In a whirlwind of emotional devastation and tangled hearts, The Bold and the Beautiful takes a tragic turn that will shake fans to their core. Carter, who once believed he finally had a real shot at happiness with Hope, finds his world crumbling in a way he never anticipated—all because of five heartbreaking words from Liam that he’ll never forget.

Carter had convinced himself that he was finally moving forward. With Hope seemingly open to a future with him and Liam stepping aside gracefully, Carter felt the stirrings of something he hadn’t felt in a long time: genuine hope. Liam even encouraged him to pursue her, and Carter believed it. He believed in her. In them.

But that fragile optimism was shattered in a matter of seconds.

He hadn’t planned on overhearing anything. He was simply on his way to see Hope again, hoping for clarity after their last emotional conversation. But as he approached her door, he caught sight of Liam sitting beside her on the couch. Pale. Weak. A shadow of the man he used to be. Then came her words—soft, but devastating: “I don’t want a life without you, Liam.”

Those five words pierced Carter’s soul like a dagger. In that instant, every hope he’d held onto crumbled. She still loved Liam. Maybe she always had. Frozen at the doorway, Carter backed away before she or Liam could see him, his chest tightening with heartbreak. His mind raced, replaying her confession again and again. “I was a fool,” he whispered to himself. “I thought she saw me. I thought I mattered.”

Battered and raw, Carter didn’t return home alone. Instead, he found himself in the company of someone he had kept at a distance—Daphne. She had warned him about Hope, about her inability to let go of Liam. And now, with betrayal festering in his heart, Carter was finally willing to listen.

Daphne invited him over that evening. Their time together was light and flirtatious, her laughter filling the room in contrast to the emotional silence he had just left behind. He smiled, he flirted, he let himself be drawn into her orbit—but it wasn’t about Daphne. It was about forgetting. And when Hope called that night, he ignored it. When she texted, he left her message unread.

“She made her choice,” he told himself. “Now I’m making mine.”

But the story wasn’t finished. The next morning, just as Carter was preparing to head out to Forrester Creations, an unexpected knock came at his door. It was Liam.

Disheveled and barely standing, Liam looked like he had aged overnight. Carter, surprised but still harboring resentment, let him in. And then came the words that would change everything.

“I’m dying,” Liam said, his voice barely above a whisper. “Brain tumor. Nothing they can do.”

Carter froze. The weight of those five words slammed into him harder than any betrayal ever could. “I’m dying.”

All the anger, the humiliation, the heartbreak—none of it compared to the truth now laid bare before him. Liam hadn’t been clinging to Hope out of selfishness. He had been preparing to say goodbye.

Liam explained everything. He had asked everyone to keep it a secret. He didn’t want pity, didn’t want chaos. But Carter had to know, especially now. Hope loved Liam—but she also cared deeply for Carter. And when Liam was gone, she’d need someone. Someone who truly saw her. Someone who didn’t make her feel like a second choice.

Stunned, Carter sat down, guilt flooding every corner of his mind. He had let his pride take control. He had walked away too soon, convinced he’d been rejected, when the reality was far more complicated. He had sought comfort with Daphne, but now, none of that seemed to matter.

Hope hadn’t heard from Carter in days. She had seen him with Daphne—laughing, like their connection had meant nothing. Now she was left wondering if she could trust him again. Could he be the man who stands by her in her darkest hour? Or had he already proven that when things get tough, he runs?

Liam, heartbreakingly aware of his limited time, may be using his final days to make peace—not just for himself, but for Hope and Carter. His love for Hope runs deep, and perhaps his dying wish is to see her loved and cherished by someone who will be there after he’s gone.

But will Hope be able to move past the silence from Carter, the image of him in another woman’s arms? Or will she cling to the fading days with Liam, unable to imagine life without him—even if that life may be painfully short?

The coming episodes promise to be a storm of emotional reckoning as Liam faces the end, Carter contemplates what he’s lost, and Hope stands at the crossroads of love, loyalty, and heartbreak. One thing is certain: those five devastating words—“I’m dying. Brain tumor. Nothing they can do.”—will echo through all of their lives forever.