A battle of the hearts, a war of the wills

The custody battle over Christian was near -- with Connor's possibly looming in the horizon. Was Adam a selfish and cold-hearted weasel who only wanted to control and possess his sons? Has he been painted in too dark of a shade of grey to ever be redeemed? It was a battle of the hearts and wills in Two Scoops.

I have to admit that I am still trying to figure this Adam out, at least enough to where I can determine whether I like the guy, even in the teeniest way, or not. I actually like men (and women) who are painted in shades of grey, because they make things so interesting. But when the grey starts to appear a little too blackish in color, then it goes past the point of being fun to watch. And Mark Grossman's version of Adam is dangerously tilting over into becoming too much of a villain, which can be entertaining for a while but can get old -- fast! Come on, even Victor didn't want to invite him to the Newman family dinner, which was really saying something.

Actually, it seemed like everyone under the sun was invited to the huge Newman feast at Society -- except Adam and Phyllis, who both crashed the party. They have been getting a lot of practice barging in on joyous galas lately, haven't they? I almost felt for poor Adam not getting any kind words of appreciation from Victor. Almost. It was pretty amusing to hear the pot call the kettle black when Red accused Summer of emotional manipulation, only to have Summer remind her mother that she had learned from the best teacher. Phyllis and Adam may think twice about busting in on any more festive occasions. But probably not. Adam probably got a kick out of hovering over and spoiling his father's family get-together.

Yeah, Adam might as well draw a mustache resembling Victor's on his face, since he seems to have taken over the scheming and manipulation of others from his father. However, Adam has yet to learn the art of puppet mastery from dear old dad, because his strings of control seemed to keep getting all tangled up. Some of his methods just don't make any sense and actually seem to work against the very thing he's trying to achieve. For instance, he wants to steal custody of Christian from Nick; however, Adam's tactics leave a lot to be desired. He's almost become a stalker, trying to get back into his biological son's life, which could count against him in a court of law. Dumb.

When Adam followed Sharon and Faith into the park just to see his son, he literally stalked them to get what he claimed to want most. Then, he practically pushed his attention onto Christian, who didn't even remember him. It was truly creepy. Nick was the one with legal custody, so he could have done something to stop Adam but instead chose to get Christian far away from Adam as quickly as possible. But really, Adam had no right to interfere with Nick's raising of the boy, not until he could gain custody of him, that is. Nick still had the say-so over what was best for Christian, even if Adam refused to ever consider the lad's feelings. And in the end, that just may help Nick keep custody of Christian, if the court saw him as protecting his son from the dangers of the world, including Adam.

So, Nick and Adam prepared for what was obviously going to be a nasty battle over being awarded custody of the boy. Heaven help Christian if Adam wins. Shoot, Adam barks out orders to Kevin whenever the mood strikes him and pretty much treats him like a slave. Some role model! However, Kevin appeared to have something up his sleeve and wasn't accepting servitude as his new lease on life. Thank goodness, Kevin was still his usual wily self and wasn't about to lie down and take it from Adam. I was starting to worry. Michael should have known better, too, although I don't blame him for being concerned. Kevin hasn't always been his own best friend.

And Michael was very aware that Kevin could do things that would later explode in his face, so he stopped his brother from using Adam's photos against Adam. Michael knew Adam would find a way to make Kevin and Chloe pay later, so he saved Kevin from himself. Michael's such a good big brother. Kevin really should appreciate him more, but Michael would never expect it. Michael even tried to deal with the devil himself when he offered to make a deal with Adam. Well, that should be a doozy.

Adam also claimed to want Chelsea and Connor back in his life, more than anything; however, his actions have been speaking louder than words. Nobody was going to stop Adam from getting what he wanted, not even Chelsea. At one time, Adam would have done anything for Chelsea. Justin Hartley's Adam was cloaked in the more tormented, misguided shade of grey that makes a character so interesting. One always felt for that Adam, because he truly wanted the best for his family, even if he had no clue how to do that. That Adam did a lot of wrong things for the right reasons, which is what made him "special" and "one-of-a-kind" to Chelsea. That was the Adam that Chelsea had loved so very deeply. However, Chelsea's gaze has kept veering toward Nick since she returned.

Mark Grossman's Adam has lost everyone he loved. Everyone. Even Michael Muhney's Adam always had Sharon on his side, although I never understood why. I just never got the connection between the two, especially after Adam stole the first six months of her darling baby's life from her. To me as a mother, that was something that could never be forgiven. But Sharon has even shoved Mr. Grossman's Adam aside to run back into the loving arms of the hypocritical Rey. In Rey's eyes, and sadly in Sharon's eyes, he can do no wrong. Rey truly has blinders on when it comes to himself.

Honestly, just recently, Rey still refused to accept his part in his failed marriage to Mia. To him, it was all one-sided, where Mia did all the bad, and he was sweet and innocent, forever being the victim. Hmmm...it's funny that I can remember very clearly when he constantly followed Sharon around the entire time Mia was in Genoa City, like a lost puppy with his tongue hanging out, drooling over her, while his goo-goo eyes gazed at her every movement. Rey made every excuse to be wherever Sharon was, which was rather disturbing, yet Sharon found it romantic. Go figure. I had a fleeting second of hope when Rey and Sharon talked about their problems in Vegas, but that was dashed fairly quickly. Apparently, Adam had gotten in her head while Rey remained in her heart. Ugh!

