The Bold & The Beautiful Transcript Wednesday 1/23/02

By Linda
Proofread by Becky

Deacon: Bridget? Honey, I'm home. Bridget? Brooke is pregnant with my child. My baby. And she just wants me to turn my back and forget about it. How the hell can I do that?

Brooke: This is the only way. You have to go back to Bridget and be the husband that you promised you'd be.

Deacon: What about you, Brooke? What about the child? I mean, how the hell am I supposed to just forget about this?

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Dr. Isabel: So you were completely honest with Deacon. You told him about the baby.

Brooke: He wouldn't leave until I told him what was going on.

Dr. Isabel: And how did he react?

Brooke: He asked me to marry him.

Dr. Isabel: He's already married to your daughter.

Brooke: I know. He said he would get a divorce, and we would raise this baby. We'd be a family.

Dr. Isabel: How do you feel about that?

Brooke: Well, it's impossible. He's already committed to Bridget.

Dr. Isabel: But he proposed to you.

Brooke: But he wasn't thinking clearly. He was just in shock.

Dr. Isabel: Is this just a knee-jerk reaction? He doesn't have any feelings for you?

Brooke: Dr. Isabel, it can't happen this way. Deacon has to stay with Bridget. He belongs with her. No one can ever find out that deacon Sharpe is the father of my baby.

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Massimo: Heidi, I need the new tariff analysis. Heidi, where are --

Amber: If you're looking for your secretary, she's AWOL.

Massimo: Obviously, or she wouldn't have let you walk in here.

Amber: Yeah, well, I don't have time to wait for an appointment.

Massimo: I have no time to give you one, young lady. I am very busy.

Amber: Don't "young lady" me. You know who I am. Amber Forrester. My husband was just in here.

Massimo: Oh, for goodness sake. Well, well, well. Why didn't you tell me? Your husband is a very impressive young man.

Amber: Yeah, and a pretty quick study, from what I hear.

Massimo: Ah. He discussed our meeting?

Amber: I'm his wife. He doesn't keep secrets from me.

Massimo: Hmm, I see.

Amber: Don't worry. He's not gonna tell anybody else.

Massimo: Not if he knows what's good for him.

Amber: Is that a threat?

Massimo: Huh-uh. That is a fact, my dear. One that I hope you and your husband have grasped.

Amber: Actually, that's why I'm here. Maybe you can explain something to me.

Massimo: Uh-huh?

Amber: I'm a little confused about this whole mentor thing that you have going on. All of the sudden, Rick thinks that you're god's gift to business majors, and I want to know why. What did you say to my husband? What did you do to him?

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Ridge: All right, Chuck. Why don't you go ahead? I'm sure everyone would love to hear what you have to say. Please don't get upset if we have to stop every once and a while to explain the finer points to my little brother.

Chuck: Not at all.

Rick: Hey, don't hold back on my account.

Chuck: Well, Rick -- international finance is a very complicated subject, as I'm sure you well know. Now, I understand that you discussed Forrester's currency exchange problems in your last meeting. But today, Ridge asked me to give you some recommendations about your foreign tax issues. Now, if you'll all turn to table 1. Now this is a breakdown of international's net and gross incomes over the last three years.

Eric: Let's make sure Rick has a copy of that.

Rick: No, no, it's okay, Dad. I have those numbers in my notes. Please, Mr. Williams, continue.

Chuck: Well, as you can see, there is a large disparity between international's net and gross incomes.

Eric: That's not unusual in the fashion industry. We have an extremely high overhead, especially in haute couture.

Ridge: But even when you factor in all of our outgoing expenses, there's still a much greater net/gross disparity at international than what we experience here. There can only be one reason for that. You know what that is, Rick?

Rick: Yes, Ridge. As a matter fact, I do.

Ridge: Good. Would you like to share that with us?

Rick: It would be my pleasure.

Ridge: You know where all of that money's going?

Rick: Well, isn't it obvious? We're losing millions each year in unnecessary taxes.

Ridge: Look, we'd all like to keep more of our income in our own pockets. But Forrester Creations can't afford to get creative. Our accounts are highly scrutinized, both here and abroad.

Rick: And that's the problem, Ridge. By sending international's profits back to the states, we're paying additional domestic taxes on top of the taxes we paid in the foreign country. We could save millions by reinvesting that money in France.

Stephanie: So you're suggesting that's what we should do? Chuck?

Chuck: Well, I think it's a good idea. In fact, it's exactly what I was gonna to suggest.

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Deacon: I've got to stop thinking about this. I got to stop thinking about you, about our baby. I got to forget you, Brooke. I'm committed to Bridget.

Bridget: Hey, honey!

Deacon: Hey, baby.

Bridget: Oh, how was your trip? Ooh, you look exhausted.

