“Well, don’t just stand there; you’re allowed to hug,” Brad says, as Rachel stares at Henk in disbelief. “He’s a changed man, isn’t he? He’s all ‘Mr Casual’ these days,” he goes on, so pleased to see his old friend that he’s managed to blind himself to the steely tension now dominating the room. Worse still, Brad seems determined to push the pair together, first suggesting that Henk stays with Rachel while he’s in town (an obligation from which she thankfully manages to free herself), then trying to get them both to a specially arranged dinner. Little does he know that Rachel’s doing everything she can to make sure she never has to breathe the same air as Henk, let alone share a meal with him. Of course, that’s easier said than done in a place like Summer Bay, and it’s not long before she’s faced with an apology. But Henk’s attempts to convince him of his miraculous rebirth - from a corporate, drug-taking high-flier, he's now an uncomplicated, sober, Buddhist convert – just don’t wash. She may, for Brad’s sake, have decided to keep quiet until after the wedding, but one thing’s certain: she’s not about to forget the dark side of Henk Van Patten in a hurry. Too close for comfortMuch to Rachel’s dismay, not everyone shares her opinion of newcomer Henk. While Cassie goes positively doe-eyed over the man she immediately sizes up as the Bay’s newest dish of the day, Martha finds in Henk a willing confidante when it comes to talking over their shared experiences of unhappy marriages. “You’ve been married already? And the fool left you?” Henk asks, as he sets about helping Martha with some heavy lifting at the Surf Club. But, as Martha asks hopefully, does life go on? “Yeah, eventually. Usually when you find someone else to help take your mind off it,” Hugh offers. Evidently, it’s an idea that holds a certain appeal for Martha, who’s trying to come to terms with not only the idea of Jack and Sam living in her former marital home – which, with a few of her own interior design flourishes, is beginning to look much like it once did before – but also seeing the pair of them so happy in each other’s company. So it’s little wonder that, having stumbled across their romantic picnic on the beach (especially given her own failings as a picnic-goer), Martha does all she can to prove she’s moved on, even if it means grabbing an unwitting Henk for a kiss.It’s just a shame he’s not quite so willing to reciprocate. “I’m just not on the market at the moment,” he later explains, having by now been warned off all Summer Bay women by an understandably concerned Rachel. Still, one thing Martha does have to offer, if not a relationship, is a spare room – and, provided the occupant-to-be isn’t Matilda, she proves only too willing to share it. But, Henk having kept all of this under the radar, Rachel is far from pleased when she sees him leaving Martha’s apartment early the next morning and jumps to all the wrong conclusions. Well, you’ve got to go with the odds.Three tiers for Colleen

Fear not, life in Summer Bay isn’t all doom and gloom. In between working at the diner and stirring up trouble as only she knows how, Colleen’s managed to find the time to put her wooden spoon to good use elsewhere; unbeknownst to everyone, including the happy couple, she’s been investing time – and a whole lot of sherry – into preparing a wedding cake for Brad and Sally’s big day. Just to be on the safe side, she’s decided to have her masterpiece of a cake professionally iced, and can barely contain her excitement as she prepares for her trip to Yabbi Creek to see the finished product.

It falls to new driver Cassie to do the honours of driving her over there, with Alf riding shotgun to make sure the operation runs smoothly – which it does, until it comes to the return journey. “Careful! I don’t want your bony appendages poking my floral bouquet,” Colleen snaps, as she jostles for room in the front of Alf’s ute. Unfortunately, Alf’s appendages (ooh-err) soon become the least of her worries; when Cassie hits the brakes to avoid another car, Colleen’s traditional three-tiered marvel of cake is given a rather abstract twist as it goes from three tiers to one. And although Leah later comes to the rescue by fixing it, with the aid of a few reams of ribbon, it’s not enough to protect it from a little more accidental damage. As Colleen arrives back at the caravan park, cake in hand, the shock of running into Brad and having him set eyes on the surprise has her jumping out of her skin – and sees the much-abused cake plummeting to the ground.

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