When Nell begins courting John Worthington (Brian James), Joe is very protective of her. In the end, he sees John loves her and gives the couple his blessing. Joe walks his mother down the aisle on their wedding day. After Nell and John move to England, Joe moves in a lot of his furniture and bonds with Nell's dog Bouncer. Joe receives a shock when his ex-wife Noeline makes a reappearance with Toby (Finn Greentree-Keane), who is now nine. Noeline leaves Toby with Joe, who takes a while to get used to being a father and initially sees Toby as soft. However, Joe eventually warms to Toby. When Noeline arrives to collect Toby, Joe is sad to see him leave. When Toby accidentally spills ketchup on Joe, Ted Vickers (John Jacobs), Noeline's new husband and Toby's stepfather, lunges to strike Toby, but is stopped by Joe who threatens him. Joe is horrified when Toby reveals Ted has been beating both himself and Noeline. After Joe comes to the rescue of his ex-wife and their son, he and Noeline work out an understanding between them.