Post by STLUEE on Feb 25, 2014 17:55:49 GMT -5
Soap central
At the Brady Pub, Eric informed Caroline that he had decided to leave the priesthood. Eric stressed that he had prayed about the matter and was confident that he was making the right decision, and he hoped that Caroline could be happy for him.
Outside, Marlena continued to question Nicole about Eric's decision to leave the priesthood. Nicole guessed that Marlena was looking for someone to blame, but Marlena stressed that she didn't blame Nicole. Marlena clarified that she was simply trying to understand why Eric had suddenly decided to leave a vocation that he loved. "Eric is doing what?!" Sami asked as she approached Marlena and Nicole.
Marlena apologetically explained that Eric had wanted to give Sami the news himself. Sami wondered if the church officials had asked Eric to resign from the priesthood. Marlena shook her head and clarified that Eric had reached the decision on his own, but Sami wasn't convinced. "This reeks of you, Nicole. What did you do to Eric?" Sami demanded to know as she glared at Nicole.
Nicole protested that, while she was almost willing to tolerate an interrogation from Marlena, she certainly wasn't going to tolerate one from Sami. Nicole wished that someone would acknowledge the fact that Eric was fully capable of making his own decisions. Sami countered that Eric had previously made the decision to do everything that he could possibly do to clear his name so that he could return to the priesthood.
Sami guessed that Nicole had sabotaged Eric's television interview, pointing out that it had never actually aired. Sami theorized that Nicole had never wanted Eric to return to the priesthood in the first place, but Nicole denied the accusation. Unconvinced, Sami vowed to find out what Nicole had done so that it could be undone. Marlena started to defend Nicole, but Sami interrupted and said that she could handle Nicole on her own.
Sami summarized that Nicole had been a nightmare for Eric since their teenage years, when Nicole had broken his heart and wrecked his life. Unimpressed, Nicole wondered how long Sami had been practicing that particular speech, but Sami ignored the question. "Finally -- finally -- [Eric] managed to pull himself together; he managed to find a true passion for something good and decent...which, obviously, you would know nothing about -- I get that. But you couldn't just let it go, could you? The second he came back to town, when you had to be all over him with your claws out --" Sami continued to rant, stopping only when Eric exited the pub and firmly instructed her to leave Nicole alone. Sami complied with Eric's request, but she was still confused about his decision to leave the priesthood, so he promised that he would answer all of her questions elsewhere.
"Thanks for jumping in there, Mar," Nicole dryly stated after Eric and Sami left. Marlena objected to the nickname, but she conceded that she did owe Nicole an apology. Nicole braced herself, unsure that she could handle receiving two apologies from Marlena in a single day. "It's okay -- you've earned it. Sami should never have gone after you that way, and you didn't deserve that. And we both know that when Sami gets on a roll, it's sometimes hard to stop her. But Eric will talk to her; he will explain what happened, and then I'm sure that -- I'm sure she will apologize to you," Marlena assured Nicole, but after considering the prediction for a moment, both women simultaneously agreed that it would never happen.
Marlena summarized that the point was that she, Roman, and Sami had each been completely surprised to learn that Eric had decided to leave the priesthood, which was why they had not treated Nicole as graciously as they should have. Marlena sadly mused that the efforts to clear Eric's name suddenly seemed irrelevant. Nicole protested that those efforts had been relevant because they had led to a confession from Chyka, but Marlena knew that wouldn't be enough to clear Eric's name.
Marlena wished that some sort of concrete evidence would surface that could prove Eric's innocence. Nicole shrugged and optimistically suggested that the police might eventually find something, since they finally knew where to look for the evidence. Marlena conceded the point and noted that it would be helpful for the police to know as much as they possibly could about the situation. Nicole stressed that she and Daniel had already given their statements to the police earlier, but Marlena recalled that Nicole had also dodged some of Marlena and Roman's earlier questions about what had happened at Chyka's cabin.
Nicole innocently claimed that she had assumed that the answers to those particular questions wouldn't help the investigation, but Marlena reasoned that Nicole couldn't possibly be certain about that. Marlena observed that it seemed like extended conversations about the events at Chyka's cabin made Nicole uncomfortable, but she protested that she wasn't uncomfortable at all. Marlena shrugged and casually suggested that what she had misinterpreted as discomfort could have been guilt instead. "Oh, don't you -- uh-uh. Don't you try to shrink me," Nicole warned Marlena.
Marlena observed that it seemed like she was upsetting Nicole, and she curiously wondered what Nicole was afraid of. Nicole silently recalled the moment when she had discovered the packet of evidence in Chyka's cabin safe, but she simply replied that she wasn't afraid of anything -- especially not Marlena. Marlena mused that it seemed like Nicole was more willing to talk to Roman than Marlena, and she reminded Nicole that they were both Eric's parents and that they cared about him equally. Nicole countered that she also cared about Eric, and she wondered why it was hard for everyone to believe that she only wanted him to be happy.
As Eric led Sami to a secluded section of the town square, she protested that he was too good for Nicole, whom he had never been able to see for who she really was. Sami admitted that she had assumed that Eric would be safe from Nicole as a priest, and she muttered that she should have known that Nicole wouldn't let that sort of obstacle stop her. Sami mused that Eric was dealing with the kind of situation where it was nice to have a sister like her, since she could see a woman like Nicole approaching from a mile away. Eric, who had already made several attempts to stop Sami's rant, impatiently threatened to leave if she continued to disparage Nicole.
