Today’s Young and the Restless recap airs in the USA on Tuesday, December 19, 2023, and airs one day ahead in Canada. We post our Y&R recaps every weekday!
Last Episode
On the last episode of Y&R, Claire was revealed to be Victoria & Cole’s daughter, Jordan surfaced at the Newman ranch, and Billy told Jack he’s leaving Jabot.
Memorial Hospital
Victoria gets off the phone and tells Cole and Claire that Michael’s working on finalizing paperwork and will be there soon. She tells Claire that finding out she’s their daughter is a big shock to them, and it must bring up feelings for Claire as well.
Claire says she’s not shocked; she grew up knowing they were her parents.
Victoria tells her she thought her parents did want her, and nothing could be further from the truth. She apologizes for doubting Claire when she first told them she was her daughter. It seemed impossible to believe after what Claire and Jordan put them through.
Cole says that Jordan forced Claire to do the things she did.
Claire says they wouldn’t want a monster like her to be their child. Jordan and Claire could have killed them, and they’d never have known Claire was their daughter.
The Newman Ranch House
Nikki takes a swig from her flask and sees Jordan outside the living room window. She cries for Victor to come quickly.
Victor walks into the room and asks what’s wrong.
Nikki can only point wordlessly at the window, but Jordan is already gone.
Victor asks what happened, but Nikki is speechless.
The Abbott Mansion
Diane asks Jack why he’s hedging about giving Kyle the co-CEO job; things are exactly as they should be with Billy leaving.
Jack says he has concerns.
Diane gets upset and angrily tells Jack that he shouldn’t have any concerns about Kyle; Billy has thrown Jack’s loyalty back in his face.
Jack says it’s more complicated than that. Billy’s leaving to help his mother and he thinks Jack is holding him back… And maybe he is!
Diane asks Jack to stop defending Billy, who’s let Jack down again. Billy’s gone now and Jack needs to replace him; Kyle isn’t the obvious choice, he’s the only choice!
Jack says he’s not going to hand the job to Kyle; he’s not sure Kyle is ready to take it on.
Diane blah blah blahs that Kyle took a demotion and showed his humility. She asks what more Jack could want from Kyle.
Jack says he appreciates Kyle came back to what he sees as a “lesser” position, but it’s not like Kyle’s working in the mail room. Jack can’t do it right now.
The Neil Winters Jazz Lounge
Phyllis sits at the bar. She sends Danny a text message. “Can I buy you a drink?”
Tucker appears over her shoulder. He echos what she sent to Danny. “Can I buy you a drink?”
Phyllis is startled and tells Tucker not to read over her shoulder. She calls him a creeper.
Tucker says he wasn’t reading her text… He was offering to buy her a drink.
Phyllis doesn’t believe him. She passes on his drink offer and tells him to go away.
Tucker leans in and says he has a proposition for her.
Memorial Hospital
Claire asks Victoria and Cole how they could want anything to do with her after what they’d gone through.
Victoria tells Claire her family went through hell, and she won’t forget that, but the DNA results shed a new light on the situation. She can see that Jordan manipulated Claire.
Cole says Jordan told vicious lies that were never true. They always wanted and loved their child.
Victoria says she’s not sure what the future will hold for the three of them, but she hopes Claire will get the help she needs to process it at the hospital, and Victoria and Cole will be there for her the whole time. She says her family is still in danger, and she needs Claire to help them by telling them where Jordan might be and what she has planned next.
The Abbott Mansion
Diane tells Jack they both agreed that Kyle had grown and matured by owning up to his bad behavior and apologizing for it.
Jack says it went a long way to restoring his confidence in Kyle, but not all the way.
Diane worries that if Jack doesn’t promote Kyle, it’ll send the wrong message… That Jack didn’t accept Kyle’s apology and that he doesn’t value him.
Jack says he values Kyle, but the co-CEO position isn’t something you give to someone after a couple of weeks of good behavior.
Diane begs Jack not to pass on Kyle; it could set him off!
Jack says if that’s the case, Kyle definitely doesn’t deserve the job. Right now, they have bigger problems to worry about.
Diane asks Jack to talk to Kyle and see how he feels before he makes any decisions.
Jack says he respects and loves the way Diane protects their son, but they’re about to drop the hammer on Tucker, and everyone needs to be focused on that, including Kyle.
Diane says Jack needs to talk to Kyle; she thinks Kyle has important news to share with him.
Jack asks what Diane knows that he doesn’t.
The Newman House
Victor asks Nikki what’s wrong… She looks like she’s seen a ghost!
Nikki looks down and notices she dropped the flask in her fright. She says she thought she saw something outside.
Victor asks if she wants him to call security.
Nikki says he doesn’t need to do that. Maybe it was a shadow or a tree branch.
