As the holidays draw near, a young heiress contends with the affections of a suitor handpicked by her mother. When the handsome chef, Harland Sanders, arrives with his secret fried chicken recipe and a dream, he sets in motion a series of events that unravels the mother’s devious plans. Will our plucky heiress escape to her wintry happily ever after with Harland at her side, or will she cave to the demands of family and duty? Mario Lopez, Justene Alpert, Tessa Munro, Chad Doreck, Martin Mandela star.

Official Description for “A Recipe for Seduction” from Lifetime. You can stream the full mini-movie on their website.

0:23 Title Card: A Recipe for Seduction
0:24 Camera zooms in on holiday family dinner.
0:30 Credits roll over tight shots of crispy fried chicken.
0:40 Dinner attendee compliments hostess, Bunny, on the excellent chicken.
0:42 Bunny claims she cannot cook; credits new chef with delectable chicken.
0:58 Dinner guest’s girlfriend rolls her eyes at another guest across the table.
1:20 Annoying dinner guest proposes to girlfriend, Jessica, who clearly does not love him.
1:38 Jessica stage whispers her resentment at the public proposal.
1:40 Bunny admonishes Jessica, who is clearly her daughter.
1:42 Jessica excuses herself from the table.
1:57 Bunny blames the rejection on Jessica drinking too much at dinner.
2:00 Camera dollies in. Bunny, reads the paper at breakfast table.
2:05 Jessica enters.
2:08 Bunny reams Jessica out for not using her body to improve the family’s status.
2:25 Bunny mentions that the bank is going to repossess their stately mansion.
2:40 Bunny tells Jessica she has to marry Billy so that Bunny doesn’t lose her nice house.
2:42 Harland Sanders enters.
2:43 Jessica is smitten by Harlan’s dimples and goatee.
2:58 Bunny tells Jessica that Harland is a head chef at a fancy restaurant, but she insisted that he leave the city, live in the mansion’s guest house, and cook exclusively for their family. (No mention of the families mounting debt is made in reference to this.)
3:29 Jessica ignores a call from Billy, the proposer.
3:47 Jessica offers Harland a tour of the grounds.
3:42 Bunny watches from the main door like she’s Jessica Lange in Hush.
4:08 Jessica tells Harland how much Billy sucks.
4:20 Harland tells Jessica about how he’s trying to change the world with his “secret recipe” (which does not appear to be sexual in nature).
4:40 Billy appears and confronts Jessica for embarrassing him.
4:48 Harland tells Billy to back-off.
4:54 “Beat it crouton, get back to the kitchen, and let me and my fiancee talk.”
5:03 Billy threatens Jessica.
5:08 Jessica runs away.
5:13 “Don’t call me crouton.”
5:17 Establishing shot of Whittendale Country Club.
5:23 The other guest from dinner answers a call from Jessica. He tells her he is meeting a guy from the farmer’s market for a date at the country club.
5:42 Jessica tells her friend that she hasn’t decided whether or not to accept Billy’s proposal but that she’s into Harland the chef.
6:00 “He told me he has this secret recipe that’s gonna change the world. And you know something? I believe in him.”
6:06 Jessica’s friend comments that this is the happiest she has ever been. [Presumably viewers around the world cheer for Jessica as she experiences a cis straight man being polite to her for the very first time ever.]
6:11 Jessica tells her friend, Lee, that her mother needs her to marry the man who threatened her in order to pay their debts off.
6:25 Lee ends their call because it is time for his date.
6:34 Jessica texts “We need to talk” to an unknown recipient. [Billy, perhaps?]
6:39 Jessica leaves the room.
6:41 Bunny creeps around the corner.
6:42 Shower water running offscreen.
6:50 Billy responds: “At country club, what’s up” [no punctuation.]
6:53 Bunny texts back pretending to be Jessica and asks him to wait for her there.
7:07 Billy drinks dark colored liquor while holding the ring box and feeling sorry for himself.
7:25 Bunny arrives and informs Billy that Jessica has feelings for Harland.
7:34 Billy laughs at the thought of Jessica dating a cook.
7:42 Lee and his date enter the room undetected by Billy and Bunny.
7:43 Bunny tries to convey the gravity of the situation to Billy, stating that Harland has a “secret recipe” that might make him famous.
8:00 Lee notices Billy and Bunny getting cozy at the bar.
8:02 Billy still isn’t taking it seriously so, in an even more twisted riff on The Graduate, Bunny offers to sleep with Billy whenever he wants if he marries her daughter.
8:24 Billy enters the empty kitchen.
8:38 Billy tests the blade of a large knife.
8:40 Billy puts the knife down.
8:46 Billy discovers a knapsack containing a color coordinated leather-bound journal.
8:55 Billy finds Harland’s secret recipe in the journal.
8:59 Billy hears someone approaching and hides the recipe.
9:00 Harland enters and tells billy that Jessica isn’t home.
9:14 Billy offers to buy Harland off.
9:20 Harland tells Billy he isn’t interested.
9:25 Billy tells Harland he knows about the recipe.
9:28 Harland looks shocked.
9:33 Billy lies to Harland and tells him that Jessica accepted his proposal.
9:55 Billy puts a check for 500,000 dollars in Harland’s pocket.
10:11 Lee arrives at the house and demands to see Jessica.
10:17 Bunny tells Lee that Jessica is out purchasing a new phone. [Wait why has Jessica been missing for so long. Is she okay???]
10:36 Lee tells Bunny he saw her seducing Lee. He’s going to tell Jessica everything.
10:43 Bunny hits Lee with a croquet mallet.
10:51 Jessica tries unsuccessfully to contact Lee with her new phone.
11:04 Harland confronts Jessica about the fact that Billy knows about his secret recipe.
11:34 Jessica stops Harland from leaving the property and confesses that she love him, not Billy.
11:49 Bunny calls Billy and tells him about this new development because she’s spying again, of course.
12:04 Jessica tells Bunny that she is happy with Harland and will not marry Billy.
12:16 Bunny tells Jessica that Harland has left the property.
12:28 Jessica searches for Harland in the kitchen.
12:45 A distraught Jessica hears muffled screams on the grounds.
13:00 Jessica rushes into a storage shed to find Billy attempting to murder Harland
13:12 Bunny rushes in to tell Billy that Lee has gotten free and she urges him to kill Harland quickly.
13:23 Lee catches Jessica’s eye from behind the shadows of the storage shed. He motions for her to keep quiet.
13:25 Harland head-butts Lee.
13:33 Billy comes at Harland with a knife.
13:34 Lee hits Billy with a croquet mallet.
13:39 Jessica pushes Bunny into a shelving unit.
13:50 Jessica and Harland kiss.
14:04 Title card: One Year Later
14:07 Lee officiates Harland and Jessica’s wedding.
14:26 Serenity Falls Health & Wellness Center establishing shot.
14:30 Camera dollies in on Bunny sitting alone on a bench.
14:40 Billy joins Bunny on the bench. They both have gray hair now.
14:45 Billy announces that he found Jessica and Harland before taking a big juicy bite of chicken leg.
14:56 Credits

Wait…why didn’t Bunny just marry Billy for the money instead of Jessica?