When married man Ryan McNeil and single mother Nina Webster met, he was married to the frigid Victoria. After Vicki moved in with her mother because of her fear of having sex, Nina saw the opportunity to move in on the rising young executive. At first, Ryan distanced himself from Nina, but after she showered him with lavish gifts (a sports car for instance) the two ended up in bed.

When Victoria and Ryan divorced, Ryan turned to Nina and moved in with her and her son, Phillip. Eventually Nina became pregnant and Ryan married her out of obligation. Although Ryan didn’t feel the same intense love that Nina did, he proved to be an excellent stepfather to Nina's son, Phillip Chancellor IV, and encouraged her to return to college and get her degree.

When Nina lost the baby to a miscarriage, Ryan realized he truly loved her. After a few short years of marriage, Nina began to feel that Ryan was paying more attention to his job rather their marriage. What pushed Nina over the edge was Ryan’s close working relationship with his ex-wife Victoria Howard. During this time, Nina was doing research for novelist Cole Howard, Vicki’s current husband. When Nina found that Ryan still had feelings for Victoria, she made a play for Cole. Nina and Cole shared some kisses after he admitted his feelings for her, but he rejected her when he realized he wanted his marriage with Victoria to work out.

This rejection caused Nina to have a nervous breakdown and alienate Ryan. She started to get drunk, hang out in bars and flirt with men. Ryan was fed up with this behavior, so he separated from Nina and took her son with him. During Nina and his estrangement, Ryan became involved with the nubile Tricia Dennison. Unable to deal with the situation, Nina abruptly left town without a word to anyone. Ryan was frantic searching for her. When she came back to town she found Tricia in her apartment and Ryan showed up shortly after. Nina pulled a gun and a horrified Tricia left. When Ryan went after Nina, she pointed the gun at him. Alas, the gun wasn’t meant for Ryan, but for herself! The two battled for the gun and Nina was shot.

While Nina was unconscious, Ryan was arrested for attempted. But, when Nina recovered she cleared Ryan of the charges. The situation had given Nina the courage and confidence to admit to Ryan that their relationship was over and he could be with Tricia.