Lucy went to Metro at Dusty's request, and he warned her that Dominic would go to any measures to keep her from testifying against him and that Dominic was undoubtedly behind Craig's disappearance. When Lucy told Dusty that he had no right to tell her what to do anymore, he broke down and told her that he still cared for her. Although he tried to backtrack, Lucy found that he was still wearing the medal she had given him.
While Dusty talked to Lucy, Dominic sat at a table at the athletic club with Bud, the gym manager. Dusty told Bud that he would see to it that no one testified against him. In fact, he said with a sly smile, Craig Montgomery was already out of the picture. Dominic said that Dusty would not make a credible witness, so he needed to eliminate Lucy and Rafael -- permanently.
Rafael arrived at the table, and Dominic sent Bud away. Rafael apologized to Dominic for talking to the police and asked for Dominic to help him fight again. Rafael promised to call the district attorney and tell him that he would not testify. Dominic pretended to trust Rafael and agreed to meet him at the gym in an hour. However, when Bud returned to the table, Dominic said that he intended to feed Rafael false information, since he was certain that Rafael was trying to con him.
Alison got a despondent Aaron to agree to work with her for three days. She promised to leave him alone if he did not see any improvement in his condition in three days. Once Aaron agreed, Alison overwhelmed him with her enthusiasm for everything from food to exercise. Her first surprise was a massage from "Trixie," who showed up in lacy underwear. Horrified, Alison shoved the hooker masseuse out the door, and Aaron broke into helpless laughter.
Next Alison burned part of her healthy meal, and Aaron found his sense of humor returning. Aaron thanked Alison for caring for him, then they looked down and saw him moving his foot. Alison exulted, "That's only after three hours! Just think what will happen after three days! You'll never want me to leave!" Aaron smiled at her through happy tears.
Katie watched in secret while Jennifer and Mike flirted playfully. After the new lovers left, Katie cried on Margo's shoulder and confided that she had divorced Simon. Margo persuaded Katie to go tell Mike that she had never stopped loving him. Katie left, and Tom and Casey arrived to help Margo pick out a Christmas tree. Casey walked away, and Tom looked into Margo's eyes and suggested, "This Christmas, let's give him something we know he really wants."
Mike took Jennifer home with him and served her a bottle of special wine, then slung her over his shoulder, undressed her, and put her in the bathtub. There, he sensuously washed her hair and kissed her, but that was as far as it went. He pushed her out of the bathroom, locked the door, and started to take a shower. Just then, Katie arrived at Mike's door. When she knocked, she found the door ajar and walked in, calling for Mike. She found Jen standing outside the bathroom door in Mike's bathrobe.
Alison talked Aaron into trying to move his leg again. He was sure the movement had just been a random event, but when he concentrated, his foot moved. Alison told him that she believed in him. Lily dropped by to ask if Aaron knew anything about Craig's disappearance. Since it had been weeks since either Aaron or Craig had worked together at the Metro, he knew nothing.
As Lily left, Margo called her with information about Craig. After Lily left to meet Margo, Alison gave Aaron a sponge bath, which seemed to make him a little uncomfortable -- but for all the right reasons. Later, Alison discovered that Aaron had fallen asleep while she changed into her cute flannel pajamas -- she settled in happily beside him for a long winter's nap.
Sierra and Jordan ran into each other while Christmas shopping. Sierra gave Jordan some shopping advice, and Jordan called her "an answer to [his] prayers." Later, he found her struggling with a large Christmas tree and offered to help get it home to the Walsh mansion, where he insisted on helping to set it up. The two spent a cozy evening together, exchanging personal stories, but Lily's arrival interrupted them; Lily was unable to hide her anger about Sierra's nonchalance regarding Craig's disappearance. The tiff didn't last long, and after Lily left, Jordan and Sierra toasted their newly decorated tree, and Sierra said, "Let's run into each other again soon." Jordan was obviously pleased with her suggestion.
Lucy still believed Dusty cared about her when she saw he was wearing the necklace she had given him. He insisted she was wrong and took it off in front of her. Lucy was heartbroken and ran angrily from him, but not before he warned her against becoming involved with Dominic Ramsey. As she cried in the park, Rafael found her and told her that he had just left the gym where he had overheard some things Dominic had said -- things that led him to believe he might know where Craig was being held. Lucy was determined to find her father and told Rafael she was glad she had someone like him upon whom she could depend.
Things at Mike's house didn't go exactly as Katie had hoped. Seeing the door was slightly open, she called his name and was mortified to see Jennifer -- in Mike's robe -- walking out of his bedroom. Mike, wearing only a towel, entered the room and was shocked to see Katie in his home. Katie was heartbroken. She tried to tell him about her divorce from Simon, but when she saw the rumpled sheets on Mike's bed, she assumed they had slept together.
Trying to save her pride, Katie lied to Mike and said everything was just fine. Katie later told Margo she wanted to leave Oakdale, but her sister asked her to stay, telling Katie that there might be real trouble where Craig was concerned.
J.J. was missing Jack when Julia suggested a visit to Santa Claus to cheer him up. Meanwhile, Jack met Carly and Parker at the Christmas Fair and Carly was disappointed to learn that Jack was having dinner with Julia and J.J. later. Nancy took Jack aside, explained that the Santa they'd hired was leaving early, and pressed him into serving as a last-minute replacement. Later, Julia and J.J. arrived at the fair, unaware that Jack was Santa Claus.