Deacon: Hmm, yeah, I am.

Bridget: Well, that's Vegas for you, huh? Too much partying with the clients?

Deacon: No, actually, we never even left the hotel room.

Bridget: Really?

Deacon: Yeah.

Bridget: You didn't go see any shows or anything? No gambling?

Deacon: No, we -- we just talked a lot.

Bridget: Oh, that sounds intense.

Deacon: Yeah, it was.

Bridget: Did you make a deal?

Deacon: Not the one I hoped for.

Bridget: Well, honey -- I'm sorry.

Deacon: So am I, Bridget. So am I.

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Dr. Isabel: So Deacon said that he's staying with Bridget?

Brooke: Yes.

Dr. Isabel: He's not gonna have any involvement with this child?

Brooke: He gave me his word.

Dr. Isabel: So he agreed to keep your secret.

Brooke: Yes.

Dr. Isabel: Doesn't he want to have a relationship with this child?

Brooke: Of course, he does. This is a terrible sacrifice for him. I mean, it just tore his heart out completely. But he knows what's at stake. If anybody finds out that he's the father of this child, then I may never see my family. I may never see my children again.

Dr. Isabel: So he's doing this for your family?

Brooke: Yes, and for this child. Could you imagine the scandal? The illegitimate child of this infamous mother and her son-in-law. We couldn't do that to him.

Dr. Isabel: But to give up his child, to see this son or daughter raised by someone else -- he must really love you, Brooke. He does, doesn't he? Deacon is the man that has loved you more than any other man has.

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Massimo: I assure you, I didn't do anything to your husband.

Amber: No, I think you're up to something, and I want to know what it is.

Massimo: You know, Rick is a lucky young man. All wives are not as devoted as you.

Amber: I'm not kidding, Mr. Marone. I came here for answers, and that's exactly what I'm gonna get.

Massimo: The only thing you're gonna get is an armed escort back down to the street if you don't change your tone.

Amber: What? You think that you can scare me? You think that I'm intimidated by your big desk and all your money? Well, you can think again. You want to throw me on the street? Fine. I grew up on the street.

Massimo: Obviously. And obviously you're a tenacious young woman, which is a very admirable trait.

Amber: Yeah, well, there's nothing admirable about you. You're a user, Mr. Marone. You know, I've met a thousand guys just like you. You may have more cash than have, a big, fancy office, a fleet of ships -- but deep down inside, you're just a manipulative thug. And Rick knows it, too. So if you think he's gonna go into that board meeting and mess it all up, you can think again. Mm-hmm. Because there's no way he's gonna risk his future on your bogus advice.

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Eric: Good point, Rick. We'll have accounting look into it.

Rick: Well, if you're going to have them look into that, I have a few other ideas that they might want to consider.

Ridge: You have another suggestion?

Rick: Yeah, but, you know what? I can just talk to dad about it after the meeting.

Ridge: No, Rick. If you have another idea, I'd like to hear it.

Rick: Okay. Well -- this might sound a little radical, but the foreign tax thing got me thinking. We could be saving on domestic taxes, too. All we have to do is move the financial operations someplace that doesn't have a state income tax, like Las Vegas.

Stephanie: Las Vegas?

Eric: You mean make Forrester a Nevada corporation?

Rick: Yeah. Have you guys talked about it before?

Thorne: That was five years ago.

Ridge: It wasn't feasible then.

Eric: But that was before we opened a boutique there.

Rick: And since we're already established there, all we have to do is open another office. We move the accounting department, our bank accounts and then send in someone in from the family every now and then to check up on things.

Thorne: We wouldn't have to move our whole operation.

Chuck: Well, you could keep the design and shipping departments here.

Stephanie: Nothing would really change.

Rick: Nope. We would just be saving 9.3% in taxes every year.

Thorne: 9.3%? You're right.

Rick: Now, if we did move to Vegas, the family would be traveling a lot more. And I noticed that the jet was on the agenda today.

Ridge: I suppose you have a suggestion about that, too.

Rick: Actually, ridge, I have a question. After what happened in Greenland, did we establish a limited liability corporation for the jet?

Eric: No. No, we didn't.

Rick: Well, that's kind of risky, don't you think? I mean, what if that jet had crashed over a populated area? We would've been sued. We could've lost the entire company.

Chuck: He's right.

Thorne: And we're not the only ones who use that jet. I loaned it out to a supplier last month.

Rick: Well, I guess it's a good thing that nothing happened.

Taylor: Ridge, is this what you wanted to discuss today?

Ridge: No.

Eric: Well, I think we should. I think we should get accounting on this right away. Good job, Rick. You've brought up some excellent points.

Rick: Well, we all know how Ridge feels about these meetings. If you don't have anything to add, you don't belong here.

