Drucilla yells at Nick for not giving Neil any respect. Neil tries to stop her but she goes off the handle. Nick says that it's not worth sacrificing her job over. After Neil gets Dru out of there, Nick calls Sharon and says he needs to come and talk to her about something. When Nick comes to Jabot he tells Sharon that he's concerned about Neil quitting. He realizes maybe it's his fault that Neil has quit. Sharon tries to convince Nick to hire Neil back. She thinks Neil would be a good fit as Nick's right hand man.
Malcolm thanks Phyllis for letting him stay with her at the Tack house. He says that Olivia has offered him to stay at her place so if Phyllis is being put out it's not a problem. Phyllis wonders what's up with Malcolm and this new woman Adrian. Malcolm says that she swept him off his feet, and not in the way she thinks. He slept on her couch, but she was ultimately the one who convinced him to stay. Phyllis is glad that he decided to stay; she really needs a friend right now. Malcolm says that in Africa he never really had a place to call home; and this is the one place he feels that way. Phyllis says that if he looking to continue working at the coffeehouse he can find Sharon at Jabot.
Phyllis sees Drucilla stressed out and mocks her about it. Dru says that her job is jeopardy because she told Nick off. She tries to come back at Phyllis saying that she's lucky that she's not in jail on trial for murder. Phyllis doesn't want to talk about it but says that Detective Weber is really on her case. She tries to come back at Drucilla by mentioning that Malcolm will be staying with her. Drucilla runs off to talk to him.
Malcolm goes to see Sharon and Nick and they offer that he run the coffeehouse. Malcolm says he will have to think about it. Drucilla comes by and says she needs to talk to Malcolm right away. Nick says that afterwards he would like to speak to Dru and Neil.
Damon is shocked to see Adrian after all this time. She says that she testified at Dominic's trial and was shocked that Damon wasn't there. She says that she had spent days and days at a hotel wondering why. Damon says that a friend of his had told him that there was no chance. She still can't believe that he didn't try, and he tells her that he's now on trial for trying to kill Dominic with a sword.
Lily and Devon go shopping and Lily shows Devon her favorite store; the Boutique. Lily recognizes Brittany and Brittany offers to show Lily some great gifts. As Devon shops alone, he is saddened that everything is way over his price range. He sees Sierra and she tries to help him too. Later, Lily returns home and wonders how Devon's shopping went. He says that it went fine.
J.T. goes to the Boutique at teases Brittany about trying on underwear. He wonders why she is working at the Boutique again. Brittany admits that the Cabaret isn't going to well. He continues to tease her and she tells J.T. that he is a mean person.
Paul is on the phone talking to his source at the Genoa City Police Department. Chris is running around with a piece of mistletoe trying to decide where to hang it, when Michael enters the office. "Bah humbug" says Mikey. Michael matter-of-factly tells Paul he will need an investigator to work on Phyllis' case. Michael then leaves; Chris and Paul begin to discuss the case against Phyllis and Damon. Paul reminds her that there's just one way to handle things and that she can't keep putting this off. He encourages her to show Michael the Georgia Prison transcript. Appearing to ignore him, Chris starts decorating the office again. Seemingly in thought, Paul then invites Chris to spend Christmas with him and Mary. Chris thanks him for the invitation but says she actually may spend the day with Daniel and Phyllis. Paul appears a bit surprised at this because of Chris' obvious dislike of Phyllis in the past. He again reminds Chris that they have it in their power to spare her. Chris assures him that she does have a plan and that it involves her old boss, Glenn Richards. If it works, she says, "We'll all have something to celebrate in the new year."
Damon and Adrienne are at his apartment, where he is apologizing for abandoning her and all that he has put her through. He now realizes that even though he was in a lot of pain, there was no excuse for his behavior. Adrienne tries to tell him of the pain she felt after losing Elias and how much she needed Damon at her side during that time. Despite Damon's apologies, Adrienne tells him she's not ready to forgive him and that he's offering too little too late. Damon again stresses that he was blinded by the pain of losing their son. They then go on to discuss how each of them dealt with Elias' death. Adrienne informs Damon that she sought grief counseling. Damon shares with her that after he confronted Elias' killer, he realized how he was hurting people. With this, Adrienne then guesses there's another woman involved. Of course, she wants to know who this woman is. Damon doesn't answer but instead asks her if she's going to stay around Genoa City for awhile, admitting that he would like it if she stayed.
