A Smokin’ Hot Love Affair

It all started with a grieving father (that would be Nick Newman). When Cassie died tragically as a result of trying to help a drunken Daniel it was easy for Nick to blame Phyllis’ son. Nick would stop at nothing to put young Daniel behind bars. Nick and Phyllis followed Daniel and Lily all the way to California where they were on the run from the law, eventually reuniting him with his mother and bringing him back to face charges in Genoa City. Paul and Christine would soon prove his innocence but that didn’t stop Nick from his downward spiral.

With Nick pre-occupied with Cassie’s death, Victoria took over Newman Enterprises, and in a surprise move, hired Brad Carlton. Brad and Sharon became quite close as well as when Nick became distant and Sharon enjoyed spending time with not only Brad, but became close to Abby, giving Ashley reason to worry. Sharon earned her spot of Newman Enterprises’s Beauty of Nature line spokes model. When on the road to promote the products, Brad and Sharon ended up in a kiss that Sharon soon regretted, vowing to work on her marriage.

Nick and Phyllis began working closely together, mending their differences and becoming close friends. Phyllis helped him express his grief for Cassie, lending him an ear when Sharon was unavailable. They bonded even further at Michael’s bachelor party where Nick asked Phyllis to work on Newman’s Web site. When the Web cast failed, Jack assumed that Phyllis had corrupted the site, but, much to his dismay, she had not. The chemistry between Nick and Phyllis grew stronger. When Thanksgiving rolled around, Phyllis and Daniel sought to make amends with the Newmans by gifting the family with a pie, inching Phyllis and Nick closer then ever.

Finally, when Brad and Sharon left town on a business trip, Nick and Phyllis could no longer deny the growing passion between them. They made love! They vowed to keep it a secret even though Sharon later confessed that she had kissed Brad on their business trip. All the while, Brad was romancing Victoria. After he made love to Victoria, Brad told Sharon that he was really in love with Sharon but she chose to work on her marriage and Brad went on to propose to Victoria.

Meanwhile, Jack and Phyllis were at odds with business. Phyllis teamed up with Nikki to propose a spa idea to Victor, who agreed to fund it. Jack refused to let it fall under Chancellor Industries so Phyllis and Nikki took the idea to Jill who approved it for Jabot, which infuriated Jack.

There was a brief time that Phyllis reunited with Jack when Nick decided to work on his marriage to Sharon but when Jack found out that Phyllis and Nick had an affair he was devastated and angry. Then Phyllis found out she was pregnant, she didn’t know if the baby was Nick or Jack’s. Eventually, the DNA results came back and she found out the baby was Nick’s. Nick vowed that she would not have to raise the baby by herself but he is still working at his marriage, despite catching Sharon and Brad kissing again (he doesn’t know that they slept together in New York). Then, thinking that Sharon was Victoria, Sharon was kidnapped by bad guys out to get Brad! Nick and Brad put aside their differences to rescue her. Sharon bonded with Jack and they fell in love. Soon they were married.

Nick and Phyllis decided to create a new magazine called Restless Style and teamed up with Jack and Sharon but Jack’s manipulations soon got into the way of the partnership. Eventually, Nick bought out Jack and Sharon. Jack continued his lying ways as Sharon struggled to trust him. While in Paris for a field trip with Noah, Sharon and Nick grew closer, even sharing a kiss witnessed by Phyllis is was in Paris for a photo shoot for Restless Style. Later, back in Genoa City, Phyllis struggled with the knowledge before finally telling Nick what she had seen. Behind his back, Phyllis used Brad’s feelings for Sharon to keep Sharon and Nick apart. Sharon was fed up with Jack, confused about her feelings for Nick and took a break at the Abbott cabin where she was snowed in, but not before she turned away Brad who showed up to announce his undying love for her. Tragically, Brad stopped to help Noah, who had fallen into icy waters on a date with Michael Baldwin’s younger sister Eden. Brad died saving Noah’s life. Nick went to tell Sharon what had happened to Noah and they made love.

Phyllis confronted Nick and told him she was going to fight for their marriage.