Playing second fiddle in a two fiddle band

Mariah's catfight with Hilary left her with ripped clothes and an ugly scratch but without a bruised ego. Will Hilary's insinuations leave the redhead feeling like she's playing Devon's heartstrings with an inferior catgut? There's a lot of hissing and growling but not much purring going on in Two Scoops.

After all is said and done, could Hilary be right? Was Devon on the rebound and just using Mariah to get over his ex? As much as Hilary would like to believe that Mariah was "sad and pitiful" and just a cheap imitation of Hilary's glorious self, she seems to be scared that Devon's feelings for the redhead may be more sincere. After all, Hilary did overhear Devon exclaim to Mariah that he wanted their relationship to be about the two of them and not about Hilary. And didn't Devon hit the mark dead-on when he observed that with a new relationship, a couple was walking a tight rope, wanting it to work while, at the same time, being afraid to get one's hopes up? It's great that Devon has such a realistic view of things. Somehow, this doesn't sound like a guy who's stringing along a young lady who has been known to have an issue with trusting others in the past.

I think Devon and Mariah are a very cute couple, but for the first time, it dawned on me that maybe part of Mariah's attraction to Devon is that he's Hilary's ex. I hate thinking that of Mariah, because I really like her. But could she be dating Devon partially just to get Hilary's goat? Okay, even if Mariah is enjoying playing this somewhat twisted game, after everything Hilary has done to her, she could still be genuine about her feelings for Devon. You couldn't blame Mariah for desiring a terrific guy who deserved so much better than the garbage Hilary had heaped on him. I actually like seeing Mariah acting all "gooey and poetic," as long as the guy truly cares for her. If Mariah is the main star and not just the supporting actress in Devon's love life, let the show go on!

We know Kevin won't be battling Devon for Mariah's affection anytime soon, since Greg Rikaart has announced he will be leaving the show. I am totally bummed. Kevin is one of my favorite characters. That's why I was always angry at the way Chloe treated him. Chloe was selfish and only cared about herself with Kevin -- pretty much the same way Hilary has always been toward Devon. But since Kevin will be leaving, in one way or another, I'm afraid there won't be any fencing duels to win the lovely lady's heart. Too bad for Hilary. Maybe Kevin could still have swept Mariah off of her feet and away from Devon's adoring grasp.

Actually, Kevin was happy for Mariah and her chance at a new love with Devon, which would be fine and dandy as long as the redhead can avoid those nasty confrontations with his ex-wife. Mariah and Hilary's catfight may have left Mariah with a nasty scratch on her arm, but Mariah refused to let Hilary trash her self-confidence, especially with Hilary's catty talk of Mariah attempting to be her cheap copy. Yes, indeed, our ex-con is growing up. Mariah will need to stay strong and to believe in Devon in order to keep that vicious feline at bay.

So far, Mariah has been showing Devon that she is nothing like the scheming woman Hilary is, and Mariah already has her mom's approval of Devon. That always goes a long way. She didn't have to worry about the awkward, pesky introduction of her mother to her new boyfriend. Sharon already knew that Devon was a good guy who saw Mariah as honest and trustworthy. I just hope Mariah doesn't let her ex-con qualities slip back into her good nature.

There's hope for Jordan, after all, since he saw right through Hilary's ruse of turning him into her boy toy so she could flaunt him in front of Devon to try to make him jealous. Jordan stuck to his guns and refused to be a prop during Hilary's attempt to win back her ex-husband's heart. But then, after Hilary pouted her lips and faked a few tears, Jordan let me down by letting Hilary back into his arms and his life. Hilary sure knows how to play the men, doesn't she? She bats her eyelashes, and they swoon. Even after seeing how hung up on Devon Hilary still was, Jordan was willing to take the ride on Hilary's carousel. He will soon learn that her ride is more like a roller coaster, which will leave him either feeling exhilarated or as sick as a dog.

However, Jordan has become more interesting, since we learned he has a past with Chelsea. Even though their good old days were "in the rearview," Jordan agreed to get in touch with his old contacts to try to learn how Chloe came up with a fake passport to flee the country. Chelsea needs to keep a little of her edge as an ex-con to keep her pairing up with Nick from becoming too dull. You know good guy Nick. He always needs someone to rescue, so Chelsea may need to ensure that she remains his damsel in distress.