Dru is most upset when she sees that Malcolm never left town. Malcolm tells her that he has decided to stay in Genoa City whether she likes it or not. Dru asks him what it will take for him to leave town for good this time. She gets her answer from the defiant look in Malcolm's eyes as he tells her he is here to reconnect with his family. Malcolm questions what Dru is afraid of, and Dru yells at him that she will not allow him to threaten her family. Malcolm reminds her that HER family is HIS family and that he will stay here at least until he sees Nate. Malcolm then asks Drucilla the big question...."Am I Lily's father? I have the right to know." Dru spews back at him that he knows Neil is Lily's father. Malcolm reminds her that she can't deny what happened all those years ago. Dru is totally distraught!
J.T. finds Brittany working at The Boutique. It's the usual thing....J.T. is taking shots at Bobby, and Brit is defending him. J.T. finally relents and tells Brit that if she's happy, then that's a good thing. Suddenly, Brittany gets a horrified look on her face and goes into a total panic. Bobby has just walked into The Boutique. She once again begs for J.T.'s help, but this time he refuses her. Bobby then spots Brit....."What are you doing here" they ask each other. He says he's looking for a Christmas present for her. Brit begins to reminisce that it was here in The Boutique where they first met. Bobby suggests that they both leave, but Brit is obviously hesitant....Bobby becomes a little suspicious.
Michael pays a visit to Phyllis out at the ranch to discuss her case. He assures her that he has a strategy and that in the end he will prove Dominic is a liar. Phyllis looks less than convinced. Michael stresses Phyllis' good points such as her holding an executive position at Newman Enterprises and the fact that she's a good mother. Phyllis can't be consoled....she can only see the negatives; that she was denied custody of her son when he was a baby and that she was previously convicted of the crime against Diane Jenkins. Michael encourages Phyllis to stay strong for herself and for Daniel. In an effort to be jovial, Michael tells her to think of him as Santa Claus....."I will give you your life back" he tells her. They share a friendly embrace.
Lily is at Crimson Lights. Malcolm sneaks up and surprises her. Delighted to see that her uncle is still in town, she gives him a big hug. Lily is ecstatic that she and Malcolm will get to spend more time together. He tells her that they will indeed do that but stresses that she also must spend some time with her parents. Lily then tells him that she wants her gift to her dad to be him, her Uncle Malcolm, and the fact he is staying in town! Malcolm is not so sure that's it's a good idea to surprise Neil with this. Lily is being very persuasive and assures Malcolm that her dad misses him and that he should let Neil know his feelings before it's too late. With this, Malcolm agrees to come to dinner on Christmas Eve. Lily then leaves to finish her shopping.
Later on at the ranch, Phyllis and Daniel are decorating their tree. She apologizes to him for her not being in good spirits lately. She shares that this has been her dream.....them finally having Christmas together as mother and son. Daniel tells his mom that they have to make the best of everything....with a rather sad look on his face, obviously fearing his mother's possible conviction. As they finish decorating the tree, Daniel tells Phyllis that he respects her for trying to make things work. Phyllis wants Daniel to put the finishing touch on the tree....she happily gets her camera and snaps a picture of Daniel placing the angel atop the tree.
Back at The Boutique, J.T. is lost in his thoughts about Colleen. He's specifically remembering last Christmas, when Sierra comes up to him and interrupts his thoughts. They are remembering last Christmas when J.T. sold his guitar so he could buy Colleen a gift while, at the same time, ironically Colleen bought him a case for that same guitar!
Bobby is still trying to convince Brit to leave The Boutique so they can spend the day together. Brit insists that she wants to stay and look around, when Sierra comes up to her and spills all the beans! She hands Brittany her Santa hat and asks her to watch the register for awhile. Shocked at this, Bobby wants to know why Brit lied to him.
Phyllis, still attending to the Christmas tree, places a call to Damon. She apologizes for their fight at the coffee house. Damon assures her that he's already gotten over it. She inquires how his day went, and he tells her it was interesting but doesn't wish to share it with her. Obviously being very distant, Damon cuts their conversation short. Phyllis looks perplexed.....
Michael suggested to Paul that there might actually be a tape of the meeting between Phyllis and Dominic in the Georgia prison. Paul tried to avoid helping Michael find out, but Michael reminded him that he worked for him as well as for Christine. When Michael said he'd try to get the tape himself, Paul finally agreed to help him, buying time until he could talk to Christine. Meanwhile, Christine tried to persuade Glen Richards to drop the conspiracy case against Damon and Phyllis. She insisted that Dominic wasn't a reliable witness, and no jury was going to convict Damon for defending himself against his son's killer. Glen wasn't buying it and told Chris he'd see her in court.
