Katie discovers Eric’s secret in the latest episode of The Bold and the Beautiful as Ridge presses RJ for information about Eric’s health. Is Eric’s secret about to be revealed?
Brooke (Katherine Kelly Lang) and Ridge (Thorsten Kaye) are making out at Forrester Creations (again) and she observes that Ridge is "distracted." Everything that has been happening lately with Eric has Ridge stressed out. Liam (Scott Clifton) pops in and realizes he’s interrupting them, but he wants to know if they have talked to Steffy.
Donna (Jennifer Gareis) brings Eric (John McCook) another green juice while he puts together the walking order for the show. He’s thrilled at the work RJ has done and he’s sure his collection will be everything he wanted in a grand finale. Donna notes that the doctor is coming over again as Eric gives way to a coughing fit. That’s when Katie (Heather Tom) walks in and says his cough sounds horrible.
Ridge tells Liam that Steffy is in the Alps, which might be why she hasn’t gotten back to anyone. Brooke wonders if anyone has told her about Deacon and Sheila, and Ridge says that’s not something you should tell someone in a voicemail, which is exactly what Liam did.
Eric assures Katie that he’s fine. Katie wants to go over the guest list but Eric keeps coughing. He goes in search of cough drops and Katie wants to know what’s going on with him.
Liam asks if there’s any way to contact Steffy. Ridge asks why he’s so interested in talking to her and suddenly Liam starts to stumble because he knows he’s messed up. Brooke asks if it’s about his daughter so Liam runs with that, then he mentions Spencer Publications covering the show. But Katie has that worked out, as Ridge mentions. When RJ (Joshua Hoffman) walks in, Liam uses it as an excuse to leave, but not before telling everyone to let Steffy know that he needs to talk to her.
RJ is confused at the talking points he got from Katie. It seems Ridge has been changing the rules of the competition. Ridge says that they have come up with a small event where people can bid on gowns but no one will know it’s a competition between father and son. RJ asks if he’s worried he’ll lose, and Ridge admits that people will bid on Eric’s designs knowing they’re part of his final collection.
Donna insists that nothing is happening with Eric. He’s just busy. Katie can’t believe that Eric is going to walk away after this and she presses her sister for information. Eric comes in and asks about the "appointment" they have. Katie leaves, and Eric immediately apologizes for putting her in this challenging situation. Eric tells her that he’s fine (despite coughing up more blood) and he’s not going anywhere. Dr. Colby (Justiin Davis) comes in with news about Eric’s condition.
Ridge asks RJ about the line, but RJ doesn’t offer him anything. Ridge doesn’t want anything to impact his relationship with RJ given that he and Eric are feuding. He admits that he’s jealous that his son went to work with his father instead of him.
Donna is shaken up by the news. She wants to know what they can do, and she refuses to accept the diagnosis. Eric dismisses her, despite the doctor’s warning that doing the show could kill him. "This is my gift," Eric proclaims, telling the doctor that he won’t be stopped from showing his collection. He keeps hinting that whatever his diagnosis is, he’s dying. "I don’t care if it kills me," he says of the fashion showdown.
Ridge presses RJ for information because he thinks there’s something he’s missing. Brooke steps in, but RJ says he never thought he’d start designing. Ridge asks if Eric needs him, and RJ takes this and runs with it, saying that Eric needs RJ and RJ needs to work with him because his grandfather is "a force of nature." He gets emotional when he says how proud he is to be part of it. Ridge still isn’t convinced. "Is my dad ok?" he asks.
Donna is in shock. She’s dreamed of being with Eric, and she can’t fathom losing him again. He tells her not to think that way. They have to focus on what they have right now. Katie starts to walk in as Eric talks about dying, and she stays hidden so they don’t know she overheard them. When she does come in, Katie asks Donna if what she heard was true, that Eric is dying. Donna confirms it, saying the doctor gave them the news. Katie hugs her sister as Donna sobs. Katie asks if Ridge knows, and when Donna says no, she says Ridge needs to know.
Ridge keeps pushing RJ. He wants complete honesty. RJ looks at him, trying not to crack.
Now, at this point RJ doesn’t have all of the pieces of the puzzle. He knows his grandfather is sick but he doesn’t know the diagnosis. (Nor do we, for that matter). Keeping the secret, however, is getting harder and harder.
It finally seems like Ridge is putting together the pieces. He’s figured out that this fashion showdown means more than just taking control of the company. He’s gone from asking about his father’s motivation to asking about his father’s well-being, and that’s when RJ really starts to squirm.
And now that Katie knows about Eric’s health, there’s no question that she’s going to pressure Donna to tell Ridge what’s going on. The question is whether Ridge will get the answers first, and how that could impact the fashion showdown.
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.
