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Ridge plays shrink

For a long time now we saw how Ridge was doing everything in his power to win Brooke back and after failing repeatedly, Ridge stumbled upon the bright idea of bringing Brooke’s dad back in the picture.

You see Ridge has hurt Brooke countless times over the years by choosing other women and dumping her so he decided by bringing Stephen Logan back into the picture, Brooke will see a man who hurt her even more than Ridge has. For Brooke, her father was more of a monster, leaving her mother while they were kids, making her grow up without a father and having to care for her younger brother and sisters.

Ridge has lived long enough with Taylor for some of her psychiatric mumbo jumbo to rub off on him and he decided to test his new found skills on Brooke. He tried analyzing the reason why she didn’t want him back, claiming that its all related to her childhood and her inability to trust men because of what her father did to them.

In his arrogance he goes on to tell her that the reason why she wants Nick is because he represents everything that Ridge is not, he has never hurt her, he’s dependable and trustworthy, all the things which she wanted from her dad she was getting in Nick but there was no passion, fire, love, all the things that he and Brooke shared.

Brooke just gave him one look as if to say “how come I never noticed what an arrogant son of a bitch you really are”, for the first time she was looking at Ridge through new eyes and she did not like what she saw, yeah Brooke it took you like 15 years or so but you are finally seeing him the way we all do.

What’s Bobby Ewing doing here?


When Brooke’s doorbell rang one afternoon, who should be standing there, Bobby Ewing of all people, lucky he wasn’t naked and in a shower, that would’ve just been gross since it was like 20 odd years ago that he made that memorable scene. Alas, Bobby turned out to be Stephen Logan, Brooke’s long lost daddy.

Stephen has been a recurring character in B&B but the last time we saw him, he was really old with little graying hair covering his bald patch, now he was recast as quite a sexy looking older Stephen, the years have been kind to Patrick Duffy.


The reason for his visit, Ridge had him flown in, to make amends with Brooke and basically for Brooke to hate another man more than what she hated Ridge for abandoning her. Needless to say, Brooke wasn’t happy to see her dad and gave him the cold shoulder.

Eventually as time went on, she warmed up to him and they ended up embracing each other but she was still not ready to just forgive and forget just like that.

Ridge does the dirty deed

Brooke has been under a lot of stress lately, yeah playing a slut can take its toll you know. Nevertheless, she was tired, popping anxiety pills like it was going out of fashion, the feud between Nick and Ridge was getting to her, the fact that Massimo wanted Ridge to be with Brooke and subsequently had Jackie arrested so that Nick can pay attention to his mom instead of Brooke, all of those factors were giving Brooke anxiety attacks so she started taking pills to relieve her stress somewhat.


When Ridge came over to her place and started his same old story of wanting her back blaah blaah, he couldn’t see that Brooke was not her usual self, all she wanted was to sleep and that’s exactly what she did when she left him downstairs and went up to her room. At least she took a shower before she hit the pillow.

What happened next was cheap, very cheap. Ridge came upstairs, saw Brooke in bed and decided to join her. We never did see them actually having sex but later that night when Brooke awoke from her passed out state, she was shocked to find Ridge in her bed, equally shocked was Ridge to find out that Brooke was on pills and had no idea that he had made love to her.


He played innocent and kept apologising over and over to her saying he had no idea she wasn’t into it, yeah right! You’ve made love to Brooke so many times over the years, you bet your booty you know how she normally responds and it aint like a zombie.


Brooke told Ridge to get lost, while crying bitterly and saying Nick’s name over and over. When Nick came by the house he sensed something was not right with Brooke and learnt that Ridge was there, Brooke is too afraid to tell him what transpired between her and Ridge, leaving Nick puzzled.

Much later Brooke actually forgave Ridge for taking advantage of her, saying that she knows he would not intentionally hurt her.