Eric stressed that he had made the decision to leave the priesthood on his own. Sami was skeptical, guessing that Nicole had simply made it seem like Eric had made the decision on his own, but he insisted that he wanted Sami to be quiet and listen to him for a moment. Eric told Sami about his spiritual retreat, explaining that he had spent a lot of time praying for guidance while he had been there. Sami thought that Eric's decision seemed a bit rushed, but he clarified that he had wanted to leave the priesthood right away so that he could stop living in limbo.
Eric said that he was at peace with his decision to leave the priesthood, adding that he was confident that it was God's will for him. Sami wondered if Eric was absolutely certain that leaving the priesthood wasn't Nicole's will for him, but he insisted that Sami needed to forget about that particular theory. Sami started to protest, but Eric interrupted and insisted that she didn't know what Nicole had done for him. "I know what she'd like to do for --" Sami started to counter before stopping herself and reluctantly agreeing to listen to what Eric had to say about Nicole.
Eric proceeded to tell Sami about Nicole and Daniel's adventure with Dr. Jakub Chyka, the man who had tried to kill Eric and Nicole a few weeks earlier. Eric explained that Chyka was a "doctor for hire" who had been on the DiMera payroll and had admitted to working for Kristen. Sami nervously wondered if Chyka had told Daniel and Nicole anything else during their interrogation. "No, he got away before they got more details. The point is -- is that Daniel and Nicole, they risked their lives trying to help me. If they had gotten him, they would have had Kristen dead to rights, and anybody -- anybody -- who might have helped her," Eric replied.
At DiMera Enterprises, E.J. pushed Abigail against a conference room table as he continued to kiss her. "This is what you want, isn't it?" E.J. asked as he pulled away from Abigail and ripped off his suit jacket. Abigail breathlessly confirmed E.J.'s suspicion as she started kissing him again. "Good, because this is how it's gonna have to be," E.J. whispered in Abigail's ear as she helped him remove his tie.
E.J. continued to alternate between kissing Abigail and whispering in her ear as he started to undress her. "Oh, Abigail, we can do it here today, and then next time, by the loading dock. Yeah, there's this corner right under the ramp -- nobody can see us. It's wonderful. You know where I'd like to do it? I'd like to do it in the hospital. That'd be so much fun -- your supply closet. Or by the pub -- in the alley behind the pub. How would you like that, huh? That would be so good. We'd be able to hear people inside. Can you imagine? Your family in there, just by to eat, [and] their precious little daughter just a few feet away, up against the wall," E.J. fantasized, ignoring Abigail's occasional confused protests until she finally pushed him away and told him to stop.
E.J. shushed Abigail and leaned forward to kiss her again, reminding her that he was simply giving her what she had previously claimed that she wanted. Abigail dodged E.J.'s advances and started to protest that things weren't happening the way that she had envisioned, but he interrupted and gleefully informed her that after they had sex on the conference room table, he planned to conduct a business meeting at that same table and think about what they had done on it earlier. Abigail started to put her clothes back on, insisting that she didn't want things to happen the way that E.J. was suggesting that they would happen.
"What, exactly, do you think an affair looks like?" E.J. wondered. Abigail accused E.J. of focusing solely on the sexual aspect of their relationship to make it sound cheap and degrading. Abigail insisted that her and E.J.'s relationship had been about more than sex, and he agreed, summarizing that it had been about him being a selfish idiot. E.J. acknowledged that Sami had been upset with him for perfectly legitimate reasons but had stayed with him despite her concerns. Abigail reminded E.J. that Sami had kicked him out of their bed, but he clarified that Sami had done that not because she had stopped wanting to share her bed with him but instead because she had known that their intense sexual relationship would have blinded them to the real issues that they needed to deal with.
"No two humans on this earth make love like you and Sami do -- I get it. And now you just want to pretend like I don't exist -- like nothing ever happened between us," Abigail angrily replied as she started to gather her belongings. E.J. conceded that Abigail had been right earlier, adding that what had happened between them had been much more than just sex. E.J. summarized that Abigail had found him at a time when he had felt lost, and he stressed that he would always be grateful for what she had done for him. Abigail warned that she would throw something out the conference room window if E.J. proceeded to thank her for her services.
E.J. clarified that he hadn't meant to imply that Abigail had offered him a service, but she wasn't convinced, summarizing that having sex with her had simply helped him get through a rough patch with Sami. Abigail started to add that E.J. never wanted to have sex with her again because he believed that she was disgusting, but he interrupted her. "For God's sake, if anyone was disgusting, Abigail, it was me! I cheated on the woman who I love more than my own life! This doesn't happen again...ever!" E.J. firmly stressed.
E.J. apologized to Abigail as they each finished getting dressed, knowing that he had just hurt her and that she deserved better than that. Struggling to maintain her composure, Abigail interrupted E.J. and insisted that he was in no position to throw compliments her way. Abigail pointed out that she could ruin E.J.'s life if she ever chose to tell Sami the truth, but he quietly countered that Abigail would also ruin Sami's life in the process, not to mention the lives of their children -- and even Abigail's life, since she would feel miserable afterward. E.J. assured Abigail that no one would be happy if she chose to go that route, but he added that either way, he wasn't going to continue their relationship. E.J. wished Abigail the best and calmly exited the room. After E.J. left, Abigail started to sob.
