Jo is on the phone to Rob, she tells him that she can’t talk for long, as she has to go to work, and that it’s really nice to hear his voice. Darren tells Lou that he isn’t asking for loan, but he’s just making a simple suggestion. Lou says he’ll think about it. Lance and Anne ask Ben for a lift, Ben is worried about them getting in trouble, but Lance says that Ruth won’t have to know...

Ben is driving Anne and Lance, and he asks Lance what kind of sunnies he’s going to get with his money, and that it’s nice that their dad sent them that money. Anne says that their dad is all over his new girlfriend at the moment. Ben asks if their parents might get back together, but Lance doesn’t think so. Ben says that it’s to be expected, when somebody just gets up and walks out on you.

. . .

At number 22, Darren comes down the stairs and sees Lou sitting in the kitchen. He goes over to the phone and dials, he then asks for the loans manager. He explains down the phone that he’s waiting on a decision from a business associate and hangs up. He explains to Lou that the bank have the money ready for him, but he needs to let them know soon, so he asks what Lou thinks. Lou says he hasn’t thought about it yet, and needs to go and meet Ben at the pub. Darren says this means a lot to him, and Lou says that they can catch up later.

Ben, Anne and Lance are out shopping and Ben gives some money to a homeless girl. Ben asks Anne how her parents met, and Anne isn’t quite sure. Lance starts looking at some sunglasses, while Anne notices a dress and asks Lance to lend her the extra. Ben offers to lend her the money she needs, and then they decide to go and get some food.

. . .

At the pub, Jo is annoyed because she’s lost the bottle opener. Sarah suggests looking in the till, but Jo says she wouldn’t be stupid enough to do that twice. She opens the till and finds it. Lou asks why she’s so distracted this afternoon, but Jo says she’s fine before putting the bottle opener back in the till. Lou tells the girls that if Ben shows up, they can tell him that Lou is not impressed.

Sarah is walking past the Coffee Shop, when she bumps into Darren. He seems a bit down and she asks what’s up, but he says everything’s great right now. He asks her how things are going at the pub, and Sarah says that Lou was going through the books when she left. Darren then sees Karl leaving the surgery…

. . .

Lou asks Jo to phone home and see if Ben’s there. Karl comes into the pub and says that he’s shattered after all the paperwork he’s had to do. Lou tells Karl about Darren’s plans for a loan and Karl comments that the handyman business is a complete rollercoaster. He suggests that Lou go guarantor for the loan instead.

Sarah calls in at number 32, and asks Ruth if she’s seen Ben. Ruth asks why he would be there, and Sarah comments that Jo saw Ben giving Anne and Lance a lift. Ruth is annoyed that they’ve all tried to put one over on her.

. . .

Darren heads in the pub and asks Lou if he’s come to any decisions. Lou explains that he’s spoken to Karl, who runs his own business, and he made some very good points about going to the bank. Jo gets off the phone and explains that Ben went shopping with Anne and Lance, and Lou is really annoyed that he missed his appointment.

Ben is driving the kids home and suggests dropping in on their father to show him what they’ve bought. They say that they’d rather not do that and he starts trying to find out how long their parents were together before they got married. Lance explains that they were married 18 years and got together about 6 months before that. Ben apologises for asking so many questions.

. . .

Karl is at the surgery, when he gets a call from a woman wanting to know when they re-open. He goes to get the appointment book, when Darren storms in and starts asking Karl why he stuffed everything up for him. He tells Karl to keep his nose out and leaves. Karl picks up the phone to find that the woman has hung up.

Ruth is at number 30, asking Sarah and Lisa if Ben is back with the kids yet. They tell her not to worry, but Ruth says that she hardly knows this man, as he’s only lived there for ten minutes. Lisa says he won’t have taken them far, but Sarah explains that Ben never made it to his meeting with Lou either. There’s a knock at the door, and a man delivers a priority letter for Jo. Sarah suggests that they take it to the pub for her, but Lisa says she’s meeting some friends in the city, so she’ll drop Sarah off at the pub on the way.

. . .

At the pub, Sarah gives the letter to Jo, who says she wasn’t expecting anything. They wonder what’s happened to Ben, while Jo opens the letter. It’s a first class ticket to London from Rob. Jo says it’s insane, as she can’t just uproot her life at a moment’s notice. Sarah says that this could be her last chance to get back with him. Karl turns up, looking for Lou and asks what he’s been saying to Darren. He says that Darren went nuts and cost him a patient.

Jo says that the plane leaves tonight and she needs time to think about it. Lou says she has one thing to decide – does she love Rob? She says maybe, and says that every mistake in her life has been because she acted impulsively, but Sarah says that maybe she should take the risk. Jo says she’s going to phone Rob and say thanks, but no thanks. Sarah says she’ll cover, while Jo goes home and makes the call. Lou says that Jo is finally growing up.

. . .

Ben, Anne and Lance are changing a tyre on the car, and Anne says that their mum will be really worried by now. Lance tells her just to chill out a bit.

. . .

At the pub, Lou tells Sarah to knock off and she says she’s dying to know what’s happened with Jo. Darren walks in and tells Lou that it’s pathetic of him to listen to Karl, but Lou says that he never had any intention of not lending him the money. Darren is just furious that he spoke to Karl about it, and Lou says that he just hopes the bank manager is still feeling generous.

Sarah gets home and calls out for Jo. She then finds a letter and a bottle of champagne on the table. She reads the note:

. . .

Hi guys,
Hope this is as big a surprise to you as it is to me. Couldn’t get through to London – busy lines or something. And while I was waiting, I started thinking about what Sarah said; to find happiness you have to take a risk. And you know what? She was right. So here I am taking a huge risk. By the time you read this, I’ll be in the air and on the way to London. Crack open the champers and wish me luck. I’ll miss you guys.
All my love,
Jo

. . .

Lance, Anne and Ben arrive at number 32 and Ruth asks where the hell they’ve been. She says that she thought she made it clear that they would not accept a ride from Ben, she explains that she even called the police. She tells Lance and Anne to wait in the kitchen. She asks Ben why he took them out when she told him not to. He says that he saw them waiting for the bus and couldn’t just drive on past. She tells him that from now on, he can stay right away from her kids. Ben stands there in shock, while Anne tries to defend him, but Ruth tells Ben to leave.

Summary by Steve

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