Monday, December 01, 2008, Episode #5450

Eric tells Donna that he has to go on without her.

Donna begs Eric to tell her why he wants to end their relationship. He simply replies, "I have to go on with my life without you." Devastated, Donna pleads with him to tell her what changed since this morning. Eric tells her that he wanted to believe that everything was all right, but he can't overlook what's right in front of his face. Now that he's faced the truth, he knows he can't give her what she wants. Donna sobs that she needs and wants him, but Eric tells her that he's going back to Stephanie. Donna can't understand that, since she was sure after they kissed last night that he was going to choose her. Eric tells her not to make this harder than it is and asks her to please go. Feeling rejected, a tearful Donna leaves.

Having eavesdropped on Eric's asking Donna to leave from outside the office door, Thorne calls his mom and urges her to come to the office right away, since Eric is ready to make his decision. Stephanie expects Eric to come home if he's chosen her, so she thinks the best thing for her to do is finish packing. Thorne insists that she stop packing and get over to Forrester as soon as she can. Thorne then ends the call, leaving Stephanie wondering about the urgency in her number two son's voice.

A tearful Donna tells Thorne that Eric made his decision.

Ridge and Felicia come to the mansion to check on Stephanie and find that she's not there. Felicia urges Ridge to talk to Eric for their mother's sake. Ridge says he already tried, but Felicia begs him to put aside all the garbage about the business and try again, one tormented Forrester husband to another. Ridge then gets a call from Thorne, who tells him to find Felicia and get to the office ASAP. When Ridge says that he's at the house with Felicia, Thorne asks if their mom is there. When Ridge says she isn't, Thorne assumes that Stephanie is on her way and urges his big brother to rush over for a big moment he won't want to miss. Thorne then goes to Owen's office, where he finds Donna sobbing. When Thorne asks her what's wrong, Donna cries that he should be able to guess and tells him that Eric chose Stephanie. Thorne reminds her that she's still young, so she'll find someone else, but Donna doesn't want anyone but Eric. The worst part is that she thought Eric wanted her, too, and she wonders if it his sudden change of heart had something to do with Owen. Thorne suggests that Eric might not have been able to get past her indiscretion with Owen, but Donna is sure something else is going on and vows not to give up until she finds out what it is.

Stephanie realizes that Eric wants her back.

Stephanie arrives at Eric's office. Believing that he's chosen Donna, she wishes him the best of luck. Eric inquires if she wants to ask him to reconsider, but Stephanie doesn't see the point if he made up his mind. She just wants him to know that he's precious to her, whether they're together or not. Eric calls her incredible, noting that he's let her down so many times. Stephanie thinks they did the best they could, but Eric thinks he can do better and tells her that it's not over for them. "We have the rest of our lives to get this right, if you'll take me back," he pleads. Stephanie responds by kissing and hugging him. As they break from the embrace, Stephanie chides him for letting her rattle on while she thought he had chosen Donna. Eric says he was speechless, but Stephanie kids that she doesn't buy that. As she thinks back to the time she spent by his side in the hospital, she laughs at the fact that she agreed to share the house with him and Donna. When Eric admits he was surprised at that, too, Stephanie quips, "I think I liked you better in the coma." Getting more serious, she reflects on how hurt she was when she thought he moved on with someone who could make him happier than she could. Eric tells her that she was right about Donna all along. "I'm always right," Stephanie laughs. Eric tells her that he was the selfish one, since he thought he knew everything. He realizes now that he didn't know everything before, but he feels like he does now.

Felicia, Ridge and Thorne find out who their dad chose.

Ridge and Felicia arrive at the office and ask Thorne where their dad is. When Thorne tells them that their parents are in Eric's office together, the trio barges in and sees Eric and Stephanie together. When their children ask if everything is OK, Eric and Stephanie say that they're fine. The siblings are overjoyed that Eric chose their mother and thank Eric for making the right decision for their family. Eric concedes that he lost focus in his personal life for a while, but he could have lost a lot more, and he considers himself very lucky to have found his way again. Ridge, Thorne and Felicia wholeheartedly agree. Eric recalls seeing his children in the room with him when he came out of the coma and thanks them for being there. He confesses that he almost forgot what was important, so he wants to thank Stephanie for her commitment to him. Ridge notes that it's great to see Eric and Stephanie so happy again. Felicia offers to go home with her mom to help her unpack, but Ridge suggests that they leave the bags packed so their parents can take a trip together. Thorne takes Eric aside and privately asks if he feels good about this. "I'm okay with it," Eric says. Thorne tries to talk about the way it came down, but Eric doesn't want to discuss Donna's betrayal ever again.

After taking a call, Thorne tells Stephanie that Donna is still in the building. Stephanie bets that Donna is with Owen, but Thorne doesn't think she has to worry about that now that she's back with Eric where she belongs. He asks her to talk to Eric about getting Ridge back at Forrester to make things right around here. Stephanie asks if that's how he got through to Eric, since she's sure he had something to do with what happened today. Thorne tells her to just focus on the fact that Eric loves her and is back where he belongs. The others ask Thorne and Stephanie what they're whispering about. Stephanie covers that she feels like shouting from the rooftops about how great she feels; that leads to talk about holiday plans, including Eric's singing and eggnog. Even though Stephanie admits she hates that eggnog, she's thrilled that they're talking about the holidays, since she really didn't think that would happen a few weeks ago. She's just grateful for how things turned out.

Brooke tells Katie about her wedding plans.

In Rick's office, Brooke tells Katie that she and Ridge are getting married the day after tomorrow at the beach. Katie offers to help if Brooke wants. Brooke happily accepts the offer and the congratulations from her sister. She thinks all the Logan sisters might have something to be happy about if Eric and Donna get back together. Katie wonders if it will be too awkward for her to be at the wedding, since Bridget will be there, too. Brooke notes that there's plenty of tension to go around with Rick and Ridge not getting along, the tension between Bridget and Katie and of course, friction from Stephanie. Still, she feels like she and Ridge are starting over, so she hopes this wedding can be a new start for both their families. "When I'm standing up there at that altar, all I'm going to be feeling is joy," Brooke boasts.

Katie comforts Donna.

As the sisters discuss wedding plans, Donna comes in crying. Brooke and Katie ask her what's wrong. Donna weeps that Eric ended their marriage and chose to go back to Stephanie. As her sisters try to comfort her, Donna wracks her brain about what happened. Over the last few days, she really felt like Eric wanted her, so she can't figure out why he changed his mind. Katie wonders if Eric's change of heart had something to do with Donna and Owen. "There is no me and Owen," Donna sobs, and she thought Eric understood that last night and this morning. She was sure Eric was going to choose her, which is why she can't fathom why he was so furious with her when he told her he was going back to Stephanie. She thinks about the look in Eric's eyes and knows that something changed, but she just can't figure out what it was. "How could I have been so wrong?" she asks, confident that there must be a reason for Eric's sudden change of behavior. Brooke asks what else might be going on. Donna doesn't know, but she intends to find out, since nothing about this makes any sense.