J.J. entered Club TBD to get some breakfast before heading to school, and Theresa sighed as she watched him greet Sonny and take a seat at the bar. Theresa pushed her drink away and started to excuse herself, but Brady urged her to return to her seat. As Theresa complied with the request, Brady eyed J.J. and pointedly promised that he wasn't going to let anyone spoil her day.
Brady wanted to know the story behind Theresa's animosity toward J.J., so she dismissively replied that J.J. was a delinquent and a thug. Brady guessed that J.J. was one of the enemies Theresa had recently fantasized about completely destroying, but when she shook her head and clarified that J.J. wasn't even worth her time, Brady decided that she was instead plotting revenge against someone who was connected to J.J. Theresa remained evasive, so Brady threatened to get the desired answers from J.J.
Meanwhile, J.J. approached Theresa and asked to talk to her privately. Brady started to refuse the request, but Theresa assured him that it was all right, so he went to the bar to get some refills. As J.J. took the seat that Brady had just vacated, he muttered that it wasn't surprising that Theresa and Brady were hanging out together. Theresa impatiently demanded to know what "Junior" wanted, so he replied that they both needed to dial things back a bit, since they had reached a stalemate where neither of them could burn the other person to the ground without getting caught in the crossfire -- a risk that he assumed neither of them was willing to take.
Theresa stubbornly suggested that she might not be willing to back down peacefully. "Then you can be afraid every frickin' time you see me, 'cause I am done being scared of you," J.J. confidently replied. Theresa wondered what had prompted J.J.'s snarky attitude. Theresa innocently reminded J.J. that she had been minding her own business when he had approached her earlier, and he knowingly countered that she had also been foaming at the mouth due to his mere presence in the club.
Meanwhile, Brady returned and placed a drink in front of Theresa before pointedly asking J.J. how things were going at the park. J.J. replied that he didn't know the answer to that question, but Brady skeptically stated that the judge who had handled J.J.'s case was the only person in Salem who was clueless enough to believe J.J.'s innocent act. J.J. stood as he countered that the judge was the only person in Salem whom Brady had neglected to tell about their encounter in the park the previous December.
Brady claimed that Jennifer had deserved to know the truth because there was only one reason for J.J. to go to that part of the park, prompting J.J. to counter that Brady was speaking from experience. Brady mused that J.J. was a lucky kid, crassly adding that someone would have made J.J. their afternoon snack on J.J.'s first day in prison because bad attitudes weren't welcomed there. J.J. acknowledged that he was indeed a lucky kid, and Brady disgustedly replied that Jennifer deserved better. "Yeah, she does, and I'm going to see that she gets it. Well, you two, enjoy your...breakfast? Lunch?" J.J. wondered before rejoining Sonny at the bar. Theresa smiled as Brady reclaimed his seat, admitting that she liked the way that he had handled J.J.
Later, Theresa excused herself and started to pay for the bill, but Brady stopped her and jokingly reminded her that he was rich. Theresa smiled and promised to pay for the bill the next time that she and Brady hung out together. After Theresa left, Sonny approached Brady's table, and Brady asked for another refill, joking that he was happy to support the family business. "Are you driving?" Sonny wondered. Annoyed, Brady sighed, drained his glass, slammed a one hundred dollar bill down on the table, and started to walk away. Sonny offered to call a cab for Brady, but Brady replied that he was going to walk because it was a beautiful day.
Brady returned later to retrieve some gloves that he had accidentally left behind. After Sonny returned the gloves, Brady wondered if Sonny had called Maggie or Victor after Brady had left the club earlier. Sonny shook his head and wondered what had led Brady to suspect that. "Well, when I left here, someone was following me," Brady revealed.
Eric returned to the Brady Pub as Marlena was warning that if she ever learned that Nicole's intentions toward him were less than honorable, there would be no place for Nicole to hide from Marlena in Salem. Eric wondered if everything was all right, and Marlena nodded before walking away. Eric wondered if Nicole was all right, and she assured him that she was fine. Eric started to say that the good news was that he didn't think that any of his other family members would blame Nicole for his decision to leave the priesthood, but she interrupted and informed him that she had done something terrible.
Eric stopped Nicole and insisted that she couldn't let anyone get to her, adding that he never should have left her alone with Marlena. Nicole started to protest that she didn't deserve to have Eric defend her all the time, but before she could continue, Theresa arrived at the pub. Nicole groaned and quickly excused herself, promising to call Eric later. After Nicole left, Theresa wondered what had just happened, and Eric replied that the Bradys were giving Nicole a hard time for no good reason. "What? That never happens," Theresa sarcastically replied.
Eric informed Theresa that he had decided to leave the priesthood, and she shrugged and reasoned that he could do whatever he wanted to do with his life because it was his life. Theresa wondered if that was why Nicole had been "bitchy" earlier. Ignoring the question, Eric admitted that he had been unaware that Theresa and Nicole knew each other. Theresa clarified that she had met Nicole at Daniel's apartment a few weeks earlier. Theresa started to insult Nicole again, but Eric interrupted and politely asked her to stop. Eric said that Nicole was a wonderful woman whom Theresa could learn a lot from.
