Well, Bold fans, it’s official. Brooke and Taylor are no longer friends thanks to the latter breaking the pact they made to steer clear of a romance with Ridge. On yesterday’s episode of The Bold and the Beautiful, the confrontation between the two escalated into a physical altercation that Ridge walked in on as the ladies were shoving each other.
Today, he was largely silent as Brooke continued to rail against Taylor for manipulating her. As she puts it, her so-called friend had been sending men “after her” in a bid to pave the way for her own reunion with Ridge. Taylor tried to explain that that wasn’t the case initially. She genuinely thought Deacon and Brooke were cute together after witnessing their interactions at Il Giardino and she’d encouraged Deacon to try again at convincing Brooke to give them a chance because of said rapport.
However, Taylor did admit that her continued pushing for the two to reunite was retaliatory in nature. While she didn’t get a chance to expand on that beyond stating that Brooke had broken their pact first, we know that Taylor was referring to Brooke’s silence on her true feelings toward Thomas which were found out thanks to her son overhearing Hope’s exclamation that he is manipulative and unstable so, of course, nothing will happen between them.
What happened on The Bold and the Beautiful today?
It’s been Taylor’s belief that if Brooke could sit on those feelings then she has to have been sitting on something regarding Ridge. She received confirmation of that concern when she out right and asked Ridge if anything had happened between him and Brooke. He didn’t answer her but his expression was enough and, though Taylor didn’t bring that discussion up to Brooke, that’s what she means when she says Brooke broke the pact first.
Brooke insisted that Taylor tell Ridge what she’d done so he could hear for himself how manipulative she’d been. Taylor didn’t quite do that as she remained firm in her perspective that she had been encouraging Deacon out of a sense of friendship and that had only shifted due to recent events. When Ridge asked if he could speak to Brooke alone, Taylor did leave but not before making a request of her own.
She asked Ridge not to let whatever Brooke says to change his opinion of her, and to give her an opportunity to tell her side of the story. He said that he’d speak to her later and was then left alone with Brooke who was still upset from her argument with Taylor. But, interestingly enough, her tears began to dry quickly as she told Ridge that she wanted to discuss their future. For a woman who’d been shaken, devastated, and thrown for a loop, she sure did move on fast to trying to get back with Ridge, something she was just shaming Taylor for moments prior.
Brooke did inform her ex-husband that she had overheard a part of Taylor’s confession, so perhaps she saw this as her opportunity to win him to her side before her frenemy’s words set in. She said that she couldn’t believe that she’d chosen herself and her friendship with Taylor over him, the man that she loves. But Ridge didn’t enter that conversation ready to fall back into a romance with Brooke.
He told her that he no longer believes in eternal love, and she countered that she does and she believes they have it. Ridge looked like he was yearning, so we should all buckle up for a thousandth go around this particular merry-go-round.
Across the hall, Thomas’ latest creation, a beautiful floral gown, was the breakthrough he’d needed after stalling over a design earlier. The model wearing the dress praised him and then stated that Hope always loves his work and the two work together like a couple. Steffy didn’t like that comment which Thomas picked up on. He asked her about her reaction as soon as the model left the room.
Steffy explained that she’s just wary of his relationship with Hope. Thomas, however, still doesn’t know that she’s saying that because of Hope’s feelings not his own, and she didn’t share those concerns with him on today’s episode. Instead, she let him reassure her that the only things he had Hope have on their minds are this trip to Rome and their son, Douglas.
Thomas also told Steffy that if anything were to actually happen between him and Hope, he’d buy her a car or a house. That’s how sure he is that nothing is going on or will go on that’s untoward. Meanwhile, at Il Giardino, Hope was being filled in by her dad, Deacon, that he’d shot his shot with her mom and came up wanting. He said Brooke was gracious about it and kind, but he wishes that he’d never taken Taylor’s advice. Yes, this does mean that he’s told yet another person that Taylor was scheming.
Hope was upset on her mother’s behalf and, for some reason, she said Taylor pushing for Brooke to be with someone else was straight out of her playbook, which didn’t make sense since Taylor and Brooke had never been close enough for Brooke to even seriously take Taylor’s advice on who she should give a chance. She only listened to her in the last few months because they were friends.
In any case, Hope mentioned that she wished Taylor and Steffy would leave her and her mom alone. The implication being that they’re instigating which is hilarious considering both Forrester women have been right. Brooke had been towing the line about their pact, but she wasn’t innocent (as Hope knows since she yelled at her mom for wearing lingerie around Ridge). And Steffy’s not wrong about Hope’s feelings for Thomas which are impacting her marriage.
We have to keep watching to see what comes of all this, but it’s clear heartache is certainly on the horizon even if romance may also be in the air soon.
Until next time, Bold fans. Stay beautiful!
New episodes of The Bold and the Beautiful stream on Paramount+.