Army Wives

Roxy and Pamela are power walking, discussing why Pamela was so tempted by her attraction to Scott. Roxy believes it's symptomatic of problems in her marriage. If Pamela can reconnect with Chase, she won't be vulnerable to such as Scott. As they reach Pamela's house, there are gorgeous flowers on her porch, but no card. Pamela believes they're from Scott...Chase doesn't send her flowers after 9 years of marriage.

Joan surprises Roland by arriving home earlier than expected. She's happy to see him, he appears a bit less than thrilled. They talk, and Joan tells him of her intention to make their marriage a priority, over her career.

Returning home, Roxy finds Trevor building a bookcase in the front yard. She realizes there is a lot she doesn't know about him yet. Teasingly, she tells him he'd better still be sending her flowers after 9 years of marriage.

Lenore Baker is presiding over the building of a memorial rose garden. Translation: she's walking around in a dress and heels, complete with purse, while the other army wives are wielding shovels. The 'clan' is present, and Claudia Joy is asking Denise about her nursing school progress. Denise has 120 clinic hours to complete before receiving her degree, and it will be done in 12 hour shifts. She mentions that she thinks Frank might have a problem with her going back to work. Denise and Claudia Joy are hardly the only wives chatting. Angie, the Art Camp director, is confiding in Marilyn that she believes Pamela and Scott are having an affair. Lenore Baker approaches the 'clan', asking Claudia Joy if she'd received her invitation to the 'Hail and Farewell' dinner the next evening, in honor of the retirement of Colonel Weatherford. Roxy announces that she didn't get her invitation, only to be rudely rebuffed by Lenore who condescendingly informs her it's for officers and their wives only. Out of the blue, Lenore selects a flattered Marilyn to be her assistant for the Hail and Farewell dinner.

Joan meets with Colonel Holden. She tells him that she'd like her marriage to be her priority just now. He tells her that he's afraid that if she doesn't reassume a command immediately, she might not get another chance, the damage done to her career by the incident with Peter Belgrad needs to be buried quickly with success in a new command. General Baker arrives to join them. He isn't as confident in Joan's ability to lead as Michael, but Michael defends Joan. General Baker states flatly that he is 'on the fence' about Joan's abilities. After the General leaves, Michael tells Joan that he will support her if it's her decision not to reassume a command, but that he will not stand by and let General Baker make the decision for her...but he cautions her that it's a choice she will only get to make once.

Denise and Frank are having dinner. He confides that during his trip to Washington for his debriefing about the downing of his helicopter, he's been led to believe that his career is now on the fast track. As such, he wants Denise to have the Bakers to lunch the next day, a political move. Denise reminds him that she has to work, and Frank tells her that he expects Denise to be there to support his career, not start one of her own. He relents about having the Bakers to lunch, but is insistent that she be at the retirement dinner. Denise tells him once more that she has to work, but he's insistent - she must be at the dinner.

Reporting to the hospital, Denise meets her first patient, a young female officer who was injured while saving two of her men from a burning humvee, a war hero.

Chase surprises Pamela at home as she's vacuuming. He's on a 36 hour layover. As she hugs him, he spies the flowers, telling her that he sees she got his gift! She drags him off for 'scones'.

At the Hump Bar, Roxy discusses her marriage with her boss, confiding how little she feels she knows about Trevor. Wise Mary tells her that she'll just have to keep peeling back the hard layers to get to the soft stuff underneath.

Chase and Pamela are cuddling, discussing what Chase is able to tell her of his mission. He confides that one of the reasons he jumped at the chance for the brief visit is that he's afraid of becoming like the rest of his Delta Force group, hard men, and mostly all divorced. He is afraid of losing Pamela, and she assures him that he won't.

The Hail and Farewell dinner is underway. Frank is fuming that Denise is late. Roland is shocked when Joan tells him she'd rather be home alone with him, and drags him out of the function before it has hardly begun. General Baker reminds Michael that he's now second in command since Colonel Weatherford is retiring. They continue to disagree about Joan's effectiveness as a leader. The General seems to be having indigestion. Frank is leaving angry messages for Denise, furious that she hasn't yet appeared, but her patient is in distress, and though her shift is over, Denise agrees to the female officer's pleas for Denise to stay with her.

In a shocking revelation at the dinner, Claudia Joy overhears a heated discussion between General Baker and Lenore. He states that he wants a divorce, he can barely stand the sight of her. As he stomps off, Lenore sees Claudia Joy, and knows she had to have heard every word.

The next day, Frank is angry that Denise stood him up at he dinner. She apologizes, and asks if he can't just let it go, her hours will be more regular as soon as her clinic hours are over. Frank demands that she quit. Denise picks up her keys and leaves for work.

