Monday, March 26, 2007, Episode #5024

Phoebe is surprised by news from her mom.

In her room at the luxurious Stamford Plaza hotel, Phoebe kisses Rick. A knock at the door interrupts them; Phoebe thinks it's her dad, so she's surprised to find a driver named Glen there to pick her and Rick up to drive them to the boutique. Rick tells Glen they'll meet him downstairs, but the chauffeur says that Mr. Forrester gave him strict orders to escort Phoebe to the car. Phoebe then gets a call on her cell from Taylor, who has some news: she tells Phoebe that she and Nick are engaged to be married! Shocked, Phoebe asks if Ridge knows; Taylor says she left him a message to call and asserts how happy she is; she hopes Phoebe is happy for her, too. Phoebe doesn't seem thrilled, but she says she's happy for her mom and offer congratulates. Taylor tells Phoebe to have fun on her trip before mother and daughter exchange "I love yous." As Phoebe hangs up, Rick asks what happened; she tells him that her mom and Nick are engaged.

Taylor shows Stephanie her engagement ring.

Taylor is about to leave her house to meet Nick when Stephanie drops by. Taylor reluctantly invites Stephanie in. Stephanie recognizes how hard the last year was for Taylor, with the end of her marriage to Ridge and then her break-up with Thorne, but she doesn't think that's a reason to jump into getting pregnant by Nick. Stunned that Stephanie knows, Taylor says she's not jumping into anything and shows Stephanie her engagement ring!

Stephanie urges Taylor to forget about Nick.

Stephanie can't believe Taylor is marrying Nick, especially when there's a chance she can have her family with Ridge back. Taylor insists that Ridge is in her past, since he clearly wants his life with Brooke; that's why she can't believe Stephanie, as her friend, would be having this conversation with her. Stephanie asserts that she is Taylor's friend, and that's why she's here to tell Taylor that Brooke hasn't changed. Taylor is sorry things have soured with Brooke, but she thinks Stephanie should back off and leave her alone, and she expects La Forrester to do the same with Phoebe, too. Stephanie asks Taylor if she condones Rick and Phoebe's relationship; Taylor explains that she's not happy about Phoebe getting involved with the older, more experienced Rick, but she also recognizes that there isn't much she can do about it since Phoebe is 18. Stephanie frets about how Ridge will react, but Taylor says that there's nothing she can do about Ridge, either. She insists that Nick is her life now, and the two of them will settle down and raise a family together.

Jackie confronts Nick about the news of his engagement.

Nick is in his office at Forrester Creations waiting for Ashley Abbott to arrive when Jackie pops in, perturbed that she had to learn about her own son's engagement to Taylor from Donna. Nick quips that he didn't tell her because he likes torturing her. Jackie says she's happy for him, but she asks him to at least wait to see what happens with Brooke's impending marriage to Ridge. Nick insists that he is marrying Taylor, whether Brooke marries Ridge or not, and he's even asked Taylor to have his child. Jackie starts to leave, but she decides to stay after she considers that last bit of news; even though she thinks he's better off with Brooke, she also knows how much he wants a child of his own. And if Taylor can give him that, then she fully supports their engagement. As a surprised Nick thanks his mother, Taylor comes in. Jackie warmly embraces and congratulates Taylor on her engagement to Nick. Taylor thanks Jackie, who knows her son and his future wife have a lot to talk about and makes herself scarce. Once Jackie leaves, Taylor asks Nick if that whole scene was for real. Nick thinks it was; he explains that he told his mother to accept who the woman he wants in his life is, although he thinks that Jackie was convinced by the news that he wants Taylor to have his child. And speaking of which, Taylor sees no time like the present for them to start trying for a baby; Nick readily agrees and kisses her.

Brooke reminds Ridge that they have work to do.

Brooke and Ridge are kissing by the Sydney Harbor. Brooke tells Ridge that she could do this all day, but they have work to do. Ridge reluctantly agrees, so they start on their way to meet the staff of their new Sydney boutique. Brooke predicts the staff will love meeting Rick and Phoebe, but Ridge quickly corrects her that there IS no Rick and Phoebe as long as he has anything to say. They make their way to the Double Bay shopping district where the boutique is; Ridge thinks it feels like Beverly Hills Down Under - and speaking of down under, he wouldn't mind being down under Brooke right now. Brooke tells him to keep his mind on business, even though he would rather think about monkey business. Within minutes, they arrive at Forrester Originals Sydney, where Brooke introduces Ridge to Yvonne, the store manager; Claire, the assistant manager; Rich, the accounts manager and Diane, the local sales rep. Ridge is pleased to meet the staff members, who welcome him to Australia. Ridge thanks them and says he's glad to be here.

The staff of the Sydney boutique thinks the press will be excited over Phoebe.

Rick and Phoebe arrive; Brooke quickly introduces them to the staff members, who are pleased to meet Phoebe in person after hearing all the buzz about her in town. While Phoebe gets acquainted, Ridge snaps at Rick that is was good of him to show up. Rick blames Ridge's goon of a driver taking his time driving here, annoyed at Ridge's hiring a driver/baby sitter for Phoebe. Ridge suggests Rick get used to it, since the driver will be with Phoebe for the whole trip. Rick snipes that Ridge might as well put a leash on Phoebe; Ridge responds, "You snotty little..." Brooke comes over and whispers for them to cool it in front of the staff, especially Ridge. Yvonne tells the folks from the U.S. about the champagne reception planned for tomorrow; she points out that the press will be there and hints that Rick and Phoebe should be a hit with the local paparazzi will eat you up, since everyone thinks they're a lovely couple based on the photos making the rounds on the Internet. Ridge corrects the manager and insists that Rick and Phoebe aren't a couple. He assures everyone that those photos were taken out of context, so whatever they heard or read isn't true and never will be.

Ridge is surprised to learn that Taylor and Nick are engaged.

Ridge, Brooke, Rick and Phoebe return to the hotel for dinner. Brooke checks in with the office in L.A. and finds that Lauren Fenmore left her a message about Amber; she tells the others that Amber has married some bartender named Cane that she met in Genoa City who coincidentally happens to be Australian. Rick hopes this Cane knows what he's getting into with Amber. As they all sit down to eat, Brooke proposes a champagne toast (although Ridge insists that Phoebe have sparkling water in lieu of champagne) to the first of what she hopes will be a successful chain of worldwide boutiques for Forrester Originals. Phoebe thanks Brooke for arranging this family dinner here in the hotel. The chat turns to how excited everyone is about Phoebe; Phoebe is just glad Rick is with her for support, but that fact doesn't give Ridge much comfort. Phoebe tells her dad that pretending nothing is going on between her and Rick isn't going to change her mind about Rick; she points out to Ridge that she isn't telling Ridge not to marry Brooke, or her mom not to marry Nick. Ridge is stunned when he learns of the engagement, especially when he learns that Brooke knew and didn't tell him. Phoebe explains that Taylor wanted to tell Ridge herself. Ridge thinks his and Taylor's choice of spouses has nothing to do with Phoebe and Rick, but Phoebe insists she has a right to choose who she wants to be with, just like her parents do.