When Heather stops by Daniel’s place with coffee, she tells him that the apartment he found for her and their daughter is perfect. When she mentions she didn’t bring coffee for Lily, he explains she had to leave town suddenly. They talk about Mattie escaping the fire, but she was very close to a mentor who lost their life. He can’t help thinking what it would be like if Lucy had to deal with something like this. It reminds him of all the times he wasn’t there for her. Telling Daniel that he is there for her now, Heather takes his hand. He thanks her for being so supportive when she could be angry at him for how he spiralled out in Savannah.
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Heather says she’s inspired by how Daniel has moved on and become an even better man that he was. They need to put that pain and hurt behind them. That sounds good to him. All his hard work changing is worthwhile but he will never forgive himself for how he treated her and Lucy. She’s sure his daughter has already forgiven him. Looking out the window, he tells her that his father urged him never to waste a moment. She thinks his dad is a wise man and asks if he shared his sauce recipe. Annoyed Daniel jokes that his dad doesn’t seem to think making every moment matter applies to spaghetti. They laugh about that.
Heather tells Daniel she’s picked up the keys to her new place and will be moving in soon. He offers to help but she says they don’t have much stuff. Daniel hopes that their daughter is as bossy with her about her room as she was with him. They talk about Lucy’s flair for design and who she got it from before Heather breaks the news that she will be starting work at Chancellor-Winters soon. He tells her that she can always count on him. Heather asks him to lunch.
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At Crimson Lights, Nate and Devon hope that their working together will pan out this time. Devon asks his cousin to look at some portfolios and give them some big idea thinking. He also wants to introduce him to someone they hired away from a competitor. Nate appreciates the confidence he is showing in him. Devon may need him to step up more while Lily is out of town. His cousin continues to thank him. It feels good to be back in the family and the company. It is also a relief to be out of Newman where you always have to watch your back. Things cool off when Victoria wanders in. She and Nate exchange glances and he promptly announces he’s leaving for the office. On the way out, he politely acknowledges Victoria and exits. She turns to Devon and tells him she’s relieved to see that tensions have eased between him and Nate. He confirms that his cousin is back at the family company. For what it’s worth, Victoria is sure that Nate actually had her father’s best interests at heart. The rest of her family is wrong about him. Cole wanders over and she makes introductions.
Once Devon is gone, Victoria asks Cole how things went at the lake house. He says it was like stepping back into a living hell. He found a hairbrush and toothbrush in Claire’s room to get a DNA sample. This is all crazy to Victoria. She’s been an emotional wreck. Her mind has been racing as she’s thought about the chance that Claire could really be their baby. He says they will get her help either way — she doesn’t deserve what Jordan has done to her. Victor wants to help her even if all of this has been a lie. They know the answers will bring more questions. He’s haunted by what happened all those years ago and the hole in her heart never healed. It would be a miracle if they never actually lost her. Cole is sorry for how hard this might be on her. She says they can be there for each other.
Michael walks in and tells them that he met with Claire. He can see why they are both so conflicted. It’s hard for him to reconcile the scared, traumatized girl he met with the person accused of the things she is. They talk about what a nightmare this is and how it seems to have paralyzed Claire. The lawyer is sure that she needs psychiatric care, not a jail cell. Cole wonders how much of what happened was coercion and grooming. Michael says a judge will have to decide that. He agrees to take the case as long as the two of them are on board. This will be a commitment, financial and otherwise. The DNA may clear up some things, but will it change how they feel about helping Claire? Victoria and Cole still can’t wrap their heads around this but think this young woman needs a defense. Michael agrees to that. They will put all the blame on Jordan. He knows how parents can warp young minds so this is personal for him — anyone who hurts a kid that way should pay dearly.
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Nikki returns to her office at Newman Media. Audra is relieved to see her after hearing about her seizure. The boss bluntly tells her there was no seizure and refuses to discuss it or Claire. Sitting at her desk, she explains that Claire is gone. “That girl is a psychopath,” she says, explaining that she and her aunt attempted to kill her family. Audra has to sit down before asking why. She’s amazed that go-getter Claire fooled them all — she had a sense that something was not quite right but didn’t suspect this. When she offers to hold the fort if Nikki needs time off, the boss says she needs a distraction.
Nikki prompts Audra to fill her in on what’s been happening. As Audra runs down the list, Nikki flashes back to being trapped in the lake house and drinking. Eventually, she snaps out of it, but barely. As Audra goes on about celebrity blogs, Nikki gets distracted and admits it will take some time for her to get past this. She gets furious thinking about how vulnerable her family was in the hands of Claire and her aunt. Audra can understand that but sometimes things get out of control and she’s sure she will get back to her old self again. She suggests they grab some lunch but her boss doesn’t want to be out in public. Assuring her that it’s okay to lean on someone even if you are Nikki Newman, Audra takes off, promising to bring her back a salad.
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The second she’s gone, Nikki whips her flask out of her purse and takes a few gulps. Audra soon returns with salad in a bag and the boss tells her she’s not sure she can make it through the full day. Assuring her that she can look after everything, Audra suggests she go home and recover. Nikki promptly exits.
When Nikki gets to the ranch, she calls for Victor. There’s no answer so she pulls out her flask. Before she can refill it, she starts drinking from the bottle. Suddenly, she hears Victoria calls out for her.
Devon stops by Society and Abby immediately guesses something is up. He admits it’s Nate’s official first day back at the company. She thought he could use the extra help with Lily out of town. He thought that too until Victoria showed up and now he’s worried about what that situation is doing to his cousin’s mind when they need him to be focused. Abby hopes he’s not thinking that re-hiring his cousin was a mistake. After she hands him a café au lait, they go over what happened with Nate at Newman and how things are still fraught between Nate and Victoria.
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Heather and Daniel come into Society for lunch. They have some small talk with Devon and Abby about her move and how smoothly it’s going. Devon officially welcomes her to the company. The lawyer is feeling a lot more balanced and settled than she has in a long time. She’s discovered what really centers her and thanks Daniel for giving her the right reasons to come back. She feels like she’s in the right place at the right time.
Abby shows them to a table and Heather tells Daniel that she should be starting work any day now. He tells her he could use her legal expertise. She warns that she’s not a loophole lawyer and starts quoting lines from his video game. This impresses him. They joke around and she swears she couldn’t put his game down. That means a lot to Daniel. He’s proud the game has taken off in ways he never could have imagined. Lily calls and he walks off to take it, leaving her to sigh.
At the bar, Devon notices that Abby is staring at Heather. She claims she’s just thinking about how good it is for Daniel to be close to his daughter again. “When did you say Lily is coming home again?” she asks. He’s not sure. Abby glares at Heather and says she thinks Daniel is going to be missing Lily a lot.
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Next on The Young and the Restless: Danny receives a tempting invitation from Phyllis.
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