Recap: 'Tis the Season for Mama Drama - Episode 4

Blexford, 15 years ago:

A young Kate is upset when her mother, Delilah, decides to stay in the Bahamas instead of spending Christmas with her. Her father, Mac, tries to console her, but Kate can’t understand why he isn’t angrier about her mom’s absence.

Present day:

Delilah now tries to reconnect, but Kate brushes her off, saying she’s too busy.

Later, Kate heads to The Pear Tree to apologize to Laura and Callum for her behavior. They forgive her easily until Delilah suddenly walks in. When she casually mentions catching Kate and Richard kissing, Kate bolts out of the café, leaving Laura fishing for details and Callum insisting he stays out of Kate’s love life.

Outside, Kate runs into Richard and awkwardly wonders if it’s strange that they’re continuing with the 12 Dates program. Drew then reveals that Date #8 is all about self-reflection.

Meanwhile, Delilah pays a visit to Mac.

Laura checks in with Callum about his breakup with Sara. He admits he’s not sure why they were together in the first place. Laura notices a flyer for The 13 Dates of Christmas and keeps it in mind.

At the next ‘date’ event, Kate stands before a mirror, talking to herself as she tries to work through her feelings. She then heads into a rage room, smashing props to vent her frustration. Drew encourages her to tell her mother how she truly feels if she wants to move forward but Kate refuses.

Elsewhere, Mac joins Evelyn’s book club… only to find Delilah there too.

At work, Kate’s boss criticizes her latest design, calling it too aggressive. Deflated, Kate begins to doubt herself again.

Back at book club, Delilah hijacks the discussion, spinning her own over-the-top stories of romance. Evelyn tries to steer things back on topic, but Mac and Evelyn’s recent getaway steals the room’s attention. When the group starts imagining a romance between Evelyn and Mac, Evelyn cuts the meeting short in frustration.

Mac runs after her to ask when the next meeting will be, but Evelyn questions his motives for joining in the first place. He concedes she’s probably right, hands back the book, and leaves. Later, Evelyn notices the pages filled with his handwritten notes and feels guilty for pushing him away.

At The Pear Tree, Laura shows Drew the 13 Dates of Christmas flyer and tells her she already called to shut them down. Drew is grateful and admits she’s struggling to find a venue for the next event. Laura gets an idea of how she can help.

That night, Kate talks with Richard on the phone about their next date, unaware that Delilah is eavesdropping. Kate catches her mother opening Richard’s gift and firmly ushers her out of the room.

Laura tells Callum that Drew needs a location and suggests hosting the next date event at The Pear Tree. Kate loves the idea and jokes that Callum could be her “date,” since she has to bring a single friend. Callum agrees.

On the café patio, Callum reminisces about his mother’s memorial service and how Kate was there to comfort him.

Kate and her dad keep their annual Christmas tea tradition, but she can’t resist grilling him about Evelyn. Mac fires back, asking about her string of dates. They agree that Delilah’s visit has stirred up old wounds. Kate flashes back to a Christmas tea years earlier, when her mother was absent and Mac taught her proper tea etiquette; it’s one of their most cherished memories.

When they arrive for tea this year, they’re both stunned to see Delilah waiting at their table.

Back at The Pear Tree, Callum gives Evelyn some gentle advice about opening her heart to Mac. But Evelyn flips it around, calling him out for not taking his own advice when it comes to his feelings for Kate.

At tea, tension simmers. Kate throws subtle jabs at her mom about never being around, saying they’ve done fine without her. Delilah is clearly hurt.

Later, Kate apologizes to Mac for the scene, but he understands. He tells her he’s grateful to Delilah for one thing: the gift of Kate. Still, Kate admits she’s angry and knows her unresolved issues with her mother affect her relationships.

That evening, Kate arrives for Date #9 at The Pear Tree, where Callum is her “plus one.” Instead of focusing on her own love life, she decides to play matchmaker for him. Drew compliments Laura’s event planning, while Kate pitches potential matches for Callum. He politely declines them all.

Delilah unexpectedly shows up at the event. Kate makes it clear she’s not welcome, but Delilah opens up, saying when Kate canceled their New Year’s plans, she realized her daughter might not need her at all and it left her feeling empty.

Callum encourages Kate to let her mom back in, and Kate reluctantly tells Delilah they’ll talk later.

Trying to distract herself, Kate resumes pitching dates for Callum, rattling off all his best qualities. He listens for a while before quietly saying he still remembers their kiss. Then he asks when they became a joke to her.

Kate flashes back to the night Callum told her he loved her and how she panicked and ran off. When she returned, she saw him kissing someone else.

In the present, she finally confronts him about it. Callum defends himself, saying he thought she’d rejected him.

Meanwhile, Delilah shows up at Mac’s workshop with a bottle of whiskey. She tells him she made some progress with Kate and asks if there’s anything he needs to get off his chest. Mac simply says he wants her to stop hurting their daughter.

Back at The Pear Tree, Kate demands to know if Callum really meant it when he said he loved her. His answer is a kiss, slow and certain. Then he walks away, leaving Kate stunned in the courtyard as her phone rings. It’s Richard calling.