In Nicole's office at the television station, Nicole sighed as she paced the floor. "I don't know what's worse -- Marlena looking at me like she knows, or Eric thinking I'm some kind of hero. I've got to make this right. Maybe I can. Maybe there's still a way I can fix this," Nicole mused.
J.J. returned to the Horton house and called out for Jennifer, but he instead found Abigail rummaging through the couch cushions in the living room. Abigail explained that she was looking for a credit card that she had lost earlier, and she sighed with frustration as she admitted that she had been a mess lately. J.J. agreed and wondered when Abigail was finally going to tell him what was going on with her. Abigail reminded J.J. that she had previously told him that she was simply stressed because of her work responsibilities, but J.J. wasn't convinced. "This has nothing to do with work. I know all about the older man you were seeing," J.J. revealed.
Shortly after E.J. returned to the DiMera mansion, Sami stormed in and announced that she had just learned that Eric was no longer a priest. Stunned, E.J. wondered if the church had kicked Eric out. "No, this is not the church's fault -- this is about the people who live in this house. The DiMeras strike again," Sami angrily replied. E.J. started to apologize when Sami revealed that Eric had told her about the doctor Kristen had hired to drug Eric, but Sami interrupted and continued that it was obvious that Eric didn't blame her for what had happened to him.
Sami admitted that she didn't think that she could have been as fair to Eric if their roles had been reversed. "I live here. I'm here, under this roof, with the same people who destroyed his reputation, who took away from him the thing he loved doing most in the world. It's high time the DiMeras paid, and I am going to see to it," Sami vowed before rushing back out of the mansion.
Daniel tried to send Jennifer away when he found her standing outside his apartment, since their previous conversation hadn't ended well, but she insisted that she needed to talk to him about something important, so he reluctantly invited her in. Jennifer entered the apartment and proceeded to tell Daniel about J.J.'s earlier confession. Jennifer summarized that J.J. had told her the truth because he had gotten tired of seeing her think the worst about Daniel. Jennifer didn't approve of Daniel's decision to handle the matter on his own instead of telling her what had happened, but she assured him that she understood that his heart had been in the right place.
Daniel said that he wouldn't have been able to live with himself if he hadn't done everything that he could have possibly done to protect J.J., who didn't belong in prison. Daniel added that Jennifer's happiness had always meant more to him than anything else. Daniel assured Jennifer that he wasn't upset with J.J. for revealing the truth to her, but he vaguely added that the whole thing was still a huge mess. Jennifer promised that she wouldn't make the situation worse, assuming that Daniel had kept the truth from her because he had felt a need to protect J.J. from any potential overreaction that she might have had to the situation. Daniel denied the suspicion, but Jennifer still conceded that her involvement probably would have made the situation worse.
Jennifer said that she was glad that Daniel was in J.J.'s corner, and Daniel acknowledged that J.J. was a good kid, although he added that it hadn't always been easy to see that side of J.J. "In the last few months, I've seen what [J.J.'s] made of. I may have been here, but he's carried a lot on his own. He's -- he's proved to himself that he can do this by sheer force of will, because, you know, he wants to be the son that you deserve," Daniel explained, and Jennifer stressed that J.J. would always be that son to her. Jennifer guessed that Daniel had no idea how much it meant to her to know that he cared about J.J., but Daniel assured her that, thanks to Parker, he understood exactly how she felt. Daniel summarized that he wanted nothing more than for Parker to be happy and safe, adding that he felt the same way about Jennifer and her kids.
Jennifer approached Daniel as she gushed that she was lucky to know him, but he uncomfortably sidestepped her and replied that she needed to leave in order to keep J.J. safe. Confused, Jennifer said that J.J. had told her that Theresa had been neutralized, and Daniel replied that, while J.J. might have convinced himself that the whole ordeal was over, it was never easy to tell what Theresa was thinking, since she was a piece of work. Daniel explained that Theresa was obsessed with hurting Jennifer. Jennifer found it hard to believe that Theresa would risk her own freedom just to hurt Jennifer, but Daniel stressed that Theresa wasn't a rational person. Daniel added that Theresa had the power to not only wreck his career, but also put J.J. in prison -- the latter of which Daniel would never allow to happen because he knew that it would kill Jennifer.
Jennifer insisted that she could take care of herself, adding that she wasn't going to let Theresa have any power over her. Jennifer said that she had promised J.J. that she wasn't going to go after Theresa, and she assured Daniel that she intended to keep that promise. Jennifer urged Daniel to trust that she knew how to keep a secret and would never do anything to jeopardize his career. Daniel replied that he did trust Jennifer, but she could tell that he was still worried about something, and she wondered if he was exhibiting some sort of protective reflex.
Daniel wasn't sure how to respond to Jennifer's question, so she informed him that she regretted the way that she had treated him lately. Jennifer admitted that, while she would love to go back to the way that things had been before, she wouldn't blame Daniel if he no longer felt the same way about her. "If that's where we are, I totally understand. If I hadn't pushed you away in the first place, we wouldn't be at this point. And I made it worse, because I thought the worst about you, when you're really the best. So if I killed it -- if I killed us -- then I am so, so sorry," Jennifer told Daniel, who responded with a passionate kiss.
