River City - 12/10/2010

Today is the arrival of the Brodie family to Shieldinch. It's a happy day and Leyla is excited about their new family home and the possibilities awaiting them. Little does she know that Michael is already keeping Gabriel-sized secrets from her. Michael visits Gabriel to ascertain whether he is definitely staying around this time and, unfortunately for him, he is. Before Michael has the opportunity to smooth the way with Leyla, she spots Gabriel and the secret is blown. Gabriel is all charm but Leyla struggles to contain her anger, only fully erupting when she is alone again with Michael. As they fight about Gabriel's presence and how long Michael has known about it, we see that this is a passionate relationship of two strong equals. Leyla eventually backs down and accepts Michael's assertion that Gabriel won't impact on their lives. Whilst it's probably true that Gabriel won't have much impact on them, the same cannot be said for Nicole and Conor, Michael's teenaged children from his first marriage. Not long after they turn up out of the blue, Michael is called away to see ex-wife Chloe, leaving Leyla in charge of a house move, three teenaged children and the snooping neighbours. But if Leyla thinks that's all the day has to offer her, worse is yet to come. Michael arrives back with the news that Chloe is moving abroad and they are going to have Conor and Nicole live with them full time. Leyla is horrified - she and Michael barely know each other as it is so how will they cope with the pressure of two more teenagers in the house? She warns Michael that she will be especially strict on Nicole. Listening in, Nicole texts Charlie for a date - there will be trouble ahead and she will enjoy every second of it. Meanwhile, Gabriel continues to enjoy winding up Fraser and bonds further with Stella by helping her get a job at The Oyster Cafe. Fraser sees a chance to strengthen his campaign against Gabriel by exploiting Deek's jealousy about Stella and Gabriel getting along. Fraser suggests they join forces as they each have their reasons for wanting to see Gabriel brought down. It's Hayley's first day in charge of her salon and she soon realises managing the finances is going to be stressful for her. She determines to get an accountant but Gordon points out she'll have to sack a member of staff to afford it. He's secretly hoping she'll pick Jack, but Hayley chooses to lose Charlie. Gordon knows that to earn the reconciliation he so desperately craves with Hayley, he'll have to make up with Jack. Gordon puts on a good show but slyly sows seeds of doubt in Jack's mind about how the relationship will suffer now Hayley is the boss. Gordon leaves Shieldinch happy that he has rattled Jack's cage yet bonded again with Hayley. Molly's nose is out of joint when she learns third-hand of Scarlett and Jimmy's baby-making plans. With genuine concern mixed in with spite, she warns Scarlett that women in her family go through the change early, so she's probably already too old to conceive. Jimmy has been worrying about the lack of romance between him and Scarlett. Some sage words from Gina encourage Jimmy to make an effort but after setting the scene for a romantic night in, he's confronted by Scarlett with a fact sheet about ovulation. Realising Scarlett isn't fertile for another week, they both agree they're very tired and are really quite happy to have a night off. Basking in marital bliss, Ruth is relaxed and happy. She calls into the surgery to introduce herself and chat to Michael about her mental health issues. Ruth, Michael and Leyla get along .