Lily, still thrilled from seeing Malcolm, told her mother all about the meeting and about her idea to make Malcolm be her father's "Christmas present." Dru tried to talk her out of it, but Lily said that Malcolm had agreed. After scolding Lily for letting Devon do his shopping on his own, Drucilla tore out of the apartment, intent on finding Malcolm.
Olivia was surprised to see that Malcolm hadn't left town and extended her offer of a place to stay. Malcolm said he just needed to talk to Phyllis, who'd also offered her couch. As the two cozied up to each other in the office of Crimson Lights, Dru burst in, telling Malcolm that he couldn't interfere with her family Christmas. Olivia and Malcolm both told her how selfish she was being, but Dru wouldn't back off. Malcolm finally agreed not to come to the Winters' home for Christmas, but he said Drucilla would have to explain it to Lily. Olivia gloated to Dru that she'd make sure Malcolm had a great Christmas, one that even Drucilla couldn't ruin. After Dru left, Malcolm was walking Olivia out when he bumped into Adrian. He told Olivia he'd see her later, then he sat down to have a talk with his new friend. Adrian told him she was glad he'd decided to stay in town. Her meeting with her ex-husband hadn't gone so well, but she would probably stay in Genoa City for a while, too, because her ex wanted to talk. Malcolm was saddened to find out that Adrian had a son who was murdered.
Victor and Nikki had a talk about Bobby and Brittany. Nikki wanted to help make their Christmas special by spending money on them. Victor warned her that she wasn't going to make peace with her past by throwing money at Bobby. She'd do better to tell him the truth about shooting his brother. Nikki said she couldn't do that yet, but she promised to think about it.
Bobby made Brittany leave work to have a talk with him at the boutique. She kept trying to explain away her job there, but Bobby pressured her into admitting that she was trying to help them financially. He didn't like it, as he felt like he was supposed to be the provider, but Brittany told him it was only for a little while. Things would turn around for them soon. When she went back to work, Victor came in to buy a sweater for Cassie. After Brittany told him how different their holiday was going to be from a happy first Christmas planning their future, Victor slipped her a card with some money and told her to have a good Christmas. Brittany stared at the money as Victor walked out. Meanwhile, Bobby arrived home to find that Nikki had bought an expensive cashmere shawl for him to give to Brittany. Bobby declined her generosity, saying even if Brittany didn't know the source of the gift, he would. He told Nikki about a decision he'd made. He was going to sell the club because it was draining him financially and he couldn't make a go of it. After trying to talk him out of it, Nikki finally said she might have a buyer for him.
Bobby can't understand why Nikki would want to invest in a club that is in the red. She says that she is feeling the Christmas spirit and wants to help Bobby out. She offers him $100,000 to buy out the club. Bobby is shocked; he believes that there is more to the situation than Nikki wanting to help him out. He asks her what's been going on. She runs off saying that she doesn't want to talk about it.
Victor comes home after shopping for the family at the Boutique. He tells Nikki that he saw Brittany working there and gave her some money to buy something for Bobby. Nikki admits that she bought a gift for Bobby to give to Brittany but he wouldn't accept it. Victor thinks Nikki should stop blaming herself for Bobby's hardships. He can tell that it's taking a toll on Nikki. He gives her a special gift, a beautiful white fur coat. He asks her if she remembers, and she thinks about a Christmas years ago when he bought her a coat just like it. Victor says that he wants to spend every Christmas with her. Nikki agrees.
As Drucilla is giving gifts to Neil and telling him who they are for she spots a gift Neil bought for Malcolm. Neil says he's sad about it but will probably just open it himself. He wonders if the designer shoes he bought for Devon are giving Devon the wrong message. He only wants Devon to feel like part of the family, but he also doesn't want Devon to think that it's okay to be skipping class. Drucilla says that now is the time to get Devon interested in school subjects. If he ends up getting them funky presents, so be it.
Lily wonders why Devon hasn't bought any gifts yet. As he goes to get them coffee, Devon sees Andre, a boy he knows from a previous group home. Andre says that he's heard Devon is staying with some high rollers. Devon says his new family is a good one, but Andre teases him about how long Devon will be there. When Devon shows Andre the money the Winter's family gave him to buy presents, Andre says that he should meet him at the mall so they can buy things for themselves. When Lily wonders who the boy Devon was talking to is, Devon says that he has to go.
Ashley is ecstatic that Brad has brought Abby over for Christmas. When she asks him if he would like to stay, he says that he was planning on it. John gives Gloria a card and although there is no name on it, there is a return address. Suddenly, Jack says he has to leave. As Ashley decorates the tree, she wonders where her special holiday ornaments are. Gloria also leaves suddenly, saying she forgot that she has to go get John's medicine.
