John Hastings appeared in town during Harmony's Christmas Eve mass, the latest part of Ivy's plan to break up Sam and Grace. Although Ivy brought him to town, he was fully unaware that his father was lying about being Grace's husband. He immediately latched onto the idea of reuniting his parents, and when Sam and Grace's marriage fell apart, he finally got what he wanted. Around the same time, he also began spending time with Simone, who was still hurting over being betrayed by Chad and Whitney.