Victor tried his best to talk to Nicholas, but Nicholas wasn't interested in anything his father had to say. Victor tried to explain that he had never felt worse in his entire life, and that he was just sick inside, but Nicholas' retort was that it was "tough getting caught." Victor told him there was nothing between himself and Sharon, and Nicholas said he knew Sharon had no self-control. On the contrary -- Victor said it was he who had crossed the line, not Sharon -- but that it had been an accident. Nicholas just taunted his father, asking if he liked the way Sharon felt, and Victor was obviously sickened.
Victor told Nicholas about the pain medication and the shot of alcohol he had taken, but Nicholas just screamed at him to stop it. He screamed he had always looked up to Victor, that fathers didn't do things like that to their sons, and Nicholas asked about Nikki. Out of control, he started punching Victor and ran out of the room. Victor was totally distraught and repeated he had never felt worse in his life, and hoped aloud that by assuming responsibility for it, he hoped he had saved his marriage.
Distraught as well, Nikki sat up at the bar at Gina's, looking down into a martini glass. On the other side of the bar, Neil was about to take a drink himself. Once they saw each other, they began what was, at first, somewhat sarcastic banter. The tone of the conversation turned when Neil told Nikki once she started drinking, it was going to be all downhill from there; they were both being idiots. They talked generally about what was ailing them, but Nikki wouldn't disclose any details other than that she was afraid of what the future might hold for them. Convinced, she pushed away her drink and told Neil he had been a very good friend to her that evening.
At the coffeehouse, Dru took a call on her cell phone from Sid. Rude to him as usual, she was unprepared for what he had to tell her: her days as a model for big names were over. He told her he was going to instead focus his energies on his up-and-coming clients from that point on. Devastated, Dru hung up on him, then put her head down and cried.
Ashley walked in and saw Dru. She took the opportunity to sit down to say a cheerful "hello!" and to ask if Dru was upset. Dru just looked at Ashley and said it was not her day, and added she was having regrets about some of her recent behavior. She admitted she had gotten overly involved in Ashley's life, but it was only because she loved Olivia. Then Ashley surprised her by announcing she was pregnant, which really surprised Dru.
Dru asked if Brad and Olivia knew, and when Ashley answered, she also added she hoped she could be the one to tell her own husband. Dru pulled out a videotape -- a copy of the one where Ashley disclosed Abby's paternity -- and handed it to Ashley. She told her what it was, that there was only one copy, and she was giving it to Ashley to prove Ashley could trust her. Ashley snatched it and stormed out of the coffeehouse.
Isabella nervously talked to Michael about Kelly's impending visit. He assured her he would handle her, and do so without tipping off whomever hired her. Getting hysterical, she reminded him how much she had to lose, and he assured her he had something to lose as well.
Lynn and Chris also talked before Chris headed over to Michael's office. While Lynn insisted there must surely be something going on between Isabella and Michael, Chris felt Isabella was only there for legal advice. Once she arrived at Michael's, they were engaging in small talk when "Kelly" saw Chris's photo on Michael's desk. He told her who it was, and that yes, he was engaged. She asked if his fiancée would mind him showing her around, and he replied she would probably embrace the idea of his being helpful to someone new in town.
Once they finally got down to the nitty-gritty, Michael started questioning Kelly about her visit to Isabella and asked why she was so interested in James. She asked if he was trying to intimidate her, and added that he was awfully protective of his clients. Michael began to get angry, and told her to stay away from Isabella, because she'd been through enough. Before leaving, Kelly asked how long Isabella had been his client, but didn't stick around for the answer.
Meanwhile, Mary paid a visit to Paul, asking why Ricky was with a babysitter for the second time that week. He tried to steer the conversation into something different, but Mary insisted that Isabella should be at home with the child. He finally just admitted she had moved out, and Mary quickly urged him to leave her. Just then, Isabella walked in and asked for some time alone with Paul, so Mary abruptly left.
