At Crimson Lights, Sharon tells Nick she can’t stop worrying about Mariah, who is throwing herself into work and shutting her and Tessa out. In a weird move to cheer her up, Nick relays that his father assigned him to buddy up to Cane. This doesn’t illicit a smile, especially when he explains they’re seriously concerned about Ashby.
At Newman Media, Chelsea learns Adam has launched the story revealing that Aristotle Dumas is Cane, and exposing Billy’s connection to him. She surprises Adam by saying that Billy’s involvement made him fair game. Adam doesn’t even have time to be relieved before Billy shows up to complain about him twisting the knife.
Adam reminds Billy that Cane is the focus of the story. Billy’s pissed off about the Cane part… it’s not a smart strategy to go after him. It’s reckless to attack his character and this will come back to bite all of them. Adam wonders if he’s acting as Cane’s mouthpiece… he knows he’d sell his soul to get his hands on his phony brother’s billions.
Billy accuses Adam of being so blinded by his hatred for him that he can’t see what a bad move this is. Adam needles about Billy’s various failures until Chelsea stops him. Billy tells her she’s sweet to stick up for him. Adam points out that the Abbott has no power or platform; he’s a yappy dog with nothing to back it up. Billy taunts that will make his victory lap even sweeter, and walks out. In a relatable moment, Chelsea declares that she hates everything about this.
Will Nick Kiss Sharon?
At Crimson Lights, Sharon’s freaked out by the Newmans being so intimidated by Cane. “What’s really the worst he could do?” she asks. Nick says he could get Chancellor. Sharon, like all of us, wonders how exactly. Nick admits he’s not sure, but ups the drama by warning that Ashby could come for Cassidy First. Sharon gushes about Nick looking out for her interests and then tells him she feels closer to him than she has in a while. Does he feel the same way? Nick decides to show her. He leans in for a kiss as Chelsea and Adam appear and interrupt.
Adam alerts Nick that the article about Cane being Dumas has dropped. Nick explains that Victor wants them to form an alliance with Cane. Adam wonders why he wanted the hit piece then. Nick says their dad must want a little “good cop, bad cop” action. Adam’s unsurprised that he’s the bad cop. He’s fine with that, but questions Victor being so intimidated by Ashby. Speaking for most of us, Chelsea announces that she’s sick of worrying about what Cane is up to. We feel ya’, girl!
Lily and Cane Showdown
On the train, Lily wants honesty from Cane, who lies that he just wants Chancellor. Lily doesn’t buy it. She has no issues with Victor and Nikki getting what they deserve, but knows he’s going for more. She warns him not to lie, or she’ll tell the kids everything about Colin. Ashby can’t believe she’s serious and warns trashing his father isn’t the way to get what she wants from him. Lily reiterates that until she has the whole story, all bets are off.
