Rose is feeling the pressure of her work and personal lives colliding, and she’s quick to let Xander know how she felt about her late-night visit from Dana. She scolds him for discussing police business in public.
Wanting to build bridges, Xander sends Irene with a coffee as an olive branch, and she quickly sees the stress that Rose is under. Irene urges Rose to be objective, and suddenly she’s struck by a plan for a way forward.
Dana confronts Mali about Rose and the charges, inadvertently spilling the beans that it’s his girlfriend who’ll be deciding his fate. When Dana presses Mali again later, he’s clear that he won’t be intervening. He points out that Rose is going to do what she thinks is right and nothing he can say will change that, especially as they haven’t spoken for days.
Dana tries venting about Mali to Xander, but he lets her know he has heard about her hassling his sister, and he reckons she’s been hassling Mali, too. They fight, and when Xander has to walk away from her, it seems their friendship could be in jeopardy.
Mali and Harper continue to worry that Tane doesn’t seem interested in his legal fight ahead. While Harper and Dana are encouraging him to defend himself, Rose approaches and asks for a chat. He complies, and she asks him for the full story regarding Harper and Mali’s involvement. He tells her the truth, explaining that they talked him down and made him do the right thing.
When Rose sees them at the surf club, she lets them know she has made her decision – she won’t be pressing charges. Harper’s grateful, and things seem to thaw between Rose and Mali as well.
Relieved for her sister, Dana realises she may have overstepped and heads straight to Xander’s to apologise. Her apology is typically longwinded and teeming with contradictions, but ultimately earns her a kiss when Xander pulls her into a passionate embrace. Is this the start of something new for them?
