Wednesday, December 03, 2008, Episode #5452

Ridge looks forward to his wedding.

Brooke sits in her bedroom working on her wedding vows when Ridge comes in. Ridge tries to sneak a peek, but Brooke wants to surprise him. Still, she teases that her vows include a promise not to make him sleep on the couch when he snores. Ridge laughs that she really must love him to promise that. Brooke kids that she vows to love him, snoring and all. After they trade some more banter about their vows, Brooke asks Ridge how Phoebe is. He tells her that he's looking forward to spending time with Phoebe now that she's home. Brooke is glad that all their kids will be at the rehearsal dinner tonight - including Rick, who agreed to attend both the rehearsal dinner and the wedding. Ridge still doesn't see Rick welcoming him into the family, but Brooke thinks Rick's decision to attend is a good start. "He's not going to come between us," she assures. Ridge is glad to hear that. Brooke raves that she's so looking forward to their wedding, since everything's going to be perfect as they exchange vows on the beach at Point Dume. Ridge agrees that it will be as beautiful as their first wedding there. As they discuss how long they've waited for this time in their lives, they profess their love for each other and kiss.

Phoebe sees Rick flirt with a model.

Phoebe drops by Forrester Creations for a visit. As she walks through the executive floor, she sees that Rick's door is open and peeks inside. She silently watches as Rick shamelessly flirts with a model. Upon hearing Rick tell the model how sexy she is, Phoebe walks away in disgust.

Eric and Stephanie are glad to see Phoebe.

Across the hall in Eric's office, he and Stephanie talk about how good it is to have her back in the family and in the company. Stephanie asks Eric what he plans to do about the surf line that Donna and Owen were working on, but he isn't sure yet. Phoebe pops in to surprise her grandparents. Eric and Stephanie are thrilled to see their world-traveling granddaughter. Phoebe tells Eric that she wanted to come home when he was sick, but she couldn't bear to see him that way. She's glad to see him strong and healthy and back together with Stephanie. Eric hopes Phoebe intends to stick around for a while and jokingly asks for her to give him her passport. Phoebe assures him that she's staying put, since she missed her family when she was gone. She then asks what the deal is with "President Rick" taking her dad's place. Stephanie says that they have to resolve that soon, but Eric points out that Rick is his son, too, and has been overlooked for far too long. He's sure that Ridge and Rick will settle their differences in due time, and then Ridge will be back at Forrester where he belongs. Phoebe hopes Eric won't let this thing with Rick being president go on too long. Eric is surprised, since he thought she'd be happy for Rick. Phoebe asks why she should be happy. Eric knows Rick hurt her, but he really feels like Rick earned this promotion. Phoebe doesn't think Rick deserved to be promoted over her father. Stephanie concurs; she thinks it's one thing for Eric to level the playing field between his sons, but it's quite another to let Rick manipulate the situation.

Stephanie expresses her concerns.

Later, Brooke drops by Eric's office and finds Stephanie there. Stephanie explains that Eric stepped out for a minute. Brooke tells Stephanie how devastated Donna was by Eric's decision. She still doesn't understand Eric's decision since Donna loves him and would have made him very happy. "But she didn't," Stephanie points out, guessing that Brooke wouldn't be questioning Eric's decision had he chosen Donna. Brooke concedes that Eric made a decision, and now she's made one, too. Since she and Ridge are getting married tomorrow, she wants there to be peace in the family, but she knows that will never happen unless she and Stephanie learn to coexist. Stephanie blames all the tension in their families on Ridge and Rick's fighting, and she predicts that Brooke will eventually have to choose between her new husband and her son. Brooke says that she loves and supports Ridge, but she won't categorically commit to siding with Ridge over her son. She thinks Stephanie, as a mother, should understand that. Stephanie says that she does, but she also understands the bond between a husband and wife. Brooke assures Stephanie that her devotion to Rick will not diminish her love for Ridge, but Stephanie thinks that it already has. Brooke informs Stephanie that Rick has agreed to support her and Ridge by attending the wedding, but Stephanie wonders how long that will last. "I don't want my son to have any more pain because of your son," Stephanie declares.

Brooke asks Stephanie to be at the wedding.