I cannot believe how much trouble Nick and Victoria are going through to cover up Victor's crime of being an accessory after the fact in aiding with Chloe's escape, when their faade is totally messing up their own love lives. There wasn't that much to mess up with Victoria, as far as Billy was concerned, since he had no problem deserting her in lickety-split time. However, Nick had a great thing going with Chelsea. Now, Nick just appears to look wimpy by stepping back from his search for Chloe. Nikki was absurd to demand that her children be sworn to secrecy about their father's wrongdoings. Nick and Victoria should not have to keep secrets from those they love if they want any kind of a relationship with them. Hmmm...maybe we have hit on a possible reason why they are both single right now.

Nick knows how tormented Chelsea is about her supposed best friend murdering her beloved husband, and he has always been in her corner, trying to help her find out the truth about Adam's death. His hesitation now indicates that he no longer wants to help her, which is giving her the wrong signal. Why can't Nick just tell Chelsea the real reason why he is no longer looking for Chloe and then swear her to secrecy? Other people can keep secrets, you know, and the reason for their silence is just so ridiculous. Come on, they can't say a word in order to protect the family name? That's just over the top.

I have an idea. Nick could tell Chelsea that Victor was Chloe's accomplice and then ask her to just go after Chloe and make her pay. Victor has helped Chelsea in the past. She would probably agree to bite her tongue about Victor's part in it all. Why, that would change Nick and Chelsea's traffic love light from red to green in no time. But, no, that would be too logical, and we can't have that.

When Nick first gave Victoria advice about fighting for what she wants, which was the love of her man, I agreed with him wholeheartedly. But after doing some thinking about it, I am wondering if that is such sound advice, after all. Billy didn't waste any time in chasing after the same lustful thing he had desired before, only this time, he justified it because Phyllis was no longer his brother's wife. Well, if that's the case, why didn't Billy show the slightest bit of hesitation before, when "Red" was married to Jack? But this time, all bets were off for Billy Boy, once Victoria shied away from him. Even if he didn't know the reason why Victoria wasn't doing a full disclosure about her personal life to him, Billy knew it had nothing to do with him.

So, if Victoria uses her charms to try to entice Billy back into her loving arms, how long will it last? Billy has cheated in the past, and he's proven himself to not be the most trustful person. And seriously, it took almost nothing for Billy to hightail it back into Phyllis' bed this time. Sure, Billy and Victoria may be total opposites, but they compliment each other, which strengthens their weaknesses. When they were together, Victoria kept Billy grounded, and he brought laughter into her life. And they truly loved each other.

But that was then, and this is now. Victoria has children she needs to consider, especially since her very important job takes enough time away from them already. The kids need a stable life, and they could never get that with their father going back and forth from Phyllis to their mother. Bravo to Victoria for asking Billy not to bring Phyllis into their home -- and kudos to Billy for agreeing not to.

But should Victoria even want Billy back? How could she ever trust him, knowing that when things got bad, he would run back to Phyllis in a heartbeat? That's rather a strange choice of words, especially since Billy seemed to be plucking Victoria's heartstrings shortly before his record-breaking sprint back to Phyllis. There's a good chance Victoria may end up playing second fiddle in this whacked-out threesome, which should make her wary of trying to get her ex-husband back into her life. Phyllis has proven in the past that she will go after anything she wants, which could very well make her first chair in this rather sad orchestra. Oh, yes, Victoria could be the second fiddle in a two-fiddle band with Billy conducting the unharmonious symphony.

Billy is and always has been a bad boy, and some women just love their bad boys. As much as Victoria may not want to face it, his naughty ways are probably what attracted her to him in the first place. And for Billy, Victoria was a challenge. She was a reserved, sophisticated, and successful woman, and Billy desired to unlock all the secrets hidden inside the lovely brunette. It sure didn't hurt that Victoria was a Newman, although I guess it did in the long run, since Billy received so much grief from Victor throughout the couple's relationship. Ironically, the qualities that drew Billy to Victoria are the very qualities that tend to keep them apart at times. Victoria is a private person, and Billy resents it when she is not as forthcoming as he would like her to be. At least he won't have that problem with Phyllis.

