Young & The Restless Update
Recap written by Christine
At The Grand Phoenix, Adam told Ashland he was making the right choice accepting the offer. Ashland stated that he had some terms, and Adam scoffed, saying that the Newmans would destroy Ashland if he didnât accept the offer. Adam revealed that he and Victor had terms. Ashland asked what Adam and Victor wanted in return. Adam said that Ashland would need to sign something relinquishing his claim to Newman Locke and get an annulment from Victoria. Ashland noted that they were asking him to get an annulment, not a divorce. Adam said that divorce only applied when the marriage was valid, which wasnât the case here, since Ashland fraudulently worked his way into Victoriaâs life. Once Ashland signed the paperwork, Victor and Adam would wire him the money. Ashland didnât trust the Newmans to keep up their end of the bargain. He wanted the money before he signed the agreement. Adam said the family wanted Ashland out, and they had no reason to screw him over. The Newmans knew what Ashland was capable of, and they didnât want to deal with him plotting revenge against them. Adam assured Ashland that heâd be paid as soon as he signed the papers. Ashland had something to do before he could make a decision.
Mariah and Tessa were at Crimson Lights. Chelsea was going to be designing their wedding outfits, and sheâd told them to check out thrift stores for inspiration. It was going to be 70s glam, but they wanted some nods to traditions. Mariah vetoed Tessaâs idea of matching white jumpsuits, because matching outfits seemed more like a Halloween thing to her. They went shopping, then they went home with a lot of clothes. Theyâd both secretly picked out some outfits for each other, and they decided to dress each other and see if they knew each otherâs style.
Mariah and Tessa had a little fashion show in a montage, and in the end, they collapsed onto the couch with their heads leaning against each other. They had fun, and they found a ton of inspiration for Chelsea to use. They chatted and both agreed Sharon would be the first person to cry at the party. Tessa was glad to have Mariahâs familyâs help planning. Tessa said it was going to be one hell of a party. Mariah asked if Tessa had thought about the vows. Tessa was thinking about them every waking moment. Mariah felt nervous, because she didnât think sheâd be able to come up with vows as good as Tessa, the songwriterâs. Tessa said every time Mariah spoke from the heart, it was the most beautiful thing Tessa ever heard. Mariah thought their love and the love around them would make this the most amazing day. Tessa said they didnât need a wedding to confirm their love. Mariah was still very excited to share their joy with the people they loved. They kissed.
Later, Mariah and Tessa were nestled together under a blanket. Tessa asked if it bothered Mariah that they hadnât focused on the adoption recently. Mariah still wanted to move forward with the adoption and asked how Tessa felt. Tessa still wanted a child too. Mariah and Tessa were in agreement that they couldnât work on the adoption process while planning a wedding. They were worried that a social worker would think they werenât taking things seriously if they didnât seem fully focused on the adoption. Tessa thought theyâd look like better candidates if they delayed things for a month or two. Tessa also had some shows planned and that would make things tricky. Mariah said sheâd handle things while her wife was touring. Tessa said she could handle some stuff from the road too. They agreed that they were going to move forward with a family, and Tessa said this was going to be the best year of their lives. They kissed.
At Society, Sally tried to chat with Lily, but got a cool response. Sally understood Lily was giving her the cold shoulder because sheâd donned a wig and kept an eye on Billy. She was hoping they could get past that though. Lily thought Sallyâs acts were better described as stalking and entrapment. Sally learned that it was better to stay on the up and up because her behavior reflected on Newman Media. She wanted to earn respect of Lily and the other moguls. Lily thought people would have a hard time taking Sally seriously while she was teamed up with Adam. Sally asked Lily what she could do wipe the slate clean. Sally figured she and Lily would be running in the same circles now that she was COO of Newman Media and Lily was running Chancellor. âYeah, Iâm not so sure about that,â Lily replied. Sally heard about the merger with Hamilton Winters, and she congratulated Lily. Sally was hoping they could get along, since they might do business together. Lily said that getting along and being friends was something that had to be earned. Lily was always willing to give someone a second chance, if they showed they deserved it. Sally accepted the challenge, and she wanted to work toward being friends. Lily told Sally to work her subtlety and left.
At his place, Billy struggled to come up with suitable material for his podcast. He thought about calling Victoria, but he stopped himself and called Nick instead. Billy was worried about Victoria and was thinking about trying to get through to her one last time. Nick told Billy to stay out of it and let the family handle it. He made it clear that he had no intention of letting Ashland get away with what heâd done to his Victoria. After the call ended, Billy remembered Lily encouraging him to try and contain his protective feelings toward Victoria. Billy did a podcast about the abuse of power and the collateral damage it caused. He acknowledged that heâd been afforded many privileges, as an Abbott, and some would say heâd abused those privileges, but heâd worked hard to change. He suggested that when he saw wrongdoing, it was a like a mirror reflecting his wrongs. It made him want to fight to protect the victims of power. He got enraged when he saw someone use their power to grab more and more, when they had plenty of money, a successful career and a loving wife.
