There are so many secrets on The Bold and the Beautiful these days, but Deacon will need to reveal a big secret if he’s going to move forward with his life.
We begin with Eric (John McCook) trying to play the piano, but he keeps hitting the wrong keys. He pulls out his phone and plays the song he was trying to play himself, closing his eyes and reflecting back on coughing up blood. When Donna (Jennifer Gareis) comes in, she admits she thought he was playing but he tells her he can’t get his hands to work. She kisses his hands and asks about the doctor. He says they’re setting up new tests and she thinks if he’s having mini-strokes they need to get answers. He doesn’t tell her about the blood. RJ (Joshua Hoffman) walks in and asks Eric if he’s ok. They don’t respond.
Finn (Tanner Novlan) is surprised to find Hope (Annika Noelle) knocking on his door. She has Kelly’s pillow that Steffy asked for. They talk about their “complicated” lives since they’re both going through a lot. He tells her that he knows about Thomas and Rome and he takes a chance to tell her that she’s “better than Thomas.”
Sheila (Kimberlin Brown) and Deacon (Sean Kanan) make out on the couch and he tells her he’s going to get a ring. He admits he needs to find a way to talk to Hope about his plan to marry Sheila, and she wonders what Finn will think. They decide to keep their engagement a secret until they know how to tell people about it. She’s still in denial that he did so much to help her, and she hopes it doesn’t mess up her relationship with his daughter.
Hope says everyone has opinions on her interaction with Thomas. Finn feels bad for saying anything, but he knows his brother in law has had issues. Finn wants what’s best for her.
RJ wants to know if Eric is ok, and Eric downplays everything and says he’s fine because RJ is there for him. It means so much to him, and his loyalty means even more. He just needs RJ to keep the tremors secret, especially from his father.
Sheila feeds strawberries to her “fiance” Deacon, loving how the word sounds. Deacon knows that Hope and Brooke will be stunned and shocked, but he believes that eventually they will understand. Sheila hopes that Finn will be “free” of his wife so she can have a relationship with him.
Finn makes tea for Hope and asks how she’s doing. He’s trying not to overstep, but he’s genuinely concerned about her. She admits that things haven’t been normal, between work and the kids and her crumbling marriage. She’s sad sometimes at the loss of so much time with a man who wasn’t devoted to her.
Eric tells Donna and RJ that he wants his collection to “exude opulence.” He’s thinking of using diamonds. RJ wonders if diamonds would be too expensive, to which Eric points out that it’s his company. He can only imagine Ridge and Carter’s faces when they see the invoices.
Deacon wants to know what Sheila means about getting Steffy out of the way. She reminds him that Steffy moved to the other side of the world and he points out that they did that to get away from Sheila. She promises she’s not a threat to her.
Hope calls the kiss with Thomas in Rome “a catalyst.” She praises his devotion to Steffy and calls Steffy “lucky” to have him. He sympathizes with her plight with Liam, but he’s concerned that she’s focused on Thomas because of his devotion to her. It’s something she doesn’t have with Liam and it’s what she wants.
When Eric leaves to get medication for his tremors, RJ tells Donna that they can be open with each other. He doesn’t believe that Eric is being open with everything. Initially he said it was carpal tunnel and arthritis but it’s getting worse. He needs to know what’s happening. She makes RJ promise not to tell, and she reveals that he might be having mini-strokes. She’s terrified that if he has a blood clot he could die, which is why he’s so intent on finishing the collection.
Upstairs, Eric takes his medication and starts coughing again. This time there’s no blood, and he’s utterly relieved.
Hope says talking to someone outside of her family is helpful. Finn knows some of Thomas’ history, and he knows that she’s going from Liam’s split attention to Thomas’ laser-focus. He gets it. He’s determined to get his wife back and Hope praises his devotion. Finn notices that it sounds like she’s chasing devotion and thinks she might believe she’s found it with Thomas. Hope admits being with him is so much easier than being with Liam and the confusion that came from it. She swore she’d never be like her mom, but then she found herself in the same cycle. When she starts crying, Finn comforts her.
There are lots of secrets we could talk about, and knowing The Bold and the Beautiful we know they’ll all be out sooner or later. The secret that’s most likely to get out first, however, is that Deacon and Sheila are getting married.
Deacon already lied to Ridge and Carter about Sheila’s whereabouts, so imagine what’s going to happen when he reveals that he not only knows where Sheila is, but he’s going to marry her, too.
Suddenly, Sheila will be front and center again, whereabouts known, and Deacon will become persona non grata.
How does Deacon move forward once this information gets out? He’s been talking about what could happen to his relationship with Hope and Brooke, and what might happen to his restaurant, but what other consequences might he face?
At the end of the day, though, Deacon seems to be aware of what he stands to lose and is instead choosing to focus on what he stands to gain — a marriage to the woman he loves.
The Bold and the Beautiful airs weekdays on CBS and the following day on Paramount Plus. Check your local listings to see when it comes on where you are.
