Friday, April 27, 2007, Episode #5047

Bridget calls with news for Nick and Taylor.

Nick stops by Taylor's office with a new nameplate for her door that reads "Dr. Taylor Marone." Taylor goes to put it away until after the wedding, but Nick takes it and replaces the "Dr. Taylor Hayes" nameplate with the new one, even though their wedding isn't until tomorrow. Taylor marvels that they're getting married tomorrow, and she's even more amazed about the visit she just had from Brooke. Nick fears the worst, but Taylor informs him that Brooke came over to step aside and promised not to interfere in their lives anymore. She then tells Nick that she wants Phoebe to be her maid of honor and asks if he chose a best man. Before he can answer, Bridget calls with good news about the in-vitro procedure. Taylor puts Bridget on speaker so Nick can hear; Bridget tells them that their first choice for a donor became available, so she needs them to come to the hospital so Taylor can get hormone shots to synch her cycle with the donor's, and so Nick can do "his part." Nick jokes that he can "rise to the occasion." Bridget says that the fertility specialist is there, so she hopes Nick and Taylor can come down in an hour. Taylor says they'll be there. After they hang up, Nick and Taylor delight in the fact that this is the perfect donor; she's a grad student in psychology she loves to sail, and she has the same hair and eye color as Taylor. "It was meant to be," Taylor raves.

Rick is surprised by Nick's request.

Nick stops by his office to tell Meriah to cancel the honeymoon suite he booked for tomorrow night, since his plans have changed. Rick stops by and says he heard about the wedding tomorrow, so he congratulates Nick. He admits that he wanted to see Nick with his mother, but they can't always have what they want, so he wanted to extend his best wishes to Nick and wish him luck. Nick asks Rick if he's free tomorrow, since he'd like Rick to be his best man. Rick is flattered, but he's also unsure what to say. Nick understands, but he'd like Rick to put his feelings for Brooke aside for a moment and consider that Nick likes him and respects that he's not the kind of guy to settle, much like Nick himself. On top of that, Taylor asked Phoebe to be the maid of honor, and Nick thinks Phoebe would like Rick to be up there with her. Rick replies that he respects the fact that Nick doesn't settle, but at the same time, he knows that this wedding is killing his mom, so he has to respectfully decline. Nick understands and tells Rick to take care of Brooke. Rick thanks Nick for being cool about this; Nick appreciates Rick calling him cool. They shake hands and agree to stay friends.

Nick and Taylor meet with the fertility doctor.

Nick and Taylor arrive at the hospital. Bridget meets them and explains that Dr. Caron had a family emergency, so Dr. Kimbrough is taking over their case. After introducing herself and getting the pleasantries out of the way, Dr. Kimbrough explains that they can start the implementation process once the hormones get Dr. Hayes synched up with the donor, providing there are no complications. She cautions Nick and Taylor that this procedure has been successful for many couples, but it's not a sure thing. Taylor tells the doctor that she and Nick understand and are willing to move forward, even though they understand the time, cost and risks involved.

Brooke urges Rick to accept Nick's offer.

Brooke is at home, reading about Nick and Taylor's wedding in the newspaper. The news story prompts Brooke to remember her own wedding to Nick. Her memories are interrupted when Rick stops by with some of Brooke's favorite tulips. Brooke thanks Rick but assures him that she's fine. Rick sees what she was reading in the paper. Brooke admits that it's starting to sink in that Nick and Taylor are getting married tomorrow. Rick tells his mom that Nick asked him to be best man, but he declined in deference to her feelings. Brooke is moved, but she suggests the Rick reconsider Nick's offer, since she knows it would mean a lot to Nick. Rick doesn't want to see her agonize over this, but Brooke thinks he should do something nice for Nick, since Nick has so few men in his life that he likes and respects, and Nick can't turn to his father. She thinks it's nice that Nick and Rick have remained friends and doesn't want to see that close relationship end just because Nick chose Taylor over her. Rick asks if she's sure. Brooke says she is, so Rick calls Nick, who is still in the hospital filling out forms with Taylor. Rick tells Nick that he talked to his mom about Nick's offer to be best man and Brooke gave her blessing, so he'd like to be Nick's best man unless Nick's already found someone else. Nick says that he hasn't and thanks Rick, and he asks him to thank Brooke, too. They agree to talk later to discuss the wedding tomorrow. While Nick happily tells Taylor that he has a best man, Rick conveys Nick's thanks to Brooke and tells her that he's proud of her