At the Brady Pub, Eric informed Caroline that he had decided to leave the priesthood. Eric stressed that he had prayed about the matter and was confident that he was making the right decision, and he hoped that Caroline could be happy for him.
Outside, Marlena continued to question Nicole about Eric's decision to leave the priesthood. Nicole guessed that Marlena was looking for someone to blame, but Marlena stressed that she didn't blame Nicole. Marlena clarified that she was simply trying to understand why Eric had suddenly decided to leave a vocation that he loved. "Eric is doing what?!" Sami asked as she approached Marlena and Nicole.
Marlena apologetically explained that Eric had wanted to give Sami the news himself. Sami wondered if the church officials had asked Eric to resign from the priesthood. Marlena shook her head and clarified that Eric had reached the decision on his own, but Sami wasn't convinced. "This reeks of you, Nicole. What did you do to Eric?" Sami demanded to know as she glared at Nicole.
Nicole protested that, while she was almost willing to tolerate an interrogation from Marlena, she certainly wasn't going to tolerate one from Sami. Nicole wished that someone would acknowledge the fact that Eric was fully capable of making his own decisions. Sami countered that Eric had previously made the decision to do everything that he could possibly do to clear his name so that he could return to the priesthood.
Sami guessed that Nicole had sabotaged Eric's television interview, pointing out that it had never actually aired. Sami theorized that Nicole had never wanted Eric to return to the priesthood in the first place, but Nicole denied the accusation. Unconvinced, Sami vowed to find out what Nicole had done so that it could be undone. Marlena started to defend Nicole, but Sami interrupted and said that she could handle Nicole on her own.
Sami summarized that Nicole had been a nightmare for Eric since their teenage years, when Nicole had broken his heart and wrecked his life. Unimpressed, Nicole wondered how long Sami had been practicing that particular speech, but Sami ignored the question. "Finally -- finally -- [Eric] managed to pull himself together; he managed to find a true passion for something good and decent...which, obviously, you would know nothing about -- I get that. But you couldn't just let it go, could you? The second he came back to town, when you had to be all over him with your claws out --" Sami continued to rant, stopping only when Eric exited the pub and firmly instructed her to leave Nicole alone. Sami complied with Eric's request, but she was still confused about his decision to leave the priesthood, so he promised that he would answer all of her questions elsewhere.
"Thanks for jumping in there, Mar," Nicole dryly stated after Eric and Sami left. Marlena objected to the nickname, but she conceded that she did owe Nicole an apology. Nicole braced herself, unsure that she could handle receiving two apologies from Marlena in a single day. "It's okay -- you've earned it. Sami should never have gone after you that way, and you didn't deserve that. And we both know that when Sami gets on a roll, it's sometimes hard to stop her. But Eric will talk to her; he will explain what happened, and then I'm sure that -- I'm sure she will apologize to you," Marlena assured Nicole, but after considering the prediction for a moment, both women simultaneously agreed that it would never happen.
Marlena summarized that the point was that she, Roman, and Sami had each been completely surprised to learn that Eric had decided to leave the priesthood, which was why they had not treated Nicole as graciously as they should have. Marlena sadly mused that the efforts to clear Eric's name suddenly seemed irrelevant. Nicole protested that those efforts had been relevant because they had led to a confession from Chyka, but Marlena knew that wouldn't be enough to clear Eric's name.
Marlena wished that some sort of concrete evidence would surface that could prove Eric's innocence. Nicole shrugged and optimistically suggested that the police might eventually find something, since they finally knew where to look for the evidence. Marlena conceded the point and noted that it would be helpful for the police to know as much as they possibly could about the situation. Nicole stressed that she and Daniel had already given their statements to the police earlier, but Marlena recalled that Nicole had also dodged some of Marlena and Roman's earlier questions about what had happened at Chyka's cabin.
Nicole innocently claimed that she had assumed that the answers to those particular questions wouldn't help the investigation, but Marlena reasoned that Nicole couldn't possibly be certain about that. Marlena observed that it seemed like extended conversations about the events at Chyka's cabin made Nicole uncomfortable, but she protested that she wasn't uncomfortable at all. Marlena shrugged and casually suggested that what she had misinterpreted as discomfort could have been guilt instead. "Oh, don't you -- uh-uh. Don't you try to shrink me," Nicole warned Marlena.
Marlena observed that it seemed like she was upsetting Nicole, and she curiously wondered what Nicole was afraid of. Nicole silently recalled the moment when she had discovered the packet of evidence in Chyka's cabin safe, but she simply replied that she wasn't afraid of anything -- especially not Marlena. Marlena mused that it seemed like Nicole was more willing to talk to Roman than Marlena, and she reminded Nicole that they were both Eric's parents and that they cared about him equally. Nicole countered that she also cared about Eric, and she wondered why it was hard for everyone to believe that she only wanted him to be happy.
As Eric led Sami to a secluded section of the town square, she protested that he was too good for Nicole, whom he had never been able to see for who she really was. Sami admitted that she had assumed that Eric would be safe from Nicole as a priest, and she muttered that she should have known that Nicole wouldn't let that sort of obstacle stop her. Sami mused that Eric was dealing with the kind of situation where it was nice to have a sister like her, since she could see a woman like Nicole approaching from a mile away. Eric, who had already made several attempts to stop Sami's rant, impatiently threatened to leave if she continued to disparage Nicole.
