Stone Cold Fox

Bea returns home thinking about how Dave probably did not flirt with her in Gale’s building because he did not know Bea is engaged to Collin. At home, Collin is asleep, and Bea pretends to accidentally wake him. She tells him Gale insisted on Dave’s attendance at the wedding, and Collin says he likes Dave, adding that Bea should keep some distance from Dave to avoid trouble. Bea is unamused when Collin asks her to leave so he can sleep more. Bea refreshes her professional profiles online, receiving a message from Syl asking if Bea is looking for a new job. Syl sends Bea a list of companies the Case family refuses to work with, so Bea can bring the Case Company account to her new job. After scheduling emails to 27 hiring managers, Bea fantasizes about how upset Len Arthur will be when Bea hands in her two-week notice. Bea investigates Dave’s social media, but she finds little outside of some pictures of him with women. Aroused nonetheless, Bea tries to wake Collin up, becoming irritated when she cannot.

Bea gets offers from 3 advertising companies, picking the one that is both the best fit for the Case Company and which gives the best offer. Bea enjoys quitting, as Len tries to talk her into staying. Bea goes to see Collin, but he called in sick, which concerns Bea. She decides to get lunch with Syl. Syl asks about Bea’s life, and Bea feels that Syl is sincerely trying to be her friend. Bea tells Syl her fake backstory, and Syl reveals that her fiancé, John, works at his family’s pizza shop. Bea wonders why Syl did not strategize better regarding money, and Syl reveals that she grew up in foster care. Bea notices how Syl’s demeanor changes when she adds that her father is in prison, and they change the topic.

In a flashback, Bea takes a private jet with her mother to New York City, where servants in black lead Bea away from her mother to Francis, the man they are going to live with. Francis is small, and he greets Bea as “Fleur,” lingering a little too long when he kisses her cheek. Francis assures Bea that she does not need to do anything she does not want to do, but Francis and Bea’s mother have Bea dress in little outfits and serve drinks at Francis’s parties. There are other girls there with their mothers and fathers, but Bea avoids them. Bea avoids other kids at school, as well, not knowing how to discuss her living situation. Many of the party guests and the other girls do drugs, which Bea does not like. When one of Francis’s friends touches Bea too much, she slaps his hand. Francis scolds Bea, telling her they let her take her time, but she needs to start having sex with guests if she wants to stay there with her mother. Bea’s mother laughs at her, saying that Bea needs to take care of Bea’s mother, now, and go along with what Francis wants.

Bea uses sexual favors to get money from Francis after living with him for years, and she uses the money to take a train upstate. Bea plans to get a job, and she worries because she has never tried to leave her mother. One morning, her mother finds her, knocking hard at her door, then hitting her when Bea lets her in. Bea’s mother says Bea ruined everything, and they cannot go back to Francis anymore. Bea’s mother calls Bea an ungrateful “whore.”

The bridesmaids throw Bea a shower, and Bea invites Syl, who is quickly becoming the first friend Bea has had. There are over 75 women at the shower, but Bea does not know most of them, and she thinks about how her mother would be prettier than any of the older women present. Gale interrupts Bea and Syl’s conversation, and Syl walks away. Bea tells Gale about the files, but she knows Gale cannot tell anyone about Bea’s burglary without risking people finding out about Gale’s files. Bea and Syl talk about being a bridesmaid, and Bea is impressed by Syl’s knowledge of friendships between women. Bea receives gifts, and Gale keeps track of them by sending thank-you cards. After the shower, a handful of women, including Calliope, Chloe, Gale, Syl, Wren, and Bea go to another restaurant. Wren drinks heavily, and the women all give Bea more intimate gifts, including lingerie, but Gale says her gift is waiting for later, which concerns Bea.

Gale announces that they need to move to the next surprise location, which is Bea’s gift, and Syl offers to bring Wren home. Bea is worried that she will no longer have either Wren or Syl as allies in whatever Gale is planning, and she asks that Syl text her when she gets home. The car brings Gale, Calliope, Chloe, and Bea to a house in the Upper East Side, which Bea promptly recognizes as Francis’s home. Bea does not know how Gale could have tracked this far into Bea’s past, and she suspects that Gale does not know the severity of what she is leading them into. Gale announces them as guests of Hawkes to a hooded man at the door, and Chloe and Calliope suspect they are going to a sex party. Inside, Bea recognizes the men in masks and the young girls in lingerie serving drinks. Then, Bea panics when Francis walks past her.

Bea vomits at the party, and Chloe and Calliope take the lead in getting Bea outside. They drank all day, so it was not surprising that Bea threw up, and Bea does not think it leads to any suspicions about Bea’s history with Francis’s home. Collin is distant, with only a week until the wedding, and Bea is worried Gale told Collin something about Bea’s past. Bea confronts Collin after failing to rouse him with sex, cooking, and conversation. Collin says Gale thinks Bea had been to Francis’s house before, adding that Gale heard about Francis from Dave. Bea is not sure if Gale has any definite information, or if she simply wants to plant a seed of doubt by linking Bea to any sexually explicit party. Bea tells Collin that Gale is in love with him and that Gale would do anything to sabotage their wedding. Bea cries, adding that she never thought Collin thought of her in a negative light, and Collin apologizes profusely.

On the wedding day, Bea feels alone, and she hates that Wren is constantly taking pictures for social media. Collin is stunned when he sees Bea in her wedding dress, and they both have tears in their eyes. Bea relishes the idea that everyone is looking at her, and she is taken aback when she makes eye contact with Dave in the crowd. Bea worries what might happen if Dave reveals how Bea lied to him in Gale’s building, but she is also aroused, imagining Dave’s lips instead of Collin’s after she and Collin say “I do.” Bea reminds herself of her mother and feels disgusted.