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Brooke: It doesn't matter how Deacon feels. He's married to Bridget, and he's going to stay married to Bridget.

Dr. Isabel: So that's that?

Brooke: Yes.

Dr. Isabel: So you can go home now?

Brooke: What?

Dr. Isabel: Deacon knows the truth. He's not gonna say anything. You can go back to L.A. And get on with your life.

Brooke: I can't go back there right now. I'm starting to show. And I'm just not ready to answer all those questions.

Dr. Isabel: Maybe it's not the questions you can't answer. Maybe it's that you're not ready to see the man you love, feeling his baby grow inside of you and watching him make a life with your daughter. Brooke, you love him. You can't deny this. I'm sorry. I don't believe you. You are deeply in love with deacon Sharpe.

Brooke: He's my daughter's husband. And I won't betray her. I can't, dr. Isabel. Not again. My feelings for Deacon are irrelevant. I can't cross that line. Never.

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Bridget: So the meeting didn't go well, huh?

Deacon: You know, I'd really rather just not even talk about it.

Bridget: Ugh, that bad?

Deacon: No, I just -- I want to forget about it. You know, put it behind me. I'm home, I'm here with you, my wife. This is where I belong. This is my future. And you know, I was just thinking -- I mean, we're happy, right? We've got a pretty good life going on here.

Bridget: We've got a great life.

Deacon: Yeah.

Bridget: Honey, why are you saying all this? Where's this coming from?

Deacon: Bridget, I just -- I want to be a good husband to you. I want to be -- I want to be the kind of man that you deserve.

Bridget: You are.

Deacon: Yeah, well, I can do better. And you know what? I'm gonna do better. From here on out, you are gonna be my number one priority. No more silly pipe dreams. No more distractions. It's just gonna be you and me, baby.

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Brooke: Your place is with Bridget. She can never know about our child. You have to forget about him, Deacon. You have to forget.

Deacon: Come here.

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Massimo: So, you think that the advice I gave Rick is "bogus."

Amber: A snake like you? Yeah, it has to be.

Massimo: Has it ever occurred in your little brain that I am a man with decades of business experience that I could share with your husband?

Amber: Since when do shrewd and successful businessmen hand out freebies?

Massimo: Oh, I see, you don't trust me.

Amber: I don't know you, and neither does Rick.

Massimo: Oh, that's very funny. I mean you claim to know me very well. I'm a -- what is it you just called me? A manipulative thug.

Amber: Look, let's not play games here, Mr. Marone. Either the information you gave my husband was garbage or it was a bribe. What is it?

Massimo: I'm surprised at you, amber. Do you think Rick would take either one?

Amber: Well, people can do some pretty crazy things when they're desperate. Believe me, I know. When your back's up against the wall, you'll jump at any solution, no matter who's offering or how risky it is.

Massimo: Hmm, make a pact with the devil?

Amber: Is that what he did? Tell me, Mr. Marone -- you are the one who put that note in Rick's briefcase. You set him up. Now, I want to know why. What's gonna happen at that meeting? What did you do to my husband?

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Eric: Is there anything else we need to go over? I think we've covered everything on the agenda.

Ridge: No. That about covers it.

Stephanie: Well then, why don't we adjourn? Ridge?

Ridge: Right. Meeting adjourned.

Eric: Megan, can I see you over here?

Thorne: Hey -- good job. You really did your homework.

Rick: Thanks, Thorne.

Chuck: Is that it?

Ridge: Yeah, chuck. That's it. Sorry about your presentation.

Chuck: Oh, don't worry about it. I think the kid hit most of the high points. Is he really a junior in business school?

Ridge: Yeah.

Chuck: Hmm. They must've really beefed up the curriculum since I was an undergrad. You know, you really should revisit that Nevada option. Rick is right. You'll save millions.

Ridge: Thanks.

Chuck: Rick? You have a moment?

Rick: Uh, yeah, sure, Mr. Williams.

Chuck: No, call me Chuck. Now, I have a few thoughts on that LLC idea that I thought you might be interested in.

Rick: Good, good.

Eric: If you'll excuse me for a moment, I'd like to borrow my son, if I may.

Chuck: Oh, certainly. Look, why don't you take one of my cards and give me a call, okay?

Rick: I will. Thank you.

Ridge: He set us up. I don't know how. But he set us up, and I'm gonna find out why.

Taylor: Ridge, come on. So he showed off a little. It didn't cause any real harm.

Ridge: Really?

Eric: You handled yourself very well today. You were well-prepared, and you showed a lot of maturity.

Rick: Thanks, Dad.

Eric: I'm proud of you. I'm real proud of you. Good job. <

[Ridge and Rick glare at one another.]