Kevin tries to get Michael into the Christmas spirit, but he is still set on being a Scrooge. He doesn't know how to snap out of the funk that he is in.
Lauren sees Jack at Fenmore's buying gifts and chats with him. She tells Jack that she is seeing Michael but she is disappointed because he is a Scrooge. Jack says that her situation is similar to John's new wife Gloria's. He says that he has planning to buy some ornaments and to invite Gloria's sons to share the holidays with them.
Lauren immediately calls Michael and warns him that Jack is coming over. When Michael hangs up, he wants to strangle Kevin as he goes and hides his name on the mailbox. When Jack knocks on the door and says that he can hear them, Michael disguises his voice and tells Jack to go away. As Jack gives up, he turns around and sees Gloria. Gloria is shocked, but pretends that she is there to thank her youngest son for sending the card. When she convinced Jack to leave, Gloria comes inside and takes all the ornaments. Michael can't believe that Gloria had the gall to steal the Abbots ornaments.
When Gloria returns to the Abbots she pretends to find the box in the dining room. Ashley is suspicious.
At the Winters' home, Dru tried to discourage Lily's excitement about Malcolm, saying that he might not come for Christmas Eve. When Neil got home, all of them began looking under the tree for their presents from Devon, but they couldn't find anything. When Devon came from his bedroom, he admitted that he hadn't bought any presents. He left the room, and the three of them blamed themselves for not understanding that he needed more guidance. But Devon came back laughing and opened a box to show them what he'd done. He'd made cookies at the rec center from a special recipe his grandmother taught him when he was a little boy. Those were his only happy memories from childhood, and he'd wanted to bring that to his new family. He gave the rest of the money back to Neil. They were all touched and said that he understood the meaning of Christmas. Later, as they opened presents, Drucilla listened as Neil sadly talked about how much he wished Malcolm was there. A little later, at Dru's urging, Olivia and Malcolm joined them for Christmas Eve. As Neil hugged his brother, Olivia thanked Drucilla for changing her mind and letting Malcolm be Lily's present to Neil.
Paul wanted to see Lauren at the boutique, but Sierra told him that Lauren had to visit a sick aunt who lived out of town. Paul and Christine had made a date to meet up later, but before Chris could leave the office, she saw Michael, who said that he was going to spend Christmas alone, working. He told her about the year before, when he'd gotten Victor out of jail on Christmas Eve. That night, he went by the Newman house and saw how the whole family put their differences aside to make it a happy Christmas for the kids. He'd known then that he would never be part of a family Christmas like that one. Christine sadly wished him a merry Christmas and left the office. Later, she ran into Victor at the boutique and asked him for a favor.
Mac came into the loft to find J.T. sitting alone. He told her that his parents were on a cruise. She invited him to spend the evening with her grandmother and her, but J.T. said he wanted to be alone. When she was gone, he spent the evening staring out the window at the snow falling and then playing the guitar. He finally leaned his head back, looking lonely and sad, then heard a knock in the door. When he went to open it, Colleen was standing there to wish him a merry Christmas. The two of them had a long talk and later stared out at the falling snow together.
Bobby and Brittany came into the Newman house at different times, each dazzled by the lights and decorations, and both hiding the presents they'd promised not to buy each other. Meanwhile, Michael, still working in his office, got a call from Victor, who said he needed to see him at once about a legal matter. When Michael wondered if it couldn't wait, Victor reminded him that he was on retainer. He wanted him to come to the ranch at once. When Michael arrived, Victor went upstairs to get a file. Noah got Michael to help him hang his Christmas stocking, then Cassie talked him into helping her retie a bow on a present. When Nikki came in to give him a cup of eggnog, Michael started feeling a little overwhelmed by all the Christmas cheer, especially after Sharon and Nick arrived and were friendly to him.
By the time Paul and Christine showed up at the Newman ranch with Kevin in tow, Michael began to figure out that he'd been set up. He went into the solarium, where Victor finally joined him, telling him that he wanted him to read a file out loud to the others. As Victor, Nikki, Bobby, Brittany, Kevin, Paul, Christine, Mrs. Chancellor, Nick, Sharon, and the kids gathered around, Michael read the account of how Scrooge was a changed man once he began believing in the good will of Christmas. Michael was moved to tears by the warmth being offered to him, and as Christine hugged him, he looked at Kevin, who mouthed "Merry Christmas" to him with a loving smile.