Wes went to visit Olivia, who didn't look well. She told him about Ashley's pregnancy, and he was very sympathetic to her situation, and was very kind to her. The conversation turned to him and Dru, and he began to get quite upset. After telling Olivia about getting busted by Neil, he went on a tirade about how he had given up everything to be with Dru, but it really wasn't paying off for him. Seeing he was at the end of his rope, all Olivia could do was to encourage him to be patient.
Michael was thinking about Christine when Diane walked into the office. When he saw her, he turned on his heel and went into his office, closing the door behind him, yelling over his shoulder that Diane was always in trouble. She started to cry, telling him she was about to give up custody to Jack in a short while. Not really wanting to hear it, he pointed out that she had caused a lot of people a tremendous amount of pain just to try to nab Jack Abbott.
She cried even more, and told him at that point, she no longer had a choice. Michael immediately guessed that some evidence had surfaced and Diane admitted they had found the note. Because of that, she said, she had agreed to sign over custody of Kyle, but asked if Michael would accompany her to the meeting. He surprised her by slamming his hands down on the desk in anger, and got up to get his coat.
Phyllis and Jack were at Jabot, waiting for John Silva to arrive for their meeting with Diane. While Phyllis still gloated about having Diane over a barrel, Jack tried to remain rational and told her they couldn't tip off John Silva to what was really going on. When Silva showed up, he told the two of them he would be very surprised if Diane signed the papers, and Phyllis jumped in, saying she felt very confident that it was going to happen. Drawing from his past experience with the two of them, he asked what was really going on. They shared the evidence they had gathered, and when Silva asked what the police thought about it, they both hesitated.
Jack told Silva the police didn't know, and that they had Diane right where they wanted her. John warned them that what they were doing was obstruction of justice and that he wanted no part of what was going on. Jack tried to smooth things over, saying the meeting was really only to discuss visitation, but stopped short when Diane walked in with Michael. Everyone expressed surprise at seeing Michael there, but Jack got very angry, very quickly. Michael immediately asked if they were trying to pull a fast one, and pointedly asked Silva if that were true.
Jack piped up and said they were just going to talk about a visitation schedule, but Michael wasn't having it. He point-blank asked if they were planning on using their evidence as leverage, and Phyllis jumped in saying she'd really rather just call the district attorney and send Diane to prison. Michael quickly told them what was really going on was blackmail, extortion, and obstruction of justice.
Paul told Isabella he was glad to see her. She told him she had been spending time, trying to figure out how everything had happened. She was blaming herself, she said, for not seeing it happening. Paul urged her not to take any blame and told her he wanted to be a family again. She asked him if the regret he expressed was real, and he told her yes, what he had done was the biggest mistake of his life.
She told him she wanted to put it all behind them, as she knew they had both done things in their lives that they regretted. But, there was one thing she asked -- whether Christine was out of his heart. Paul carefully told her that once Christine showed back up in Genoa City, he would have to see her one last time. Isabella snapped when she heard that, saying that because Christine was the aggressor, he had to stay away from her. She started crying and ran out of his office, ignoring Paul's attempts to get her to stay.
Lynn asked Christine how her meeting with Michael had gone, and Christine said she felt awful lying to Michael. She told Lynn that Michael had admitted to being engaged right away, so she knew he hadn't been hitting on her. Christine went on to say he had called Isabella his client, and perhaps that was all she really was. Getting angry, Lynn told her the whole point was that Isabella had gotten between her and Paul. She said Paul was only going through the motions with Isabella and that the two of them belonged together. Chris all but admitted Lynn was right and told her she had never been happier than when she was with Paul. Lynn gave her a hug to comfort her.
Olivia paid a visit to Neil, and he told her what had happed with Dru and Wes at his apartment. He told her that from there on out, he was only going to focus on Lily and that he was going to leave Dru alone. Olivia told him not to do that; Olivia advised him to trust her and just be patient with the situation. Not listening, he told her he was going to focus his efforts on Lily, his sobriety, and his job, and added that his new motto was, "Just say no to Dru."