Billy realized he couldnât release a podcast about Victoriaâs situation. He shifted gears and began to record something inspired by Jack and Dianeâs situation. He began to talk about liars who deceived people, destroyed lives and then weaseled their way back into peopleâs lives. It occurred to Billy that everyone would know who this podcast episode was about, too. Lily went home and told Billy she needed some wine after a run-in with Sally. She stated that Sally wanted to be her new best friend. He was glad when she assured him that she wasnât going to befriend Sally. She asked about his podcast. He said that he realized when he did the podcast, his listeners would understand the subject of his episodes. Heâd decided that he should do a podcast under a pseudonym.
Billy said that if he did the podcast anonymously, he could protect the people he loved, including her. Plus, as the COO of Chancellor, he couldnât be publicly trash-talking a bunch of people without risking a lawsuit. Lily saw the point, but she loved how personal and emotional the podcast about Delia was. He agreed. He said he could still focus on the things that moved him, and he could speak truth to power without it affecting him and the people he cared about. She called it very Bruce Wayne and Batman. He said he could use a harmonizer to change his voice. She thought it might be fun. He said he could say all sorts of things Billy Abbott couldnât, or shouldnât.
Billy played around with the harmonizer until he found an altered voice he liked. He began to record the podcast.
Sally went to Adamâs office with tapas to eat, but he said he couldnât even think of eating right now. Ashland wouldnât commit to the deal. Adam saw something in Ashlandâs eyes when Adam mentioned the annulment. He said it was like that bothered Ashland more than the prospect of losing Newman Locke. Sally suggested Ashland really did have feelings for Victoria. Adam didnât know how that was possible given what heâd done. Adam said the annulment wasnât the sticking point, because they got caught in a debate about the logistics of the deal. Ashland had said he had to find out one last thing before he made his decision. Adam didnât know what Ashland meant, but she thought it had something to do with Victoria.
Victoria was at Newman Locke. She flashed back to Ashland telling her that they could take the money Adam was offering and use it to start a new life together. She remembered the time Ashland gave her the portrait hanging in the office. It was a wedding gift, and a commemoration of the merger. Nick showed up and asked if Ashland was considering taking the deal Adam offered. Nick was sure Victoria was hurting, and he wanted to check on her. She was fine, and she didnât want pity. He didnât pity her; he was worried. She was upset that her family continued to doubt her and intervene after she repeatedly said she could handle this. She said she worked really hard to convince Ashland to set up Adam, then Adam went behind her back and made Ashland an offer. It made everything harder. Nick agreed that Adamâs motives were infuriating, but he said the blame for all this fell on Ashland. He said the family was grasping at straws trying to get Ashland out of their lives, and more importantly, away from Victoria. Victoria said she already had a solution, and she didnât need the familyâs input. Nick didnât care which plan worked as long as Ashland left. âIf Ashland is actually willing to sit down with Adam and talk terms, then maybe Adamâs plan is the best one we have,â Nick stated. Victoria couldnât believe Nick was siding with Adam. Nick wasnât doing that â he said they all wanted Ashland to disappear. Nick was sick of everyone treating Ashland with kid gloves and trying to gently lure him into a carefully laid plan. He decided to go handle Ashland himself. She ordered him not to.
Victoria said that if Nick got involved, it would just rile him up and not accomplish everything. Nick didnât like sitting on the sidelines. He was worried because he knew the longer it took to get Ashland out of their lives, the harder it was on Victoria. She said that if he confronted Ashland, it might just make Ashland dig in deeper. She was furious with Adam, but she said theyâd just have to let this play out. Nick was frustrated Victoria wouldnât let him help her through this. She said that wasnât his job. She stated that Ashland couldnât crush her, and she was stronger than they all thought. He knew how strong she was, but said this situation would be hard on anyone. He was concerned Ashland had dug himself so deep into the family that theyâd never get rid of him. Ashland came in and grumbled about the Newman brothers working overtime to protect their sister, when she could take care of herself.
Victoria asked Nick to leave so she could talk to Ashland. Nick griped that Ashland didnât care that he was tearing apart Victoriaâs relationships with her family. Ashland said Nick wouldnât have to deal with him much longer. âIâd better not,â Nick said. He left. Victoria told Ashland that heâd defused the situation with Nick. He asked if she was okay and if Nick upset her. She said it didnât matter. She wanted to know what happened with Adam. Before Ashland could accept the deal, he needed to know whether Victoria was willing to go away with him and start fresh. Victoria asked what the terms of the deal were. Ashland said he had to walk away from Newman Locke, and that was fine, but he also had to get an annulment that acknowledged their marriage was based on a fraud. She asked if he was willing to admit their love was a fraud. He said no, not if she loved him as much as he loved her. He was willing to get the annulment and cede control of the company, but he said his love for her couldnât be signed away. âDo you love me?,â he asked. She assured him that she did love him and that she was willing to leave all this behind for him. He sighed in relief and hugged her.
Billy recorded the podcast. He asked if absolute power corrupted and if the powerful whoâd been corrupted could be redeemed. As this played in a voice-over, Ashland was shown taking the deal and Adam was shown telling Sally the news. Adam and Sally kissed. Back at Newman Locke, Victoria stared off into the distance. Ashland walked up and put his arms around her. She turned and smiled, and they hugged, but when he couldnât see her face, her smile faded.
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