At the mansion, Stephanie entered and informed Taylor that the guests had left. Taylor wished Thomas and Stephanie would go, too, because she didn't want to look at them. Thomas murmured to Stephanie that she'd stabbed him in the back by confessing without him. After he'd gone, Stephanie tried to explain that she'd placed Thomas in a tough position. "He's your grandson, Stephanie, and you used him! For what? For nothing!" Taylor declared.

Taylor was mortified that Stephanie had sunk to such a level and had led Ridge to believe such things about his son and wife. Stephanie said she'd convinced Thomas that it would be okay, because Ridge would see Taylor as the only choice for him. Taylor wondered if it mattered that it'd be based on a lie, but Stephanie reasoned that the lie had nothing to do with the marriage. Taylor yelled that the lie was the only reason Ridge had proposed in the first place.

Stephanie insisted that Thomas had wanted to help his parents because they'd rescued him. "And Brooke!" Taylor added. Stephanie insisted that she'd never meant to hurt Taylor, Ridge, or Thomas. Taylor quipped that Stephanie hadn't minded turning Brooke's life upside down. Stephanie reasoned that Taylor had gone along with it without question, but Taylor ordered Stephanie not to drag her into it, because Stephanie was the sole person to blame.

Stephanie refused to let Taylor paint Brooke as the victim, but Taylor asserted that Stephanie would never stop her manipulations. Stephanie claimed that she had stopped, and she'd even confessed. Taylor, however, replied that she would never have taken Stephanie's ring if she'd known the truth. Returning the ring, Taylor warned Stephanie not to do her any more favors.

Thomas went to the guesthouse, where Dayzee awaited him. Thomas said Stephanie had had no right to tell Taylor first, but an unconvinced Dayzee asserted that Thomas hadn't had real intentions of doing it, even after he and Dayzee had discussed how important the truth was. He was shocked that Dayzee would judge him, but she said he'd had his chance to make up for his mistakes. Unable to believe that she'd fallen for a man who'd do that to his mother over some stock, Dayzee said he'd made his choice, but it had been the wrong one.

Thomas claimed it hadn't been about the stock, and he asked Dayzee to go away with him so he could explain everything. Dayzee wasn't interested in jetting off and popping champagne bottles instead of facing the fact that he'd sold out his own mother. Thomas knew that he'd been weak and wrong, but he claimed he needed Dayzee's strength and goodness to save him from his family. She told him that he had to do it himself. He kissed her and promised that the deception was over and done. "Yeah, it is. I have to go," Dayzee uttered and walked out.

In Brooke's garden, Brooke was amazed to see Ridge striding down the stairs to her. He wordlessly kissed her, and Brooke wondered about the wedding. He said it hadn't happened, because Thomas had lied about the island. Overwhelmed with emotion, Brooke couldn't believe it. She asked why Thomas would lie, and Ridge explained that Stephanie had gotten to Thomas. Ridge wished he'd never doubted Brooke, or left her.

Ridge and Brooke kissed again, and they professed their love for each other. Brooke laughed as they clung to each other. Ridge didn't know what'd he'd been thinking to walk out on her, because there would never be enough time with her. He said they'd grow old together, watching sunsets on the beach. He proclaimed himself hers forever, and he twirled her around.

Brooke and Ridge returned to the house, where R.J., Stephen, Katie, and Donna had just entered. Hugging R.J., Ridge said he was home for good. A happy R.J. went upstairs, and Ridge kissed and hugged Brooke again. Ridge explained to the adults that Thomas had lied, and Ridge had returned to where he wanted to be -- with the amazing woman that he loved.

Ridge and Brooke cuddled alone on the sofa, still reeling from the turn of events. Brooke was elated that she hadn't slept with Thomas, and Ridge said he was sorry for all she'd been through. Brooke was just glad that they were together. As they kissed and held each other more, they were surprised to see Thomas slink through the front door.

Ridge asserted that Thomas had something to say to Brooke. Brooke, however, decided to speak first. Brooke said she'd believed in Thomas, but he'd lied, even knowing what it'd do to her. She said she'd given to him, supported him, and been there for him when no one else had been. She'd thought he'd cared about her, too. She reminded him that he'd saved her from drowning, and he'd kept her alive on the island. "But why would you do that? Why would you keep me alive if you were going to do this to me?" Brooke demanded to know.

