4899 Friday, September 22, 2006
At The Forrester Convalescence Home for Wayward Troublemakers (FCHWT), Hector chatted with his law enforcement friend on the phone. With the rap sheet fax in his hand, Hector learned Shane had a restraining order against him in Atlanta and had been arrested for theft in Los Angeles but not shown up for his court date. Hector figured Shane should start packing his bags.
In another wing of FCHWT, Shane realized he could make a much better life grifting off Taylor than with the measly million dollars he had been thinking about in his blackmail scheme. He looked out the window and saw the fair Phoebe lounging by the pool. His lascivious smile turned to a frown when he saw Harry approach.
Down by the pool, Phoebe profusely apologized. She had forgotten about her "date" to meet Harry. She explained how she had cut the gardener's hand with the pruning shears and taken him to the hospital. She told Harry the "whole night" had been crazy. (There's been no night since it happened. So don't try and make us thing there has been.) Harry seemed skeptical of Shane's residence at FCHWT. But the discussion was interrupted by Shane calling Phoebe's cell phone. As he hid his bottle of pain pills under the bed, he told her he couldn't find them. Phoebe went up to his room and located them for him. Shane used the opportunity to flatter the teen and ask her to hang out with him for a little while. Phoebe thought it best he rest and left. Shane then looked out the window again and saw Hector talking to Harry by the pool.
Back by the pool, Hector had mistaken Harry for Shane. Harry explained his relationship with Phoebe and learned of Hector's mistrust for the injured landscaper. When Phoebe returned she was miffed Hector was badmouthing Shane. Harry decided to leave and reminded Phoebe to call him the next time she planned to stand him up. Hector then repeated Shane's arrest record to Phoebe. She wasn't sure she believed him but Hector said he had the proof in the fax in his hand. Shane had suddenly appeared poolside as well and saw Phoebe reach for the incriminating page. (Whew! That was a hard story to tell.)
At the hospital, Felicia warned Bridget against having an abortion. Bridget said she would never consider terminating the pregnancy. But she had decided the only way to handle the situation was to be honest with her mother and tell her she was carrying Nick's baby. She would not keep it a secret.
At Brooke's Old Place, Brooke and Nick played around in the living room. Donna interrupted the newlywed's discourse with her return from Europe. Nick left the sisters to talk nice. As he left, he made a cell phone call and made plans he didn't want someone to know about. Back inside, Brooke wanted to know what had gone on between Ridge and Donna in Europe - and she hoped the answer was nothing. Donna explained she and Ridge had enjoyed a marvelous time but they had not yet been intimate. She wanted to know if Brooke was truly over Ridge. She could tell Ridge still thought of Brooke a great deal. But if Brooke was committed to Nick, Donna thought she stood a chance of winning Ridge. Perhaps the reason she had never married was that she was destined to be with Ridge. Brooke belted out...
The Quote of the Day: "Now wait. I'm the one with the cosmic love story with Ridge - not you." (Point well taken.)
But Brooke agreed her marriage to Nick was strong and she planned to stay with him for the rest of her life. Although she did not approve of Donna's relationship with Ridge, she would not fight it either. Donna hugged her sister and said she knew Nick was the right man for her. He would never hurt her in any way.
Bridget had just come through the door at that very moment. She rolled her eyes at her aunt's quote. A joyous Donna flounced upstairs leaving Bridget to face her mother alone. Brooke was glad to see her daughter and said she had heard about her plans to go to Africa. She was supportive of whatever Bridget needed to do. Bridget replied she could not go to Africa because of something she had done. She admitted in the past she had secretly judged her mother for some of her actions. Bridget felt Brooke thought only of herself and never studied the consequences of her actions. Bridget had sworn she would never behave that way. But now she realized one tiny mistake could have ramifications forever. Brooke seemed distressed by Bridget's speech. She wondered what had happened to make Bridget say such things. Bridget expressed worry that her mother might stop loving her. That really worried Brooke. She wanted to know what Bridget was talking about.
She'll just have to wait like the rest of us.
4898 Thursday, September 21, 2006
At The Forrester Convalescence Home for Wayward Troublemakers, Taylor returned home and had a discussion with Hector in the living room. He was planning to move out the following day. A friend had a small guest house where he could stay. But Hector's mood and plans changed when Phoebe arrived with Shane. (Shane has already been released from the hospital? I suppose it was simply a flesh wound.) Hector could not believe Taylor was going to allow an unknown young man to stay in her house. He decided he was not moving out after all. Phoebe mentioned that Hector was all too willing to accept her mother's invitation to stay at The Forrester Convalescence Home for Wayward Troublemakers when he had his accident. He had no right to criticize Shane's being around. (Hello kettle, this is the pot. You're black.) Phoebe left to show Shane the guest room. Taylor understood Hector's reservations about Shane but explained Phoebe was trying to do the right thing.
