Lauren walks into the Grand Phoenix and looks around with a smile on her face. Michael appears behind her and gushes to his wife as he kisses her hand. “It’s not every day you win the Lifetime Achievement Award for Leadership in Fashion.” Lauren says it’s all the more special because she gets to share it with the people she loves.
Kevin walks in with Gloria, who raves, “Here she is! The woman of the hour!” They hug and kiss, and Kevin passes on Chloe’s regrets — she’s traveling for business. Just then, Chloe pops up and hollers, “Do not get started without me!” Lauren cheers.
Lauren tells her family that Scott can’t make it as he’s in the Middle East on assignment. Kevin asks, “What about Fen?” Just then, he arrives. After greeting those gathered and kissing his mother, Fen introduces the group to his boyfriend, Trey. Michael tells the young man they’re happy to get to meet him in person. Fen teases that Trey is dying to talk to Lauren. “Trey is a buyer for Fenmore’s in Nashville.” It turns out Lauren is an icon to Trey. Fen thought he’d like to hear her life story. Trey wants to hear all about the woman who raised the man he loves. Lauren marvels, “Where do I start?” She warns everybody to settle in and get some cocktails. “This is going to be one heck of a ride!”
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Lauren begins by explaining she was a daddy’s girl. Her mother decided she didn’t want to be a mother, so her father, Neil, raised her. She flashes to a scene with her mother, Joanna. Lauren summarizes that her situation led to her being a handful as a teenager, but she loved music and got to sing with Danny Romalotti. “It was an extraordinary time in my life.” She recalls the rock star telling her she could sing a song with him at his concert. “Danny was much nicer than I was back then.” When she found out there was a rival for his affection, the mean girl in her came roaring out. She flashes to bullying Traci Abbott. Michael chides that she was young and she grew out of it. Lauren muses that, ironically, getting in trouble is how she met her first husband. She remembers Paul busting her for shoplifting.
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Lauren recalls her marriage to Paul — they shouldn’t have made sense, but they did. Trey thinks he sounds like a terrific guy. Lauren says he is but remembers his mother, Mary, wasn’t a big fan of hers. She flashes to clashing with the woman. Gloria says she’s always approved of her; she doubts that she and this Mary would have gotten along. She wonders why it ended with her and Paul. Lauren brings up her obsessed fan, Shawn Garrett, who threatened to kill Paul if she didn’t divorce him. “I did, to protect Paul.” She tried to pretend to have feelings for Shawn, but when he found out how she really felt, to say he lost it would be an understatement. Lauren flashes to him burying her alive and Paul finding her and saving her life. After that, she decided it was time to grow up.
Lauren continues on, and reflects that she was in her twenties when her dad died — she wasn’t prepared to lose him so soon or to take over his life’s work. She remembers Paul urging her to honor her dad’s last request and take over the business. “I was determined to make my dad proud.” Michael assures her she has. Lauren says she grew into the role quickly and that’s when she met her second husband, Scott Grainger, a kind, handsome doctor. She flashes to dancing with Scott on a romantic night. Fen explains to Trey that Grainger was his brother Scott’s dad, but he died when they were young. Talk turns to Sheila Carter. Lauren thought she could handle anyone or anything. “And then I met Sheila. Little did I know I was looking into the face of pure evil.” She recalls warning Sheila to stay away from her husband, but she didn’t do it.
Lauren flashes to Scott telling her Sheila was pregnant with his baby. Becoming emotional, Lauren reveals that she was pregnant at the time as well and the baby didn’t survive. “Sheila was so vicious and cruel.” The story continues as Lauren remembers Sheila’s mother, Molly, telling her she switched her baby for hers and stole her son at birth. Sheila admitted it, a fire broke out, and Lauren thought she perished in the fire, but it was just the beginning of decades of torment. Even now, she doesn’t believe she’s dead. If that bitch decides to resurrect and comes after anyone she loves, she’ll wish she’d stayed dead.
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As Lauren carries on reminiscing, she recalls meeting Michael. Kevin pipes up to say that he fell for Lauren first. He thought she was falling for him too, and when he realized he was mistaken, he didn’t handle it very well. He’s grateful Lauren forgave him. Michael and Lauren remember that they began spending time together talking about Kevin, but then fell madly in love. They flash to Michael proposing during a casino night he planned for her. Gloria recalls how they balked at her offer to plan the wedding but in the end, it was truly elegant. Lauren smiles and says Gloria did a good job.
Michael remembers when Fenmore came along. He tells his son he is a miracle and Lauren says he’s one of the greatest joys in her life. Trey rubs Fen’s shoulder.
Talk next turns to the Fenmore side of the family growing when Lauren shockingly learned that Jill was her half-sister. She remembers that she wasn’t very gracious about it, but says they’ve grown close. They have a good laugh recalling when Lauren and Michael caught Jill having sex in the office.
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Phyllis arrives and greets Lauren before Fen introduces her to Trey. Lauren announces that if they ever write a book about her, this woman deserves a chapter. Kevin says, “A long and twisted chapter.” Phyllis disagrees and tells Lauren they share a very special bond. They flash to being pregnant at the same time. Lauren notes that she showed up during the bad times too. Phyllis declares that Michael and Lauren are relationship goals. They’ve had troubles but navigated through them. Lauren and Michael remember when he tried to get her to divorce him but she refused. Michael says, “My wife is the greatest, fiercest human being that I have ever met. And we’re all the stronger for it.”
Later, the party breaks up and Lauren and Michael are left alone with Fen and Trey, who decide they’re going to go check out Noah’s club. The men walk off hand-in-hand. Michael and Lauren get emotional over their son falling in love. Michael thinks Phyllis was right when she said they set a good example for others. “We’ve faced obstacles that would pulverize others.” They flash through tough times in the marriage, including Lauren’s boat blowing up, Michael’s cancer, and Lauren’s cheating. Lauren says they made it this far because when they pledged to be together forever, they meant it. Michael kisses his wife and tells her, “Lauren Fenmore Baldwin. I promise to love, honor, and cherish you until the day I die.” They kiss and embrace.
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Next on The Young and the Restless: Lauren receives a special award, and Fen returns to Genoa City, as Tracey Bregman’s 40th anniversary is celebrated.
Don’t miss our photo-filled gallery of Lauren Fenmore’s 40th anniversary celebration below.
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