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Here's what went down Wednesday, January 7, 2026 on Beyond the Gates when Vernon gave a tutorial in footwear, Shanice wouldn't HIPAA Ashley to the truth, and for Joey it was the game of the name.
What happened on Beyond the Gates
On Beyond the Gates, Nicole arrived at the brownstone with breakfast for her son and his fam, though Samantha was still sleeping since her holiday from school was almost over. Instructing the Richardson-Smith men to get off their phones, Nicole just wanted everyone to be able to fully engage with each other, particularly in light of Anita's cancer diagnosis. Though they briefly talked about how tough Anita was and how they should focus on who she was before the illness came, Nicole also was certain that Anita would want everyone to go on with their lives normally. To that end, Dr. Dupree wanted to talk to her absent granddaughter about her upcoming cotillion.
Tyrell was asked to wake his snoozing sister, who was groggy and grumpy until Nicole mentioned the debutante event. Samantha then realized that perhaps talking about etiquette and dances was frivolous compared to what her great-grandmother was going through; Nicole acknowledged this but noted that Anita, who understood how this coming out process gave young Black women poise, leadership skills, education and philanthropic opportunities, understood how important the cotillions were for the culture. It clicked for Smitty that the gala was less about pageantry and more about “a path to power,” but Tyrell exploded with a sudden “Give me a break!”
Martin, especially, was unhappy with Tyrell's tone as he said that real people could care less about cotillions – and when Tyrell implied that Nicole couldn't relate since she had a house manager and lived in a gated community. Nicole overruled Tyrell's dads' demand for an apology, wanting to hear the boy out. Tyrell felt that he and Samantha had had things way worse than Anita had when she was young, and that the denizens of Fairmont Crest wouldn't have wanted anything to do with him or his sister had they not been adopted by a Dupree, given their absentee father and drug addict mother.
Samantha resented Tyrell speaking for her and was all too willing to accept becoming a debutante, a chance she never would have been given without being brought into this particular family. Tyrell scoffed that cotillions and such had only been co-opted from Europeans, which Nicole defined as “respectability politics.” Yet, Nicole added, they had been able to shape the tradition with their own history, and it was a demonstration of how they had come from being held down under centuries of slavery and risen up to achieve the American dream for themselves.
When Tyrell was still of the opinion that the practice only further underscored the division between the haves and the have-nots, Samantha sneered that Tyrell was only parroting Jessica, who, coming from a rich family herself, was rejecting the protocol. Cutting into the siblings' argument about Samantha's supposed elitism, Nicole asked if either Tyrell or Jessica had truly researched the ways that the debutante circuit gave back to the community, including scholarships for students who couldn't afford college. Smitty wasn't unmindful of where Tyrell was coming from, but Martin sniffed that Jessica's beliefs were now Tyrell's beliefs; Tyrell was only considering rejecting Banneker University for UCLA so he could follow Jessica there. Nicole gave credence to Tyrell's viewpoint but also hoped she had shed some light on what the rite of passage was actually about. Tyrell's mind was open; he was afraid that Jessica couldn't be persuaded to change her mind, so Nicole offered to have a talk with her.
Vanessa and Dani met for breakfast at the country club, though Dani wasn't really hungry. Vanessa asked how Dani was coping with the news of Anita's cancer and the wait to find out if she and/or Nicole had inherited their mother's BRCA gene, but Dani could only talk about how other family members were doing, which Vanessa caught. Dani finally sighed that she was vacillating between composed and cracking. Vanessa promised that neither Dani nor Nicole had to put on a façade for her, prompting Dani to comment that Joey had better know how lucky he was to have the realtor.
Pleased that Dani wasn't criticizing Joey for once, Vanessa hoped that Dani was letting Andre comfort her in his “sculpted arms.” Dani praised Andre's attentiveness, though she remarked that Bill had been great, too, which Vanessa didn't want to hear. She worried that Bill was trying to play Dani's knight in shining armor again, but Dani affirmed that Andre wasn't jealous because she gave him no reason to be; she remembered how Bill had policed any interactions she might have had with other men during their marriage while he was the one cheating. Vanessa was glad to hear Dani knew what time it was and took her leave.
Later, Vernon found Dani still at the table, doing agency business on her laptop. Dani described how Vanessa had come down on her for leaning on Bill and quickly got confirmation that Vernon was in agreement. The former senator realized that Bill was comfortable territory for Dani, though Bill was like a pair of ratty old sneakers while Andre was a new pair of designer heels. Dani was not unmindful of how fortunate she was to have Andre in her life, and once Vernon left, Dani groaned to find a check-in text from Bill on her phone.