Nick and Ridge come face to face

The next day everybody found out what happened between Ridge and Brooke. Brooke told her father and he confronted Ridge but that was it, no fireworks, punches, nothing!


Ridge told Taylor who told Nick and before Brooke could protect Ridge by advising him to go to Big Bear before his brother kills him, Sally had let slip to Nick that his coward brother was up at the cabin.


Look Taylor, we all know that you want Nick and you want him bad, it’s been awhile since you had sex and you are like a bitch on heat right now, you will do anything to discredit Brooke in front of Nick so that he can fall into your drunken arms, pity for you it didn’t work.

When Brooke heard that Nick was going after Ridge, she left Taylor muttering to herself and raced up to the cabin.

Meanwhile Nick was already at the cabin, having a face-off with his brother. Before Nick could say rape, Ridge had pulled a gun on him. Way to go Ridge, you coward son of a gun, we all know you can’t fight to save your life and with no mummy to fight your battles, you’re pulling a weapon on your brother? You’re even more pathetic that I gave you credit for.


Eventually Ridge decided going to jail for murder is not the ideal future for him so he put the gun down and the two brothers started throwing insults at each other. Nick called Ridge a rapist and Ridge smugly said, that’s not what Brooke said, she forgave him for doing the naughty deed.

Unable to stand Ridge’s taunting any longer, Nick threw the first punch sending Ridge flying through the air, pity that Brooke came in just as Nick was about to get started, she spoiled all the fun.

Nick was angry at Brooke for not wanting to lay a charge of rape against Ridge and especially for forgiving the bastard. Ridge left the two to sort things out.

Brooke poured her heart out to Nick ensuring him of a future with her, they have to put this whole thing behind them and start their future, she tries to convine him that she can’t put Ridge in jail because he is RJ’s father and she cannot ruin his reputation like that, she needs to protect her kids. She continues to plead with Nick but he was not convinced, he was angry and needed time to think. As he walked out the door, he left a crying Brooke behind him.


Well it didn’t take long for him to think because soon he was back in the cabin and the vow that the two had made to each other about waiting till his divorce is final before having sex was broken right then and there. The two started tearing each other’s clothes off and were soon lying naked in front of the fire, finally sealing the deal.


With Brooke having sex with Ridge the previous night and again now with Nick, I just hope she’s on some kind of birth control, won’t be able to handle another pregnancy and “who’s the daddy” storyline.

Nick heads up Marone Industries

When Jackie’s butt was thrown in jail, Massimo tried to get her to end the relationship between Nick and Brooke but she refused. Nick did everything in his power to get his mother released but he couldn’t get the charges dropped.

He instinctively knew that his dad was behind it all and he set about investigating how it came about that his mother was wrongfully accused. With Megan Conley (Brooke’s best friend and PA at Forrester) lying about having the keys to the Jackie M boutique, Nick decided to trap her. Megan fell right into his trap when she was once again caught out in a lie and she finally confessed that she helped Massimo by planting fake evidence on Jackie’s computers.


Jackie was eventually released and Megan wrote a letter incriminating Massimo in the whole sick scheme. She eventually resigned from Forrester.

Nick arranged for a board meeting to take place so that his father can be kicked out of his position in the company. The board members didn’t take too long to decide and with unanimous votes, Nick was appointed CEO of Marone Industries.


You can only imagine how angry and upset Massimo was when he found out but he had no choice but to leave the building with his tail between his legs as Nick took over his office. His parting words to Nick as he left the office “I’ll be back”.


Brooke says goodbye to Forrester Creations

Nick was quite chuffed with himself, he was the king of his own castle, with Brooke as his queen and having her kids as his little prince and princesses, all was well in Nick’s world. There was only one thing left to do to make this fairytale complete, have Brooke cut all ties with Ridge and the Forresters.

Nick told Brooke there was no need for her to work at Forrester anymore, she can finally have the life she wanted by being with him and not having the Forresters and especially Stephanie in her life.