When J.J. crawled in Santa's lap, he asked Santa for a Christmas miracle: for Jack, his dad, to return home. Jack was in agony when Carly caught up to him, and he explained that having to make a choice between his two families was killing him. Later, Rosanna took Carly out for a much-needed cocktail, and there, Carly referenced Jack's difficult position and told her sister that she loved Jack too much to see him in that kind of pain. Carly decided she was going to help make Jack's decision easier by signing the divorce papers.
Lucy told her mother she had decided to take Sierra's advice and back away from her search for Craig. Suspicious, Sierra questioned Lucy's sudden turnaround, but Lucy worked hard to convince her mother that she was sincere. Meanwhile, Rafael was continuing to pretend he wanted to get back with Dominic to access information about Craig's whereabouts. Rafael overheard Dominic planning to fly out to take care of Craig personally. Rafael hurried to tell Lucy the news, unaware that it was just another one of Dominic's setups.
Later, Rafael blurted something about the airport in front of Sierra, but Lucy masterfully covered and explained that she and Rafael were taking an impromptu ski trip to Aspen. Convinced her daughter was telling her the truth, Sierra gave her blessing, and Lucy and Rafael raced to the airport to steal Dominic's flight plan and notify the police of Craig's whereabouts. However, when they got inside Dominic's private jet, they were horrified to discover Dominic holding a gun on them.
Brother Francis confronted Craig with photographs of Cabot, Lucy, Bryant, and Sierra, and asked him to own up to the impact he'd had on their lives. Alone in his cell with pictures from his past, Craig broke down as Sierra watched via the hidden camera in his cell.
Paul confronted Rosanna on what was bothering her, and she confessed that she had said something terrible to Will by practically accusing him of deliberately trying to freak her out. Rosanna was convinced the toys and voices were all in her mind because she missed Cabot so much. Later, Will and Paul talked privately about Rosanna's vulnerable state, and Will got an idea to help Rosanna enjoy Christmas. They'd turn Fairwinds into the most joyful Christmas wonderland in Oakdale in order to replace Rosanna's old, bad memories with new, good memories.
Just as Jack appeared on the verge of making a decision about Carly and Julia, Carly refused Rosanna's advise and sent the signed divorce papers to Jack.
Meanwhile, Lisa told a conflicted Jack that everything happened for a reason, and after Jack received the papers, he went to tell Carly he had reached a decision. Later, while Julia found part of the divorce papers and thought it was a definite sign that she had won, Jack told Carly he had realized that she was the one he wanted to be with forever.
Sierra, the guilty party behind Craig's kidnapping, talked with Lucinda about how she hoped Craig's imprisonment would help him change for the better. In the cell, Craig started to break as he was confronted by the ghosts of the family that had once loved him. Meanwhile, as the discovery of a broken rosary led Dusty and Lily to information about Sierra's ties to a monastery, Craig saw the camera in his room and realized someone was watching him. Meanwhile, as Dominic's plane took off, Dominic tied up Lucy and Rafael and then parachuted out of the plane, leaving them to die. Rafael managed to break free, but as they rushed for the controls, the plane spun out of control.
As Paul and Will created a winter wonderland in Fairwinds, Will found the nativity set. Thinking the sight of the baby might upset Rosanna, they decided it best to not include it in their decorations. As Paul exited the room to attend to a blown fuse, Will left the baby out on the table to go help. When Rosanna returned home, she freaked out at the sight of the baby and accused Will of purposefully leaving it out. Paul tried to defuse the situation, but when Rosanna and Paul turned back to address Will, they saw that Will had gone.
As Carly and Jack reunited at last, Jack realized he had to tell Julia he'd made his choice. Meanwhile, Julia, thinking that Jack had chosen her, prepared a romantic return for Jack. But when Jack arrived, he told a devastated Julia it was over. Julia tried to be strong but collapsed after Jack left, and after throwing her engagement ring away, she retrieved it, unable to let go. Carly, meanwhile, thanked God and Parker for Jack's return, and upon his arrival home, the two finally made love.
Sierra and Lucinda watched Craig on the monitor, not aware that he had discovered the camera and knew he was being watched. Craig set his plan in motion to appear contrite on camera, all the while, planning his revenge. Later, Lily and Dusty arrived at Lucinda's and confronted Sierra about her link to Craig's disappearance, but Sierra explained her way out of it. Once alone with Sierra, Dusty told her he didn't quite buy it but didn't care what she did with Craig, as long as Lucy was safe. Sierra told him not to worry because Lucy had given up the pursuit of Dominic and was on a ski trip with Rafael. Dusty remained suspicious but agreed to back off.
Meanwhile, Lucy and Rafael survived the crash but were still handcuffed together. They fled the plane, fearing it would blow up, and rushed out into a snowstorm in an unknown location.
Rosanna fretted over having jumped to the conclusion that Will had planted the nativity baby, and she and Paul went to see Will at Hal's in order to apologize. Meanwhile, Barbara continued to drug Emily to bend her to her will. She heard Hal and Will talking about the fact that Will had left Fairwinds, and she pried it out of Hal that Rosanna was haunted by the ghost of Cabot. Later, as Will accepted Rosanna's apology and agreed to go back to Fairwinds, Barbara's wheels began turning yet again.
