In a bedroom at Brooke's house, Thomas joked that he looked good for a ghost. Hope was upset that he had let her think that he'd died. He insisted that he wasn't a bad person. He said he sometimes made mistakes and went too far, but it was because he loved her so much.
Thomas decided that what he'd just said hadn't come out correctly. He wasn't trying to make her uneasy, but he also wasn't sure of how she felt about him. He referenced the way she'd reacted upon seeing that he was alive. She said she didn't want anything bad to happen to Thomas, and she'd been horrified by the accident she'd caused.
Thomas stated that people sometimes did bad things. Hope asked if he'd tried to teach her a lesson. Thomas said he'd merely been trying to get her to understand that he'd been in the same position, frozen about what to do with the Beth secret because of the way it would affect so many people.
Just then, Brooke entered, saying that she'd put Douglas to bed. Brooke gasped and exclaimed Thomas' name. Brooke asked how Thomas was alive. "I mean, we thought that you had --" Brooke started to say. Interrupting, Thomas concluded, "Melted away?"
Thomas stated that he would have done that if he'd been in acid; however, he'd heard crew members saying that they'd already switched it to cleaning fluid. Brooke expressed relief, and Thomas asked if she meant it. She did mean it, despite the rocky relationship they'd had. She hadn't wanted Thomas harmed. Thomas clarified that Brooke had thought he'd been dead.
Brooke said she'd been torn up at the thought of how Ridge would feel about it. Thomas pointed out that Brooke hadn't told Ridge when she'd been with him. Hope stated that her mother had been protecting her. Brooke asked where Thomas had been, and she asked if he'd actually wanted Hope to think that he'd been dead.
Thomas stated that Hope understood that he'd been trying to make a point about people making bad decisions and keeping secrets. He knew all about how it felt, and he assumed that Brooke did, too. Brooke said that she and Hope hadn't intended to keep it a secret, and Brooke had intended to tell Ridge.
Thomas advised Brooke to do it -- unless she'd rather Ridge hear it from Thomas first. He thought Brooke deserved a chance to tell Ridge her side of the story. He was sure Ridge would understand that she'd been protecting Hope, which was the same thing Ridge had been doing for him. Thomas hoped Brooke also understood better why he'd kept the secret about Beth.
Thomas anticipated that it could really change things for all of them. Brooke suggested that Thomas go with her to see Ridge. Thomas said he'd do it later. Hope told her mother that she'd be okay there with Thomas, and Brooke reluctantly left.
Thomas assumed that Brooke thought he'd been threatening her. He claimed that he hadn't been. He implored Hope to say that she was starting to see him differently. Hope didn't know how he could have kept her in the dark like that about his survival. She'd been afraid she'd lose her daughter and her life. Thomas claimed that he'd gone through the same thing while fearing that Brooke and Hope had wanted to send him to jail and take his son. Thomas claimed that he'd been going through it for months, but Hope had only gone through it for one night.
Hope claimed it had been one of the most awful nights of her life. Thomas had had plenty of nights like that. He'd hoped that if she'd had just a taste of what he'd gone through, it would put a new perspective on things. Hope said she'd wanted to go to Ridge or the police.
"I wouldn't have let you. I love you," Thomas replied. He hadn't intended to hurt Hope. He'd just wanted her to see that they weren't so different. He wasn't the monster Brooke made him out to be. He just hadn't handled it well when the truth had gotten out about Beth. He knew that he'd made bad choices. In his view, hiding that he'd survived could be one of them; however, he still hoped that it would open her eyes and help her to forgive him.
Hope stated that Thomas thought they were both the same. He replied that she hadn't done what she'd thought she'd done. On the contrary, no one would ever show up to tell him that he hadn't kept the secret about Beth. He believed that the only way he'd get relief was if she forgave him. He wasn't saying that she should.
Thomas hated feeling the way he did and for destroying so many relationships. He hated knowing how people felt about him. Hope said she had pushed him away because she'd been afraid. Thomas told her that she hadn't been in danger. She noted that he'd wanted something in return for signing the papers.
Thomas admitted that it had been wrong of him, and he said that he intended to keep his word. Hope asked if he was still giving her shared custody. He replied that she could file the papers and that nothing would make Douglas happier -- if it was what Hope wanted.