Dru and Wes were arguing at the same time about the same subject. Upset about other things, Dru was not really in any mood to talk about Neil. Wes pressed her, though, telling her he believed she still had feelings for Neil. He went on to say Neil had reacted like he was her man, and she had to have been sending him some mixed signals, purposely or not. When he began a sentence with, "Just like I said to Olivia..." she snapped on him, saying he had no right to discuss their personal lives with her sister and stomped out.
She went home and found Neil wanting to talk as well. He apologized to her for not being completely forthright about his intentions, but told her he was going to strictly start focusing on Lily. He mentioned talking about the situation with Olivia, which sent Dru over the edge, running into her room and slamming the door.
John Abbott went by the boutique to talk to Lauren, who was in the midst of renovating it into a Fenmore boutique. He let her know that he didn't want her to let Billy work there. Not only was he disappointed in his son for choosing to go to Genoa City University instead of Brown, but he didn't approve of Billy's new living arrangement, either. John thought it was a bad decision for Billy to live with Mac at that point in their lives, and he also hadn't forgotten that it was Brittany and Raul who had harbored Colleen when she ran away.
Lauren suggested that if he didn't want Billy to work there, he needed to subsidize him, which John said he would not do because of Billy's decisions. Lauren then said Billy would need a job, and since she'd paid dearly to use the space, she felt she could hire who she wanted. John said he hoped she didn't make him end up regretting his decision to let Fenmore's use the space.
Colleen arranged a picnic lunch for her and J.T. at the old Abbott playhouse. J.T. remarked about how that had once been Mac and Billy's secret meeting place, and Colleen said it had become theirs. She regretted that they couldn't be a couple in public and asked J.T. if he would be her escort to the Valentine's Day dance. J.T. said he hadn't liked that kind of stuff when he was in high school, and Colleen thought maybe that was because he hadn't known the right girl. After she told him that the party would be at Crimson Lights and no one would tell her family he was there with her, J.T. finally seemed willing to go as her date.
J.T. then went by the new Fenmore Boutique to ask Lauren for a couple of favors. The first was that he wanted to work there. Lauren told him she already had all the staff she needed but promised to keep him in mind if anything arose. He then asked if she would help him pick out a Valentine's gift for someone. When Lauren found out it was for Colleen, she warned him that he was making a mistake.
J.T. couldn't understand why she was suddenly being unsupportive. When he angrily suggested that John Abbott had convinced her that he was a terrible person, Lauren told him that no one told her what to do and what to think. She also told him that he'd better never speak to her that way again. As J.T. was leaving, she stopped him, pulling out a silver bracelet with a heart charm on it. J.T. said he'd take it.
Olivia ran into Brad at Crimson Lights and asked if he'd talked to Ashley since that day in the hospital. Brad said he hadn't; he didn't see the point, since Ashley had made it clear that she wanted them to separate. In fact, he'd already seen his attorney so that he could be clear on his rights regarding Abby. Olivia encouraged him not to make any decisions without talking to Ashley first. Brad was surprised that she would take that viewpoint. He wanted to stop discussing it and left, saying he needed to see his attorney.
Ashley went to see Wes and update him on what was going on with her situation. She told him that she was pregnant, and because she loved Brad so much, she hoped it would help them reconcile. However, before she got her hopes up, she wanted Wes to give her more insight into how Olivia and Brad felt about each other. Wes said he couldn't discuss that. Ashley was disappointed and left.
Ashley met Brad at their house so he could keep Abby while she went to a doctor's appointment. When she tried to broach the subject of the separation, saying perhaps they'd acted too hastily, Brad gave her his keys to the house and said they needed to make decisions regarding planned visitation as well as what to do about Colleen. Disappointed, Ashley left for her appointment. After returning home, she overheard Brad talking to Abby about how complicated his feelings for Ashley were.