At the Forrester mansion, Eric entered and found Stephanie alone. He wondered why she'd stopped the wedding and conjectured that it had been about Thomas and Brooke. "You know, if they'd been on that island just a couple more days, it would have happened," Stephanie replied, and Eric grimaced. Stephanie admitted that she'd put Thomas up to lying about having sex with Brooke. Insolently shrugging, Stephanie said not to bother asking why she'd done it, because it had just been her gut instinct to seize the chance to protect the family from Brooke.

Eric stated that Brooke, who loved Stephanie, wasn't a threat. He asked what it would take to make Stephanie feel safe. She asserted that she didn't feel safe, because she could succumb to her symptoms, or to the cancer itself, at any time. She couldn't fight the cancer, but she knew how to win a battle that had already ended. "The battle with Brooke," Stephanie said.

Eric wondered why Thomas would go along with it, and Stephanie confessed to offering their grandson an incentive. Upon getting the whole story, Eric couldn't believe that had been her way of feeling alive and healthy. He raged at her for enlisting Thomas to set Brooke up to be a sexual degenerate just to manipulate Ridge into marrying the woman that Stephanie had deemed right for him years earlier. "To return us to the golden age when our family all lived under one roof, and your word was still law. I thought you had changed," Eric griped. He added that she'd taken Taylor down and tainted Thomas' future at Forrester by bribing him to succeed.

Stephanie wondered if she'd caused the problems for herself. She wondered if her anger, envy, and need for control had caused God to give her cancer to make her see that she wasn't in control. Eric said she hadn't succumbed to cancer, and he asked just whom she had to thank for it.

With Thorne later, Eric cracked open some champagne and figured he might as well tie one on since he'd paid for it. Thorne grabbed a bottle for himself and asked where Stephanie had gone. Eric had no idea, but guessed she was headed right where she was least wanted. Thorne decided he'd take back his wedding gift, too, and Eric said he was sorry. Thorne figured Eric thought Thorne was brooding over Thomas' thirty percent; however, Thorne said his life was simpler when he didn't have to deal with "you people." Thorne was certain that no one would spread rumors about his sex life, and that was fine with him.

At Brooke's house, Brooke pointed out that Thomas was a grown man who hadn't had to follow Stephanie's directive to stab Brooke in the back. Thomas claimed he hadn't meant to hurt Brooke, but Brooke said he'd known the outcome. She didn't even know how he could defend himself after hurting her, his mother, and his father. Ridge concluded that there was no defense.

Thomas agreed and expressed relief that the truth was out. He wanted to speak to Brooke in private, and Brooke convinced Ridge to wait in the kitchen. She then asked what Thomas had to gain from the lie. "Everything I ever wanted," he meekly responded.

Brooke lamented defending Thomas and trusting his memory above her own, even when others had seen the truth. Thomas said his parents reuniting to rescue him had been a childhood fantasy made true. He'd also reveled in achieving the reunion that Steffy had failed at. Thomas admitted that he'd always assumed he'd be relegated to the Forrester basement with Thorne, so when Stephanie had offered the stock, he'd promised to do anything in return. Brooke became shocked as he recalled that Stephanie had grinned and repeated, "Anything?"

Thomas said he could have turned Stephanie down, but Brooke quipped that he wouldn't have become the largest shareholder -- once Stephanie perished. Brooke decided that she appreciated it better when she'd thought Thomas had lied for Taylor's sake. He revealed that losing sight of his priorities had caused him to lose his two best friends, Brooke and Dayzee. He said Dayzee had urged him to tell the truth, and he would have done it -- if he'd been any kind of man.

Brooke said Thomas was young, and forgiveness, even hers, might be in his future. However, at that time, she couldn't have an opportunist with a delayed conscience in her life. She said she could no longer work with him, and they'd never be alone together again. Thomas stated that she was the only one who'd believed in him, but he'd ruined everything that mattered most. Brooke said he hadn't ruined her, and he'd certainly get a lot of money from it.

Brooke called Ridge back into the room. Thomas told them he was sorry, and he'd prove it with his actions. Thomas left, and a tearful Brooke hugged Ridge. She said Thomas had learned that he'd hurt himself the most. She encouraged Ridge not to turn his back on Thomas, but Ridge replied that he couldn't even imagine the next words he'd say to his son.

Brooke suggested that Ridge change his suit, because it was a sad reminder. As he got up, someone knocked on the door. He answered it and found Stephanie on the stoop. She asked to speak to his wife. Brooke said to let Stephanie in because there was no sense in putting it off.