Victor says she’s shaking.
Nikki asks Victor to get her a glass of water, and she kicks the flask underneath the sofa when he does.
Victor says he knows she’s been through a lot lately. They all have. They should go on vacation somewhere!
Nikki says they could go to Paris like she’d suggested before Victor came back to Newman as CEO. Maybe they could go to Bali.
Victor hugs her and tells her that he’ll be by her side and not to worry about anything.
Memorial Hospital
Claire tells Victoria and Cole that she’s not covering for Jordan, but she has no idea where she could be.
Victoria asks if there’s anyone Jordan would turn to for help.
Claire shakes her head. Jordan never let anyone get too close to her; Jordan had said she was alone in the world after Eve died, and Claire and Jordan had to depend on each other.
Victoria asks if Jordan has tried reaching out to Claire.
Claire says that the moment she needed Jordan, she disappeared with no message or show of love and support. Jordan had always said that the Newmans abandoned her, but now, Jordan is the one who walked away. Jordan used her as a weapon and tossed her aside like a piece of trash.
Victoria says Jordan was wrong. Claire isn’t trash.
Claire shrugs. Trash… A monster… Either way, she’s worthless.
Cole says she’s not worthless either. No one would ever say that!
Claire says Jordan lied her entire life and made sure there was nothing in Claire to love. Jordan wanted revenge on the Newmans, but Claire is the only one paying because they had her tell the judge she was insane; maybe she is insane.
The Abbott Mansion
Jack tells Kyle that they need to discuss Billy’s resignation. How does Kyle feel about it?
Kyle says he’s more interested in how Jack feels about it. He thinks Jack was blaming himself for Billy leaving, but Billy abandoned him.
Jack says he thinks Billy was sincere in his soul-searching about leaving, and he has to respect his decision.
Kyle says it was a shock since Billy was very involved with the plan to deal with Tucker.
Jack says the timing was bad, and he’s a little upset about the shuffle in the executive suite, which ultimately led to his decision about the co-CEO position.
Kyle says he needs to tell Jack something before they get into that discussion.
Jack says Diane told him that Kyle had news to share with him… What is it?
Kyle comes out with it. Tucker recruited him to help take over Jabot, and promised that Audra and Kyle would run the company in exchange for help taking down the company.
The Jazz Lounge
Phyllis tells Tucker that the last time she listened to his proposition, it didn’t work out well for her.
Tucker thinks it did work out for her… She was able to pay off her substantial debt!
Phyllis laughs and says that only happened because she out-schemed him.
Tucker says he’s making moves to build a new company and will need a top-tier I.T. department… And that’s where Phyllis comes in!
Phyllis says she already has a job.
Tucker says she’s working for someone who in turn is working for someone who is the head of I.T. at OmegaSphere.
Phyllis says that’s not exactly how it is.
Tucker says her position would be fine for a young up-and-coming tech, but her talent is being wasted.
Memorial Hospital
Victoria tells Claire it’s going to take time for them to sort out their feelings.
Claire looks around the room and says at least it’s better than a jail cell.
Victoria says she’s hopeful that Claire will get the help she needs.
Claire asks what they would have done if they’d known she was alive.
Victoria says they would have done whatever it would have taken to find her and bring her home. She says that things can get better if Claire wants them to.
Claire says she doesn’t know to let go; she’s had years of hatred built up in her; maybe she doesn’t know how to feel anything else!
Cole says he doesn’t believe it, and neither should Claire.
Victoria says it’s not going to be easy, but right now, they have to focus on Claire and helping her heal.
The Newman House
Nikki tells Victor they can’t go on vacation. They have to stay in Genoa City and support Victoria with what she’s going through with Claire. She says she knows Jordan is still out there and asks if Victor’s team has been watching the motel.
Victor says they have, but they haven’t found her yet.
Nikki says Jordan came to Genoa City to finish what Eve started with Nikki, and she’s not going anywhere until she gets what she wants. She looks out the window fearfully.
A bit later, Nikki is alone in the living room. She reaches under the sofa and grabs the flask she’d kicked there earlier. She tucks it away in her purse and pops a breath mint into her mouth.
Victor comes in with her coat and tells her they may not be able to go to Paris, but they’ve been cooped up too long… They should go out!
Nikki says it’s too cold for a walk; they should just stay inside.
Victor convinces her to go with him to the Athletic Club for a meal, and they can go to the jazz club after.
Nikki says getting out might be a good idea.
Victor reaches to get her purse for her, but Nikki quickly grabs it before he can get it. He says if he didn’t know her better, he’d suspect she’s hiding something from him.
Nikki says it’s the holidays… Not a time to be peeping in people’s purses!
Victor smiles and kisses her cheek. They leave the house.
