This Christmas, Marily is returning to her home in Jamestown, Oregon for the first time in five years. Previously, she had moved to Miami, completed her internship, and opened her own veterinary clinic with her boyfriend of two years, Miles. Miles is the only person Marily knows who is more driven than she is. However, this drive has also had a negative impact on their relationship, as they spend more time as business partners than as a couple. At the last minute, Miles decided not to accompany Marily to Oregon because he had too much work to do before Christmas. This decision may have made Marily realize that their relationship has finally come to an end. In Jamestown, Marily unexpectedly runs into her former firefighter boyfriend, Zachary, whom she thought would be away for Christmas like he had been in past years. While their shared work ethic brought Marily and Miles together, it was also this same work ethic that strained Marily's relationship with Zach, as Zach had always refused to change his life, especially his personal life. What initially brought them together was their mutual love for cats, particularly a reluctant stray cat they 'adopted' named Ambrose. Therefore, when Zach found a box of nine abandoned kittens outside the fire station, he gave up his Christmas holiday to take care of them, including finding suitable homes for them. Since the town's veterinarian recently retired, Marily volunteered to help Zach with this. During their time together, Marily and Zach openly admitted that there were still sparks between them, but Zach was unsure how to express to Marily that he had accepted the progression of his life. Events also included Fire Chief Sam's impending retirement and Miles' own thoughts on whether his and Marily's professional and personal relationship had truly come to an end.