Lt. Baker and Ashley wonder what has Ridge so spooked.

At Forrester Originals, Ashley and Lt. Baker wonder why Ridge got spooked after picking the cell phone up on the floor. Ridge hesitantly covers by saying that it's mother's phone. Stephanie walks in and is confused when Ashley says that Ridge found her phone; once Ridge shows her Shane's picture on the phone, Stephanie plays along and thanks Ridge for finding "her" phone. Stephanie then asks Lt. Baker what brings him by. The cop realizes that Stephanie doesn't know about Shane and tells Stephanie about Taylor's request to get a restraining order against Shane to keep him away from Phoebe. Ridge thinks the family should handle this, since it's a private matter, but Stephanie suggests that maybe Lt. Baker and the police would be better suited to handle Shane.

Stephanie has a chat with Ashley.

After Lt. Baker leaves, Stephanie asks Ridge if he's OK. He says he is. Ashley remarks that this Shane McGrath sounds like bad news. Stephanie tells Ridge that she came by to ask him to check something in the cutting room, so he heads down there. Once he's gone, Stephanie tells Ashley that Shane is a sore spot for Ridge, so she thinks it's best that Ash not upset Ridge by mentioning Shane's name. Ashley agrees not to mention Shane around Ridge, although she can't help but notice that there are several things she can't talk about in front of Ridge. After all, Rick is a sore subject for Ridge, too, and Ridge is still mourning the end of his relationship with Brooke. She wonders if all these upsetting things might make Ridge worse. Stephanie doesn't want to sound like a meddling mother, but she thinks Ridge just needs someone nicer than Brooke. She used to think Taylor was the right person for him, but since Taylor has moved on, she's glad that Ridge is looking elsewhere toward Ashley. Ashley isn't sure Ridge is ready for a new relationship, but Stephanie thinks Ashley's just what Ridge needs. She knows Ridge is sorry about breaking his date with Ashley and suggests that Ashley go down to Catalina or Santa Barbara with him so he can make it up to her. Ashley thinks that may be jumping the gun a bit, but Stephanie makes it clear that she's not suggesting anything inappropriate. She'd just like to see Ashley support Ridge. Ashley doesn't want to make any promises, but she agrees to consider it.

Ridge frets about the time bomb in the middle of Santa Monica Bay.

When Ridge returns from the cutting room, Stephanie is still there. La Forrester admits that she sent Ridge to the cutting room to get him out of there before Ashley picked up on something. She knows he's not a liar, so it's hard for him to keep a secret like this, but he has to try harder, especially around folks like Ashley and Lt. Baker. Then why did she support getting help from Baker? Ridge asks. Stephanie explains that Lt. Baker might have gotten suspicious had they fought Taylor's request for a restraining order, so she went along with the lieutenant to avoid that. Ridge admits it was a shock to find Shane's cell phone in his office. It makes him wonder what other loose ends might be out there. Stephanie suggests he stop worrying about things he can't control, but Ridge doesn't see how he can pretend to be normal. "There's one hell of a time bomb, right in the middle of Santa Monica Bay," he reminds his mother. Stephanie tells him to forget all this by taking Ashley to Santa Barbara or Catalina, but Ridge doesn't see how time off will help him forget how Shane died in this very office. Stephanie tells him to stop talking that way, since Shane's death was an accident. His death was tragic, but it's done, and now Shane will stay at the bottom of Santa Monica Bay.