Joan serves Roland breakfast in bed, telling him that she plans to apply for an additional 30 days leave. She discusses a bit of her therapy with Roland, and he congratulates her on her breakthrough. They plan a date for the evening, and fall into each other's arms.

Roland's in a therapy session. His patient is certain his wife has had an affair, and is raging because she won't confess to it. Roland isn't advocating confession, telling the soldier that might do more harm than good, and helping the soldier decide that saving the marriage should be his focus. This is hitting a bit too close to home for Roland.

Trevor has finished his bookcase, and Roxy is reading off the titles as she hands him his books. She questions him about random things. He's puzzled, but is patient and open when she tells him she is only trying to get to know him better.

Denise's patient is having more problems, this time her kidneys. She confides in Denise, telling her that she wants to give up sometimes, and that feeling had caused the men she saved to be placed in jeopardy in the first place. She feels guilty. Yes, she'd saved her two men, but she doesn't feel she deserved the medal for bravery she'd been awarded. Denise reassures her patient, telling her that the confession itself was heroic.

Outside her patient's room, Denise overhears Marilyn gossiping about Claudia Joy, saying that Claudia Joy had dropped out of Harvard because she'd murdered someone. Denise warns Marilyn not to spread malicious rumors, and the fact that Marilyn had heard it from Lenore Baker didn't add any weight to the story for Denise.

Roland drops by the clinic to see how Denise is doing. She inquires about Joan, and Roland tells her how hard Joan is trying, but admits that he feels himself holding back. Roland isn't sure what he wants anymore. Denise wonders aloud if there's something she doesn't know, but reassures Roland that it will take some time for him to rebuild his trust in Joan.

As they talk, an emergency arrives, a 49 year old man has collapsed. It's General Baker. Michael tells Denise that the General had a seizure, and they feel it may be an aneurism. As Claudia Joy and Denise observe through the door, Denise points out that Michael is now the Post Commander.

The test results are bad, General Baker will require surgery and be out of work for at least 30 days. Michael has to leave the hospital, he's now in charge. Claudia Joy tries to give Lenore her sincere sympathy, but Lenore lashes out at her: "This is not your opportunity to replace me." Denise gets the chance to warn Claudia Joy about the rumor she overheard Marilyn spreading, with Lenore Baker as the source.

Chase has put the kids to bed, after the family has spent the entire day in - no visitors, just the immediate family enjoying being together. He has 6 hours and 32 minutes left on his leave, asking Pamela what she'd like to do with the time. "Make it last." she murmurs.

Frank is eating dinner alone. Becoming overwhelmingly furious that Denise is not there, he grabs his keys and leaves the house.

Michael speaks with Joan again. He's called her in to tell her that he needs her to assume a command, particularly with General Baker ill. He tells her that he trusts her, and that his only other option would be to pull another officer out of the Gulf.

Denise's female officer is in distress again, when Frank stomps into the hospital. He watches through the door as Denise pulls the female officer back from the brink of death.

Chase is leaving. He kisses each sleeping child, and Pamela hugs him, silently crying. Without words, he leaves, and she is alone again.

Roxy joins Trevor in the shower, sharing answers about herself to some of the same questions she'd asked him previously. It's clear their relationship is deepening.

Joan is in her uniform, and tells Roland that she feels she must accept Michael's command offer. She's apologetic, he's supportive, telling her they will make it work.

Claudia Joy and Michael are discussing Lenore's accusations. Michael points out that it had to come out sooner or later, and that she had been just a kid. "So was he." she says simply.

Frank and Denise are at home. He tells her that he'd seen her save the female officer's life the night before at the hospital. Stunned, she asked him why he'd been there. He told her that he'd gone with the intention of dragging her home, but as he watched her save her patient, he'd been reminded of the girl he'd fallen in love with. He tells her that he will not fight her over her choice to have a career of her own. He then admits aloud that he knows he is the reason Jeremy left, and won't be the reason she leaves him as well.

Claudia Joy has called all the 'wives' together to address the rumor, telling them she wants them to hear the truth about it from her. Pamela, Roland and Roxy are stunned, they've heard nothing. Claudia Joy continues. Pressed into Harvard Law by her father, himself a lawyer, Claudia Joy hated it and was determined to finish as fast as possible, taking an extra heavy class load. Having studied for hours one night, she got into her car and fell asleep at the wheel for one brief second. But it had been long enough to strike a pedestrian, a fellow student named David Masterson. The boy had died, in spite of her efforts to save him. She tells the silent group that she had pled 'No Contest' to vehicular manslaughter, and received three years probation, and "lost her way." after the accident. Once she met Michael, he'd helped her put her life back together, but that everything she'd done since then had been an attempt to atone for killing that young man. Roland pointed out that it could have happened to anybody. "But it happened to me." Claudia Joy replied, not ready to forgive herself. The 'wives' look stricken, but sympathetic.