Oops, sorry, I got sidetracked. Rey does that to me. I still don't get Sharon's attraction to him, just like I didn't get her attraction to Michael Muhney's Adam, but now we have a new Adam in town -- and Sharon looked like she was writing him off...for Rey. Again, ugh. Okay, so, which was the lesser evil? Apparently, Sharon felt Rey was, so where did that leave this current and not-so-improved Adam? Chelsea didn't recognize this guy with his dark impulses, trying to take a son from his loving mother. In fact, Chelsea was so desperate to keep Connor from Adam that she enlisted Anita's help to keep him safe. However, Chelsea trusted Victor enough to give him his grandson's location so he could visit Connor. And to think that just a short time ago, she and Connor were hiding from Victor.

Phyllis was the only one who appeared to tolerate Adam, but that was because she loved power and money. He played at her purse strings, which was her favorite tune. After all, Phyllis had her flashy new penthouse to keep her company, although no one wanted to share it with her. Nick claimed she had sold her soul to the highest bidder, and Adam claimed she always searched for the soft spot in order to bury the hatchet. But Phyllis pointed out to Adam (as numerous others have tried to do before) that Nick was the only father that Christian had ever known. However, that didn't matter to Adam, as he proved time and time again that he would do whatever it took to get what he wanted, which was more than custody of a cactus. Phyllis claimed she had a plan to make things right. We'll see.

Sigh -- it didn't look like Rey was leaving anytime soon, since his mama moved into town and straight into her daughter's place. Again. I'm not getting why Lola let Celeste move back in. As Rey said, it was probably out of a guilt trip. Apparently, Celeste takes a lot of those kinds of journeys with her kids, and she handed her daughter a super-duper one once Lola learned that her deadbeat dad wanted to attend her wedding. In fact, this guilt trip had Lola and her papa strolling all the way down the aisle, if Celeste had her way. And it sounds like she usually does.

Mr. Private Detective advised Lola that she should investigate Kyle's shady past in New York after Theo hinted there were secrets hidden there. That's Rey for you, giving advice on relationships, when he's the last one on earth that should do so. I mean, everyone has things in their past that they would rather not have resurface when a new love enters their life. Oh, right, except for little Miss Goody-Two-Shoes Lola, who appeared to be perfect in every way. Don't get me wrong, I like Lola, but really, nobody can be that perfect. And digging around in Kyle's past could only cause them tons of unnecessary trouble, especially if his past was covered with blondes.

Abby had no qualms about possibly becoming partners with one of the devils, as she had a proposition to link Society with Phyllis' new hotel, however Phyllis wasn't quite as enthusiastic about the deal. Next, Abby was encouraging Nate to buy Cane's home to make his own memories. Cane agreed to the sale, but he may end up regretting having his old memories with Lily erased, even if he was growing closer to Traci through her novels. Traci may be a distraction for Cane to keep his mind off his ex-wife. Or it was even possible that he was on the rebound. But still, I do enjoy watching Cane and Traci together, as their magical friendship evolved.

It's so great having Jill back, even if it is only temporary. She's always a breath of fresh, highly opinionated air. It's rather strange, though, that Billy was more concerned about Cane's relationship with Traci than Jill was. While Cane was grateful for Traci's friendship, Billy worried that he may hurt his sister, which was a legitimate concern. Yet, Jill only offered Cane encouragement, which meant she was a little off her game. But I get it that she only wanted to see Cane happy. After all, Jill still thought of Cane as her son. But Traci was becoming more than "an inspirational sidekick" to Cane in New York, which would have had Jill a little alarmed, if she had known.

But the real Jill was back when she told Jack to ditch his dream Dina and to face reality. That's our gal, telling it like it is -- if only she could do the same for Billy, who was being tormented by dreams of Delia. Jill should have been even more concerned than she actually was. Her pep talk just wasn't enough to wipe away his terror. Billy was obviously going back down that dark rabbit hole of trying to find his adored daughter before something horrible happened to her. And he was haunted by Delia's doll and by the word "Daddy" that she must have once written on a small table. Billy claimed that Adam's return had messed up his mind, which was understandable, since the two of them combined to create the tragedy. I hope that Victoria catches on soon that Billy really needs help.

When Jack offered up that he was consumed by a "dissatisfaction," Dr. Billy was on hand to prescribe a remedy of new sights and new sounds in Paris, arranging a visit to their beloved sister, Ashley -- and to check on the competition, of course. And all was well between brother and sister, for a change, as she gave him a tour of her amazing company. Ashley and Jack even hugged and admitted that they loved each other. It was so sweet. It even brought a tear to my eye.

Victor and Nikki have been so lovey-dovey to each other that they have become almost unrecognizable, maybe even to themselves.

Devon's relationship with Elena still seemed to be zooming along after he was instantly and miraculously cured of the Hilary hauntings. He announced that they should live together, but seriously, what was the rush?

Who else was waiting for lightning to strike the dinner table when Victor said such kind things to Billy at the Newman gathering?

So, what's the deal with Chance? The last time we saw him, he was a pretty decent guy. But Chance was involved in money laundering in Las Vegas? What happened to him? Is John Driscoll returning, or will we have a new face with the new attitude? And Phyllis mentioned Ronan Malloy. Oh, my gosh, I completely forgot about Ronan. Could he be on his way back, also? And if so, will Jeff Branson play him again? So many questions, so few answers -- for now.

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