Eric stressed that he had made the decision to leave the priesthood on his own. Sami was skeptical, guessing that Nicole had simply made it seem like Eric had made the decision on his own, but he insisted that he wanted Sami to be quiet and listen to him for a moment. Eric told Sami about his spiritual retreat, explaining that he had spent a lot of time praying for guidance while he had been there. Sami thought that Eric's decision seemed a bit rushed, but he clarified that he had wanted to leave the priesthood right away so that he could stop living in limbo.
Eric said that he was at peace with his decision to leave the priesthood, adding that he was confident that it was God's will for him. Sami wondered if Eric was absolutely certain that leaving the priesthood wasn't Nicole's will for him, but he insisted that Sami needed to forget about that particular theory. Sami started to protest, but Eric interrupted and insisted that she didn't know what Nicole had done for him. "I know what she'd like to do for --" Sami started to counter before stopping herself and reluctantly agreeing to listen to what Eric had to say about Nicole.
Eric proceeded to tell Sami about Nicole and Daniel's adventure with Dr. Jakub Chyka, the man who had tried to kill Eric and Nicole a few weeks earlier. Eric explained that Chyka was a "doctor for hire" who had been on the DiMera payroll and had admitted to working for Kristen. Sami nervously wondered if Chyka had told Daniel and Nicole anything else during their interrogation. "No, he got away before they got more details. The point is -- is that Daniel and Nicole, they risked their lives trying to help me. If they had gotten him, they would have had Kristen dead to rights, and anybody -- anybody -- who might have helped her," Eric replied.
At DiMera Enterprises, E.J. pushed Abigail against a conference room table as he continued to kiss her. "This is what you want, isn't it?" E.J. asked as he pulled away from Abigail and ripped off his suit jacket. Abigail breathlessly confirmed E.J.'s suspicion as she started kissing him again. "Good, because this is how it's gonna have to be," E.J. whispered in Abigail's ear as she helped him remove his tie.
E.J. continued to alternate between kissing Abigail and whispering in her ear as he started to undress her. "Oh, Abigail, we can do it here today, and then next time, by the loading dock. Yeah, there's this corner right under the ramp -- nobody can see us. It's wonderful. You know where I'd like to do it? I'd like to do it in the hospital. That'd be so much fun -- your supply closet. Or by the pub -- in the alley behind the pub. How would you like that, huh? That would be so good. We'd be able to hear people inside. Can you imagine? Your family in there, just by to eat, [and] their precious little daughter just a few feet away, up against the wall," E.J. fantasized, ignoring Abigail's occasional confused protests until she finally pushed him away and told him to stop.
E.J. shushed Abigail and leaned forward to kiss her again, reminding her that he was simply giving her what she had previously claimed that she wanted. Abigail dodged E.J.'s advances and started to protest that things weren't happening the way that she had envisioned, but he interrupted and gleefully informed her that after they had sex on the conference room table, he planned to conduct a business meeting at that same table and think about what they had done on it earlier. Abigail started to put her clothes back on, insisting that she didn't want things to happen the way that E.J. was suggesting that they would happen.
"What, exactly, do you think an affair looks like?" E.J. wondered. Abigail accused E.J. of focusing solely on the sexual aspect of their relationship to make it sound cheap and degrading. Abigail insisted that her and E.J.'s relationship had been about more than sex, and he agreed, summarizing that it had been about him being a selfish idiot. E.J. acknowledged that Sami had been upset with him for perfectly legitimate reasons but had stayed with him despite her concerns. Abigail reminded E.J. that Sami had kicked him out of their bed, but he clarified that Sami had done that not because she had stopped wanting to share her bed with him but instead because she had known that their intense sexual relationship would have blinded them to the real issues that they needed to deal with.
"No two humans on this earth make love like you and Sami do -- I get it. And now you just want to pretend like I don't exist -- like nothing ever happened between us," Abigail angrily replied as she started to gather her belongings. E.J. conceded that Abigail had been right earlier, adding that what had happened between them had been much more than just sex. E.J. summarized that Abigail had found him at a time when he had felt lost, and he stressed that he would always be grateful for what she had done for him. Abigail warned that she would throw something out the conference room window if E.J. proceeded to thank her for her services.
E.J. clarified that he hadn't meant to imply that Abigail had offered him a service, but she wasn't convinced, summarizing that having sex with her had simply helped him get through a rough patch with Sami. Abigail started to add that E.J. never wanted to have sex with her again because he believed that she was disgusting, but he interrupted her. "For God's sake, if anyone was disgusting, Abigail, it was me! I cheated on the woman who I love more than my own life! This doesn't happen again...ever!" E.J. firmly stressed.
E.J. apologized to Abigail as they each finished getting dressed, knowing that he had just hurt her and that she deserved better than that. Struggling to maintain her composure, Abigail interrupted E.J. and insisted that he was in no position to throw compliments her way. Abigail pointed out that she could ruin E.J.'s life if she ever chose to tell Sami the truth, but he quietly countered that Abigail would also ruin Sami's life in the process, not to mention the lives of their children -- and even Abigail's life, since she would feel miserable afterward. E.J. assured Abigail that no one would be happy if she chose to go that route, but he added that either way, he wasn't going to continue their relationship. E.J. wished Abigail the best and calmly exited the room. After E.J. left, Abigail started to sob.