Maybe it's time for Victoria to move on now, though. She can then just sit back and laugh when the combustion between Billy and Phyllis explodes and blows up everything between them and anyone else in the vicinity. Victoria can become the winner by taking herself out of the race. I don't know why some women will fight another woman for a man who cheats and has proven, time and time again, that he is nothing but a loser. And when that woman triumphs, she thinks she's the winner -- but what exactly has she won? Certainly not her self-respect. She only "wins" someone who will eventually only make her unhappy again. I sure don't want that for Victoria.

However, Victoria is a Newman, and as Jack pointed out, Newmans hate to lose. Victoria made sure to rub it into Phyllis' face that Billy wished to spend every night with his kids, and then, as a last parting jab, she announced that Billy's brilliant commercial idea awarded Victoria the perfect opportunity to spend time with him in Los Angeles. Take that! Yeah, if Cane thinks he's next in line to be second in command at Brash & Sassy, he's got another thing coming. But what do you want to bet that Phyllis will take her sultry kitten routine all the way to L.A. to make sure Billy plays with her toys, not Victoria's? Jack may try to pile the work onto Phyllis' shoulders to restrict her personal time, but who's to say that Phyllis can't do the work outside of the office? There's always time for work and play in Phyllis' world.

I don't know. It almost seems like Phyllis is still playing "the other woman" with the kids being a major factor in Billy's life. Billy is sure going to be jumping through hoops, hoping to keep matters calm, with Victoria and Phyllis constantly trying to one-up each other. The two ladies almost wanted Billy to choose between them with their suggested travel plans, and Billy decided home was the best place to be after Los Angeles. I'm not sure if Victoria truly wants her family back, as she claims, or if she just wants to have the final victory over Phyllis. Victory, Victoria, Victor. They all seem to go hand-in-hand, don't they?

Victoria declared she was "still in the game," even if Phyllis was winning. A schedule change with the commercial helped Victoria out, even if she didn't realize just how much. Phyllis prepared a fancy-dancy meal, complete with a homemade dessert, to win Billy's heart through his stomach. (Although next time, Phyllis may want to consider hiring a maid. What a mess!) But thanks to the last-minute change in plans, Billy never got to taste any of it. In the meantime, Victoria had no problem changing the dates of her San Diego family get-together to try to recapture Billy's love. I have a sneaky suspicion her impromptu trip won't come off as planned, though. A certain former redhead will certainly find some way to put a kink into Victoria's plans.

Luckily or unluckily for Jack, depending on how you look at it, his focus has mostly been diverted from Phyllis and turned toward the mother who has suddenly popped back up into his and Ashley's lives. And Ashley would swear on the Bible that Dina had an ulterior motive for her new business dealings with Neil and Devon. She's probably right. Even if Neil and Devon are "the new kids on the block" in this type of business, Jack and Ashley are the abandoned children in a town that Dina left far behind. So, Dina's return does look rather suspect, even if Jack truly believes it is not a ploy. I wouldn't be so sure about that, Jack.

Sharon may be about to get some competition where Scott is concerned. Abby and Scott got a little too angry with each other when talking about her Naked Heiress days, which leads me to suspect there might soon be some fireworks going off between them. I can't help but notice that we haven't seen Stitch in eons, so I guess it's time for Abby to move on with a new fella. And, of course, Victor can't help but get into the act. If he can't use his biography to keep his family in line, Victor will use the author who was going to write it to do just that. With Abby knowing her father has Scott keeping an eye on her and with more opportunity for them to be around each other, Scott and Abby's tempers and emotions could flare up even more. All that heat could very well turn into a hot, volatile passion. Sharon may have a problem fighting fire with fire if her blaze doesn't burn quite as brightly.

Yet, Scott was drawn to Sharon and admired her spunk in returning to school for a higher education. And Sharon has in her favor that she saw Scott for what he truly was -- a free spirit. Sharon realized that Scott was not one to be tied down, and he had to be thankful for that. Since Victor only wanted to use Scott, all decked out in a suit and tie, to spy on his daughter, Scott's impulse was to jump on a plane and never look back -- just like Chloe. Lauren should be grateful to Sharon, although she doesn't know it. Sharon seems to be keeping Scott in town, but Lauren probably won't appreciate that, which is possibly why Scott hasn't mentioned his love life to his mother.

