On today’s Young and the Restless (Monday, November 17, 2025), Phyllis and Cane take their flirtation from the GCAC bar to her private suite, where Phyllis encourages Cane to embrace his ruthless ‘Dumas’ side. Meanwhile, Lily defends Cane to a skeptical Adam and Chelsea, and Claire’s feud with Audra explodes at Crimson Lights.
Last Episode
On the last episode of Y&R, Lily was shocked when she caught Cane kissing Phyllis, while Noah betrayed his parents by leaving the hospital and walking straight into Detective Burrow’s trap.
Society
Chelsea and Adam are talking, but Adam isn’t really listening; he’s busy looking at his phone. Chelsea throws some pretzels at him to get his attention.
Adam laughs and Chelsea grabs his phone to see what has him so fascinated. Adam says that there is news about Arabesque… Cane’s company is imploding, and he deserves everything that happens to him!
Lily walks in and overhears them talking. She tells Adam that Cane certainly didn’t deserve what Adam’s family has done to him.
Adam says that people died because of Cane, and he planned to take over all the legacy companies in Genoa City!
Lily says that Cane changed his mind and was going to destroy the software before it was stolen.
Chelsea thinks Cane was still planning to use the software.
Lily knows that Victor must have stolen the software. He’s obviously using it against Cane now!
Chelsea asks why Lily is defending Cane… What’s changed?
Lily says she’s not defending Cane, but she thinks he deserves a chance to prove himself.
Adam shrugs. Cane has had time to prove himself, but now karma is kicking his ass!
Chelsea thinks this feels personal. Is Lily getting closer to Cane lately?
Lily says she’s softened to Cane, but they’re not any closer. Cane’s regret is real and he’s trying to fix things with his kids, but he can’t heal while he’s under attack. She hopes that Adam and Chelsea are finished with their attacks on Cane.
Adam says they had nothing to do with the AI software. Whatever happens to Cane from now on is on him! He thinks Cane is still going after the Newmans and their companies.
Lily wants a ceasefire because of her kids. Cane is just trying to get back in their good graces!
Chelsea doesn’t think Cane is serious about trying to redeem himself.
Lily wants Adam to ask Victor to back off with the AI software and the media attacks.
Chelsea says that she wants the best for Lily and the twins, but Lily needs to talk to Cane to stop the war he started.
Lily says she already talked to Cane and told him that he needed to end the conflict with the Newmans. She doesn’t believe that Victor isn’t using the AI against Cane, since she doesn’t believe a word that Victor says. She walks away, leaving them to talk.
Adam wonders if Lily is giving Cane another chance.
Chelsea isn’t sure. If she does, and Cane leaves them alone… One can only hope!
Adam isn’t optimistic about it. There’s more Dumas than Cane in the person that Lily is defending.
Chelsea can’t believe that Lily was sticking up for Cane.
Adam agrees. It’s sad! Cane may have pretended to turn a corner, but he’s not buying it.
Lily sits at the bar, sipping on wine. She flashes back to her previous conversations with Cane, who had agreed to give her the AI program, and then she’d told him she was done with him.
She picks up her phone and calls Cane, leaving him a voicemail. She apologizes for how she left things between them. She wants to believe him and finds herself defending him, but she needs time. Maybe he has the patience for it, or maybe he doesn’t. She sighs and ends the call.
The Genoa City Athletic Club (GCAC)
Cane and Phyllis talk over drinks in the dining room. He says he’s enjoying her company.
Phyllis thinks the only reason he asked her to dinner is because something happened… And she wants to know what it is! Why are they there?
Cane says he’s attracted to her.
Phyllis figures there’s more to it. What or who is in his rearview mirror?
Cane says he made a lot of mistakes and has had to retread his steps.
Phyllis thinks it’s all about Lily. He probably created Dumas as a shield to build his empire, but when his fortune skyrocketed, the line between Dumas and Cane blurred, and he doesn’t know who he is anymore.
Cane tells Phyllis that his father had told him to tell the truth to Lily and the kids about Dumas, but he wasn’t ready to tell them… Maybe he was afraid of their reactions, or maybe he wanted to amass more wealth. He was selfish and arrogant; if he’d just listened to his dad and revealed himself to Lily and the kids, things would have been different!