Upstairs, Shane was thrilled with the luxurious accommodations in the guest room. After Phoebe helped him elevate his arm she left. Shane snuggled into the thick, down comforter and wondered how he could make this gig last as long as possible. Meanwhile, Hector called some law enforcement buddies and discovered Shane had a record. They faxed him a copy of the rap sheet with Shane's mug shots. (Thomas' room has a fax machine for those faxing emergencies.) Hector planned to show the information to Taylor. Downstairs, Phoebe thanked her mother for her generosity toward Shane. (Oh, this is such a big mess. I love it.)
In Brooke's Bedroom, (the room, not the lingerie line), Brooke and Nick discussed having a baby. Nick had some observations about how Mother Nature had made procreating so enjoyable. Brooke had a few observations of her own about children. She expressed them in...
The Quote of the Day: "Are you worried about changing diapers, smashed bananas, and staying up all night?" (What's to worry about? It sounds like more fun than my date last night. Come to think of it, there were some smashed bananas involved.)
Nick got to work. After a rowdy session of love making, Brooke told Nick that no matter how old her children got she still worried about them. She was concerned about Bridget's decision to distance herself from the two of them. Nick stated Bridget was an adult and could make the decision that was best for her. Why worry when you can have another session of playing "Who's Your Daddy"? In the second round of afterglow, Brooke again commented on how safe she felt with Nick. She knew he would never betray her. Nick got that guilty look on his face.
Over at the hospital Felicia arrived for her cancer check up with Christian. A nurse informed her Dr. Ramirez was in Bridget's office. Felicia walked in on the two docs just as Bridget learned she was indeed pregnant! Felicia was astounded. Bridget was angry. Christian was late and had to leave. Alone with her half-sister, Felicia wondered if Bridget was carrying Dante's child. Bridget knew the truth would come out sooner or later. She told Felicia the truth. She was pregnant with Nick's baby. Felicia was blown away. How could such a thing have happened? Bridget explained exactly how it happened. (Well, not exactly how it happened but rather the circumstances surrounding it happening.) Bridget lamented how she had lambasted her mother for sleeping with Deacon and getting pregnant. But she was exactly like her mother. She had slept with her mother's husband and was now carrying his baby. Felicia tried to comfort Bridget by stating how the situations were different. Bridget agreed. Things were going to be much different. She would not make a mess of the situation the way Brooke had. Bridget knew what she had to do.
Felicia wondered if that meant she planned to terminate the pregnancy or simply shop for extremely fashionable maternity clothes.
4897 Wednesday, September 20, 2006
At the hospital, Shane told Phoebe he could not accept such a generous offer of staying at Chez Ridge/The Forrester Convalescence Home for Wayward Troublemakers. Taylor tried her best to remain generous but made it clear she did not want Shane staying at her house. She was willing to pay all his medical expenses, his missed income, and even offered a nurse. Phoebe didn't think that was enough. Shane needed some friends as well. Taylor took Phoebe into the waiting area and gave her a good talking-to. She loved that her daughter was trusting and generous. But she had to be careful. They didn't know anything about Shane. Phoebe argued that she felt guilty. It had been her fault Shane was injured. She thought she should do something more than just offer him money. Seeing her daughter was determined to make up for some of their mistakes in handling Darla's death, Taylor agreed to allow Shane to stay at The Forrester Convalescence Home for Wayward Troublemakers for a few days. Phoebe returned to Shane's room and told him the good news. Knowing he was going to be staying in a Beverly Hills mansion made Shane fill better right away. He told Phoebe she was "sweet" and kissed her on the cheek.