Scott found Sharon to be totally fascinating, even if her divorce wasn't final yet. He felt she had many secrets to share, while she claimed they weren't as deep or dark as he might think. Oh, I wouldn't be so sure, Sharon. You definitely have some bones rattling around in your closet. Shoot, Sharon could keep Scott entertained for hours with her many terrifying tales. Scott could probably kick out a best seller from all Sharon's woes and past horror stories. Maybe she could clue him in about the saga of Faith's birth. Her past experiences with Adam and Victor would be enough to grab any reader's attention.

I wonder if Victor was intentionally playing matchmaker for his youngest daughter. He doesn't really seem to disapprove of Scott, yet we saw that before when he first appeared to root for Travis with Victoria. I know, I know...at the time, Victor had believed that any guy was a vast improvement over Billy Boy Abbott. But because Victor is well aware that Scott believes he owes the Mustache his life, it's possible that Victor feels he's already got Scott dangling on a set of strings, ready to move at Victor's every whim. Victor probably thinks he can control any situation with the flick of a wrist -- and from any given order as Scott's boss. Oh, yes, I am sure Scott will be a very valuable asset to Victor, but will he also be for Abby, both professionally and personally?

So, while Victor was trying to keep tabs on his daughter, Abby was trying to make sure that Scott didn't take over her territory. Abby is pretty silly, really. She is just so insecure, and she keeps letting her insecurity dictate what she does. Victor has only hired a watchdog for Abby because she doubted her decision about the warehouse and then flip-flopped on what could have been a great project for her. That and she never gave her father a clue about what she was doing. Yeah, Victor doesn't take too kindly to his underlings doing things behind his back. Shoot, the punishment for such a betrayal could be the guillotine -- or possibly just banishment from Victor's almighty kingdom. If Victor catches any kind of a whiff that Abby has been disloyal, she may as well say bye-di-bye-bye to Newman Enterprises. And it's pretty certain that making a deal with Vic's arch nemesis, Jack, would qualify as a betrayal.

I loved the brainstorm Ashley presented to Abby to get rid of Scott, which was to get Abby's babysitter completely immersed in all her duties, so he would get bored and quit. Great strategy, and it just might work. When we were preteens, my younger sister used to start fights with me right before I would go to sleep, just to be mean. One night, I was so tired, I just started laughing at her. She got really mad and quit talking to me. I continued to use the ha-ha solution after that, and I never had a problem sleeping again. If it works, do it.

Abby had better hope her mom's suggestion doesn't backfire, though, or she may have a bigger problem, if Scott becomes interested in being a major factor in the family business. Abby's insecurity keeps being her worst enemy, since she suddenly decided to purchase Dina's company. That would be a huge requisition for Newman Enterprises -- and one that Victor would want prior approval of before it took place. Oh, yes, Abby may sabotage herself again.

Nikki saw that Tessa was living out of her car, and she felt bad for her. So, of course, it didn't take Nikki long to offer the girl her own suite of rooms. (One room wasn't enough. Nikki always has to do everything bigger and better than anyone else. She's a lot like Victor in that way.) But she still needs to beware of the girl, who seems to have set her sights on Nikki's grandson. I can understand Tessa not wanting to reveal the truth about her living situation with Noah, but he is bound to find out soon, since Nikki knows. Yet, Noah always looks at his fair maidens with puppy dog eyes and with an innocent and nave point of view, which can prevent him from seeing the person within. We can only hope that Tessa is not another Marissa. Oh, well...at least Tessa is not trying to camouflage her image with a phony accent that was there one day and gone the next.

I couldn't help but laugh when Victor refused to let Nikki "sully" her own name or the name of their family. I wonder if that particular word reminded him of anyone.

How dare Hilary just fly through the door of Devon's place without knocking first?! I was outraged until I heard Devon say he would make sure to get his locks changed. Soaps have a nasty habit of having exes coming and going through the doors of their prior premises. That is not normally the way of "the real world" at all.

Jack said to Ashley, "Amazing, isn't it? No matter how old we get, we always want our parents' approval." Isn't that the truth?!

Until next time, please stay tuned.Teddi

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