Syd is staggered by the indecent proposal of an eccentric, elderly but lustful millionaire who offers her cash-starved medical clinic a fortune if she'll spend 48 hours traveling with him; a debt-ridden Robbie gets in deeper when he urges his injured girlfriend not to play in a key college basketball game while he secretly bets against her team; Joanie begins cooking school and falls for a mysterious fellow student who admires her ""aphrodisiacal"" clam chowder; Jim hires a klutzy veterinary assistant at the clinic.

Syd gamely tries to help a young stripper who wants to leave her profession and have her bustline reduced to alleviate a dangerous back problem - but her abusive biker boyfriend may have other ideas. Elsewhere, Sydney's chilly relationship with a desirable chief surgeon begins to thaw quickly; Robbie's lucky dalliance with horse racing encourages him to roll the dice one too many times; and Joanie searches for the missing ingredient that could make her clam chowder a winner in the 'Taste of Providence' cooking contest.

A wary Syd tries to do the right thing when she takes in Lilly , a troublesome teenager who is returned by her latest foster parents, but in no time, the lodger's carelessness places the entire Hansen household in jeopardy. Joanie's hopes soar when she learns that her handsome business partner has broken up with his girlfriend, but their main concern however, is finding a restaurant that will let them showcase her special chowder for food distributors. Robbie comes to the rescue and risks his job when he volunteers his place of employment while the owner is away. In addition, Sydney encounters a likable elderly patient (guest star Maxine Stuart) with hidden health problems, and Jim wants to help a bedraggled stray dog give birth to her pups.

14 A busy Syd helps an injured high school runner (guest star Brian Poth) who is driven to win at any price by his stern coach/father even as she is romanced by the handsome son of a courtly mob boss (guest star John Capodice) whose beloved pug is treated in her dad's veterinary clinic. Elsewhere, Joanie's culinary reputation takes a hit when her vaunted meatloaf is spurned by humans but makes for a tail-wagging dogfood among the canine set.