Hope stated that it was what she wanted. Thomas figured that they could start over for Douglas' sake -- especially since Thomas wasn't dead. "Thankfully," Hope responded. He joked that it was a weird way for two people to become parents. He said he'd kept one child from her, but he wouldn't do it again. "Douglas needs you, Hope. Every bit as much as I do," Thomas said.
At the Forrester mansion, Shauna was in no hurry to leave but figured that she should because Brooke was on the way to meet Ridge. She didn't want to complicate things further between Ridge and Brooke. Ridge said he just wanted to know what was going on with his son.
Shauna felt sorry for Ridge's situation, but she thought his commitment to Thomas was beautiful. Ridge replied that Brooke didn't think he should defend Thomas. Shauna thought it was Ridge's most attractive quality. He explained that he and Brooke were on the same page about defending their kids until the end. Shauna assumed that it was different that time.
Ridge wondered if he were different. He explained that his kids always said he put Brooke first. He didn't know if it had been true or if it had just felt that way. "But now..." he said. Shauna concluded that Brooke had forced him to choose.
Ridge didn't even know how the whole thing with Douglas had started. He'd thought that Douglas living with Hope had been temporary, but he was realizing it had never been that way in Hope and Brooke's minds. Ridge also didn't understand why Thomas hadn't sought advice from him before signing the papers. Shauna was sure Ridge could fix it. He replied that Thomas would not lose custody of his son.
As Shauna prepared to leave, Ridge said that if he needed a pep talk, he knew where to go. Shauna really didn't want to get in the middle of things with Brooke and Ridge but said that if he ever needed a backrub, he knew where to go.
Later, Ridge was alone when Brooke finally arrived. She informed him that Thomas was fine. She'd just seen him with Hope. Ridge got upset because Thomas hadn't been calling him back. Calming down, Ridge asked her to be honest with him. Brooke told him that he'd been right when he'd thought that Hope had wanted to tell him more.
Prefacing that it would sound crazy, Brooke revealed that Hope really had thought that Thomas had been dead. Ridge asked what she was talking about. Brooke started to explain what had gone on at the office with the custody papers. Ridge said he knew all that, but she insisted that he let her finish.
Brooke explained that while Hope had searched for Douglas, Thomas had chased her and tried to kiss her. Thomas had cornered Hope on a catwalk, and she'd pushed him into what had appeared to be a vat of water. Ridge got upset, saying that it had been acid. He asked if Thomas was at the hospital. Brooke replied that it hadn't been acid. It had turned out to be industrial cleaning solution.
As Brooke continued to explain, Ridge tried to leave the house. She asked him to let her finish. She told him that Charlie had informed Hope about the acid and had warned her and Douglas not to go near it; however, Charlie hadn't known that the vat had already been drained of acid and filled with cleaner. Hope had looked for Thomas because she'd thought she'd killed him.
Ridge reasoned that if it were true, Charlie would have called for an ambulance. In Brooke's silence, Ridge guessed that Hope hadn't told Charlie. Brooke said that Hope hadn't known what to do and had been in shock. Brooke had helped put Douglas to bed, but she hadn't known what to tell Hope. "And then you came over today, and..." Brooke said.
Ridge realized that Brooke had thought his son had been dead, but she'd refrained from telling him. "Yeah, but he wasn't dead. He was fine," Brooke reasoned. She stated that she and Hope had been relieved, and Thomas had explained what had happened to him.
Ridge said he'd asked Brooke if she'd known where his son had been, and all she'd told him was that Thomas had tried to trade custody for sex. He noted that she hadn't said anything about her daughter killing him and had let 24 hours go by without a word about it. He was stunned that his wife and love of his life hadn't told him.
At the cliff house, Thomas appeared. He startled Steffy as she sat down to have a hot drink and go over some papers. She asked where he'd been, and he stated that he'd just been with Hope. Steffy asked if Hope was okay, and he wondered why Hope wouldn't be. Steffy was worried that he was getting obsessed with Hope. He told his sister not to worry.
Thomas was confident that Hope was seeing him differently. Steffy had questions about where he'd been. He planned to answer all of his sister's questions, reveal where he'd been, and explain why Hope knew what it was like to keep a dark secret.