Jordan’s GCAC Suite
Jordan enters her room wearing a big floppy hat and a blonde wig as a disguise. She tosses the hat aside.
Memorial Hospital
Victoria gets a call from Michael to meet him at the front desk to sign some papers. She leaves the room.
Claire tells Cole Victoria seems caring and kind… Not the type of person who would abandon a baby! She says Jordan taught her how to read people, but she has no idea what Cole is thinking.
Cole says he’s not sure either. He’s got a lot running through his mind, but he primarily feels guilt.
Claire asks what he has to feel guilty about.
Cole says he grew up with a mother who had a mental illness, and she was good at hiding it enough that Cole would forget about her moods, but sometimes the cracks would show. He says every family has its quirks, but he never wanted that kind of home life for his daughter.
Claire says they named her after Eve… Why?
Cole says that was Victoria’s idea and he agreed. He says people can have mental problems but you can still love them. He says their nightmarish situation happened because of what was between his mom and Victor, and he hates that Claire had to grow up believing she was unwanted.
Claire says she can’t help but wonder what her life would have looked like if she had never been kidnapped.
Cole nods. They all lost so much.
Victoria comes back. She says that they’ve been asked to leave so Claire can meet the staff and doctors. She promises Claire that the doctors will be kind to her; everyone just wants her to recover from what she’s been through. She says she’ll bring her some things later and wonders if it would be okay to ask her for a hug.
Claire nods and Victoria hugs her tightly.
The Abbott Mansion
Jack is incredulous that Tucker recruited Kyle. He asks when it happened.
Kyle says it happened a while ago, and he accepted Tucker’s offer.
Jack can’t believe it. Kyle is Tucker’s inside person?!
Kyle says it was the only way they could find out what Tucker was up to.
Jack says it all makes sense now; this is why Kyle accepted the COO position! Kyle wanted to be able to keep tabs on Jabot for Tucker!
Kyle says he wanted it to look like he was ready to be a spy for Tucker.
Jack asks Kyle if it was all an act, or whether Kyle was tempted at all by Tucker’s promise to run the company.
Kyle says he was playing Tucker the entire time.
Jack says he wants to believe it.
Kyle says Jack is defending Billy bailing out on them, but he suspects Kyle’s motives? He can’t believe Jack believed Kyle would betray him.
Jack says Kyle was furious when Jack accepted Billy into the co-CEO position, and Jack was really surprised when Kyle agreed to the COO role. He thought it was maturity, but now he’s not so sure.
Kyle says Jack should be sure, because Kyle knows Tucker’s plan!
Jack takes a seat at a desk. He asks why Kyle hadn’t told him about it.
Kyle says Jack would have tried to talk him out of it or wouldn’t have trusted him… Just like he doesn’t trust him now. He says he never intended to help Tucker with his coup; he just wanted to prove that Jack was wrong and that he was worthy of the co-CEO position. He’ll always protect the Abbotts and Jabot… Unlike Billy!
Jack says Kyle is playing a dangerous game with Tucker.
Kyle says he had to wait until he had enough ammo to show Jack this was the way to proceed. He says Tucker was asking for proof of loyalty, but Kyle told Tucker that he was out unless Tucker told him what his plans were.
Jack says it could have blown up in Kyle’s face.
Kyle says it didn’t. He explains that Tucker wanted Kyle to steal a newly-developed product from Jabot so Tucker could bring it to market first… Then, Tucker would frame a member of the family as the Jabot mole. Tucker told Kyle it would be Diane or Billy, but Kyle thinks Tucker intends to frame him.
Jack shakes his head in disbelief.
Kyle says he did this for Jack and for Jabot.
Jack says he doesn’t know what Tucker would have done to undercut Jabot if it wasn’t for Kyle. He’s glad that Kyle is the one that Tucker was trying to use. He says Kyle has saved them.
The Jazz Lounge
Phyllis tells Tucker she’s flattered that he can see what she has to offer, but why is he doing this? She doesn’t like him, and he doesn’t like her. Why would he trust someone like her?
Tucker says he always hires the best; even if he thinks they’re going to stab him in the back. If she accepted his offer, he’d be kept on his toes wondering how she’d screw him over… And that way, he’d deliver the best results to his company!
The GCAC Dining Room
Victoria and Cole are sitting at a table, talking over drinks. Victoria tells Cole she wonders if his silence means he’s still angry at Claire for helping Jordan.
Cole says he doesn’t blame Claire; she was raised to hurt them. She wasn’t born with her hatred… Claire was Jordan’s victim since the day she was born.
Victoria thinks maybe she’s the one who’s having a problem forgiving Claire.
Cole tells her that she was lured in by Claire before she found out she was their baby, Eve, and watched Claire and Jordan almost kill her family.