Stephanie entered and murmured that she was sorry. She admitted that she'd violated all of her own principles, but she didn't want Brooke to blame Thomas. Stephanie owned up to purposely tainting Brooke's relationship with Thomas and was sorry for it. Stephanie muttered that there was no excuse, because all the years of animosity between them had disappeared. "And I'm sorry. I don't know what else to say," Stephanie stated. Brooke and Ridge exchanged wry glances, and Brooke's eyes narrowed on Stephanie.

In Brooke's bedroom, Hope plopped on the bed and chatted away to whom she presumed to be Brooke in the bathroom. To Hope's amazement, Ridge responded as he exited it. Hope was stunned when he said the wedding had been canceled, and the truth was out about Brooke and Thomas. Hope hugged Ridge as he said he'd always be there with her, Brooke, and R.J.

Ridge recounted the wedding events, and Hope realized that a complicit Thomas had been out for stock. Ridge said Thomas had also wanted to reunite his parents. He doubted Thomas had gotten any peace once the lie had begun. Hope assumed Brooke's vindication meant everything would return to normal. Ridge appreciated Hope being there for her mother, and he and Hope agreed that the resilient R.J. would overcome the disruption the lie had caused.

Ridge announced his plans to take Brooke out to celebrate. Hope thought Brooke and Stephanie would be conferring for a long time, because Stephanie had a lot to make up for. Hope didn't know how Stephanie would achieve it. Ridge decided that he just wanted to focus on their reunited family. He and Hope hugged again.

Downstairs, Stephanie was sure that she was the last person Brooke wanted to see; however, she asked Brooke to hear her out. Stephanie figured her betrayal was puzzling, but she'd seen it as her chance to finally rid Ridge of Brooke. Stephanie explained that she'd offered Thomas the stock in exchange for his agreement to "remember."

A groveling Stephanie figured she'd succumbed to old habits, even though Brooke was a better woman, wife, mother, and friend than she'd been when she and Stephanie had met years earlier. Stephanie stated that she'd lost whatever high ground she'd claimed over the years. "It's yours," Stephanie conceded.

Stephanie said she hadn't expected Brooke to walk away from the company and marriage with such dignity and class. Stephanie thought about Brooke's new foundation and realized that Brooke hadn't crumbled. It dawned on Stephanie that she'd never given Brooke credit for Brooke's strength. "I was wrong. I was really wrong about that," Stephanie admitted.

Stephanie said Brooke's strength and character had made Stephanie feel guiltier about her plan. Stephanie vowed to go to her grave, making it right. Brooke was conspicuously silent, and Stephanie guessed that silence would be her punishment. Brooke twitched her lips, and Stephanie urged her to act out. Brooke wouldn't do so, and Stephanie again admitted how wrong she'd been about Brooke's marriage and feelings for Thomas. She said she'd do anything to make it right. "Anything, Stephanie?" Brooke devilishly asked.

At the mansion, Felicia, Thorne, and Eric reeled from the revelation of Stephanie's scheme. Thorne said Stephanie had to realize she'd gone way out of bounds that time. Eric hoped Brooke would forgive him for too easily accepting the worst about her. Felicia said Brooke had a big heart, but Felicia wondered how Hope would handle it.

Eric was about to call Stephanie, but she called him first to request his help. During the cryptic phone call, Eric agreed to whatever Stephanie had asked, though he didn't understand the why behind it. After the call, Eric left, and Felicia and Thorne called around to get clues to what was happening, to no avail. Thorne guessed their parents didn't want him and Felicia snooping. Felicia wondered what the big mystery was, but guessed it surrounded Brooke.

Later, Ridge and Brooke arrived at a fancy restaurant, and Jackie and Owen were stunned to see the couple together. Ridge and Brooke said the wedding had been canceled. Jackie assumed Stephanie would have a cow, and Brooke said that Jackie might be surprised.

Ridge and Brooke found their table, and the server told Brooke that everything was arranged, as she'd requested. Ridge saddened as he thought of Taylor, Thomas, and Steffy. He wished he hadn't let himself be pushed toward Taylor so quickly. Brooke took the blame for it, but said that overall, only one person was really responsible.

Ridge asked how Stephanie had proposed to make amends. Brooke said Stephanie had poured out her heart, which Brooke hadn't ever seen before. Brooke added that Stephanie had promised to do anything to fix it. Ridge urged Brooke to take good advantage of that, and Brooke said she'd already made her request. She just hoped Stephanie would deliver.

