The Bold and the Beautiful recap (Dec. 29): Bill blackmails Steffy

On Dec. 29’s episode of The Bold and the Beautiful, Bill made it clear to Steffy that he wouldn’t be allowing her to send Sheila back to jail. The CEO, who’s been feeling rejected as of late, has found a new love and it’s the aforementioned fugitive. This was a pairing no one saw coming but Sheila was right, never count her out.

So far only Finn and Steffy have been made aware of this change in Bill’s life, but it won’t be long before everyone else is brought up to speed as well. His sons, Liam and Wyatt, have already started looking into why their father has been acting strange and stand-offish lately. They’ve been aware that he’s struck out badly in the romance department and that Bill’s been reeling over it, but they wouldn’t have guessed what drastic actions he’d take to not be alone.

It should be noted that Bill isn’t blackmailing Steffy out of a malice or a need for revenge. However, that’s likely not going to save him from her ire. No one backs Stephanie Forrester into a corner when she’s set on doing something, and what she wants in Sheila out of her and her family’s lives.

Here’s the full recap of events.

The Bold and the Beautiful recap (Dec. 29)

The scenes at the Cliff House were simply a rehash of yesterday’s plot reveals. Bill and Sheila are a couple which means he’s not going to let anyone take her from him. He swears he doesn’t want to hurt the people he cares about anymore and that he wants to be a better man, but he can only do that with Sheila by his side. It’s Bill’s belief that he can’t hurt her and maybe only a monster can help a monster.

His logic seems to be missing the key component that Sheila is very capable of hurting him if she no longer finds him useful. Their “relationship” isn’t anything like hers with Deacon. From what’s been shown so far, Bill’s a means to an end for her.

I’d be surprised to learn that in just a couple of days, Bill’s become someone she truly cares about but for the sake of freedom, she’s surely going to try to sell this romance that not a soul on the soap is going to support. Still, regardless of outside opinions, Bill has no intention on letting Steffy turn Sheila in. As he told her, if Sheila’s going to jail, then so is Taylor, it’s as simple as that.

Noticeably, Finn was the only person not fully in the loop on why Taylor shot Bill and Steffy didn’t really answer him when he asked. This could throw a wrinkle into Sinn’s wedded bliss since it’s unclear whether or not Finn knew Steffy and Bill had been involved let alone that she’d cheated on Liam with his father back in the day.

For now, the quartet at the Cliff House are at an impasse. Bill isn’t trying to get back at Steffy for rejecting him years ago like Brooke and Katie have done recently, but his care for her isn’t going to supersede his own needs.

Though I will say, the writers have gone above and beyond to make this plot work. Don Diamont was giving it his all in his tearful scenes, but Bill has managed to rewrite history. While it’s certainly possible that the man was laying in his hospital bed fantasizing about a funeral that no one would attend, the incident wasn’t a catalyst for change.

Bill remembers himself striving to be a better man only for years down the road for it all to get thrown back in his face. But he tried to blackmail Steffy before with what Taylor did. That time he was trying to get her to start a life with him and stop trying to reunite with Liam. So this story he’s concocted about being tossed to the side is simply untrue.

Liam was right, perception is everything. At Spencer Mansion, after being spooked by Wyatt, he started to look for clues concerning his father’s sudden shift in habits. He explained to his brother that their dad has been off and it all has to do with being rejected.

Rightfully, Wyatt pointed out that Bill doesn’t have a life partner because of his own actions. He, however, isn’t alone so when Wyatt asked if they were chopped liver, I found myself laughing and responding, “You sure are,” while watching the episode. In fact, the Spencer brothers’ scenes were all around funny. Scott Clifton and Darin Brooks have impeccable comedic timing. I love when they get to work together.

Wyatt made fun of Liam for checking the couch cushions for evidence, but he ended up being right. First he found an earring and after he fumbled the jewelry, he found a wig under the couch. With some quick thinking, that made up for his lack of catching skills, Liam put two-and-two together thanks to a picture Steffy sent him of Sheila and realized that the items he found belong to the fugitive.

The brothers leaped to the possibility that their father’s disappearance had something to do with her. They’re not incorrect, but this isn’t the abduction scenario their minds may be weaving. When they find out what’s really going on, they’re going to be just as shocked as Sinn.

Wyatt thought it was weird that his dad wouldn’t even let him in the house when he checked on him days prior, soon he’s going to be let in on why that was, and I can’t wait. Our soap will resume airing new episodes on Monday, Jan. 2.

Until next time, Bold fans. Stay beautiful!

Stay tuned to Hidden Remote for more The Bold and the Beautiful news and coverage! New episodes of the soap air Mondays-Fridays on CBS. Evening viewing is available on Paramount+.