Brooke resisted telling Nick that Forrester was a big part of her life but he made it clear to her that leaving Forrester will be the best thing for their relationship. She eventually gave in and headed to Forrester to pack up and say her goodbyes.

Meanwhile Ridge was in his mother’s office begging her to help him keep Brooke by offering her the CEO position but Stephanie just looked at him as if he were crazy. Ridge knew that Forrester and him and Brooke working side by side was the only way for him to stand a chance of winning her back but Steph was only too happy to see the back of Brooke.


When Thorne put the idea in Steph’s head that Nick would never allow Brooke to continue working for Forrester, she was ecstatic, finally, finally she would be rid of Brooke, after all these years!

When she got word of Brooke being in the building she made her way to Brooke’s office and was almost clapping her hands in glee as Brooke told her she was finally getting rid of her, she’s leaving Forrester for good.


While the two were trading insults, Ridge walked in and couldn’t believe he was losing Brooke so completely. She assured him she will always love him but they couldn’t never make it work because of her mother, she gave him one last kiss and exited the building.


Ridge was at a loss for words, he had lost his Logan for good and it was all because his mother could never accept her. He turned on his mother and gave her a thorough tongue lashing, his mother couldn’t get a word in edgewise as Ridge stood up for Brooke in a way he never has before. What is that about too little too late?

He went on to tell her that she took away his life, such a drama king that Ridge. Before uttering another word, Ridge clutched his chest and collapsed.


Brooke had literally broken Ridge’s heart as he suffered a massive heart attack and was raced to hospital. Steph was beside herself and overcome with emotion, this was her baby, her Ridge, her life, he couldn’t die on her like this.


Ridge’s words played over and over again in Steph’s mind “you took away my life, mother, you took away my life”.

She was guilty as hell, she blamed herself naturally but Eric and Thorne tried to pacify her, “it’s not your fault” they kept telling her and I kept saying “off course it is”.

Ridge had emergency surgery done and everything looked good according to the doctors, he should come to anytime soon. The family were all gathered at the hospital, one by one each went in to talk to a sleeping Ridge but Ridge barely responded, in fact he refused to wake up, the only thing he kept saying over and over again was “Brooke, Brooke, Brooke!”


The hours turned into days and everybody was worried, even the doctors, there was no medical explanation why Ridge had not awoken yet, they were baffled so they kept running tests but everything appeared normal.

Stephanie hauls Brooke back to Los Angeles

Stephanie knew what she had to do, she needed to give Ridge his life back, in this case meaning Brooke. All the catfights and angry words that were exchanged between Steph and Brooke over the years were playing itself over in Steph’s mind, she had to let go of that anger and see Brooke for who she really was, the love of her son’s life.

She decided to take control. First she called Brooke and left a message but Brooke never responded, then when she got a hold of Brooke, she put the phone down thinking Steph was out to further torment her.


Meanwhile in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, where Nick and Brooke were having their pre-honeymoon,(with weddings constantly being interrupted or not happening at all in Forrester land, one can’t be too careful, hence the pre-honeymoon idea), Brooke was feeling anxious, she had a feeling something was just not right at home, she called home and Jackie convinced her that the kids were fine, everything was under control but still the uneasy feeling persisted, yep that’s the powerful connection Brooke and Ridge share.

Steph decided to go after Brooke thinking she was at home but all she got was Stephen Logan who eventually gave her the information of where Brooke was at. Steph got the Forrester jet ready and set about bringing Brooke back to LA.


Meanwhile Brooke and Nick were having the time of their lives, Brooke was at her happiest, she was feeling stress-free and Steph-free, what more could she want than what she had right there with Nick?


Uh-oh! Steph just pitched up and you an imagine the shocked expression on Brooke’s face, she had resigned from Forrester dammit, she has left Ridge for good, what the hell does this bitch still want with me, was the thought probably running through Brooke’s mind.