Brooke insists that she also wants peace between Rick and Ridge, but Stephanie doubts that will ever happen while Rick is president of the company. She feels like Rick is too confrontational and is on a power trip, and she's especially concerned that Brooke is supporting Rick over Ridge. Brooke says that Rick deserves to feel needed and supported, but Stephanie counters that Brooke and Ridge are about to make a lifetime commitment to love each other above all others; she thinks that the group of "others" has to include Rick, but she doubts that will happen based on how Brooke is talking now. Brooke insists that she and Ridge are going to be happy, and she doesn't intend to let Rick or Stephanie or anyone else get in their way. While she doesn't feel like she needs Stephanie's approval, she'd appreciate Stephanie's support, which is why she'd like Stephanie there when she and Ridge exchange vows on the beach for the second time. Stephanie assumes Brooke's sisters will be there, but Brooke informs her that Donna won't, as it will be too painful for her to face Eric. She asks Stephanie if she'll be there. Stephanie begrudgingly confirms that she will. Thrilled by that response, Brooke gratefully hugs Stephanie, who rolls her eyes and sighs.

Steffy fills in her sister.

At Taylor's house, Phoebe sits in the living room, texting Madison to see if she wants to hang out. Steffy comes in and is excited to see her twin sister back home. After exchanging giggles and hugs, the sisters agree that they wish their parents were the ones getting married tomorrow, but they have to support their dad and be happy for him as he marries Brooke. Steffy tells Phoebe how much she missed her, since she felt like half of her was gone while Phoebe was away. Phoebe laughs about the secret "twin language" they shared when they were younger that always drove Thomas crazy. Steffy asks Phoebe if she's seen Thomas yet, but Phoebe says that she just came back from Forrester. Steffy asks what her sister thinks of Forrester's new president. Phoebe says that she feels awful, but she feels a bit more hopeful since Eric told her that he wants to get Ridge back into the company. Steffy doubts that will happen with Rick in charge.

Phoebe is stunned by what Steffy tells her.

Phoebe sighs that it's a good thing that their mom didn't marry Rick, who turned into a total jerk. Steffy agrees that it's horrible that Rick seems to be out for revenge on their father. She tells Phoebe that Rick keeps insisting that Ridge attacked him on the roof, even though Ridge says he was just defending himself. She hates the way Rick is playing everyone and is even attempting to stop the wedding. As much as she wants her parents back together, Steffy thinks that the things Rick is doing are sick. Phoebe asks what she means, so Steffy explains that Rick did things to their dad and to her. Phoebe asks Steffy what Rick did to her, so Steffy reveals that Rick kissed her! Phoebe is shocked. Steffy assures Phoebe that Rick's kiss didn't mean anything and was only part of his plan to get revenge on Ridge, but Phoebe is still disgusted that Rick would even think of doing something like that. Steffy wonders if she should have kept her mouth shut about the kiss, but Phoebe is glad she told her, since she needs to know the truth about Rick. She laments that Rick may have been her first love, but he's still breaking her heart.

Rick considers Ridge's offer.

Ridge arrives at Forrester and comes to see Rick, noting how Rick has taken over his office and his parking space. Rick asks Ridge what brings him by. Ridge thanks Rick for agreeing to come to the rehearsal dinner and the wedding for Brooke's sake and then tells him to "get your junk out of my office, as I have work to do." Rick asks Ridge if he's serious. Ridge says that he was just kidding. Rick doesn't completely believe that, but Ridge insists that he just wants to bury the hatchet for Brooke's sake. Rick rejects Ridge's olive branch, so Ridge explains that he's just trying to take the lead in their relationship to see if they can forgive each other. He points out that he has plenty of reasons to be bitter given how Rick took his office and his job, but he thinks the most important thing to consider is that they both want to make Brooke happy. While he initially asked Eric to be his best man, Ridge knows what it would mean to Brooke to have Rick standing up beside them while they take their vows, so he asks Rick to be his best man. Rick thinks Ridge must be kidding, but Ridge assures him that he's serious. While he knows Rick might have been too young to remember, he recalls every detail of his and Brooke's first wedding at the beach. He wants to recreate that feeling as a gift to the amazing woman that they both love, but he can't do that without Rick's help. Together, he thinks they can give Brooke something she will always remember.