Deacon Grills Sheila as Hope Gets Bad News That’s Music to Thomas’ Ears

Hope sits in the main office at Forrester Creations, anxiously looking at her phone. She and Steffy are waiting for the reviews to come in on the first Hope For the Future line that wasn’t designed by Thomas. (Wait… they’ve released a whole new line? Since the fashion show a few weeks ago?)

More: Did B&B just rewrite history?!?

Eventually, Hope and Steffy’s conversation turns to Sheila, given that all roads — even the ones marked “Danger! Turn Back!” — lead back to Sheila. Both agree that keeping their children safe from Sheila is priority No. 1. Like with their moms, it seems everything is going swimmingly between Steffy and Hope. When the topic switches to Thomas, Steffy admits she’s disappointed in him. Thomas hasn’t reached out to his sister, but she’s got bigger things on her mind. Namely, Sheila.

It turns out that Thomas has been staying with Paris since he was kicked out by his family. As they discuss their new living arrangement, sparks clearly are flying between them… indicating we’re definitely heading back into the Thomas/Paris/Zende triangle. (More on that in a moment… )

Paris is pretty much #TeamThomas, even getting him to admit that he had more in mind than simply bringing his parents back together. “Sometimes I don’t play by the same rules, but I think my heart is always in the right place,” says Thomas, reading from his character breakdown. Paris says she can see both sides, and they agree it’s nice to have one another’s back. They then high-five, because that’s a thing people on Bold & Beautiful do now. If it worked for Taylor/Brooke, why not Paris/Thomas? Paris realizes she’s late for a meeting, and Thomas is surprised to hear she’s sitting in on Hope For the Future talks. She explains that everyone is rallying around Hope in as they try to keep the line on track. Thomas toots his own horn, saying this wouldn’t be an issue if he were still the lead designer.

In the design studio, Eric congratulates Zende on his newest designs for HFTF. But Zende admits he still feels as if he’s designing in Thomas’ shadow. In the main office, Hope admits to Steffy that Thomas captured the essence of the line in a way no one else has been able to. Just then, Eric and Zende enter. Everyone wonders where Paris is, and Hope asks how things are between Zende and Paris. “It’s cool,” he says, “we’re just friends.” So either nix my previous statement about diving back into the triangle or Zende prematurely friendzoned himself.

More: Is Katie really the one for Carter?!?

Finally, the reviews come in… and as one might guess, they aren’t great. Thomas predicts his reviews will be better than those of this new line because “I am awesome.” And sure enough, Hope reads from the review that Eric and Zende’s line is “a far cry from the artistry and creative innovation under Thomas Forrester.” Ouch! Reading the review, Thomas suggests to Paris that perhaps his phone will soon be blowing up with his family begging him to come back and save the day.

More: Wait… will [Spoiler] lure Sheila to Y&R?

As the new owner of Il Giardino, Deacon is testing several pizzas, all of which look kinda delicious and remind me I haven’t yet had lunch. His face lights up as Sheila walks in. While testing pizzas, they banter and catch up. She says becoming owner of the restaurant is quite a feat, and Deacon responds that if anyone knows about “feet” it would be his nine-toed friend.

More: Watch: What is Sheila’s agenda?

Deacon admits he thought Sheila was a loon who was definitely bound for prison, and she suggests “Daddy” never count her out. Deacon replies that “Daddy won’t, ever again,” and as much chemistry as these two have, the whole “Daddy” thing is creepy… and not in a good way.

Suddenly, a dark cloud crosses Sheila’s face and Deacon says she’s obviously thinking about what went down in the alley behind Il Giardino. She says that’s true, but she’d rather focus on the positive memories, like the night he closed early and created a special night for her. That leads Deacon to ask what the heck is going on between her and Bill. Deacon says he likes seeing her happy, even raves that she’s a friggin’ (evil) genius. Look at the way she played Mike Guthrie, getting him to take the blame for her escape! But, Deacon points out, playing Mike is one thing… playing Bill is a whole different game.

More: OMG, Bill’s playing Sheila — *here’s* how we know

“So I gotta ask… how did you do it?” We all lean in, wanting to know every bit as much as Deacon! But of course, she remains evasive, saying simply that she’s living with Bill on his estate and happy. “You and I have been through a lot together,” admits Deacon, asking his former lover, “How much are you in love with him… and how much are you using him?”

Next on The Bold and the Beautiful: Steffy and Eric balk at Hope’s Hope For the Future proposal and Deacon presses Sheila for the truth about her motives where Dollar Bill is concerned.

Don’t miss this chance to look back on Deacon Sharpe’s life and loves in the gallery below.

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