Well we all know, what Steph wants, Steph gets and right now she wanted Brooke to save her son’s life so she was pulling out all the stops.

At first Brooke wasn’t convinced of Steph’s sincerity but she begged and pleaded with Brooke to come back to LA, she sees now that Brooke is indeed her son’s life, she didn’t want to admit it to herself but Brooke and Ridge have always loved each other no matter how many times Steph has hurt and insulted Brooke, her love for her son never faded.


Nick tries his best to come between the two, to make Brooke see that Steph is messing around with her feelings but the moment Steph said the magical words to Brooke she went all soft. In a surprise move, Steph put her arms around Brooke and said the words that Brooke have been wanting to hear for ages, “he needs you, I need you, come home with me, precious girl, and let me be the mother to you that you’ve always wanted me to be.”

Sleeping Beauty gets the kiss of life

Well it didn’t take long for Brooke to succumb to Steph’s charming words, she decided she had to try to save Ridge if only for RJ’s sake. Next minute they were heading back to LA.

They immediately went to the hospital and Brooke sat at Ridge’s side and told him how much he means to her, “come back, come back”, she cried. Brooke tried everything but no response from Ridge, eventually when she’s about to give up apologising to Steph co’s her presence didn’t help, Sleeping Beauty Ridge eventually stirred when Brooke gave him the kiss of life and he mutters the word “Logan?”


Needless to say everyone was overjoyed that Ridge was back, not so happy about Brooke’s power over Ridge was Nick and his mom, Jackie. They were skeptical and worried that Steph was getting to Brooke, Steph was going out of her way to be nice to her, telling her everything that Brooke desperately needed to hear from her, Brooke’s feelings were in turmoil.

Nick tried to discourage the new Steph, telling her Brooke doesn’t need her or her son in her life anymore. Steph took no notice of Nick, Jackie or Stephen, she wanted Brooke in her family and was gonna do whatever she had to do to convince Brooke and Ridge that she’s miraculously turned over a new leaf with regards to her feelings for Brooke.

Has Steph finally lost it? She’s honouring Brooke for goodness sake!

The only way for Steph to truly convince everybody of her feelings is to do the one thing that nobody expects from her, that is, acknowledge Brooke’s accomplishments in Forrester, thank her for bringing success to Forrester through the Belief formula, Brooke’s Bedroom line, the Men’s line, etc.

She decides to have a press conference where she will make a major announcement. She calls in Thorne and Eric and tells them of her plans, they are as shocked as we were.


On the day of the press conference, Steph calls Brooke and asks her to be there. Brooke thinks the conference is just to announce that Ridge is doing much better after his illness and she’s hesitant to attend but Eric grabs the phone from Steph and convinces Brooke to be there.

The press conference has started and everybody is there, Jackie and Stephen who have become quite chummy lately after she gave Eric his engagement ring back, Dante and Bridget who are not as chummy co’s Bridget declined his marriage proposal and he and Felicia are flirting like crazy with one another (behind Bridget’s back off course), Thorne, Darla and Sally and off course the main Forrester clan, Steph, Eric and Ridge. Brooke was sitting in the audience.


Back at Marone Industries, Taylor is visiting with Nick and she apologises for trashing Brooke’s name with the whole rape issue, she tries to get back into Nick’s good graces co’s all she wants is to get into his bed. Nick tells her that Brooke is ending her association with Forrester as they speak.


The press conference is being televised as they counted down in 5,4,3,2,1. Steph tells everyone that Ridge is doing well after his recent illness as they wheel him on stage. When one of the reporters asks about the rumours that Brooke has quit the company, Steph says she hopes not and calls out to Brooke to join her on stage.


Amid huge applause from the crowd, a reluctant Brooke joins the Forresters on stage. Jackie immediately got on her cell phone and called Nicky to switch on the telly and watch what Steph has up her sleeve.