At Brooke's Old Place, Brooke and Nick returned home and found Jackie babysitting Hope and RJ. Jackie ushered Hope upstairs as Brooke commented on how much the little girl loved Nick. He responded he loved Brooke's children as if they were his very own. It made him wonder if Brooke had any desire to create a child together. Brooke was taken by surprise. She hadn't even thought of having another baby with Nick although it was a possibility she'd consider. Nick didn't want to pressure her. He was perfectly happy to raise their blended family together. Brooke admitted the idea of having a baby together was appealing. She loved children. But Hope and RJ were finally getting to the age where they could travel, go sailing, and do things as a family. Having a baby would limit what they could do. Nick agreed and said they didn't need to make such a big decision right then and there. They could think about it. Brooke expressed how thrilled she was to have a solid relationship with her husband. She had never been happier. (Now don't take this the wrong way, but exactly how old is Brooke getting to be? To buy that Bridget is a doctor now, she has to be at least, what, 25 or 26? And Bridget is Brooke's second child. So let's just pretend Brooke was 21 when she married Eric. If she had Rick when she was 21 and let's stretch it to say she had Bridget when she was 23. That would make Brooke 48....at least. We all know we really can't go by the age of the children. But for crying out loud! Brooke is getting on the upper end of child bearing years, don't you think? )
Back at the hospital, Christian insisted he perform a pregnancy test for Bridget if there was any chance she could be pregnant. The vaccines she had to take were serious drugs and not intended for unborn children. Bridget agreed it was best to play it safe. (If she's so concerned she might be pregnant, I'm guessing the time to play it safe would have been a few nights ago when you were digging your nails into Nick's back.) But who am I to judge? Christian took the required sample and left to get a quick result from the lab. Alone in her office, Bridget worried but reminded herself of...
The Quote of the Day: "It was only one night." (Bridget, sweetie, you're a doctor. You should know it only take one time to get pregnant. And you said "one night" not "one time." So who knows how many chances you had?)
Christian returned and gave the obligatory long stare before actually answering Bridget's burning question.
4896 Tuesday, September 19, 2006
At the hospital, Phoebe fretted about Shane's condition. Bridget tried to keep her niece calm and promised to find out as much information as she could. (You now, Phoebe really isn't her niece at all. She's Ridge's daughter. And Bridget and Ridge are only pseudo-siblings. I think, since Brooke was married to Ridge several different times Bridget should refer to Phoebe as her ex-step-sister.) While Bridget was gathering information, Phoebe called her mother who called a cab to go be with her daughter. Shane was brought to his room for recovery. Looking at his medical chart, Bridget determined the surgery had been a success. It was highly likely Shane would regain full use of his hand. Phoebe stayed in the room until Shane came too. She told him the good news. Shane was relieved but told Phoebe she didn't have to stick around. He understood it had been an accident but he had always been kind of a loner. When Phoebe learned the gardener was not in touch with his family in Atlanta, she promised to help him until he got better. She even invented ...
The Quote of the Day: "Nursemaid Phoebe reporting for duty." (Just please don't make her wear a candy striper's uniform.)
Taylor arrived and was happy to see Shane was all right. After all, he had been concerned about her well-being and privacy. When the doctor examined Shane, the would-be-blackmailer could not believe it would take months of rehabilitation to regain the use of his hand. Taylor jumped in and offered to pay all his medical bills. Shane was touched she'd do that. He was further shocked when Phoebe suggested Shane move into Chez Ridge until he was able to use his hand again. Shane smiled at the idea. Taylor looked a little dubious. (If this happens, Chez Ridge will officially become The Forrester Convalescence Home for Wayward Troublemakers.)
At Forrester Creations, Brooke frantically tried to call Bridget. She had put on a brave front for Stephanie, but she was actually worried sick about the possibility off Bridget leaving for Africa. She told Nick it was Bridget's coping mechanism to run away from a problem. Bridget came into the office and was ticked she had not been the first to deliver the news to her mother. Brooke told her daughter there were other ways for them to deal with the fact she had not gotten over Nick or the loss of Nicole. Bridget agreed. But she thought helping people that were worse off than she was might give her a better perspective of her troubles. Brooke was called away on some shipping emergency. Privately Nick told Bridget he hoped she was not running away because of what had happened between them. Bridget told Nick her absence could help him focus on his marriage. She would simply look at their final love making session as a wonderful good bye to what might have been if their daughter had lived. After Bridget left, Brooke returned. She selfishly admitted she would miss her daughter. But maybe Bridget was right. She could get out in the world and maybe even find the perfect man for her.
Bridget returned to the hospital for a check up with Dr. Christian Ramirez. (Be sure to check out the hunky Mr. Mario Lopez on Dancing With the Stars. He can shake his groove thing. Uh huh.) Christian was pleased Bridget was going to take on such a worthy assignment in Africa. But he was going to have to give her lots of immunization shots. He handed her the consent form and questionnaire. You see, there are lots of side effects to the drugs. And if there was a chance she was pregnant, she couldn't take them due to the chance of birth defects. Had she been sexually active since her last pregnancy test?
