Victoria Reveals Her True Feelings About Victor’s Actions — and Nick Nearly Decks Adam

At Crimson Lights, Chloe is on the phone about a late fabric delivery when Sally walks in. Chloe disconnects and joins her. Chloe can tell something is wrong and tries to get it out of her by saying she looks like she lost her best friend. Sally thinks she did lose her best friend, she’s just not sure which one.

At Society, Nick’s drinking at the bar when Adam walks in. He greets his brother and then asks, “Have you heard anything about Dad? I’m worried about him. He called me Nicholas at the office.” Nick snaps that he doesn’t see the severity of the problem. Adam tells him their father could be in mentally in trouble. “Sorry, I thought you might care about things like that.” Nick stands up and fumes, “You know what I care about? Not hearing one more word from you.” Adam asks why he’s so pissed off. Nick doesn’t want to have a brotherly conversation with him. “You’ve managed to screw up pretty much every aspect of my life, and I’m done!”

Adam asks Nick what’s gotten into him. Nick tells him he has and says he’s lucky he’s not punching him in the face right now. He orders his brother to stay away from him. Adam guesses he’s not going to tell him what he did, so he’ll just finish his drink. Nick tell him to shut up and says he wants nothing to do with him anymore.

At Newman, Nikki asks Victor why he’d call Adam by Nicholas’ name on purpose. He says, “It was a joke, you know?” Nikki doesn’t think he found it amusing. Victor complains the kids think they can outmaneuver him, and they’ve got another thing coming. Nikki doesn’t like the sound of this. Victor grumps that Victoria walks around as if nothing has happened and he knows she’s seething that he’s stepped back in. Nikki points out he demoted her. Victor asks, “What do you think she’s going to with his anger?” Adam, he complains, is walking around smiling after picking up Nate’s dry cleaning, “I don’t know who I can trust.” Nikki insists he can trust their daughter, Nicholas, and her.

Victor runs down the issues with his children and then adds, “In the middle of it all is Nate Hastings. I’m beginning to have the feeling I can trust him, that he’s loyal.” Nikki isn’t so sure — if he stabbed Lily and Devon in the back, why wouldn’t he do it to Victor? Victor knows one of them will try to betray him from the inside. Nikki advises him to fire Nate and Adam, and then maybe Nick will change his mind and return to the company. “Unless, of course, you’ve decided you can’t trust him either. Am I on your watchlist as well?” Victor trusts her implicitly. Nikki asks, “But not our daughter?” This time, she thinks he’s off the mark. Victor has always watched his back and tells her there’s nothing for her to worry about. He’ll be watching them all very carefully from now on. He deeply hopes Victoria won’t be the one to plunge the knife into his back. Nikki doesn’t understand what’s happening to him. Victor has reason to believe someone is out to stab him in the back and his suspicions have always been justified in the past. He doesn’t trust them. They are all interested in getting a hold of this empire. As long as he lives, no one will take over!

At the coffee house, Sally balks at the idea of unloading her drama on Chloe and warns, “You’re not going to like what you’re going to hear.” She tells her, “Adam kissed me.” She explains how it happened after their dinner together. Chloe snarks, “That’s Adam, never a missed opportunity.” Sally hasn’t been able to think straight since then. Chloe asks, “What about Nick?” Sally says she blew it. She felt guilty and confessed and he didn’t take it well. Sally thought she was in love with him, but it took her so long to say it, when she did, he had a hard time believing it. Chloe asks her to stop being hard on herself. She’s sure Nick will come around. Sally’s not so sure, “He thinks I still have unresolved feelings for Adam.” It doesn’t matter what she feels because Nick doesn’t trust her anymore, “And now I don’t know if I trust myself.”

Nick sits on a park bench, fuming, and Adam walks up. Nick gawps, “What are you doing?!” Adam wants to know if this is still about him kissing Sally. He’s apologized. Nick rants about him not being able to control himself and turns to walk away. Adam grabs him and they nearly come to blows. Adam promises to keep his distance from now on. Nick tells him he’s a disgrace. As he leaves, Victoria appears.

Victoria’s not surprised to see her brothers going at it. Adam says Nick’s out of control, but in this case it’s not totally unwarranted. Victoria’s not interested in refereeing and suspects that Nick’s not buying his turnaround anymore than she is. Adam says his issue with Nick is personal. Victoria apologizes for jumping to conclusions. Adam’s thrown by her saying she’s sorry.

At the coffee house, Chloe tells Sally she simply has to go to Nick and convince him she’s sincere. Sally asks, “What if Nick is right? What if I can’t love him the way he needs me to?” Chloe reminds her she said she loves Nick and Adam is in the rearview mirror. She just has to prove it to Nick. Sally recalls loving two boys in grade school, “I knew I loved them both.”As a grown-up you’re supposed to know your heart. Chloe advises her to listen to her heart, “I know what it’s going to tell you, it’s Nick.” Sally asks, “What if it tells me something completely different.”