Some music cued up, and at the piano, Stephanie straightened a row of shot glasses. Picking up a microphone, she half-spoke, half-sang, "You always hurt the one you love, the one you shouldn't hurt at all...." She whispered to her pianist, Eric, that she loved him. She walked over to Brooke to sing, "If I broke your heart last night, it's because I love you most of all..."

Stephanie bowed, everyone clapped, and Brooke thanked Stephanie. Brooke said she hadn't been sure that Stephanie had meant it when she'd said she'd "do anything" earlier. "Yeah, I meant it," Stephanie soberly replied. She strolled to the piano to share the shots with Eric. Brooke and Stephanie reluctantly grinned at each other from across the room.

In Bill's office, Katie couldn't believe the kind of day it had been. Katie passionately kissed Bill and said she was thrilled for Brooke, who'd gotten the love of her life back. Bill called it quite a story. Katie agreed to tell it to him -- off the record. After she revealed the whole sordid story, Bill guessed one family was happy, but another was very sad that night.

Katie couldn't imagine being left at the altar twice, and she even felt sorry for Steffy. Bill added that, though Ridge had a valid reason for returning to Brooke, leaving his other family hadn't been right. Katie invited Bill to Brooke's to celebrate, but he opted to remain at work. After Katie left, his mind flashed to the time he'd told Steffy that he loved her.

At home, Taylor tried to lose herself in her work. Thomas wished she'd speak to him, but she said she was still trying to figure out what had gotten into him. Steffy rushed in and asked why Stephanie had stopped the wedding. Everyone was silent, and Steffy demanded answers. Thomas admitted that he and Stephanie had lied about what had happened on the island, so that Taylor and Ridge could reunite. Taylor ordered Thomas to tell the whole truth, and he added that Stephanie had offered him all her stock to do it.

Steffy screamed at him for doing such a thing. She practically flew across the room and wailed, "How could you do this?" as she pounded him with her fist. She said Thomas should be ashamed that Taylor had been jilted at the altar and Ridge wasn't with them. Taylor shifted some of the blame to Stephanie, but Steffy was outraged that Thomas had let Stephanie use him with no thought of what would happen if it had fallen apart. She accused him of selling their mother and their family out for stock.

Taylor tried to calm Steffy down, and Steffy asked where Ridge was. Taylor sobbed, and Steffy assumed he'd gone running back to Brooke. Steffy asserted that Ridge had loved Taylor enough to walk down the aisle, so Steffy refused to give up on her family.

At the restaurant, Ridge wondered when his mother had become a chanteuse. Brooke reasoned that Stephanie had to start somewhere, and the song had been perfect. Brooke assured Ridge that all hadn't been forgiven; however, she and Stephanie finally understood each other.

Jackie told Stephanie that they needed to have a chat, and then Jackie and Owen departed. Eric and Stephanie were about to leave, too, but Ridge commanded them to sit. Stephanie squirmed in her chair as Ridge said it would take "a hell of a lot more than a song" to make up for things. Eric offered his apologies to Brooke, and Ridge said he should have known better than to believe the lie. Brooke replied that she didn't blame the men, because she'd believed it herself after Stephanie had done such a masterful snow job. Brooke decided that Stephanie was a much better manipulator than singer, and Stephanie laughed.

Ridge expressed his disillusionment with his mother, who said her actions had been dysfunctional. She claimed she'd been giving him a gift because she'd believed being with Taylor would make him happy. "You mean, 'would make you happy,'" he replied. Stephanie sputtered a bit, but finally acknowledged that she'd betrayed and hurt her son. Ridge pointed out that he wasn't the only one she'd hurt. Stephanie wasn't sure he'd ever forgive her, but she hoped that she hadn't lost him entirely.

Ridge received a call and stepped away from the table. Taylor was on the line, and she told Ridge that Steffy wasn't handling the fallout from the lie very well. He decided to go over there, and Taylor replied that Steffy needed him. After the call, Ridge told his family that he had to see Steffy. Stephanie offered to accompany him, but he quipped that she was the last person Steffy probably wanted to see. Eric offered to take Brooke home, and Ridge took off.

Back at Taylor's, Steffy became determined to make Ridge see that he belonged with them. Ridge arrived, and Taylor went to him for a hug. He said he was sorry, and she tearfully said they'd been close to having their family back. Taylor claimed to understand why things had happened the way they had, but it didn't make her love him less. He said he loved her, too, and Steffy interjected that he should just stay, then.