Steph goes on to say she has never thanked Brooke for all her achievements in Forrester and she tells everyone to watch the video screen. Shock and horror as we watch a video being narrated by Steph of all Brooke’s triumphs at Forrester, Brooke in the lab with Belief, Brooke with her successful lingerie line, Brooke in Portofino wearing the wedding dress showstopper, Brooke and Ridge together on the runway, Brooke, Brook,Brooke!

Brooke is shocked and Ridge places his hand in hers, as the video comes to an end, Steph takes both their hands, lifts it up and tells the crowd that Forrester will be under new direction from now onwards, Brooke and Ridge. She is stepping down as CEO and giving the postion to Brooke, even more shocking is when she takes out stock certificates and hands one to Brooke, telling her she’s giving her 50% control of the company, Brooke thought she had died and gone to heaven as the two embrace and flashbulbs go off.

Everyone is stunned at this sudden announcement. Taylor was more shocked than anyone else as she saw her best friend Stephanie, welcoming Brooke into the family.


Stephen Logan, you sly old fox!

Everyone is in Steph’s office after the press conference, once Brooke has overcome the shock of what just happened, she lashes out at Steph for ambushing her on national television.


Steph urges her to consider her generous offer, she and Ridge can have what they’ve always wanted, running the company together. Stephen and Jackie burst into the office and Stephen tells Steph to leave his daughter alone, “don’t sign anything Brooke”, he tells her.

The more Steph tries to get Brooke to accept the offer, the more Stephen and Jackie are tyrying to make her see that Stephanie is bribing and manipulating her just like she did with him all those years ago.

Back and forth, back and forth it’s going and Brooke is not sure what to make of everything. Just then Nick steps in, takes control of the situation and leads Brooke out of the office, saying she’s done with this dysfunctional family.

Later Steph is alone in her office telling her lawyer to divide up the rest of her Forrester stock between herself, Eric, Ridge, Thorne, Felicia and Kristen with 2% given to Taylor, yay a whole 2% for Taylor where Brooke gets 50%!


Stephen drops by and warns Steph not to mess with him and his daughter, he is tired of her manipulations and Brooke is happy with Nick, he will not allow Steph to interfere with that.

Later when Steph leaves her office, Stephen silently walks in, looks at the stock certificates and says, “don’t underestimate me, Stephanie!”

Back at Brooke’s house, its obvious she’s seriously considering Stephanie’s offer telling Nick, its worth millions, her chidren’s future will be secure but Nick is totally against the idea, saying he doesn’t want Brooke working with Ridge. Eventually he tells her to choose between him and her dreams.


The next day, Stephen drops by Nick’s office and explains to him that he has a plan that will make Brooke own the majority share of Forrester stock. He tells him about Steph dividing up her stock and if Brooke gets just 1% more she will be the majority stock holder meaning she can fire Steph, Ridge or Eric.


Nick is not with Stephen, asking who will sell their stock to Brooke? Stephen goes on to tell him that Taylor feels hurt and betrayed by Stephanie, she’s feeling vulnerable right now and it’s the perfect time to strike. Nick is skeptical about the plan, thinking it might backfire since Taylor is not a vengeful person, you wanna bet Nicky? Stephen tells Nick not to make Brooke choose between him and Forrester because this way they can have it all.

In Taylor’s office, it’s clear she’s upset with Stephanie as she rants and raves to Hector about her best friend betraying her. When she calls Steph, she barely has time to speak to Taylor because Bridget was in her office confronting her about wanting to break up her mother and Nick.


Later Steph goes to Taylor’s office to make amends but Taylor is through with being used by Steph, she lashes out saying that Steph humiliated her in front of the world and if she really loved her, then she would not have stabbed her in the back. Stephanie looks ashamed of herself.


Unbeknownst to them, Stephen is standing at the door listening in on their conversation.

Will Stephen’s plan work? Will Brooke once again own Forrester Creations?

The Bold and the Beautiful
Mondays - Fridays
SABC 1
18:00

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