At the outdoor café, Nate leaves Victoria a message to get together as Stephanie walks up and lets him know she accepted the Chief of Staff job.

Stephanie tells Nate this will give his mother, Olivia, another reason to visit Genoa City. She’ll be thrilled that her son’s recommendation landed her a job and wants to buy him lunch as a thank you. They compliment each other and she asks if he would consider practicing medicine again. He chuckles that a close friend just asked him the same thing… but he’s happy in the family business.

Surprise!

At the Athletic Club, Lily thanks Billy for meeting her. Neither of them have heard from their family members caught up in the east coast tornado. Billy assures they’re still trying to get people out and they’ll be fine. He asks if Lily heard about Phyllis giving Newman back to Victor. Lily isn’t surprised and breaks the news to him that Victor’s giving her Chancellor.

Billy insists he’s sincerely happy for her and asks about her plans for it. She is keeping it as a separate entity from Winters, knowing that’s what Katherine would want. Billy wonders if she’ll sell it back to him. She tells him to keep a positive, open mind and reveals that she’s asked Cane to run it.

Billy’s beyond irritated that she trusts Cane to run it more than him. Lily tries to get a word in edgewise, but Billy goes on a tear. Lily reminds him that Cane saved Malcolm’s life. Billy thinks she’s being manipulated; she’ll regret this decision.

Billy warns Victor won’t like this and suggests that emotion is clouding Lily’s judgment. Lily admits she has feelings for Cane, but there’s more to it than that. This is a chance for her ex-husband to find who he was before Aristotle Dumas. Billy’s sure that man is gone. Ashby will hurt her again. He can’t believe she’s giving him the chance.

Lily isn’t trusting Cane with her heart, but with her company. If Billy can’t accept her decision, he should keep his opinions to himself. Billy thanks her for letting him know. He’s still worried about her, but Lily assures him that she can make her own decisions. She’s doing the right thing.

Offer She Can’t Refuse

At Newman, Phyllis packs up as she complains to herself about losing it all, even after doing the right thing. Victor appears behind her and announces that he wants to make a deal. Sighing, she asks, “What kind of games are you playing with me now?”

Victor tells Phyllis that Christine’s dropped all the charges against her… she’s free and clear. Phyllis snaps that all it cost her was her company. Victor chuckles, “It’s my company, girl.” She made him furious… but… it took guts to do that. He admires her. He’s seriously commending her for standing up to him and winning… for a brief time.

Sitting, Victor declares he wants to offer Phyllis something. “I want to offer you a future.” Phyllis is understandably suspicious, but he asks her to hear him out. Something of Arabesque is left, a fixer-upper, if you will. “I think you could turn that company into a viable and strong corporation, something you’ve always wanted to own.” She asks, “What’s the catch?” Victor grunts, “No catch.” Phyllis stops him as he heads to the door, “Wait, wait.”

Phyllis can’t understand why he’d offer her Arabesque free and clear. “What is behind it?” Victor intones, “It’s very simple. You saved my boy’s life.” When he said he wouldn’t forget, he meant it. Welling up, he tells her she can decide, but he wants her to remove her things from Newman by EOD.

Meeting Moment

At Crimson Lights, Nick, Nikki, and Sharon chat with Noah about his successful opening. Nick pulls Nikki for a word on the patio. He wants to go to a meeting and speak. Nikki advises that the first time is hard; she will go with him as support.

At Narcotics Anonymous, Nikki and Nick sit with the group. When it’s his turn to speak, he tearfully introduces himself and says he’s an addict. He explains that he was always the rescuer, not the one who needs rescuing. He couldn’t even save himself. He completely lost himself and OD’d in front of his father and son. A dude he hates saved his life, he grits. The worst thing was letting his family down. He’ll do whatever it takes to recover.

Back at Crimson Lights, Nick tells Sharon and Noah that he feels great. Nikki tells him the hardest part is admitting he has a problem. Nick assures them he knows he has a long way to go and asks them to help keep him accountable. They’re all here for him.

Sitting, they go over Noah’s soft opening, including Danny Romalotti jumping behind the bar. Nick would have liked to be there, but it could have been a trigger for him. Sharon mentions Matt living at the ranch. Nikki can’t believe Victor is allowing this! Noah says Sienna will freak. Nick explains that he’s under constant surveillance as his phone dings… Victor wants them all at the ranch. Nikki won’t crash the meeting, but she’ll let Victor know how she feels about his recklessness.

Rebuild

At Society, Phyllis thanks Lauren for meeting her and tells her about Victor’s offer to rebuild Arabesque. Lauren’s surprised to say the least, given he’s been hellbent on putting her behind bars. She doesn’t trust this. Phyllis shrugs, “He got what he wanted. He won.” She thinks it’s for real. “I saved Nick’s life. Shouldn’t I be able to rebuild my own?”

Here We Go

At the ranch, Victor tells Matt to have a seat. Clark asks if they’re starting his plan for him to go get Cane Ashby. He hopes to give him what he wants and earn his family’s forgiveness. Victor thinks they can do both of those things.

The Final Scenes

At Society, Phyllis tells Lauren that they can take their ideas for Summers Conglomerate and implement them at Arabesque. They agree they’ll have to do a full server sweep. Phyllis assures Lauren if this is too much drama for her and she wants to walk away, she’ll understand. Tearing up, she acknowledges that her friend has truly been there for her. Lauren tells her, “I’m in.”

At the ranch, Adam and Chelsea walk in, disturbed to find Matt Clark in the living room. Matt remembers Spyder from Vegas and launches into an apology. Chelsea doesn’t think “sorry” is enough. Victor booms that Adam will arrange his first contact with Cane Ashby. Matt asks how they’ll manage people who know about his past. This might put Cane off. Adam’s sure that if he knew Matt tried to hurt their family, he’d be even quicker to buy him a beer.

Sharon, Noah, and Nick walk in, and Nick complains about having to see Matt all the time. Sharon complains that seeing him again brings it all back. Victor knows this is unsettling, but he’s going to ask Clark to walk around Genoa City… they need to treat him as a normal citizen of Genoa City.

At the Club, Lily takes another stab at convincing Billy to accept Cane as the head of Chancellor. She thinks he cares about him more than he lets on. She only told him this news so he wasn’t blindsided by it. Should she warn Cane that he’s coming after him? Billy shrugs that he’ll act surprised when Cane tells him. Why ruin the fun?

At the ranch, Victor welcomes Phyllis in and asks if she came to finalize the deal. Phyllis questions if it’s his last-ditch effort at retribution. Victor has already sent her the completed paperwork. She thanks him. He hopes she can make amends with Summer. Phyllis knows the estrangement is difficult for Nick; she cares about him. Victor assures her that she proved that by saving his life.

As Phyllis turns to leave, Victor warns that he’s devised a plan involving Matt Clark that Nick is on board with… he’s created a cover story for him that will allow Clark to walk around Genoa City. He’s asking her not to say anything about his history, so as not to ruin his mission. Smirking knowingly, she gives him her word. Victor tells her, “OK. You can go now.” Outside the door, Phyllis pauses, perhaps realizing that Victor used Arabesque to buy her silence.