J.J. entered Club TBD to get some breakfast before heading to school, and Theresa sighed as she watched him greet Sonny and take a seat at the bar. Theresa pushed her drink away and started to excuse herself, but Brady urged her to return to her seat. As Theresa complied with the request, Brady eyed J.J. and pointedly promised that he wasn't going to let anyone spoil her day.
Brady wanted to know the story behind Theresa's animosity toward J.J., so she dismissively replied that J.J. was a delinquent and a thug. Brady guessed that J.J. was one of the enemies Theresa had recently fantasized about completely destroying, but when she shook her head and clarified that J.J. wasn't even worth her time, Brady decided that she was instead plotting revenge against someone who was connected to J.J. Theresa remained evasive, so Brady threatened to get the desired answers from J.J.
Meanwhile, J.J. approached Theresa and asked to talk to her privately. Brady started to refuse the request, but Theresa assured him that it was all right, so he went to the bar to get some refills. As J.J. took the seat that Brady had just vacated, he muttered that it wasn't surprising that Theresa and Brady were hanging out together. Theresa impatiently demanded to know what "Junior" wanted, so he replied that they both needed to dial things back a bit, since they had reached a stalemate where neither of them could burn the other person to the ground without getting caught in the crossfire -- a risk that he assumed neither of them was willing to take.
Theresa stubbornly suggested that she might not be willing to back down peacefully. "Then you can be afraid every frickin' time you see me, 'cause I am done being scared of you," J.J. confidently replied. Theresa wondered what had prompted J.J.'s snarky attitude. Theresa innocently reminded J.J. that she had been minding her own business when he had approached her earlier, and he knowingly countered that she had also been foaming at the mouth due to his mere presence in the club.
Meanwhile, Brady returned and placed a drink in front of Theresa before pointedly asking J.J. how things were going at the park. J.J. replied that he didn't know the answer to that question, but Brady skeptically stated that the judge who had handled J.J.'s case was the only person in Salem who was clueless enough to believe J.J.'s innocent act. J.J. stood as he countered that the judge was the only person in Salem whom Brady had neglected to tell about their encounter in the park the previous December.
Brady claimed that Jennifer had deserved to know the truth because there was only one reason for J.J. to go to that part of the park, prompting J.J. to counter that Brady was speaking from experience. Brady mused that J.J. was a lucky kid, crassly adding that someone would have made J.J. their afternoon snack on J.J.'s first day in prison because bad attitudes weren't welcomed there. J.J. acknowledged that he was indeed a lucky kid, and Brady disgustedly replied that Jennifer deserved better. "Yeah, she does, and I'm going to see that she gets it. Well, you two, enjoy your...breakfast? Lunch?" J.J. wondered before rejoining Sonny at the bar. Theresa smiled as Brady reclaimed his seat, admitting that she liked the way that he had handled J.J.
Later, Theresa excused herself and started to pay for the bill, but Brady stopped her and jokingly reminded her that he was rich. Theresa smiled and promised to pay for the bill the next time that she and Brady hung out together. After Theresa left, Sonny approached Brady's table, and Brady asked for another refill, joking that he was happy to support the family business. "Are you driving?" Sonny wondered. Annoyed, Brady sighed, drained his glass, slammed a one hundred dollar bill down on the table, and started to walk away. Sonny offered to call a cab for Brady, but Brady replied that he was going to walk because it was a beautiful day.
Brady returned later to retrieve some gloves that he had accidentally left behind. After Sonny returned the gloves, Brady wondered if Sonny had called Maggie or Victor after Brady had left the club earlier. Sonny shook his head and wondered what had led Brady to suspect that. "Well, when I left here, someone was following me," Brady revealed.
Eric returned to the Brady Pub as Marlena was warning that if she ever learned that Nicole's intentions toward him were less than honorable, there would be no place for Nicole to hide from Marlena in Salem. Eric wondered if everything was all right, and Marlena nodded before walking away. Eric wondered if Nicole was all right, and she assured him that she was fine. Eric started to say that the good news was that he didn't think that any of his other family members would blame Nicole for his decision to leave the priesthood, but she interrupted and informed him that she had done something terrible.
Eric stopped Nicole and insisted that she couldn't let anyone get to her, adding that he never should have left her alone with Marlena. Nicole started to protest that she didn't deserve to have Eric defend her all the time, but before she could continue, Theresa arrived at the pub. Nicole groaned and quickly excused herself, promising to call Eric later. After Nicole left, Theresa wondered what had just happened, and Eric replied that the Bradys were giving Nicole a hard time for no good reason. "What? That never happens," Theresa sarcastically replied.
Eric informed Theresa that he had decided to leave the priesthood, and she shrugged and reasoned that he could do whatever he wanted to do with his life because it was his life. Theresa wondered if that was why Nicole had been "bitchy" earlier. Ignoring the question, Eric admitted that he had been unaware that Theresa and Nicole knew each other. Theresa clarified that she had met Nicole at Daniel's apartment a few weeks earlier. Theresa started to insult Nicole again, but Eric interrupted and politely asked her to stop. Eric said that Nicole was a wonderful woman whom Theresa could learn a lot from.
