Gabby’s questioning we learn Lucas’s age, height and that he drank from puddles as a child. When Emmett learns Lucas’s last name he realizes that Lucas used to play football for the University of Tennesse. After Emmett hugs him, Lucas decides to leave on a high note and rushes off to class.
Once he’s gone everyone talks about how great he is and Isabella is happy that Bobbie approves. When Bobbie notes that it’s a sign of good character that Lucas didn’t want to be late for class, Isabella clarifies that Lucas isn’t taking the class he’s teaching it: He is a professor. Immediately, Bobbie doesn’t approve, but Isabella tries to defend the situation by saying she asked out Lucas so it’s not creepy. Gabby shares that she dated her biology teenager in high school and it’s not helpful, even though she was 23-years-old in high school. At any rate, Isabella says she was hoping that if she met Lucas she wouldn’t only see his job title. But, Bobbie says it’s just weird and Isabella says she should’ve known she shouldn’t have introduced him to her and stormed off.
When both sisters have gone, Gabby and Steve agree that Bobbie shouldn’t interfere with Isabella’s private life because it’s none of her business then they hear the phone ringing and go running to Takoda’s locker. They hesitate for a moment and wonder if they should mind their own business and then laugh it off. Unfortunately, for them, Takoda locked his locker and Gabby andn Stever are offended that he doesn’t trust them.
At home, Bobbie is practicing a speech to Isabella with an empty chair. She practices telling Isabella that she is her older sister, loves her, and she doesn’t want her seeing Lucas because of the power dynamic. Isabella walks in mid-speech and she tells Bobbie she doesn’t need to worry because she won’t be seeing Lucas anymore. This makes Bobbie happy and she bids Isabella goodnight before Isabella stops her. Isabella admits she couldn’t get what Bobbie said out of her head and it made her totally self-concious around Lucas. Bobbie says good, which prompts Isabella to question Bobbie’s relationship with Emmett since Bobbie is his boss. Bobbie’s rebuttal is that Emmett would never do anything he doesn’t want to do, but, Isabella says she could ask him when they’re antiquing.
The next day, the phone drama continues at the bar. Steve eagerly tells Gabbie that Takoda didn’t lock his locker. They’re both excited that he’s starting to trust them again and then prove that they’re undeserving of that trust when Steve pulls out the phone. Steve tells her that the phone owners girlfriend reached out. She texted saying she knows that the phone owner has been with “her” and that she’s given him everything. They feel for the girlfriend and then they get startled when the phone rings. At first they’re not sure if they should answer, but they ultimately do. When they pick up there’s an angry women who assumes she’s speaking to them owner and says she’s starting a new life and she did sleep with the phone owner’s brother. She hangs up and Steve thinks she’s perfect for the cheating phone owner. Gabbie disagrees and says she was probably a reasonable woman until the owner pushed her over the edge. Steve thinks that even if he is a monster she didn’t have to sleep with his brother. Gabbie says that sometimes the only option is to sleep with their brother.
Later, Bobbie and Isabella are arranging spices and Isabella asks if okay to put a more powerful spice on the top shelf above the other spices. Bobbie is a little annoyed and says there’s nothing wrong with her relationship and then Emmett asks about a menu and calls her, “boss.” Isabella loves the timing and Bobbie says she’s going to talk to Emmett to see if they’re a walking HR violation. When she goes, Isabella tells Takoda she didn’t want to cause any problems between Bobbie and Emmett, she just wanted to make Bobbie feel bad. Takoda asks if that’s really any better.
In the kitchen, Bobbie asks Emmett why he called her the boss. Emmett says it’s because she is the boss and everyone already knows that. She asks him if he wants to go antiquing with her and he says yes. She presses him on it and he admits he just wanted to make her happy. He explains he that he’s not afraid of being fired by her and he says titles aside, he tends to do whatever he wants anyway. Emmett says he knows dating the boss is a bad idea for a lot of people, but, if it works for them who cares? Bobbie says that, that was probably what Isabella was trying to tell her and goes to talk to her.
Speaking of Isabella, she is practicing a speech to Bobbie to Bobbie’s empty chair in Bobbie’s office. Bobbie walks in and Isabella apologizes to Bobbie. She says she didn’t want to create problems, she just wanted her to see she was being a hypocrite. Isabella adds that she doesn’t like to fight with Bobbie and Bobbie agrees because Isabella is good at it. Isabella says she had years of practice with her own mother and Bobbie says that her daughter is no pushover either. Isabella wonders if that’s the issue, that Isabella was sneaking around and Bobbie was being very parental. Bobbie admits that because of how young Isabella is she forgets that they’re supposed to be equals. They agree to work on it and Bobbie offers to give Lucas a call to smooth things over. Isabella says not to bother because Lucas talks a lot about football for a professor, so she doesn’t think their relationship is going anywhere. Then, Bobbie wonders, why she was so angry last night. Isabella admits that she just wanted to punish her. Bobbie laughs and says that now she really reminds her of Gracie (her daughter).
At the bar Steve and Gabby are telling a disapproving Takoda that they gave the phone owner his commupence because he deserved it and they’re bored. They’re waiting for the phone owner to arrive and they’re expecting a younger man and are surprised when a much older man named Clive (Christopher Lloyd) comes in to claim it. Steve is speechless, but Gabby pushes forward lecturing him about how he treats women. Clive says he is right and Takoda tells him they read his texts and Steve and Gabby tell him his girlfriend deserves better. He tells them that she’s not his girlfriend she’s his wife and they like to keep things fresh with a little role play. Speaking of the wife, Theresa (Carol Kane), she arrives and they continue playing out their roleplay which makes everyone uncomfortable. After finding out that they’ve been reading the text messages, the couple offers to keep them included in the fun by adding them to the groupchat, but they decline. The couple finds it ironic that now Steve and Gabby care about their privacy and Gabbie and Steve buy them lunch as an apology.
Bobbie comes out, the husband flirts with her, and Bobbie says she likes antiquing, but not enough to date one. Gabby thinks giving out her number might be worth it, though.