Later, Steffy gasped after hearing the story of Thomas being pushed into the vat of acid that had actually been cleaning fluid. She asked if he was okay. Thomas claimed that he'd survived worse -- and at the hands of Logan women. She assumed he was referencing his cliff fall. Affirming it, Thomas said he'd looked beyond it to show that he could forgive and in hopes of getting forgiveness. Instead, it seemed to him that Brooke's hatred of him had gotten worse.
Steffy still didn't get why Thomas had played dead. In Thomas' mind, it had been to prove the point that even good people made bad decisions. Steffy dubiously replied that he'd done it to show Hope that he wasn't a monster. Thomas added that he'd also done it to show Hope that they could move forward as a family.
Steffy didn't see how making Hope think Thomas had been dead would cause Hope to change her mind about him. Thomas reasoned that Hope had learned what it was like to go into self-preservation mode, even though everything within her had told her that it would make things worse. He realized he'd done it unconventionally, but his other efforts hadn't worked.
What was most important to Thomas was that Hope and he would be focused on Douglas, who'd be thrilled to hear that they were a family. To Steffy, it sounded as if Thomas thought he had a chance with Hope. Thomas said it was exactly what he believed, and he thought it also meant that there was a chance for Steffy and Liam.
At Brooke's house, Hope watched Douglas sleep in his bed. She knelt beside him and stroked his head. He awakened and grinned. Douglas told Hope about a dream he'd had about Thomas and Hope holding his hands as they rode a Ferris wheel. He also revealed that he talked to his mommy in heaven about things.
Hope asked what Douglas had talked about to Caroline. He said he talked about wanting Beth to be his sister and about wanting a puppy. Hope wasn't sure about the puppy part, but she thought that Beth was like a sister to him. "And now that you're going to be spending more time here..." Hope hinted. Excited, Douglas cheered and hugged her. He was happy to be back there. Hope was happy, too, and said she'd be in his life always.
Later, Hope was on the bed with Douglas when Thomas arrived. "Daddy!" Douglas exclaimed. Thomas apologized for not being around for the last day, but he said that he and Hope had news for Douglas. Thomas and Hope explained that she'd adopted Douglas. Hope stated that they'd keep Caroline's memory alive, but Hope would be his new mommy. Douglas asked if they were a real family. Thomas affirmed it. "Awesome!" Douglas exclaimed and hugged them.
At the mansion, Ridge asked how Brooke could look at him and not tell him the truth about Thomas. Ridge asked if she thought he'd wander through life, wondering what had ever become of his son. He said that she should have been honest with him; she'd owed it to him and his son.
Brooke urged Ridge to believe that she and Hope had planned to tell the truth. They'd just been reeling from what they'd thought had happened to Thomas. Ridge noted that Brooke had found time to tell him that his son had been up to his old tricks. She admitted that she and Hope had been wrong, but she felt that Thomas' well-being was more important at the moment.
Ridge asked if Brooke really meant that, and Brooke assured him that she hadn't wanted any harm to befall Thomas. Ridge didn't know if he should believe her. He asked if she was being honest with him and with herself. Brooke insisted that she was being honest and that she'd never wish harm on Thomas. Ridge said it was because Thomas was his son, not because she thought Thomas was worthy of her forgiveness.
Brooke reminded Ridge that Thomas had caused Hope the biggest pain of her life. Ridge replied that Thomas had kept a secret just like Hope and Brooke had. Brooke repeated that she and Hope had planned to tell Ridge. Citing that Thomas had been about to tell Steffy the truth but hadn't for what Thomas had thought had been a good reason, Ridge asked if Brooke had had a good reason for not telling Ridge that her daughter had killed his son.
Brooke claimed that she and Hope had been in shock. Ridge figured that they'd also been glad not to have to deal with Thomas anymore. Brooke got offended and insisted that she'd been relieved to see Thomas. Ridge said Brooke had been relieved for her daughter. Brooke didn't deny that it had been terrible to think of her daughter being hauled off to jail for an accident.
"'Accident,'" Ridge repeated. He asked why Brooke couldn't trust him with the fact that sometimes things like that happened. He concluded that she didn't trust him, and she did things behind his back. He asked if she knew how much he loved her.
