While Bill was worried about his relationship with his daughter, his health, and the law firm, Ashley and Ben decided to move in together. Samantha and Martin teased Tyrell about Jessica. And Naomi is about to represent a new client. Also in the Friday, April 25 episode of Beyond the Gates, Doug McBride finally started to deal with his gambling addiction.
Help Needed
We’ve needed to hear Doug’s perspective since early in the series. For the last couple of months, we witnessed him sink into gambling addiction, and Joey Armstrong (Jon Lindstrom) did what he could to get Doug (Jason Graham) under his thumb. And now Doug owes him a big debt. He won $50K in the lottery and quickly lost the money betting on the horses.
On top of it, he played betting games with the hospital staff. He couldn’t get enough of the thrill, the adrenaline. Even his surgeries weren’t providing enough of that feeling. So he turned to his friend and now therapist, Nicole (Daphnée Duplaix), who happens to be besties with his wife. However, she did well keeping what she knew about Vanessa (Lauren Buglioli) out of the office. Instead, she listened to him and offered Doug insight into his behavior. He realized he’s a hot mess and that he’s in trouble. That’s why he asked her for help.
Unfortunately, he wasn’t willing to do all the work. He wouldn’t go public with his addiction and join a hospital support group. What he did feel he could do was talk to his wife.
READ THIS: Check out what Arielle Prepetit told Soap Hub about playing Naomi Hamilton Hawthorne.
Sharing His Perspective
At the Fairmont Crest Country Club, he caught up with his wife. Right away, he asked her to chat. Although she was upset about Diego (Carlos Enrique Palacio) ghosting her, she sat down with Doug and let him talk. He admitted that he had been lying to her and acknowledged that there was a disconnect with their marriage.
When he and Vanessa recently reconnected in the hotel room, that compelled him to look at his life and see how much he was spiraling. He said he felt things that were long buried and wished he could return to the way things were between them when it was just them.
Look, I know you don’t feel the same way anymore. I see the way that you look at me. Like I’m some thing in your life that isn’t what you quite ordered.
While that may not be entirely true, it was partially true. They have been living separate lives as empty nesters. While he turned to gambling, she turned to extramarital affairs. What we don’t know is whether Doug is truly going to confess his addiction to Vanessa. Hopefully, that will happen next week.
What did you think about Doug and Vanessa? Do you think they’ll make their marriage work, or will their bond slowly dissolve into nothing? Do you want to meet their twins, whom they keep mentioning? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.
