Friday, September 12, 2008, Episode #5396

Rick tells his mom about Taylor's issues with Jack.

Rick and Taylor try to calm a cranky Jack after spending time out by the pool. When the doorbell rings, Taylor takes Jack so Rick can answer it. Rick finds his mom at the door. Annoyed by Brooke's dropping by unannounced, Taylor takes her crying son upstairs so Rick can talk with his mother. Recalling their conversation last night, Brooke asks Rick why Jack is always crying when she comes here. Rick reluctantly admits that Taylor is having trouble bonding with the baby. Brooke is surprised, since she thought they put that problem behind them months ago. There is no problem, Rick defends. It's just that Taylor feels judged, so he thinks she can use some encouragement from people like Brooke. Brooke offers to talk to Taylor, since she doesn't see how she can offer any encouragement if she stays silent.

Brooke calms Jack down.

Upstairs, Taylor begs Jack to at least stay quiet until Brooke leaves. She gets frustrated trying to calm the baby. Brooke comes up and asks if she can say goodnight to Jack. Hearing Jack cry, she assumes it must be hard for Taylor to listen to the baby wailing. Taylor says she's fine, but Brooke sees Jack fussing and asks if she can hold him. Taylor reluctantly hands the tyke over and is amazed that he stops crying once he's in Brooke's arms. Smelling sunscreen on Jack, Brooke guesses that he's been out by the pool and asks Taylor if he can swim yet. Taylor answers that Jack loves the water, but she doesn't think she'd call it swimming. Brooke puts Jack down for a nap and gives him his bottle before turning to Taylor and offering to give any help that Taylor might need. "You and I really aren't that different. We both love Jack," Brooke observes. She thanks Taylor and leaves.

Taylor wonders why Jack cries around her.

As Brooke comes downstairs, Rick asks her how it went. She tells him that she pointed out to Taylor that they're not that different, because they both want what's best for Jack. Rick asks if that means she's wondering if she can mother Jack better than Taylor can. Back upstairs, Taylor begs Jack to break the tension between them. "What is it that's so broken in me that you find so hard to love?" she sobs.

Stephanie and Felicia have questions for Eric.

In Eric's bedroom, Stephanie, Ridge, Thorne and Felicia are thrilled that Eric has come back to them. Stephanie asks Ridge where the motorized wheelchair they ordered for Eric is. Ridge tells her that he called this morning to schedule a pickup to return it, so Stephanie tells him to cancel the pickup and get the chair. Once Eric is settled into the chair, Ridge shows him how to work the controls. The children ask Eric what he remembers. Barely able to talk, he slowly mutters that he thought he died. Eric then looks at Stephanie and tells her that he remembers her; she jokes that she hopes he wasn't expecting the 25-year-old version of her. Stephanie wants to go downstairs to call Dr. Siefert and asks Eric if he needs anything. He mutters Donna's name, but Ridge tells her that Donna is out of town on Forrester business.

Owen tells Donna she has nothing to prove.

But down the hall, Donna is helping Owen get settled into Kristen's room. She tells him that she wants to change and head over to the hospital, but Owen asks why she wants to go there after a 14 hour flight just to see a man who doesn't even know she's there. Donna is peeved by the comment, but Owen tells her that she doesn't have to prove her devotion to Eric anymore by refusing to accept what happened. He knows she loves Eric, but he thinks she has to stop expecting Eric to love her back. Donna admits that she knew she and Eric wouldn't be together forever, but she thinks it's unfair to have to let him go after just a few months. She feels like it's just too soon.

Ridge and Thorne wonder if they should tell Eric about Donna.

Stephanie takes Ridge and Thorne downstairs to call Dr. Siefert, who tells her to contact Eric's primary doctor, Dr. Patrick. Noting that Eric has already been asking about Donna, Thorne asks what they should do about her. Stephanie agrees that they can't keep ducking Eric's questions about Donna, but Ridge thinks they should hold off on telling Eric about Owen since the strain might be too much for Eric's heart. Upstairs, Felicia sees her dad closing his eyes and urges him to stay awake. She tells him that he already woke up once and fell back into a coma, and she couldn't stand to see that happen again. Eric weakly tells her that he's home now and asks her not to be afraid. Felicia gets a call on her cell phone from Dr. Patrick and asks him to hold on while she gets her mother. She tells Eric to wait here while she goes to get Stephanie. When she gets downstairs, Felicia joins her siblings in discussing whether they should tell Eric the truth. Ridge and Thorne both worry that Eric might not be able to handle the truth in his current state, so Felicia suggests that they wait until their mother gets the doctor over to decide.

Donna asks Owen not to push her.

Upstairs, Eric wheels over to his bedroom window, where he hears Donna's voice. Down the hall, Owen tells Donna that Eric probably would have been taken off life support weeks ago if his name wasn't Forrester. Donna fears that she'll have to make that decision eventually, but right now, she wants to be with her husband. She appreciates everything Owen has done for her, but she asks him please not to push her. Owen tells her that he can't help the way he feels, especially when he watches her. He knows she feels like she found the perfect man and fell in love with him, but he doesn't think Eric would want her to be trapped in limbo along with him. He feels like her sadness is eating up everything good inside her while she watches Eric slip away. Donna feels torn. She wants to see Eric, but it hurts her to to see him the way he is now. She laments that she lived her dream with Eric for a short time, but now she's all alone again. "You're not alone, and you'll never have to be," assures Owen, who starts to kiss her. Donna responds to the kiss and things start to get hot and heavy just as Eric wheels up to the door and sees his wife kissing Owen!