After Dan’s shock decision, tensions run high between Jack and Martha – a situation made all the worse when Sam, believing everything to have been resolved between them, walks in on the pair arguing over what steps they need to take next. You see, while Martha has her heart set on working through their past, Jack has decided that they need to exploit a certain loophole in the divorce process: if one of them signs an affidavit to say that they’re refusing counselling, then they can proceed without having any more sessions. It’s just as well, then, that in times of trouble – and of that there’s plenty once Sam realises just how far off a divorce Jack may be – you can always rely on Alf to tell it like it is. From him Jack gets just the wake-up call he needs to realise that he’s going to have to stop ducking for cover and start being upfront with the women in his life, starting with Martha. The pair finally talk things through, with Jack confessing that he still has feelings for her but, in light of their failed attempts at reconciliation, knows that their relationship has to remain in the past. It may not be the happy ending Martha wanted, but she nevertheless takes comfort from his honesty and agrees to the affidavit, sealing the deal with a kiss on his lips. ‘What was that?’ a bemused Jack asks. ‘It was goodbye, Jack.’ Playing dirty‘Maybe it is time to try something else. It doesn’t look like I have a choice,’ Jazz whispers down the phone to Dane, having by now realised that her son isn’t about to forgive her any time soon. While she’s busy scheming, Drew himself is struggling to overcome the guilt of inheriting his grandmother’s estate; he’s starting to think Jazz was right when she claimed that her mother only made her executor and Drew sole beneficiary so as to drive a wedge between the two of them. It’s as a consequence that a sympathetic Dan suggests he gives some of the money away – but rather than propose a payout to charity (or, indeed, to himself), he believes that the only way Drew can escape his past and free himself of obligation is by giving Jazz her share. Unfortunately, poor Drew’s barely had time to consider his options before the woman in question interrupts him and makes it clear that she’s ready to fight dirty. ‘You’ve given me no choice; I’m going to contest the Will,’ she says matter-of-factly, before swiftly handing him a summons. The gloves are off…Many happy returns?

Party hats at the ready; today is Irene’s birthday! Having decided to let her special day slip by without notice, she’s nevertheless pleasantly surprised when Annie, Belle and Rory surprise her with a cake and deck out the diner with candles in her honour (even if this part of the plan is more about Annie’s wish to play her part in saving the environment than it is about creating a party setting).

While it’s a case of many happy returns for Irene, though, there’s a literal – not to mention unwelcome – return about to be made elsewhere. In need of some downtime, Martha borrows Alf’s Ute hoping to head out of town for a few days, but she soon finds herself running into a face from the past when, having run out of fuel, the driver of a passing car comes to her aid. It’s Jonah!

Tagged in