Nick asks Bridget why Ridge can't keep his hands off her.

On the Shady Marlin, Bridget tells Nick about Amber's photo plot. She insists that she and Ridge didn't do anything wrong. But it looked like they did, Nick points out. Bridget explains that Amber wanted to get back at Ridge for something with Thomas, but nothing was like Amber said. Ridge was just happy that she had gotten over her feelings for him with Nick's help. And he got all touchy-feely about it, Nick guesses. She reminds him that he hasn't even seen the photo. He says he doesn't have to; he can't believe Ridge couldn't keep his hands off his step-daughter. Bridget tells him that Brooke understands and can't see why he can't. Because Ridge should know better, Nick says. She thinks he sounds like Amber. And maybe Amber has a point, he supposes. The point, Bridget says, is that Amber wanted to cause trouble where there was none, so they had to tell Thomas what happened before Amber put her spin on it. But there would be nothing to tell, Nick points out, if Ridge and his over-inflated ego didn't make a habit of keeping women dangling along, like Ridge did to Brooke for years.

Bridget thanks Nick for helping her.

Seeing that they'll never agree about this, Bridget changes the subject to why she came over. She brings out a gift for Nick: a pair of skis. A surprised Nick asks why she got him skis; she explains that her family's going to the cabin at Big Bear for a few days, and she wants him to come along. Oh, Nick says. Seeing that the skis are top of the line, he thanks her for the gift. Actually, she says, this is her way of thanking him for helping her pull through since she came back from Copenhagen. He says it was nothing, but she says he really helped her out. He made her see that there's more than one great guy out there and helped her feel like herself again. She kisses him on the cheek; Nick smiles. She looks at him, pauses, and then tells him that they'll drive up tomorrow before the rest of the family to hit the slopes early. Nick says he's looking forward to showing her a thing or two on the slopes - and off.

Brooke assures Ridge that he won't lose Thomas to Amber.

At Ridge's Bel Air home, Ridge pleads with Thomas to end things with Amber, but Amber tries to convince Thomas that she didn't mean to cause trouble. She turns to Brooke to tell Thomas how she was when she came over with the photo, how she said she wanted to protect the family. Ridge insists she wanted to destroy his marriage, but Amber thinks Thomas knows better. Ridge asks Thomas not to let Amber manipulate him. Thomas says he needs a moment alone with Amber and takes her outside. Ridge tells Brooke that if Thomas doesn't break up with Amber this time, he's lost his son; he can't let that happen. Brooke assures him it will be OK. He hopes she's right given the way Amber keeps slithering back into this family, even after what she did to Rick.

Thomas makes a heartbreaking decision.

Amber looks inside and sees Ridge staring at her. Thomas asks if she thinks his dad has reason to. She thinks Thomas is thrown by what she did. He tells her his dad would never jeopardize his marriage to Brooke by going there with Bridget. Not knowingly, Amber says, but when two people share what Ridge and Bridget did... Thomas tells her not to make this into something it's not. She says she isn't, but his dad is, since he's out to get her and always has been. Thomas says Ridge was just worried he was in over his head, and maybe his dad was right. This stunt is just what his dad warned him about. Amber says this wasn't a stunt: she was trying to help his family! She followed all their rules, even giving up sex with him, to prove herself, and it was never enough! Thomas suggests they take a break to rethink their relationship; he wants her to ask herself if it's him she can't live without, or his family. Amber insists it's him, but he's not so sure, which is why he thinks they need time apart. Amber cries and protests, but Thomas says this is how it has to be.

Ridge is glad to have Amber out of his son's life.

A solemn Thomas and a sobbing Amber step back inside. Thomas makes a beeline for the door and walks out, slamming it behind him. Thank god, Ridge says, Amber is finally out of his son's life. Amber congratulates him on finally getting rid of her, the trailer trash gold digger from Furnace Creek; after all, that's what he sees, isn't it? What he sees, Ridge says, is the lives she ruined. She recalls how she went to bat with him with Brooke and Stephanie and asks if it was too much for him to be there for her. He tells her to leave Brooke out of this, but she thinks she did the right thing with the photo. He tells her not to go there: his mother and Thomas have washed their hands of her, and now, her time with this family is up. He's throwing out the trash. She says he's sick and cruel and calls him a pompous, arrogant bastard, and she promises he'll get his one day. He says she's a joke, but she thinks his playing a devoted family man is a joke. She looks to Brooke and tells her that Ridge crossed the line once and could again. Then she caught Ridge and that didn't faze him: instead, he convinced everyone she was the troublemaker. But she thinks Brooke knows what was in that photo. Amber predicts that someday, she'll see justice done when Ridge gets nailed for the pain he's caused.

Amber vows Ridge will get his someday.

Ridge says that even if that happens, it won't be at the hands of someone with no brains or education like Amber. He calls her a pathetic, insecure parasite who can't even hold onto teenage boys when they get bored with her sexuality. He's just glad the family is going to Big Bear tomorrow, since that will give Thomas a chance to get over her. He says it will be a cold day in hell before she's part of this family again. He then closes the book on the "Amber Moore Saga" and bids her goodbye. She storms out, slamming the door behind her.