Tuesday, July 22, 2008, Episode #5360

Bridget shares a tender moment with her comatose dad.

Ridge sits beside Eric's hospital bed, telling the comatose Eric that everything is going to be OK at Forrester. "I'm going to take care of everything," he promises, urging Eric to come back to them. "Your family needs you, Dad. I need you," he whispers. Later, Bridget spends some time with her dad. She tells Eric that she'll be there as much as she can and shares that Nick got the proofs of the wedding photos today. Recalling how Eric walked her down the aisle, she tells him how happy she was to share that with him, and she's counting on sharing so many other things with him as well. A tearful Bridget then rests her head on Eric's shoulder just as Thorne and Stephanie arrive.

Marcus tells Donna about the papers he saw on Eric's desk.

In Eric's office, Donna talks with Marcus as she packs some of Eric's things to bring to the hospital. She finds a "honey bear" mug she gave Eric when they first fell in love and hopes that having familiar things like that around him will help his recovery. Marcus tells Donna how he found the papers on Eric's desk earlier to transfer ownership of Forrester to Ridge and Brooke, but Donna doesn't want to talk about that while Eric's so sick. She suggests that Marcus go to the hospital to spend time with Eric and tells them that Eric wanted to include him in his will. Marcus is stunned that Eric would do that. Donna admits she was surprised, too, but that's just the kind of man her big-hearted husband is.

Thorne and Stephanie check on Eric.

Back at the hospital, Thorne stands behind his mother as she sits beside Eric's bed. Thorne assures her that Eric will pull though this. Stephanie recalls how Eric came to check on her at the beach house right after Bridget's party. She remembers saying something silly to Eric, but can't remember anything else about it other than the fact that she made him laugh and that she was pleased by that. She starts to say something about that night to Eric, but she stops and calls him a foolish old man. "I love you more than anything in this world," she tells her unconscious ex.

Steffy worries about her grandfather.

Out in the hall, Marcus arrives and finds Steffy waiting outside the room. He asks how Eric is, but she tells him nothing has changed. Marcus tells her that he stayed her all night with Donna, who didn't want to leave, but he finally talked her into going home to grab a shower. Steffy says that she's been looking for her dad, but no one's seen him. Marcus tells her that Ridge was there last night, but things were still tense between Ridge and Donna. Yet they're both here because they love Eric, Steffy laments. After Thorne and Stephanie leave, Marcus and Steffy go in the room. Marcus sits by the bed, raving about how Eric accepted him into the family and always believed in both him and Donna. He tells Eric how moved he was to learn that Eric wanted to include him in his will and urges Eric to pull through, since there's still so much he has to learn from Eric. Steffy is touched by Marcus's plea. When Bridget comes in to check Eric's blood pressure, Marcus and Steffy go back to the hall, where Steffy nervously sighs about her granddad's condition. She sobs about the way she could always came to Eric at times like this to make her feel better, but now she's so scared for him. Marcus tells her that it may not be the same, but he's there if she needs someone to lean on, and they share their first kiss.

Donna informs Ridge that he's mistaken...

Ridge enters Eric's office and finds Donna holding the photo of him and Eric standing triumphant after the Portofino Challenge. He asks Donna what she's doing, so she explains that she wanted to include it with some things she's gathering for Eric to look at when he wakes up. Ridge tells her to take the photo. He then tells her that a lot of harsh words last night. Donna says they were all upset, but the important thing now is to focus on Eric getting better. Ridge tells Donna that he'll make sure that Forrester keeps running smoothly and assures her that she'll be taken care of just as Eric would want. Donna looks forward to Eric coming back to work, so Ridge informs her about how Eric agreed to turn the company over to him and Brooke when they were alone here last night, so he and Brooke will be taking over immediately. Donna tells him that he's mistaken, since she knows that Eric doesn't want to walk away from the company that he just bought back from Nick less than a year ago. Ridge insists that they have to do this to reassure the people they do business with that the company is stable, so he tells Donna to focus on Eric getting better while he takes care of things how.