It was one of those days in Los Angeles where the sun shone brightly but the tension inside Forrester Creations cast shadows deeper than ever. Ridge’s return from Europe had everyone on edge, but no one more so than Brooke and Taylor. The two women, bound together by years of history, heartbreak, and shared love for the same man, were about to face off — again.

Brooke stood in the CEO office, arms crossed, her eyes set firmly on Taylor, who had just walked in unannounced. “I suppose you’re here to make another case for Ridge,” Brooke said, her tone icy but controlled.

Taylor raised an eyebrow, her posture calm but not passive. “No. I’m here to ask why you’re suddenly spending so much time with Nick.”

The name hung in the air like a thunderclap. Nick Marone — the one man who had once driven a wedge so deep between Ridge and Brooke that neither thought they’d recover. Now, with Nick back in town, Brooke’s spark around him hadn’t gone unnoticed.

Brooke’s voice wavered slightly, but she held her ground. “Nick and I have a history. He’s just… someone I can talk to. Someone who doesn’t judge.”

Taylor’s jaw tightened. “And someone who isn’t Ridge, is that it? Are you doing this to hurt him?”

That struck a nerve. Brooke stepped forward, her eyes blazing. “You don’t get to question my intentions, Taylor. Not after everything you did to Ridge. You walked away. You always walk away!”

Taylor’s voice rose now, the restraint cracking. “I walked away because I had self-respect. Because Ridge couldn’t make a choice. You stayed and clung to him like a lifeline. And now, you’re falling for Nick all over again?”

“It’s not like that,” Brooke insisted. “Nick listens. He sees me.”

“Ridge saw you too,” Taylor snapped. “Until you made sure he couldn’t trust what he saw.”

The words stung. Brooke looked away for a moment, breathing hard. The memories were thick in the air — stolen kisses, hospital beds, weddings that never quite lasted. They had been through it all. And yet here they were, once again standing on opposite sides of the same man’s heart.

“I’m tired, Taylor,” Brooke said finally, her voice softening. “Tired of this triangle, of fighting for someone who never truly knows what he wants.”

Taylor nodded, her own voice quieter. “So am I. But I’ll always fight for Ridge — not because I need him, but because I love him enough to challenge him. Can you say the same?”

Before Brooke could answer, the office door opened. Ridge stepped in, looking between the two women who had defined so much of his life. He could feel the emotional wreckage hanging in the air.

“Am I interrupting something?” he asked, though he already knew the answer.

Neither Brooke nor Taylor said a word. They both looked at Ridge — and then at each other. Years of pain, passion, and rivalry written in their silence.

“I came back to find peace,” Ridge said, walking toward them. “Not to choose sides.”

But the choice would come. It always did.

Taylor gave Brooke one last look. “If it’s peace you want, Ridge… don’t mistake comfort for love.”

She walked out, leaving Brooke alone with Ridge — and a heart still torn between two impossible choices.