In Season 2 Episode 7 of And Just Like That (“February 14th”), Carrie Bradshaw (played by Sarah Jessica Parker) reaches out to her past love, Aidan Shaw (portrayed by John Corbett), via email, hoping to revive a relationship that left emotional scars nearly two decades earlier.
They plan a date for Valentine’s Day, and throughout the season’s concluding four episodes, Carrie realizes that Aidan, rather than John “Mr. Big” Preston, is truly the love of her life. With the intent to avoid past mistakes, she purchases a new apartment in Gramercy Park for them to share.
Carrie bids farewell to her old life with a heartfelt dinner party (Photo: And Just Like That/Michael Patrick King Productions, HBO Entertainment, Pretty Matches Productions, Rialto Films)The couple seems more dedicated to one another than ever until Aidan’s 14-year-old son, Wyatt, from his marriage to Kathy (played by Rosemarie DeWitt), crashes his father’s truck into a tree while under the influence of alcohol and mushrooms.
To mark her transition to the new apartment, Carrie hosts a farewell dinner party at her old place, inviting her closest friends—Charlotte, Miranda, Nya, Lisa, Che, Anthony, and their partners.
Aidan, however, initially declines to attend, having promised never to return to Carrie’s apartment due to their complicated past and the painful memories it harbors. Eventually, he remains in Virginia to support Wyatt following the accident.
Unexpectedly, after the party, Aidan appears at Carrie’s door, having thrown rocks at her window. However, his visit isn’t to indulge in leftover food; rather, he expresses his need to focus on his children in Virginia.
He explains to Carrie, “Their whole lives, I’ve been the constant. I’ve always been there. I need to be there.” His recent absences, traveling back and forth to New York each week to see Carrie, have evidently affected his children and taken a toll on their relationship.
Aidan’s Commitment to Family
Even with Carrie purchasing a spacious four-bedroom house that could accommodate Aidan (and perhaps his children), he remains firm in his decision to stay in Virginia. Carrie suggests she could spend more time there, but Aidan insists he doesn’t want to divide his attention between her and his kids.
When Carrie inquires how long it would take for him to prioritize their relationship, he reveals a surprising timeframe—five years, until Wyatt reaches adulthood. “Five years will go by like that,” he states, gesturing as if to snap his fingers but stopping short. “You didn’t snap them,” she responds. “Oh, I did, it happened so fast, your eyes didn’t even detect it. That’s five years,” he insists.
The couple shares a night together, and as Aidan prepares to leave the following morning, Carrie reassures him, “No matter what happens, this,” she gestures toward her apartment, “and this,” she indicates herself, “was not a mistake.”
Aidan responds, “Nothing’s going to happen,” and gives her a kiss on the forehead before departing, holding his fingers up again as if to snap them but finally refraining. Their profound love persists; however, it will require five years to fully develop.
New Adventures Await
As the episode wraps up, Carrie and Seema, who is also taking time away from her new boyfriend, Ravi, decide to go on an impromptu trip to Greece. Their earlier plans to visit the Hamptons didn’t pan out, but this new adventure feels right. With that, Carrie orders two additional Cosmopolitans.
Liz Kocan, a pop culture writer based in Massachusetts, boasts a unique claim to fame: she once triumphed on the game show Chain Reaction.
