The Things We Leave Unfinished

In another letter from the past, Jameson writes Scarlett that he will love her always and cannot wait to see her in Colorado. He asks her to kiss William for him.

Noah is speechless when meeting Georgia. He had a moment of knowing when he saw her in the bookstore. Then, she told him what Scarlett Stanton had really said about his books, and he was stung. His agent, Adam, tells Noah he has to convince Georgia to sign the contract for him to finish Scarlett’s book. Noah calls his sister, Adrienne, for advice. Adrienne informs him that Georgia’s ex-husband, Damian Ellsworth, directed movies made of several Scarlett Stanton books. Noah thinks the man is a terrible director. Damian cheated on Georgia with his lead actor, who is now pregnant.

Noah admits to Georgia that he’s read every one of Scarlett’s books, and he read them to his mother when she was recovering from a car accident. He feels an electric current between himself and Georgia. If he gets the contract, he asks to see the manuscript and letters. Georgia didn’t know about the letters.

In Middle Wallop, England, Scarlett and her sister, Constance, have returned from visiting their parents, Baron and Lady Wright. Scarlett and Constance have joined the Women’s Auxiliary Air Force. Their parents want Scarlett to marry Henry Wadsworth, a rich and abusive young man whom Scarlett despises.

As the girls walk toward the base, a man pulls up a car and offers to give them a lift. Scarlett is struck by the handsome American pilot, Jameson Stanton. She tells herself not to be drawn in. When he asks her to dinner, Scarlett says she doesn’t date pilots. Jameson teases that he will turn in his wings, and she agrees to a date. The chapter switches between the third-person point of view of Scarlett and Jameson, depicting an immediate and intense attraction.

Scarlett and Constance sit outside, enjoying the afternoon. Scarlett is reading Emma. Jameson appears and invites Scarlett on a date that night. He is delighted when she accepts. Scarlett is surprised and moved when Jameson flies them to a field where he has prepared an outdoor picnic and brought a phonograph, gifted to him by his mother. He plays the Glenn Miller Orchestra as they dine. Jameson reveals that his family did not approve of his decision to volunteer for the RAF, and Scarlett admits she doesn’t want her family’s title. They dance and begin falling in love.

In a letter from the 1940s, Scarlett writes Constance that she is sorry to leave her, and her heart screams over the injustice of all they have lost, but she promised that their father would never get his hands on William.

In the present-day timeline, Georgia tells her best friend, Hazel, that she read her great-grandmother’s manuscript. It ends with the characters at their darkest moment, and Georgia can understand why Gran could never write the ending. Georgia has also read Scarlett’s correspondence with Jameson. She now understands why Gran didn’t want Georgia to marry Damian; their relationship was nowhere near as devoted. Georgia launched Damian’s career, but his affairs chipped away at her love for him, and she knew he wanted kids. Hazel teases that Noah is hot and Georgia should jump his bones. She also thinks Georgia should go back to glass blowing, mentioning the piece she sold that stands in an office building in Manhattan.

Ava hovers when Noah arrives to sign the contract. She has promised Georgia she will stay through Christmas, and Georgia hopes she will—Ava abandoned Georgia on Gran’s doorstep when Georgia was a child. They discuss the typewriter on Gran’s desk, which she used to write all but one of her novels. Noah promises he will do this right. Ava mentions that Georgia went to art school and ran a charity. They sign the contract. Noah says he will give the couple the happily-ever-after they deserve, and Georgia says that’s the one thing he can’t do.

Scarlett dances with Jameson on a short break from their duties. She asks why he hasn’t kissed her yet, and he says he wants to be alone for their first kiss. As they drive the men to the airfield, another pilot, Howard, reads the gossip columns where Scarlett’s parents announce her impending engagement to Henry Wadsworth. Jameson is hurt and angry. They stand on the airfield, arguing, while she tries to convince him she does not intend to marry Henry. Planes approach and begin dropping bombs.

In another letter from the past, Jameson expresses how much he misses Scarlett. He says he thinks he has found a house for them.

Back in present-day New York, Noah is frustrated over the story’s intended ending. Noah feels Scarlett Stanton’s brand was happily-ever-after, and Georgia is wrong to insist Noah write the real-life, unhappy ending. Adam, his editor, suggests Noah doesn’t understand women or relationships. Adam explains Georgia’s recent past: Film rights to her grandmother’s books made Damian Ellsworth’s career. Georgia helped him start a production company but signed over her ownership in the divorce. Most of the proceeds from Scarlett’s literary estate go to charity work, put in a trust that Georgia oversees. She transferred the entire book advance to her mother. Adam shows Noah the glass sculpture Georgia made, the image of a tree growing out of water.

Noah calls Georgia and attempts to connect with her, telling her about his background. They discuss her grandmother’s books and Scarlett’s use of a character’s flaw to humble them. Georgia reminds Noah that she chose him to write a true story and hangs up. Noah worries he is going to miss a deadline for the first time in his career.

Jameson protects Scarlett as the bombs explode around them. When the planes pass, he and his fellow pilots run for their aircraft. The women return to command. Scarlett works all night as a plotter, taking extra shifts. The plotters move flags, indicating their aircraft, around a board at the report of the control officers, who are communicating with the pilots. Scarlett fears for Jameson. She is commended for her dedication, and Jameson is waiting for her when she steps outside after her shift. They kiss and promise to face all their troubles together.

In an extract from a past letter, Scarlett writes Jameson that she longs to touch him, but the other Mr. Stanton brightens her every day. This “other” Stanton is later revealed to be the couple’s son, William.

In the present day, Georgia argues with Noah as he suggests bizarre endings for the book. As he steals ideas from tragic films, including Titanic and My Girl, Georgia hangs up on him again. Ava, who keeps calling her Gigi, even though Georgia hates the nickname, asks when the advance will be delivered. Georgia admits to Hazel that she feels restless, like she needs to figure out where she fits. She looks at a store to rent and imagines it housing her glass-blowing equipment.

Georgia returns to the house to find her mother packing. The advance came, and Ava hopes to reunite with her last husband. Georgia is crushed, feeling that her mother has abandoned her. Ava accuses Georgia of being naïve for not realizing Damian used her to get film rights to Scarlett’s books. When Noah shows up, Georgia slams the door in his face.