Ridge was angry because Hope and Brooke were trying to take Douglas by any means necessary, and he claimed that "that boy" was even more confused because he didn't know where he stood with Hope after he'd signed the papers. Ridge remembered how easily Brooke had taken off her ring and had gone on to take Douglas and keep the secret. Ridge didn't recognize her anymore. He asked where Logan, his beautiful wife, was.
Brooke stated that she was the same woman she'd always been. Ridge replied that his Logan had respected his family, but Brooke thought she had to step in because they couldn't raise a little boy. Brooke insisted that Thomas had problems.
Prefacing that everyone had problems, Ridge asked Brooke to remember all the scandals she'd caused over the years. He said that people had walked away from her, but then they'd forgiven her. He asked why she couldn't do that with Thomas. He told Brooke that they'd fought over various men and women, but they'd always found their way back to each other. They'd vowed to never be that way again. "Now look at our kids. Look at what they are doing. They can't get past it because of your hatred for my son! I'm not okay with it!" Ridge yelled.
Ridge was trying to help his son, but he needed Brooke to stand with him. Becoming emotional, Ridge said that all she did was give ultimatums and keep secrets. He didn't recognize her, and he couldn't look at her the same way. Brooke told him that he couldn't mean that. Ridge decided that it was over. She said it would never be over for them, and she'd always be his Logan.
Ridge stated that every book had a chapter that no one wanted to finish -- the final chapter. In his mind, it was time to turn the page. "We're done," he concluded.
Ridge said he remembered the first time he'd seen her. Flashbacks played of Ridge gazing at Brooke over the years. He explained that he needed to remember her that way. He needed to remember what they'd been to each other, the way they'd conquered the world and had been there for each other over the years. He asked to hold her.
Brooke let Ridge hug her, and they both shed tears. He told her that he'd love her forever, and he couldn't change it. Ridge kissed her and uttered that it was goodbye. Brooke watched Ridge walk out of the house. She sat on the chaise and sobbed.
At Forrester, Thomas arrived, and Steffy said he was just who she wanted to see. He thought it meant she was softening to him, but she advised him to take baby steps. She wanted his input on a line she was working on with Sally. Thomas quipped that the executives couldn't get on without him. Steffy scowled.
Thomas thought the line had potential and was a good project for Sally and Steffy. Steffy snapped that it contrasted with the insane idea of faking one's death. She still couldn't believe that Hope and Brooke had thought he'd been dead, and he'd decided to just not reveal anything. He replied that they'd learned that good people made mistakes, and Hope knew how awful it was to keep a secret.
Steffy questioned Thomas' decision to share custody with Hope. Thomas said that he'd done it because he loved Hope, who was good for Douglas. Thomas figured that shared custody would be much easier if he and Hope were together. Steffy said it was a big "if." Thomas believed that Hope was beginning to see him differently -- and all it had taken had been a big vat of acid.
Steffy reasoned that there was a factor in Thomas' favor. It was that Liam didn't see Douglas as a part of the family Liam dreamed of. She knew that Liam cared about Douglas and wanted to protect him, but she foresaw the custody arrangement causing problems for Liam and Hope.
In Brooke's cabin, Hope and Brooke had breakfast and discussed Thomas' faked death. Brooke didn't understand why only she and Hope knew how sick Thomas was. Hope's expression seemed to indicate confliction.
Brooke was distracted, and Hope asked what was wrong. Brooke revealed that Ridge had walked out on her after she had told him the truth about Thomas and the acid.
Just then, Liam entered to retrieve the briefcase he'd forgotten. He immediately noticed that something was wrong. Brooke conveyed that Ridge had walked out on her, and she didn't think he'd be back. Liam assumed that it was probably about Thomas and that Ridge wasn't happy about the shared custody arrangement. Brooke affirmed the assumptions but persisted to believe that the custody arrangement had been the right thing to do.
Liam reluctantly indicated that he needed to go to work. Hope wanted him to stay so that she could tell him something. He asked if it could wait, but she didn't want him to hear it from someone else first. Liam agreed to stay, and Brooke went to the main house.
Later, Liam gasped, and Hope started saying that it really hadn't been acid. He stated that, for a few minutes, she'd thought she'd killed someone. Hope revealed that it hadn't been a few minutes because, when she hadn't seen him in the vat, she'd thought he'd dissolved in there.
