Diane Receives a Cryptic Text Message — and Summer Confronts Kyle About His Secret-Keeping

At the Abbott estate, Traci tells Kyle that a hometown wedding reception will be super romantic. She guesses he’s trying to keep this a surprise for his bride. They change the topic to hockey as Summer walks in. She immediately guesses they are covering something up and ask what’s really going on. Summer assumes it’s about the article. Kyle is clueless. Traci makes an excuse and takes off. His wife shows him the article. He’s sure his mother is mortified.

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Nick sits by Adam at the bar on the GCAC rooftop. He asks about his new job at Jabot and Adam asks how he’s doing. His brother gruffly claims he’s fine. Adam isn’t being polite; he’s actually concerned about how he’s coping. “I’ll get through it. I know it won’t happen overnight,” Nick says. His brother encourages him to talk to someone. Sighing, Nick says that he’s not a kid and he’s not blocking any memories. Adam urges him to get Sharon to recommend someone he can process this with.

That’s not something Nick is ready for. He doesn’t feel like rehashing what happened with a stranger. His brother warns that the longer he leaves it, the stronger his demons will get. Adam would hate for Nick to wind up like him.

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Chloe walks into Sally’s office to get her signature on some paperwork. Sally brings up her meddling with Adam. Her friend senses that he is reeling her in again and accuses Adam of driving a wedge between them. Sally says all he wants is forgiveness. That doesn’t go over well with Chloe. Her friend asks her to set aside her prejudices. Sally doesn’t see Adam being evil, just lost. “He’s damaged goods. He doesn’t know how to be a normal person,” Chloe says. Chelsea thought she could fix him and look at how that ended. Sally reminds her of how badgering Chelsea about Adam nearly cost them their relationship. “I am your friend. Adam is not,” Chloe tells her.

Chance and Abby are at Chancellor Park for a picnic. He tells her how wonderful all her plans are and she delights him with her menu. As she opens the basket, she notices that she’s accidentally brought what she packed for Dominic. That means the nanny is off with the vintage wine and baguette she packed. They laugh about that. He offers her a goldfish cracker from the basket and she tells him how cute he is. They kiss and he thanks her for always looking out for them. He feels blessed to have her as a wife. They are beyond good now and he’s moved beyond his moral quandary.

Chance and Abby go back to their room and have sex. After that, they lounge around and talk about having a normal life focused on each other. Once they romp around some more, she admits she’d like him to take less risky cases. She worries about him when he’s at work. He’s not neglecting her but she feels that the more they prioritize their family, the happier they will be.

In the Crimson Light patio, Nikki, Phyllis, and Talia talk about the article on Diane. They think it’s perfect and Morgan’s a wonderful writer. Phyllis is sure this will wake everyone up to who Diane really is. She’ll be under the public microscope now and that will be brutal. Diane will crumble because she won’t be able to deal with the judgment. Talia tells them the response has been phenomenal and people are calling in with tips. Who knows where this could lead? Just then, her managing editor sends a shocking text informing Talia the entire series is canceled and there will be no more stories about Diane Jenkins.

At Jabot, Diane gets a text from someone saying, “Future articles killed. You owe me.” She’s looking stunned when Jack finds her. She tells him about the story, but he’s already seen it. She complains it only shows the outdated half of her life, not her redemption. Jack points out that no spin will alter the cruelties that she committed. She doesn’t see what good concentrating on her past does now. This is just about publicly humiliating her. She’s sure that Phyllis and Nikki are behind this and it’s not fair.

They go into his office and he points out she keeps framing herself as a victim when she claims she came back to make amends. She worries about what this will do to Kyle. It could undermine the progress they have made. Jack urges her to be thoughtful about how she responds. She worries her co-workers will think the worst of her. After he encourages her not to let this derail her, she thanks him and walks out.

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In the hall, she runs into Phyllis, who taunts her about the article. She keeps needling Diane, who insists she has made peace with her past and nothing will throw her off her game. Whatever explosion the redhead is trying to trigger will fail. Phyllis claims she doesn’t obsess over her and is just glad the world knows what a vile person she is and always has been. After Phyllis stalks off, Diane nearly bursts into tears as Kyle steps off the elevator.

She and her son sit down and discuss the article. She tells him how hard she has worked to put the person she was behind her. None of the fears he and Jack have had about her have come to pass. Her son assures her he can distinguish between the woman in the article and the one she is today. Whatever the fallout may be, she will have his support. Holding hands, she thanks him.

Kyle heads to Jack’s office and corners Phyllis. He tells her about the party he’s planning and explains his mother will be part of it. He offers to keep their interactions to a minimum — he knows it’s hard for her to be around Diane. She tells him she’s been working through it and has it all under control. Jack arrives as they talk about textiles. She’s thrilled they like her ideas so much. After Kyle exits, Jack and Phyllis talk about the celebration plan. They’re glad their kids are doing so well. He asks how much she had to do with the article. “I had nothing to do with it!” Phyllis claims.

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Nick stops by the ranch and tells his mom he was hoping they could talk. Assuming she knows what this is about, she offers to make them some tea and assures him all will be alright. Once they sit down, she tells him that when there’s been a death, you tend to focus on the emergency. As everyone else goes back to normal, you feel like you can’t and the guilt starts to eat away at you. What would it mean for him to let the burden go? It would let him relax and focus on his job. He admits that part of him is clinging to the guilt as a kind of penance. On top of everything else, he feels guilty for judging Adam so harshly when he learned he killed that man years ago. He reacted the same way in a comparable situation. Now he’s in a personal disaster and Adam has gone out of his way to be supportive. “Really?” Nikki asks in shock. This has made it clear to him why Adam is the way he is and why he’s so reluctant to get close to anyone.

Adam finds Sally sitting in the park. He doesn’t want to put any pressure on her; that’s why he hasn’t made any romantic gestures. But he hopes she’s thought of what he said to her. “Of course I have. I can’t stop,” she admits. He’s been a huge distraction. She doesn’t even know what forgiveness would look like. He says she can define it however she’d like. Sally assumes it would only lead to him making another unilateral move that upends her whole world. This isn’t something she can deal with today and walks off.

Kyle returns to the Abbott estate and calls someone to make arrangements for the part. Summer strolls in so he gets off the line. She’s realized he’s up to something and demands that he “spill”. The only thing he will say is that he’s planning a surprise. They kiss.

At Jabot, Phyllis suggests that Marchetti Home could redecorate Jack’s house for a photo shoot. He points out that he loves that house as it is. Phyllis teases him about the chairs being from the paleolithic era. Jack agrees to the shoot as long as everything is put back afterward. Phyllis replies, “Okay, sure. We can do that.” They get to joking about how he’s always been like this and Phyllis touches his shoulder affectionately as they laugh. Nearby, Diane watches them and sends a text back to the person who killed the future articles saying, “Things are still precarious. You shouldn’t contact me.”

Next on The Young and the Restless: Mariah and Tessa discuss their next move.

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