Randy was in the back room of the casino when Leslie entered. After he noticed that she was dressed to kill despite it being the morning hours, Leslie purred that she never killed unless it was necessary. Learning that Leslie had been summoned by Joey, Randy retrieved him for her; Leslie remained sultry as the more stoic Joey said he had decided to go ahead and partner with her on the clinic. Leslie jumped up to hug Joey, causing him to put a hand and drone, “Don't touch me.”
After Joey said he wanted something in return for his investment, Leslie assumed he was talking about sex. But Leslie was genuinely shocked when Joey announced that he wanted the clinic dedicated to Doug. Ms. Thomas found that odd, since Joey had let the deceased doctor gambling himself into crippling debt in the very room in which they were speaking, plus allowed Doug to drink so much that he drove himself into a ravine to his death. Leslie assumed Joey must be feeling guilty since he had also so quickly taken up with Doug's widow.
Joey unemotionally said that Doug had made his own choices – it was simply a matter of wishing to honor the father of Vanessa's children. Leslie realized that Joey really cared about Vanessa but instead offered a compromise – they could name a room after Doug in the Leslie Thomas Outreach Project. She sauntered out without the two coming to a firm agreement either way.
As Joey sat alone grumbling over Leslie's proposal on his tablet, Vanessa arrived, thrilled when she learned that he had made the decision to go ahead with backing the clinic. She loved that it would bring Joey the respectability she felt he deserved, but she was more excited about the idea of the facility improving so many lives.
Leslie sipped a drink at Uptown, seeing Marcel coming in. She grinned that not only were the Duprees now coming to her for help, but she had convinced the famed Joey Armstrong to partner with her. Marcel grimly advised her to rethink the move because Joey wasn't someone that she should cross. “Neither am I,” Leslie boasted, leading Marcel to wonder if the brag was some sort of confession. Leslie replied that her record was squeaky clean, but Marcel said it might not be for long if Joey didn't use money from one of his legitimate businesses. Leslie cooed that she didn't mind getting a little dirty now and again – but as she and Marcel kissed, Randy walked into the bar and happened upon their embrace.
At the hospital, Ashley hurriedly wrapped up a phone call with Jan, who was excited over having met a man while on her holiday cruise. Ashley hung up and feared Shanice's disapproval, but Shanice philosophically said that their higher-ups would simply have to realize that the nurses on staff were more than their jobs. Ashley was stunned at the change in Shanice, who wanted to know how Ashley's mom was making out with her new affair. The younger Morgan fretted that, as usual, Jan was going overboard with her intensity, which usually saw her beaux running away. Shanice hoped things would go well, inspiring Ashley to ask the supervisor if she believed in love at first sight. Seeing Ted arriving, Shanice cryptically responded that she was more a proponent of finding love in unexpected places.
Shanice played it cool as Ted was openly friendly with her, and Ashley couldn't help asking about it once Dr. Richardson was gone. Instead of elaborating, Shanice gave Ashley more work to do and afterwards still wouldn't give the eager Ashley the answers she was looking for. It was only after Ashley put some pieces together that Shanice quietly admitted that she and Ted had spent time together New Year's Eve – and kissed. Ashley was excited, though Shanice called the situation “tricky” because she had been encouraging Ted to look in on Nicole.
When Ashley was aghast that Shanice would be pushing Ted toward his ex, Shanice refused to talk about it further and instead ordered Ashley to check on some blood work whose results were still forthcoming. Ashley complied but needed a name – and when Shanice revealed that those names were Dani and Nicole Dupree, the young nurse was speechless. However, Ashley saw that Shanice's silence had only been out of a need to comply with her oath to HIPAA confidentiality laws; now that Ashley knew there was a medical issue involved, Shanice explained about the Dupree sisters needing to be screened for the BRCA gene. As soon as she had a chance, Ashley left a message for her bestie Naomi, wanting to be there for her.
Ted was surprised that Vernon had stopped by the hospital. The former senator uncomfortably conceded that he'd had a chat with the chief of staff about expediting Dani and Nicole's test results, which he'd debated doing. When Ted shared his observation that Nicole had been putting on a brave face for their brood, Vernon was impressed that Ted was still “showing up” for Nicole and the kids. Ted swore to Vernon that they were always going to be family to him.
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Then, Shanice encountered Ted waiting for the elevator, reminding him that she'd said she was going to take the stairs from now on. Ted countered that doing so wouldn't always be practical – so why not take a chance? he smiled knowingly. Shanice agreed, and as the doors closed in front of them, the air was charged between her and Ted.
Beyond the Gates airs weekdays on CBS and streams on Paramount Plus.
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