Hope stated that it hadn't been the worst part. To her, the worst part had been that she'd left without calling the police or security. She'd left thinking that she'd been a murderer. Liam hugged her.
Liam couldn't understand why an entire day had gone by without Thomas going to Hope. Liam figured out that it was because Thomas had wanted Hope to think that he was dead. Hope told Liam about the lesson that Thomas had tried to teach her.
Upset, Liam hoped that Hope wouldn't fall for that. In his opinion, waiting a day to speak because she didn't know what to do wasn't the same as keeping a baby from her parents for months. Liam asserted that Thomas hadn't been a good guy who'd done a bad thing. Thomas was just a bad guy.
Hope reasoned that Thomas had decided to share custody. Liam said that it was to tie her to Thomas forever. Hope contended that Liam was tied to Steffy. "Steffy isn't crazy," Liam responded. In Liam's view, leading Hope to think he'd been dead proved that Thomas was crazy.
Liam was glad that Hope didn't have to live with thinking she'd killed someone, but he said she could have told him. Hope replied that she'd been afraid. He assured her that she didn't have to be afraid -- not of him.
At Eric's house, Shauna figured that if Thomas was going to share custody of his son, doing it with Hope was for the best because Douglas would be at Brooke's house when Ridge moved back in. "Except I'm not moving back in with her," Ridge replied. When he'd taken off his ring, he'd never known that he'd never put it back on.
Shauna thought Ridge was getting ahead of himself. After all, Ridge and Brooke were an institution, and it was obvious to her how much he cared for his wife. Ridge said that he and Brooke were supposed to be together forever, and she'd been his destiny. Brooke had been "it" for him. Shauna reasoned that Brooke still might be. Ridge said they'd been destined to have R.J.; however, it felt as if they'd started to force things.
Ridge said Brooke had done things, and he couldn't even see her the same way again. Brooke couldn't forgive Thomas, and Ridge couldn't walk away from his son. Ridge respected Brooke, and he considered that she might even be right. He didn't think it mattered anymore because they just hadn't been able to get past it together.
It was hard for Ridge because Brooke was the one for him. Brooke was the love of his life, and no one could compare to that. Shauna wanted to be there for Ridge as a friend, but it was harder than she'd thought. She decided that she needed to go.
Ridge asked Shauna to stay. She stammered that she wanted to be a good friend to him, and then she said she'd become embarrassed. Ridge said that he should be the one to be embarrassed for going on about his situation. Shauna didn't begrudge him because Brooke had been the love of his life, and it was logical that he'd speak about her the way he had.
Ridge was enjoying the innocent flirtation between him and Shauna. "Mostly innocent," he added. He didn't want to hurt Shauna in any way. Shauna replied that he and Brooke had had the greatest romance, and she was inspired by the way he spoke of his wife in troubled times.
Shauna felt that she'd put herself in a position with him that she didn't need to be in, and that was why she needed to leave. Again, Ridge asked her to stay and talk a bit. He was glad that he'd met someone like her.
Ridge was sorry to be that guy who'd make a beautiful woman feel like an unpaid therapist as he went on about his ex. Shauna noted that Brooke was not his ex yet, and he still loved her. Shauna thanked him for saying she was beautiful.
Ridge said that he and Shauna hadn't had a smooth beginning. In her view, it was okay "to be rough" because it made one appreciative. He said he'd sensed from the beginning that there had been something about her. It was a wild spirit that made him smile. She replied that she liked to have fun.
Ridge wanted some of that fun. There had been a lot of darkness in his life. He said that after the darkness came light. "Maybe you're the light. Maybe you're the truth and -- you're just a little bit of mischief," he stated.
"If you only knew," Shauna replied. Ridge said that he wanted to know. He wanted to find out about the woman who'd shown up at the right time. Ridge kissed Shauna.
Due to the Thanksgiving holiday, The Bold and the Beautiful did not air. This was a planned preemption, and there were no "lost" episodes as a result of the programming change.
Regular programming resumed on December 2, 2019, and picked up where the Wednesday, November 27 episode concluded.
Due to the Thanksgiving holiday, The Bold and the Beautiful did not air. This was a planned preemption, and there were no "lost" episodes as a result of the programming change.
Regular programming resumed on December 2, 2019, and picked up where the Wednesday, November 27 episode concluded.