Phyllis says she likes what he created with Dumas because she’s the same type of person.
Cane says she may like Dumas, but he has every intention of burying him forever.
Phyllis doesn’t want him to bury Dumas. It’s not like Dumas is evil like Hyde! She tells him to remember that he created a billion-dollar empire in six years… He shouldn’t let that go.
Cane says he didn’t expect the persona to take on its own life. He wanted to create a legacy for his family so they could do whatever they wanted, but all they see is his lies. He did what he did for his family, but the only thing he succeeded at is losing them!
Phyllis tells him to stop with the pity party. She never wants him to change; don’t kill Dumas… Just embrace him, and let the world be damned!
Cane isn’t sure how he’d keep his two “personalities” separate.
Phyllis says he can have the best of both worlds. He’s fighting for his kids, his empire, and his family… Dumas understands, but Cane needs to fight, too! It might not be easy, but he has to fight! He’s too smart not to have a backup plan, too… She’s sure he had a plan if Arabesque was attacked and admits that she has a plan.
Cane asks Phyllis to invite him up to her room for a nightcap, where she can tell him all about her plan.
Crimson Lights
Claire and Holden run into one another. They hug awkwardly.
Holden is surprised at the size of her coffee at this late hour.
Claire says she’s working late. She’s proofreading a galley before it gets published. She wants to talk about what happened between them in LA.
Holden says they could talk about it, or they could leave what happened in Hollywood in Hollywood.
Claire says her whole trip was to figure out what she wanted, but now that she’s home, she’s not finished searching for answers. She had a good time with the sightseeing, clubbing, and the beach. Doing them with someone who let her be herself was freeing, and she felt safe with him, and she didn’t expect what happened between them on Halloween night, but she doesn’t regret it.
Holden figured that she would end up back with Kyle when she left LA with him to see Harrison.
Claire says she’s not getting back together with Kyle, but she’s not ready to get into another relationship right now, and she’s not sure that she and Holden will get into bed again any time soon.
Holden respects her choice, but he’s a bit disappointed. He hopes she knows how much he enjoyed being with her and seeing her perspective on things. He feels like she’s pulling back from their friendship, and thinks it’s because of what he told her about his past with Audra.
Claire says she understands. He regrets what he did with Audra, right?
Holden says of course he regrets it. He took a risk telling her about Audra, and hopes he didn’t make a mistake.
Claire asks if he’d tell her if there was something more to it.
Audra walks in and asks if they’re an item now. Kyle must have lost the girl of his dreams to a stone-cold player!
Claire says that LA was exciting for many reasons, but it must have been more exciting when Audra was there. She talks about meeting people at The Shadow Room, and wonders if Victor is looking to get his money back because Audra couldn’t seduce Kyle.
Audra says that Kyle is obsessed with her.
Claire laughs. What’s it called when someone takes money to perform sexual acts?
Holden tries to calm things down, but the ladies ignore him.
Audra tells Claire that it wasn’t like that. She recommends Claire treads carefully; she’ll do whatever it takes to get Claire to shut up!
Claire asks if that’s supposed to scare her… Audra is pathetic! She has no job and no family!
Audra flicks Claire on the chin and tells her that she’s punching above her weight.
Claire pushes her away and says she still has to answer her question.
Audra looks confused. “What question?”
Claire says she’ll find out soon enough… Everyone will! She leaves the cafe with Holden.
Phyllis’s GCAC Suite
Phyllis and Cane make themselves comfortable in her suite. She wonders if Cane would like to invest in her new company.
Cane asks if she’s talking about Arabesque. It’d be poetic… Phyllis steals his AI software, uses it to devastate his company, and then scoop it up for pennies on the dollar.
Phyllis accuses him of killing the mood.
Cane says he thinks Phyllis is the one who’s looking for a shortcut. He refills his drink and says he’s looking for answers.
Phyllis says she didn’t steal his program; why would she want Arabesque? Her new company has nothing to do with him.
Cane says she won’t even tell him the name of the company.
Phyllis grins. She’s mysterious!
Cane says she’s brilliant, wickedly smart, and amazing at the art of deception. He’s interested and she has his attention!
They kiss passionately.