Nick bellies up to the bar at the Club and thinks about Sally. He recalls both the beginning and the end of their relationship. Nick next flashes to warning Adam to stay away from Sally and his brother apologizing. He recalls defending Sally to his father, who warned him if he chose that woman over his family he would live to regret it.

In the park, Victoria tells Adam she told their father she’d give him a chance, hence the apology. Nate has convinced her that she should consider his accomplishments before writing him off. Adam asks if she’s noticed anything odd about their father. She asks if he’s noticed something. Adam says he called him Nicholas and didn’t even know he did it. Normally, he owns every move he makes. Victoria says, “You’re not wrong.” Adam marvels. An apology and an acknowledgement in one day. Once alone, Victoria pulls out her phone and calls Nick wanting to meet.

At Newman, Nikki hates when Victor shuts her out, thinking he’s doing it for her own good. Victor needs her to be patient, eventually, he’ll tell her everything. He knows he can trust her to keep her suspicions to herself. “Whatever happens, however this unfolds, you’ve got to trust me.”

At the coffee house, Sally hates that she still has feelings for Adam, but is sick of pretending she doesn’t. “I do still have feelings for Adam, Nick is right.” Chloe thinks this is all about Adam getting what he wants, “Don’t be fooled by him, Sally.” Sally doesn’t know what to think. Chloe feels she does, but she doesn’t want to think it. She was married to Billy and knows firsthand how difficult it is to get bad boys out of your system. She can have feelings for Adam without acting on them, “You’re going to do everything possible to fumigate him from your system, correct?” Chloe refuses to believe Sally and Nick can’t figure this out. He’s an amazing man who would never do anything to hurt her. She reminds Sally they just launched a business together. Sally groans. Chloe tells her Adam brings her nothing but pain. She needs to go to Nick and tell him she’s ready to let go of the past, “But you have to do it now.” Just then, Adam walks in.

Adam asks Sally what’s going on with Nick, who nearly punched him earlier. Chloe asks them to let them finish their conversation. She tells Sally that if Nick’s angry, it means he still cares. “There’s still a chance, so go do what you need to do.” Sally sighs that she’s supposed to be focusing on her company, “If I even still have a company.” She gets up to leave and Adam asks to help or go somewhere to help. Sally tells him those days are over and walks out.

Victoria joins Nick at the Club and tells him he looks like hell. He asks what’s up. She asks about his tiff with Adam, but he doesn’t want to get into it. Victoria says she has more confirmation that something is wrong with their dad. Nick groans, “This again?!” Victoria says, “Dad called Adam by your name and then he claimed that he didn’t and then he got mad at Adam for pointing it out.” Nick’s unimpressed, “Why can’t you just let this go. Dad demoted you and he took your place. It’s not a sign of diminished capacity.” Nick reminds her he’s been demoting and disowning his whole life. She can either deal with it or walk away.

Victoria’s sick of his accusations and wonders if Nick has ever thought for one minute that Dad may not be up to this challenge he’s taken on. “You know there’s no real justification for him coming back.” Nick argues he was watching his company fracture. Victoria disagrees; it’s stronger than it’s ever been. Him coming back to take control of his company is not a symptom of him losing his mind. Victoria fumes that he’s a human being who is aging, “Dad is in a crisis! Even if you refuse to see it.” Nick says there’s nothing to see. Victoria asks if he can live with it if he’s wrong and does nothing.

Nikki walks into Newman Media and Claire startles her. She apologizes and Nikki gratefully notices she made her tea. Claire pours her a cup and asks if everything is OK. Nikki says it’s just family issues. Claire tells her she’s a very good listener if she ever needs one. They discuss the dynamic personalities of Nikki’s children and Claire says how much she admires Victoria. Claire advises, “Stop worrying about the potholes in the road and enjoy the journey, even when it’s rocky. My great aunt likes to say that.” Nikki says, “She’s taught you well.” Claire muses, “Yes, she has.”

At Crimson Lights, Chloe tells Adam she’s sick of watching him ruin people’s lives. Adam chides, “Maybe you should try shooting me again.” Chloe sniffs, “Too busy,” and leaves. Sharon appears and asks Adam, “Oh, for God’s sake. What have you done now?!”

Sharon hopes that was not about Sally. Adam asks why it’s so insane that he wants a future with her. Sharon says, “Because she’s with Nick.” She warns him he has to leave it alone. Adam says something has happened with Nick and Sally. Nick almost decked him earlier and he’s guessing it has to do with Sally. Sharon tells him it’s not an opening for him; it’s time to walk away. Adam can’t promise that. “I believe that Nick and Sally are finished. Their relationship is over. Sally and I belong together, it’s inevitable.” Sharon marvels, “Wow. You really don’t care who you hurt, do you?”

In the park, Sally pleads with Nick’s voicemail for him to call her back. This can’t be the end, “We can get through this.”

At the ranch, Nick is taking out his frustrations on the punching bag when Victor comes in. “Son. Talk to me.”

At Newman, Victoria walks into the big office and looks at Victor’s portrait. She sits in the CEO chair and looks at the portrait again, as well as a framed photo of her and her dad. She walks over and picks it up and then smashes it on the floor.