Bob's second asset, his family, slowly deteriorates, as Mary's selfish refusal to learn how to be a mother causes tension in her relationship with Bob and begins to interfere with her ability to write her newest romance novel. Mary's new novel is loosely based on her romance with Bob, but her publisher considers it strange and off-putting because of its focus on laundry. Ruth takes a job at a nursing home under the pseudonym Vesta Rose, where she befriends Francine, Mary's foul-mouthed, estranged mother, and arranges for her to return to Mary's life at an inopportune moment. She also meets Hooper, a nurse who has worked for the nursing home for 22 years and put aside her earnings for a considerable life savings. Though Ruth horrifies Hooper by secretly switching the senior citizens' sedatives and mundane routines for vitamin and caffeine pills and enriching activities, she gains Hooper's trust by introducing her to desserts.