The first episode of Imperfect Women saw Eleanor and Mary lose their best friend Nancy to a shocking and mysterious murder that immediately sends their world into a tailspin. At the end of the episode, it's revealed that the cops have their person of interest in the murder case. It's an African-American painter named Davide Haji Boyette. However, Eleanor doesn't think he actually did it. Now, let's move on to episode 2 to see how the psychological thriller series continues to unfold!
Spoilers are ahead from Imperfect Women episode 2!
Mary takes matters into her own hands
The second episode picks up immediately where the premiere left off, with Eleanor and Robert attending the ballet together. A noticeable tension lingers between them, as both seem tempted to reach for each other. Eventually, Robert gives in and takes Eleanor’s hand. While this is happening, we learn through Eleanor's voiceover how she and Robert met.
It turns out she met Robert first when they were younger and later introduced him to Nancy. But before that introduction, she and Robert had already formed a strong connection and were getting along really well. Ah! So, it looks like Eleanor liked Robert but ultimately lost her chance when he ended up with Nancy instead.
During the ballet performance, Robert receives a text message. It's an old photo of Nancy and Davide. In the picture, Nancy is shown lying on Davide's lap at what looks to be a party. Robert then shows the photo to Eleanor. Now, Eleanor's not too sure anymore that Davide is innocent. After being dropped off at home, Eleanor runs into Jordan at her door.
He confronts her about her ghosting him. During this conversation, Jordan explains to Eleanor how frustrated he is with her. But what really sticks out is when he points out that she texted him the night of Nancy’s murder at 9:00 p.m., yet didn’t show up at his place until 1:00 a.m. Eleanor denies this time frame and tells Jordan that she arrived before 1:00 a.m, but he pushes back. To avoid drawing attention, Eleanor then invites him inside and they end up hooking up again.
The next morning, Eleanor goes for a run before returning home to find Jordan still there. She essentially shoos him out, still processing the events of the previous night. After what he said about the timeline, she’s shaken and anxious. Eleanor then heads to Mary's house, where she discovers Mary's been looking into Davide's police report.
Mary believes something fishy is going on. She doesn't believe that Davide is the killer, especially since he wasn't even arrested for Nancy's murder. He was arrested for robbery. In other words, she thinks the police are putting their focus on the wrong person. Later on, Eleanor heads to Robert's house. Cora's 17th birthday is coming up, and he's having a hard time planning it with everything going on. Eleanor offers to help out.
As she leaves the house, she finds Detective Gantz waiting for her at her car. During this scene, we learn more about Nancy's backstory. Apparently, she didn't come from money. Her mom was an alcoholic, and her dad was abusive. However, Eleanor and Robert did come from affluent backgrounds.
The way Detective Gantz continues to question Eleanor, it then prompts Eleanor to ask if the police might be looking for another suspect. Detective Gantz is left gobsmacked after that and walks away.
Eleanor's brother is introduced
While on a run, Eleanor notices the same black truck from the first episode driving by. Fed up with being watched, she cuts across the street and bangs on the truck's window. She thinks the guy is a cop, but he reveals that he works for a man named Donovan. Eleanor stares at him with a look of disbelief. It appears she knows who Donovan is.
We find out shortly after that Donovan is her brother. It's the same guy who was in the truck with the other guy at the end of the first episode. He and Eleanor talk in a restaurant, where Donovan reveals his reason for following her.
He reminds Eleanor of a time in the past when she spiraled after a personal tragedy. With Nancy's murder case unfolding, he’s there to protect her, keep her safe, and make sure she doesn’t get caught up in something dangerous. Donovan also shows her the picture he had taken of her and Robert at the ballet. It's his way of warning Eleanor not to make any bad decisions.
Later on that evening, Eleanor receives a text from Robert. The police are going through Nancy's things at his house. Although they have Davide in custody, it appears that he may not be the only person of interest. This turns out to be true because in the next scene, Eleanor learns from Robert that Davide has been released from jail.
She also finds out from Marcus that Mary has been arrested. Apparently, Mary's been harassing the police by submitting 20 public records requests. But it takes her almost assaulting an officer for her to get arrested. Eleanor arrives at the police station to pick her up. As they're walking back to the car, Mary expresses her frustration with the police because they're not considering any of her leads. Eleanor can tell that she's stressed out about the case, so she offers to get takeout and meet her at her house later.
We're then shown Eleanor meeting Robert on the tennis court at his house. During this scene, Eleanor learns from Robert that Donovan had threatened him in the past to stay away from her. This angers Eleanor, so he heads out to find her brother. She immediately confronts Donovan when she sees him. Basically, Donovan was trying to protect Eleanor from Robert's shady family. Their conversation ends on a sour note with Eleanor storming off.
Eleanor and Mary meet Davide in person
As planned, Eleanor arrives at Mary's house with takeout. Once dinner is over, Mary tells Eleanor that she found Davide's address. She hopes to get answers directly from him and finally uncover the truth about Nancy’s murder. Eleanor doesn't want to go at first, but Mary manages to convince her.
They eventually reach Davide’s place, where he opens up about how he and Nancy first met. Apparently, Nancy had come across some of his artwork at a collector’s event and reached out to him. Eleanor then brings up the photo of them at a party, but Davide insists he doesn’t even remember it being taken. He adds that Nancy barely stayed at the event, since the man she was with at the time wasn’t enjoying himself.
Mary then shows him a photo of Nancy and Robert, and asks him if the guy she was with at the party is the same person. However, Davide is unable to confirm. In fact, he gets angry. As Eleanor and Mary walk to the door, Davide makes a comment about their friendship with Nancy. He asks them where they were when Nancy was spiraling. Eleanor seems taken aback by his comment, while Mary tells her it's best that they leave.
The episode then cuts to Robert's house, where Eleanor helps plan Cora's 17th birthday party. She notices Robert and his sister arguing, so she goes to check on him in his office. Apparently, Robert's family hired a crisis PR firm to pressure the police. They're also behind the leaked photo of Nancy and Davide. It was their way of getting the press off their backs. Donovan was right about Robert's family not being good people!
While Eleanor and Robert are talking, they hear Cora yell from the room. She's mad that Nancy's things have been packed up. Eleanor calms her down and comforts her. She tells Cora that none of Nancy's things will be thrown out. Instead, they'll be taken to the Ojai house. This lifts Cora's spirits a bit. As Robert prepares to take Nancy's things to the other family home, he persuades Eleanor to go with him. This can't be good!
Eleanor and Robert sleep together
Shortly after arriving at the Ojai house, Eleanor and Robert share an emotional moment. Eleanor is mad at herself for not realizing how much pain Nancy was in. Robert listens quietly, then admits that he, too, missed the signs. This leads to them passionately kissing before hooking up on the couch.
In the middle of the night, Eleanor wakes and starts going through Nancy’s belongings. While flipping through one of her journals, she comes across a letter Robert wrote to Nancy. In it, he apologizes for overreacting and frightening her. He explains to Nancy that his response was fueled by the fact that she had been involved with someone else. Oh no! So Robert pretended not to know that Nancy was having an affair when Eleanor brought it to his attention. Could he be the real murderer? Could Robert have killed Nancy in a jealous rage?
The second episode ends with Robert walking into the room and seeing Eleanor with a shocked look on her face.
Imperfect Women is streaming now on Apple TV.