Taylor and Thomas left Ridge and Steffy alone, and Steffy tearfully implored Ridge not to do it to them again. Steffy understood that Thomas had lied, but couldn't comprehend why Ridge wouldn't stay. Ridge claimed that he loved Taylor very much. He had no doubt that they would have had a great life, and Steffy again asked why he'd leave. Ridge assured his daughter that she'd never lose him, and they'd be family, regardless of who his wife was.

Steffy discussed her childhood dreams of her parents' reunion and said Ridge had gotten her hopes up again. She asserted that it had been his choice to put a ring on Taylor's finger. He apologized more, and she begged him to make them be a family again.

A storm brewed outside as Ridge explained to his daughter that he couldn't reunite their family based upon a lie. Refusing to lose him again, Steffy implored him to return home. He said he'd still be married to Brooke if it hadn't been for the lie, and leaving Brooke over something she hadn't done would be wrong. Steffy guessed he'd just forget about his kids, but Ridge claimed he had to consider R.J., too. "Dad, we are talking about me! You have me!" she sobbed.

Ridge told Steffy that R.J. was very young, but she didn't even live at home anymore. Steffy quipped that she hadn't realized she was supposed to stop needing her parents, and it was apparently easy for Ridge to keep walking out on her. Ridge said he prayed that Steffy would always need him, but she ordered him to just go. Before leaving, he said that sometimes, he had to do what was best for himself, too.

At Brooke's house, Brooke told her sisters and Hope that it had been quite a sight to behold Stephanie singing at the restaurant. A soaked Liam rushed in to see Hope before he went to the airport. Ridge arrived home and revealed that he was worried about his daughter, especially after Taylor had told him that Steffy had left in the storm. Ridge tried calling Steffy, but got her voicemail. Brooke advised him to give Steffy some time to absorb the events.

Before leaving, Donna wished Brooke well, and Katie said Brooke and Ridge had inspired Katie to do something to show Bill her unconditional commitment to him. Katie told Ridge that Steffy was tough, but Ridge felt nervous about Steffy being out in the rain. Katie assured him that Steffy was probably safe with one of her friends.

As Ridge and Brooke searched for the phone numbers of Steffy's friends, Liam and Hope smooched by the window. Hope wished Liam would fly out the next day, but he said he couldn't. Hope admitted that she felt bad for Steffy, but she was elated for Brooke. The young couple left to give Ridge and Brooke privacy, and Ridge mumbled that at least one daughter was happy. Brooke urged Ridge to trust that Steffy was somewhere safe with someone who cared.

In his office, Bill mused about Steffy. Justin entered and assumed that Bill was anxious about Liam's first business trip. The men discussed Ridge and Brooke's reunion, and Bill said that it was good news for Katie, but not for Steffy. "It's not like she's five years old," Justin reasoned. Bill explained that after seeing Taylor and Ridge together during the rescue, he knew why Steffy wanted her parents to reunite. Justin handed Bill a contract. As Bill signed it, he warned Justin not to breathe a word about it. Upon leaving, Justin said that went without saying.

Alone, Bill sank into his chair and resumed reliving his hottest moments with Steffy. He grabbed his phone, but fought the urge to call her. After a while, he gave in, and a sobbing Steffy answered. She said she was driving by the beach, but she didn't want to talk. Not wanting her driving in that condition, he convinced her to meet him at the cliff house.

After the call, Steffy almost swerved off the road. She pulled over, and as she cried, she ignored phone calls from Ridge. Later, she was sopping wet when she reached the cliff house door. A drenched Bill approached, and they hugged. He said it'd be okay because he was there.

Bill took Steffy inside, and as they dried off, Steffy realized that they had the place to themselves. While complaining about her father chasing after Brooke instead of fixing their family, Steffy said she wasn't the only one left at the altar. "I was, too," Steffy uttered and then lamented Stephanie and Thomas' deceit. Steffy didn't know how she'd help her mother, and she felt that her father had turned on her again.

Bill said that Steffy wasn't alone, because she had him. He told her that he was in awe of her loyalty and devotion, and upon finding Thomas, Bill had never been happier for anyone in his life. Bill said he'd meant it when he'd told her that he loved her. He admitted that he had never thought he'd find himself in that position, but he was captivated by her. "My beautiful Steffy," he uttered and kissed her.