Michael pointed out to Jack and Phyllis that the evidence they were withholding from the police was obstruction of justice. He also said it wasn't real proof, especially after Diane said she had not written the note, paid anyone to make phone calls, or set the pool house fire. Exasperated, Phyllis picked up the phone to call Detective Webber. Diane disconnected the call and agreed to relinquish custody of Kyle to Jack and Phyllis. Michael and John Silva left to draw up the necessary legal papers.
Phyllis left Jack alone with Diane. He was bothered by the amount of pain she was in and tried to tell her that he understood. Diane said he couldn't possibly understand what it was like for a mother to give up her child. In spite of everything that had happened, she wished it could be her and Jack raising Kyle. Jack assured her that Phyllis would be a good stepmother, and neither of them intended to keep Diane away from Kyle. He wanted Kyle to grow up knowing both of his parents.
Diane spent a few moments alone with her son, assuring him that he would love living in the Abbott house and that Jack and Phyllis would take good care of him. She also promised that she would see him all the time. When Phyllis and Jack appeared to take Kyle from Diane, Phyllis coldly reminded Diane that Phyllis had also lost custody of a son, so she knew what Diane was going through. Jack then took Kyle, and Diane left, her sobs turning to a scream of frustration and anguish as she got onto the elevator.
Ashley listened in the doorway as Brad told Abby how much he loved her and how much he loved her mother. He spoke of Olivia and how special she was, but yet Ashley was the love of his life. She stepped out of hiding and told him her news. He found out that she had heard what he said and they were both willing to open some doors. Brad was thrilled that she was carrying his baby and they were making progress toward reconciliation.
Colleen and Lily were making posters for the Valentine's Dance in Colleen's room. Colleen was sure that she could talk J.T. into meeting her at the dance. She called him on his cell phone and asked him to meet her at the hideout.
Meanwhile J.T. met up with Raul at the boutique. Raul gave him a bad time about Colleen and then realized that J.T. was really in love with her. He didn't really let up, though, then the phone rang. J.T. pretended it was a call from a classmate and left quickly.
Colleen sneaked out the window, leaving Lily to cover for her. She was sure that her grandfather would stay clear of her room and the loud music. Colleen had been gone for a while and there was a knock at the door. It was John. Lily made an excuse for Colleen being in the bathroom and told him it would take a while. He left. John had asked Billy to drive the girls to the dance and home again the next evening. Billy had plans with his friends to go apartment-hunting. He tried to tell his dad that he was 18 and didn't have to do anything John asked, but John was adamant that Billy obey him.
Together in the playhouse, J.T. and Colleen embraced. They talked of the dance, and J.T. had many reasons that he shouldn't go, including the fact that her grandfather might find out about it. He told her that they could celebrate the holiday right there. Then he took out the bracelet. She was overjoyed. He asked her to be his Valentine, and she was delighted to answer, "Yes!" She asked him again to meet her at the dance, and he told her that he wouldn't miss it for the world.
Victoria talked to Nicholas about Diego. She was having trouble identifying her true feelings about him. She was shocked to hear about their father and Sharon. Nicholas was understanding of her feelings, but wouldn't be upset if Diego were out of the picture. Her cell phone rang and it was him. She knew that she had better go and face him finally.
Victor went to talk to Victoria, hoping to put some of their contentiousness behind them. When she was cold to him, he told her that Diego had been to see him, and he assumed her attitude was because of her problems with Diego. Victoria denied that and told him that Nicholas had told her about seeing their father kiss Sharon. She begged him to tell her the truth, especially if he was somehow covering for Sharon. Victor told her that she didn't know the whole story, but everything he'd done was for their family.
Victoria said the whole episode made her sick. No matter how bad things had gotten between them, she'd always respected him for being an honorable man. She feared how all of it would affect Nikki. Although she hadn't told her mother, she couldn't speak for what Nicholas would do. She then told Victor she had issues of her own to deal with.