In Nicole's office at the television station, Nicole sighed as she paced the floor. "I don't know what's worse -- Marlena looking at me like she knows, or Eric thinking I'm some kind of hero. I've got to make this right. Maybe I can. Maybe there's still a way I can fix this," Nicole mused.
J.J. returned to the Horton house and called out for Jennifer, but he instead found Abigail rummaging through the couch cushions in the living room. Abigail explained that she was looking for a credit card that she had lost earlier, and she sighed with frustration as she admitted that she had been a mess lately. J.J. agreed and wondered when Abigail was finally going to tell him what was going on with her. Abigail reminded J.J. that she had previously told him that she was simply stressed because of her work responsibilities, but J.J. wasn't convinced. "This has nothing to do with work. I know all about the older man you were seeing," J.J. revealed.
Shortly after E.J. returned to the DiMera mansion, Sami stormed in and announced that she had just learned that Eric was no longer a priest. Stunned, E.J. wondered if the church had kicked Eric out. "No, this is not the church's fault -- this is about the people who live in this house. The DiMeras strike again," Sami angrily replied. E.J. started to apologize when Sami revealed that Eric had told her about the doctor Kristen had hired to drug Eric, but Sami interrupted and continued that it was obvious that Eric didn't blame her for what had happened to him.
Sami admitted that she didn't think that she could have been as fair to Eric if their roles had been reversed. "I live here. I'm here, under this roof, with the same people who destroyed his reputation, who took away from him the thing he loved doing most in the world. It's high time the DiMeras paid, and I am going to see to it," Sami vowed before rushing back out of the mansion.
Daniel tried to send Jennifer away when he found her standing outside his apartment, since their previous conversation hadn't ended well, but she insisted that she needed to talk to him about something important, so he reluctantly invited her in. Jennifer entered the apartment and proceeded to tell Daniel about J.J.'s earlier confession. Jennifer summarized that J.J. had told her the truth because he had gotten tired of seeing her think the worst about Daniel. Jennifer didn't approve of Daniel's decision to handle the matter on his own instead of telling her what had happened, but she assured him that she understood that his heart had been in the right place.
Daniel said that he wouldn't have been able to live with himself if he hadn't done everything that he could have possibly done to protect J.J., who didn't belong in prison. Daniel added that Jennifer's happiness had always meant more to him than anything else. Daniel assured Jennifer that he wasn't upset with J.J. for revealing the truth to her, but he vaguely added that the whole thing was still a huge mess. Jennifer promised that she wouldn't make the situation worse, assuming that Daniel had kept the truth from her because he had felt a need to protect J.J. from any potential overreaction that she might have had to the situation. Daniel denied the suspicion, but Jennifer still conceded that her involvement probably would have made the situation worse.
Jennifer said that she was glad that Daniel was in J.J.'s corner, and Daniel acknowledged that J.J. was a good kid, although he added that it hadn't always been easy to see that side of J.J. "In the last few months, I've seen what [J.J.'s] made of. I may have been here, but he's carried a lot on his own. He's -- he's proved to himself that he can do this by sheer force of will, because, you know, he wants to be the son that you deserve," Daniel explained, and Jennifer stressed that J.J. would always be that son to her. Jennifer guessed that Daniel had no idea how much it meant to her to know that he cared about J.J., but Daniel assured her that, thanks to Parker, he understood exactly how she felt. Daniel summarized that he wanted nothing more than for Parker to be happy and safe, adding that he felt the same way about Jennifer and her kids.
Jennifer approached Daniel as she gushed that she was lucky to know him, but he uncomfortably sidestepped her and replied that she needed to leave in order to keep J.J. safe. Confused, Jennifer said that J.J. had told her that Theresa had been neutralized, and Daniel replied that, while J.J. might have convinced himself that the whole ordeal was over, it was never easy to tell what Theresa was thinking, since she was a piece of work. Daniel explained that Theresa was obsessed with hurting Jennifer. Jennifer found it hard to believe that Theresa would risk her own freedom just to hurt Jennifer, but Daniel stressed that Theresa wasn't a rational person. Daniel added that Theresa had the power to not only wreck his career, but also put J.J. in prison -- the latter of which Daniel would never allow to happen because he knew that it would kill Jennifer.
Jennifer insisted that she could take care of herself, adding that she wasn't going to let Theresa have any power over her. Jennifer said that she had promised J.J. that she wasn't going to go after Theresa, and she assured Daniel that she intended to keep that promise. Jennifer urged Daniel to trust that she knew how to keep a secret and would never do anything to jeopardize his career. Daniel replied that he did trust Jennifer, but she could tell that he was still worried about something, and she wondered if he was exhibiting some sort of protective reflex.
Daniel wasn't sure how to respond to Jennifer's question, so she informed him that she regretted the way that she had treated him lately. Jennifer admitted that, while she would love to go back to the way that things had been before, she wouldn't blame Daniel if he no longer felt the same way about her. "If that's where we are, I totally understand. If I hadn't pushed you away in the first place, we wouldn't be at this point. And I made it worse, because I thought the worst about you, when you're really the best. So if I killed it -- if I killed us -- then I am so, so sorry," Jennifer told Daniel, who responded with a passionate kiss.
