Ridge and Eric agree to settle their differences on the catwalk while Hope makes her intentions toward Thomas clear on The Bold and the Beautiful.
We start out at Forrester Creations, where Ridge (Thorsten Kaye) is still contemplating Eric’s (John McCook) decision to put together a collection instead of taking a vacation to get some rest. Brooke (Katherine Kelly Lang) tries to get him to see how amazing it is that RJ (Joshua Hoffman) is part of his grand finale collection.
Eric thanks RJ for his work, and RJ thanks him for trusting him to be part of this. Eric is so proud of him and grateful for the burst of energy he’s getting from being around him.
Thomas (Matthew Atkinson) is in his office sketching when he looks up at a picture of Hope (Annika Noelle) on the desk. She walks in at that very moment with a new creation that she wants to try on so she can get his thoughts. After a moment she decides to lock the door, giving him a heated look while she pulls her dress off.
Donna (Jennifer Gareis) reminds Eric about a call he needs to take about some fabric. He tells Luna (Lisa Yamada) how much he appreciates having her at Forrester, then he and Donna take their leave. Luna apologizes for sticking around and watching RJ work and tells him that his designs are “fire.” She appreciates seeing him working with his grandfather.
Ridge wonders how Eric was able to get RJ into design when he’d been working for years to get him to pick it up. Brooke teases him about how “subtle” he was in trying to convince their son to pick up the family business. Ridge wants his son to work with him at the company, and Brooke points out that he’s doing that, only RJ is working with Ridge’s father. Ridge says they don’t need Eric to do another line because there’s no room for it. He needs to find a way to put an end to this final line.
Brooke wants to know Ridge’s plan to convince Eric to not launch his collection. Ridge knows that he’d have to be careful. She says they have to be careful because RJ is involved and this could give him the wrong impression and right now they need to focus on the work he’s doing. Ridge just needs to get through to Eric.
Luna has to get back to work. RJ tells her that he’s never sketched in front of anyone before, and she’s impressed. She likes how well he works with Eric and he acknowledges how fortunate he’s been growing up around his family’s influence. “Yet you’re so normal,” she jokes. He remembers that she follows him on social media so he goes to look her up. She looks very uncomfortable until he says her profile is private. “I showed you mine,” he says, but he admits he likes the mystery.
Thomas adjusts Hope’s dress, touching her as much as possible. She kisses his finger, which leads to more kissing. He tells her he’s always enjoyed fittings, but this is much better. Hope says her heart is beating so fast when he touches her. Cue more kissing.
RJ arrives at Forrester Creations with Ginge (Oliver Bell) and he gives Ginge instructions about Eric’s designs. Ginge notes that RJ hasn’t posted to his social media lately and RJ says he’s been busy. Brooke comments that she likes seeing her son helping out. RJ asks her about whether Ridge knows about what he’s doing. RJ thinks he should talk to Ridge, but Ridge went to talk to Eric. She tells RJ that he’s worried about Eric.
Eric studies his designs and smiles. When Ridge arrives he places the design on the easel. “I understand you’re coming after me,” Ridge says lightheartedly. He suggests they find a little place in Beverly Hills where they can design, as in a whole building dedicated to it, and they could call it Forrester Creations. Eric doesn’t think it’s funny. Ridge asks to look at the designs, and he’s stunned that Eric was able to get RJ to design. Ridge thanks Eric for teaching RJ to design. Eric reminds him that this isn’t just about mentoring RJ. Ridge wonders if they can put some of the designs in the company’s couture line, but Eric isn’t interested. “This is my grand finale,” Eric says.
Hope and Thomas get busy in his office, right on his desk. She asks if he can handle it. Needless to say, he can.
RJ wants to know why Ridge is concerned. Brooke explains that Ridge doesn’t want Eric to be overwhelmed by the work, and they also have a full slate so there’s no room in the roster.
Ridge is thrilled that Eric got RJ to design. Ridge proposes that he, RJ and Thomas all work on a project together but Eric points out that he would want them to work on his line. He tried to explain to Ridge that he wanted to do this, but Ridge wouldn’t listen to him. He warns Ridge that nothing will stop him. Ridge wishes his mother was there to praise Eric’s passion. Ridge says they can both do their collections. “We’ll settle it on the runway.” They shake hands on it. Hey, at least they’re smiling.
Now that Ridge and Eric seem to be in a better place, we have to wonder what Hope’s plan is for Thomas. She walked into that office with a plan.
Of course, Thomas didn’t need any convincing, but it’s very telling that she asked him if he could handle what they were doing. Thus far she hasn’t told Thomas — or anyone, for that matter — what her actual feelings toward him are. Are they dating, are they fooling around, are they just hooking up or are they just friends with benefits? She hasn’t made that clear, and for now it looks like Thomas is just happy to be along for the ride.
But this makes us wonder if she’s toying with Thomas. Is she leading him on? It kind of feels like that. If she came out and declared her love for Thomas, that’s one thing. There’s a reason that THOPE has been trending all summer long. But this is different. She’s only with Thomas on her own terms and it feels really icky.
Will Hope declare her feelings for Thomas so that they can move forward with a healthy relationship, or will she keep toying with him?
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.
