The Real Reason Ridge Thought He Married Shauna On The Bold And The Beautiful

Ridge Forrester has been a leading man on "The Bold and the Beautiful" since the show's inception. Actor and musician Ronn Moss famously originated the character in 1987 and remained in the role for 25 years. Since 2013, soap vet Thorsten Kaye — who has previously been on "One Life to Live" and "All My Children" — has thrived in Ridge's shoes. Besides being a talented businessman often at the helm of Forrester Creations, Ridge is notorious for bouncing back and forth between his six-time wife Brooke Logan and other women.

In 2020, Shauna Fulton became one of those women. Shauna was introduced to the "B&B" scene as Quinn Fuller's best friend in 2019 and was played by model, actress and "The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills" alum Denise Richards. Though her arrival in town was mostly related to her daughter Flo Fulton's involvement in a baby swap scheme, she soon found herself falling for Ridge, per Soaps in Depth. They eventually tried to make a go of it, but Shauna and Ridge's relationship was based on lies from the very start and had little hope of lasting.

Ridge Forrester's most recent marriage to Brooke Logan (Katherine Kelly Lang) hit the rocks when it was discovered that the baby Brooke's daughter Hope Logan (Annika Noelle) had given birth to and was told died had actually been illegally adopted and was being raised by Ridge's daughter Steffy Forrester (Jacqueline MacInnes Wood), per SoapHub. Brooke learned that Ridge's son Thomas Forrester was in on the secret and opted not to tell Steffy or Hope the truth about the baby and was disappointed when her husband tried to defend his son's actions (via Soap Central).

At first, Ridge was furious with mother and daughter Shauna and Flo Fulton (Katrina Bowden) for their part in the scheme — Flo had been paid to pose as the baby's birth mother, and Shauna covered for her — and planned to have them arrested. However, he ultimately dropped the charges to protect Thomas from being implicated. This action led Brooke and Ridge down the road to divorce, and Shauna made herself available as a shoulder for him to cry on.

After growing closer and sharing a few kisses, Ridge told Shauna that he was going to give his relationship with Brooke another try. Brooke was incensed with Shauna for moving in on her husband, and Quinn Fuller (Rena Sofer) defended her friend, which didn't go over well between the two long-time rivals (via Soaps). Seeking revenge, Quinn then concocted a plan that would ensure Shauna would get to have the man she loved and would hurt Brooke in the process.

Not long after Ridge Forrester and Brooke Logan decided to reconcile, Shauna Fulton caught Brooke kissing Bill Spencer Jr. (Don Diamont), per Soaps. She recorded the intimate moment on her phone and went to her friend Quinn Fuller with the evidence. Shauna wanted to keep the secret to herself so as not to hurt Ridge, but Quinn took it upon herself to share the video publicly, thus humiliating her nemesis Brooke (via Michael Fairman TV). Distraught, Ridge traveled to Las Vegas to visit Shauna at her home to thank her for exposing the truth.

After Ridge proceeded to get black-out drunk, Shauna enacted Quinn's plan by using Ridge's phone to text his attorney and ask him to file his divorce papers to Brooke (via Soaps in Depth). She then took Ridge to a wedding chapel where the two were married. The next day Brooke tried to reconcile with Ridge but Shauna revealed that she was the new Mrs. Forrester. Ridge had no memory of the nuptials, and he decided to give his marriage to Shauna a try. Though Shauna felt guilty for tricking Ridge, Quinn convinced her to keep quiet so she wouldn't lose her new husband — though her true motivation was to protect her own marriage to Eric Forrester (John McCook), who would surely leave her if he discovered how she had manipulated his son.

Once back in LA, Ridge Forrester and Shauna Fulton began planning a real wedding to celebrate their marriage since they had eloped in Vegas and Ridge didn't even remember it (via Soaps). As the wedding neared, Shauna's feelings of guilt grew, and, at the last minute, she decided to come clean. She video called Ridge on the day of the wedding to tell him the truth but before she got the chance, Ridge revealed that he already knew what she had done. He went on to say that not only was he canceling the wedding, but he was returning to Brooke, whom he still loved. Shauna apologized profusely and was understanding about Ridge's decision, though she was still heartbroken.

When Quinn Fuller and Shauna's scheme was revealed to Ridge's attorney Carter Walton (Lawrence Saint-Victor), he determined that Ridge and Shauna's marriage was invalid (via Soap Central). Since Ridge was not actually the person who told Carter to file his divorce papers, that meant that he was still technically married to Brooke and that his Vegas wedding with Shauna was not legally binding.

Shauna clearly didn't learn her lesson from the destruction she caused with her lies since she went on to cover for Quinn when she began having an affair with Carter behind her husband's back (via Celebrating the Soaps). Ridge and Brooke, however, were able to mend their relationship, and their marriage seemed solid for a few years. Though things have gone downhill in recent months since their respective exes Deacon Sharpe (Sean Kanan) and Taylor Hayes (Krista Allen) are back in town and stirring up drama.