Victoria says Claire is a troubled young woman… And she’s their daughter! Jordan is pure evil and needs to be held responsible for everything she’s done to them.
Jordan’s GCAC Suite
Jordan puts on a set of glasses and a white coat. She pins a medical ID to the pocket of the coat, grabs her coat and purse, and leaves her suite.
The Abbott Mansion
Kyle tells his dad that it was tough to keep quiet about his subterfuge.
Jack asks if Kyle’s sure that Tucker still thinks he’s loyal to him.
Kyle says he convinced Tucker of his loyalty. He says he was really angry when Jack didn’t give him the co-CEO job, and Tucker took advantage of his anger and tried to enlist him, but Tucker underestimated one thing… Kyle is Jack’s son, and when Tucker told him that he was going after Jabot, Kyle’s perspective changed and he realized he had been selfish.
Jack says Tucker never knew what he was up against when he went to war with the Abbotts. He can’t believe Tucker wants to steal one of their products.
Kyle says they should let Tucker “steal” a product. Tucker trusts Kyle, so they should use that to their advantage.
Jack asks for more details.
Kyle says they can give Tucker a product that they haven’t brought to market for whatever reason. Tucker will break the bank trying to copy it, and then they’ll nail him for corporate theft.
Jack says that they will release the damning information about the scandal at McCall at the same time, and Tucker will never recover. It’ll destroy any chance he has at making a fresh start with Glacade.
Kyle says they won’t just ruin Tucker’s business… They’ll destroy his entire reputation in business, and his career will be over.
The Jazz Lounge
Phyllis tells Tucker it’s not a good idea to surround yourself with backstabbers.
Tucker says it’s worked for him so far; does she want in on the ground floor?
Phyllis tells him she wouldn’t work for him if he was the last man on the planet.
Tucker writes a number down on a napkin.
Phyllis rolls her eyes and takes a look. She does a double-take and smiles shrewdly at him, asking how many years salary it is.
Tucker says it’s one year’s salary.
Phyllis can’t believe it. She laughs and says, “’tis the season!” She asks what he’s got planned.
The GCAC Dining Room
Victoria and Cole are talking. She sees her parents enter the club and says she’s too exhausted to deal with them. She asks him to follow her lead.
Nikki and Victor come over to the table. Nikki says she’s happy to see Victoria… She’s been trying to reach her.
Victoria explains they were at the hospital getting Claire settled. She was scared and vulnerable.
Cole asks Victor if there are any updates on the hunt for his aunt.
Victor says there’s no news yet. He promises they’ll find her and bring her to justice.
Nikki says Victor is taking her out for dinner to take their mind off things. Would they like to join them?
Victoria says she’d like some time alone with Cole to process things. She says her parents should enjoy their meal and put aside some of the drama from the last few days.
Jordan walks down the stairs and is suprised to see Victoria, Cole, Victor, and Nikki in the dining room. She quickly leaves the club before they notice her.
Nikki and Victor go to their own table.
Cole tells Victoria that her parents sure love her.
Victoria rolls her eyes and says sometimes they love her a little too much.
Cole laughs.
Victoria says sometimes her parents are over-involved.
Cole says he’s touched by how concerned they are for Victoria. He says that must be how a “real family” is.
The Abbott Mansion
Kyle asks Jack what their next move is.
Jack says he’d decided against giving Kyle the co-CEO role, but because Kyle has made them aware of Tucker’s plans, he’s reconsidered his decision. He says that Kyle has to make Tucker believe that he hasn’t gotten the position, though, so that Tucker will think Kyle is ready to turn on his own family.
Kyle says he’s not getting promoted even though Billy’s leaving.
Jack nods. That’s how they have to play it… For now. They’ll release the damning information and then they’ll set Tucker up for corporate theft.
Kyle says it’s a perfect one-two punch.
Jack says they’ll be able to take Tucker out for good.
The Jazz Lounge
Tucker tells Phyllis he’s about to acquire a new product for his company and he needs an internet security system, firewalls and all. When he thinks about firewalls, he thinks about Phyllis!
Phyllis says she’ll take that as a compliment.
Tucker says the number he wrote down is just a starting point.
Phyllis says she’d never take the first offer. She needs to negotiate, because people never offer what they’re really willing to pay.
Tucker tears up the napkin. He says to think about his offer. She knows how to get in touch. He leaves the lounge.
The GCAC Dining Room
Cole tells Victoria he’s not sure how he feels about things.
Victoria says they have to make some decisions. She knows Cole has a life and a career outside of Genoa City. She mentions that he was in L.A. researching a new book.
Cole says their situation has thrown a wrench into his previous plans. He’s not going anywhere; he’s going to stay in Genoa City!
Memorial Hospital
Jordan, wearing her nurse’s outfit, appears outside of Claire’s room.
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