Whoa! Bridget told Christian to give her a pregnancy test just to be on the safe side. She was certain it would come back negative. In fact, it had to come back negative. (So, my observation of the baby/womb sculpture from yesterday was indeed a foreshadowing of things to possibly come. This show is downright literary!)
4895 Monday, September 18, 2006
Bridget worked in an office at the hospital and remembered making love to Nick and then learning he was staying with Brooke after all. Her reverie was interrupted by Eric and Stephanie's arrival. They wanted to take her out for a celebratory dinner. They were so proud she had become a doctor. Bridget hemmed and hawed about agreeing to a date and then revealed she had applied for a year-long residency working with AIDS patients in Botswana. (Botswana, right.....) Eric and Stephanie were shocked. They were really blown away when Bridget explained she might be leaving within the week. Stephanie smelled a rat and suspected it might have something to do with her mother. Bridget denied any sinister reason for leaving and was then called away. (I found it very strange Bridget spent a good deal of the scene standing next to a model of a fetus in the womb. Could this be an omen?)
Over at Forrester Creations, Nick went to the CEO's office and found Brooke hard at work. She was surprised he was there. Nick explained he didn't mind being at the company when Ridge was away. When asked, Brooke said she hadn't really thought much about Ridge and Donna being gone. She was now focused on her marriage. Later, as the couple shared a lunch of Chuck's famous wings by candlelight, Stephanie barged in with the news of Bridget's flight to Africa. She demanded to know what was going on. Nick and Brooke figured La Forrester would find out anyway so they told her about Bridget's admission she was still in love with Nick. Although Brooke wasn't happy about the idea of Bridget leaving, she understood it might be her way of coping with the reality she could not have the man she loved. Stephanie expounded on how Bridget still loved Nick and Brooke still loved Ridge. Brooke retorted she was committed to Nick. Unlike Ridge, Nick would never do anything to hurt her. Stephanie said all good things came to an end and she hoped Ridge would take Brooke back when her current marriage fell apart. After Stephanie left, Nick was riddled with guilt over his liaison with Bridget. And Brooke completely trusted him He's a heel!
Meanwhile, at Chez Ridge, Shane repeated to Taylor that he had seen everything and he knew her secret. But Taylor thought he meant he had seen her kissing Thorne. Taylor offered some advice. Spying on the people he worked for wasn't a very good idea. Suddenly, Hector appeared and wondered who the new voice belonged to. Taylor explained that Shane was on their landscaping team. Shane called Hector "Mr. Ramirez" and was surprised to learn he was living at Chez Ridge as well. Hector was immediately suspicious. What was the business opportunity Phoebe had talked about and how did Shane know who he was? Taylor covered for Shane by saying he was concerned about her family's privacy. He had accidentally seen her and Thorne kissing so he thought the hedges should grow taller instead of trimming them. Shane played along and explained he knew about Hector from the stories of his heroics and tragic injuries when his house burned down. Shane then made a hasty retreat. Alone with Taylor, Hector told her he didn't trust the gardener. He was way too involved in Taylor's affairs. Taylor thought her friend was over reacting but thought he should stay on living at the house if he was concerned. Hector repeated he could not live at Chez Ridge if she was planning on being involved with Thorne.
Shane went down to the pool and loudly admonished himself for blowing his big chance. Phoebe came upon the wily stranger and asked what had happened. Had things not gone well with her mother? Shane replied with...
The Quote of the Day: "It would have been fine if Smoky the Bear would mind his own business." (Smoky the Bear. I like that.)
Phoebe tried to get Shane to talk it out with her but he insisted on getting back to work. Trying to cheer him up, Phoebe picked up a huge pair of electric hedge trimmers and started to shear the shrubs. Shane tried to get her to stop. Phoebe turned and sliced into his hand with the trimmers. Ouch! That has got to hurt! Phoebe grabbed one of the many towels Taylor had thoughtfully provided earlier and wrapped Shane's hand. They rushed to the hospital. Once there, Shane was taken into an exam cubicle. Bridget found her hysterical niece in the waiting area. She took Phoebe into the exam area where the teen profusely apologized for injuring her new "friend."
As Bobby Brady once said "Mom always said 'Don't play ball in the house'." Now, I'm sure Miss Florence Henderson would have said something similar about not using electric hedge trimmers if you were not a trained professional.
