Douglas Goes Home With [Spoiler] — and Steffy Breaks Surprising News to Finn

In the courtroom, Hope and Steffy go back and forth about Douglas choosing his aunt as his legal guardian. Hope feels Steffy wasn’t supposed to be an option. Steffy’s just as shocked as she is and asks if she wants her to reject the boy. Her main focus is the well-being of her nephew.

At the cliff house, Finn tells Li how fun it is with all the kids there when Kelly has Douglas over. They’ve gotten pretty close these past few months.

In the main office, Katie is in a bra and underwear changing when Carter comes in. She tells him to stay; she’s not shy. Carter tells her she’s beautiful and they make out.

Carter asks how Katie’s workout was and she purrs, “Not as good as that kiss.” She was hoping an hour in the gym might clear her mind. Carter mentions the Bill and Sheila drama. Katie says Hope and Thomas are meeting with the judge today. She hopes Douglas will choose to live with Hope and Liam.

At the cliff house, Finn tells Li that Douglas is a special kid who has gone though so much. Li guesses it makes him appreciate even more the family he has with Steffy.

At the court, the judge announces that she has a full docket and Douglas has made his choice — to live with his Aunt Steffy. She trusts they’ll figure out how to make that work or she’ll have to see them all once again. The judge exits and Douglas asks Steffy if it’s okay for him to come and live with her and Finn.

At Forrester, Carter tells Katie they’ll “go at it” together in the gym next time. Katie kisses on him before returning to hoping that Douglas will choose Liam and Hope. She feels this could be a big setback for Thomas and thinks it’s a good thing Steffy is there as his witness.

At the cliff house, Finn tells his mother his family is perfect and he wouldn’t change a thing. Li is thrilled to see him happy and fulfilled. Finn has everything he could ever want. Mother and son embrace.

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At the court, Douglas asks Steffy if he can live with her again. Thomas says it wasn’t actually part of the deal. Liam assures the boy they’re all just a little caught off guard. Thomas kneels in front of the boy and tells him it wasn’t cool to put him in this position but he loves him forever. Hope interjects that they all love him and will be there for him no matter what. She says they have to be sure he understands his decision and that it will mean growing up outside their household. Liam thinks Hope is trying to say that they were really hoping he’d choose to stay with them. Steffy gets down on Douglas’ level and tells him she’s honored he chose her and Finn to live with. They all love him and wants what’s best for him — she’s not sure what that looks like right now but he’s always welcome at her house. Douglas is excited to finish the project he’s started with Kelly. Steffy promises they’ll have plenty of time to work on that, but for tonight, he should go home with his mommy and Liam and they’ll discuss this later. Douglas nods and throws himself into Steffy’s arms. She pats his back. “I love you so much.”

At Forrester, Carter wants to take Katie to dinner. She’s enthused about going to the same Indian place they ate at last week. Carter croons, “I’d share my plate of curry with you any day.” Talk turns back to her family. Carter admires how much she cares; she’ll do anything for the people she cares about, even Bill. Katie goes over her ex having lost his mind and says that she has to keep fighting for him. Carter has her back. Katie says it feels good to have him by her side and they kiss.

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At the cabin, Thomas, Hope, and Liam are set to speak privately as Brooke and Donna agreed to have Douglas as long as they need. Liam thinks they should start by saying letting Douglas choose his own home was a record-setting bad idea. Thomas thought the boy would be living with him, not his sister. Hope can’t fathom why they decided to do this. Thomas couldn’t have predicted he would choose neither of them. Hope wonders what that says about them as parents.

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At the cliff house, Finn tells Steffy his mom said hello; she left a little while ago. He asks how it went with the judge. She muses that it was unusual. Finn notices she’s being quiet. “Douglas didn’t choose Thomas, did he?” Steffy replies, “No, he didn’t.”

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At the cabin, Liam complains that because of Thomas, they put the kid in an impossible position. He chose Steffy because she was there and she’s neutral. Thomas points out she’s his sister; this may not be the worse thing for him as she won’t keep him from seeing his son. Liam wonders if he’s implying Hope has kept him from seeing Douglas. If there’s a rift with the boy, that’s on him! Hope interrupts to point out Douglas rejected all of them, which means that, clearly, he’s not happy there. Liam assures her she’s done everything right, but Hope’s not buying it. She needs to figure out where she went wrong and why he chose Steffy. Liam hugs her.

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At the cliff house, Finn thinks it must have been difficult for Steffy to have to watch Douglas choose. He doesn’t think it should be too surprising that he chose to stay with Hope. Steffy shakes her head, “Douglas didn’t choose to stay with Hope.” Finn asks, “He didn’t pick anyone?!” Steffy explains that Douglas was asked to write down who he wanted as his guardian and when the judge read it she was shocked… and then Hope and Thomas read it and they were stunned too. Finn asks what he wrote. “Who does he want to be his legal guardian?” Steffy replies, “Me. He wrote down my name.” She says he looked at her with those sweet innocent eyes and asked her if he could live with her. “Douglas wants to be part of our family, Finn.”

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