Paul Dooley is released from prison, having spent six months inside for tax fraud. Now bankrupt he does not know that his wife, Oonagh, has arranged a new life for him and their two children, Dermott and Grainne, in Ballykissangel. Paul is furious.

As the Dooleys move in, Niamh moves out, planning to leave the village and move to the outskirts of Dublin. As she waits for the key to arrive at the Estate Agent's, she goes to a pub where she and Sean have spent some time in the past. Sean, who had earlier spotted in town, is already there. He tries to avoid her, but fails, and they sit together and fantasise about what a future together might have been like. They say goodbye.

Romance is blossoming for Orla and Conor - or rather it would if it were not for the interruptions. Conor plans a romantic evening at Orla's cottage, but she has invited half the village to a party to celebrate keeping her job at Fitzgerald's.