Diego went to see Sharon because he was trying to find a way to reach Victoria after trying to get in touch with her for days. It was the first time the two of them had talked like friends in a long time, and both of them apologized for all the trouble they'd caused each other because of their one mistake. Both of them felt they'd paid too high a price, but when Diego got a call on his cell phone from Victoria asking that he meet her, Sharon told him to stay positive. Maybe his life was about to get better. They hugged goodbye.
Wes went to see Olivia, who was doing housework to keep herself from thinking about her situation with Brad and Ashley. She told him that she'd seen Brad the day before, and he still didn't know Ashley was pregnant. Wes said that he'd seen Ashley. Olivia said that her life was in shambles, and that people who had it all didn't even realize how lucky they were. Wes reminded her what a good life she had, including her beauty and her career.
Olivia told him things about her past with Nathan and Malcolm. Nathan had left her for a woman who had died tragically, and her belief that Malcolm was cheating on her had become a self-fulfilling prophecy. She wasn't sure why she was telling him so much. Wes encouraged her to believe in her own strength.
Brad and Ashley woke up after spending the night together. Although he wanted to put the past behind them, Ashley said they'd both made mistakes that they needed to deal with before they could move forward. Not only had she kept a terrible secret from him, but he'd been unfaithful with her best friend. While they were talking, the doorbell rang. Brad answered the door and found Olivia there. She was embarrassed because she hadn't expected to see him.
As Olivia was trying to leave, Ashley walked downstairs and invited her in. Olivia obviously felt awkward as she realized they had reconciled. When she was surprised to find out that Ashley had told Brad she was pregnant, Ashley insisted there were going to be no more secrets. Olivia then expressed remorse for the damage done to their friendship. Though she knew it was too soon to even ask, she hoped that one day they could be friends again. She tearfully held out her hand, and after a long pause, Ashley clasped it in hers.
Colleen and Lily were at Crimson, Lights excitedly getting things ready for the Valentine's Day dance. Lily was thrilled that J.T. would be showing up as Colleen's date. Colleen showed off her new bracelet again and was euphoric about how things were going for her and J.T.
Mac, Billy, Raul, and Brittney were all at the new boutique getting things ready for it to open. They were excited about going to see the three-bedroom loft that night, hoping they could sign a lease on their new place. Billy had to tell them that he wouldn't be able to make it, because his father had ordered him to drive Colleen to and from the Valentine's Day dance at Crimson Lights. Brittney wondered if he couldn't get out of it because they all needed to be there if they decided to take the loft. Raul agreed that if they didn't find a place soon, he'd be living under a bridge. Mac didn't believe that J.T. would be caught dead at a high school dance.
While they were talking, J.T.'s phone, which he'd left on the counter, rang. Billy saw on caller ID that it was Colleen's number, and Raul said it had to be J.T.'s phone. He'd been at the boutique because Lauren had hired him. Billy said that wouldn't work out; they'd have to talk Lauren out of it. J.T. then walked in, and Billy said if J.T. was looking for his phone, Billy had it and had seen that Colleen had tried to call him. He then warned J.T. that he was driving Colleen to and from the dance, so J.T. had better go nowhere near his niece. J.T. said he had no intention of going to a high school dance.
At the Abbott house, Colleen was furious to find out that her grandfather was having Billy escort her to and from the dance. When Billy wondered why she was so upset, she insisted that she didn't need a babysitter. Billy then told her that if all the attitude was about a secret meeting with J.T., he'd already seen J.T. and told him to stay away from Crimson Lights. As Colleen was telling him how mean he was, John walked in. His plans had changed, and he would be one of the escorts at the dance.
A sulky Colleen complained about how embarrassed she was going to be. John assured her that he wouldn't be the only adult there, nor would he dance and embarrass her. When Billy suggested that John drive Colleen to and from the dance, John insisted that Billy still do so. He'd hoped Billy would take the girls out for dessert afterward. When Colleen huffed about dessert, John reminded her that J.T. Hellstrom was off-limits. After Billy and John left her alone, Colleen sank to the floor, staring at her bracelet and looking thwarted and rebellious.
