As the Sept. 7 episode of The Real Housewives of Orange County began, the women were still reeling from one of the most startling blowups in recent memory. It all began at Heather's luncheon, when Megan seemingly questioned whether Brooks really had cancer — and ended at Tamra's "sex tape" party, with Vicki telling Meghan's husband, Jim, to talk to her in five years when he was "divorced." (Burn!)
Meghan recapped the evening to her better half, which only seemed to get her riled up even more. "She kept on saying I don't know her and I don't know him," Meghan griped. "But she felt comfortable to attack our marriage, to attack our relationship."
Meanwhile, Heather and Shannon went to lunch where they offered their own take on the events, which pretty much boiled down to the fact that both Vicki and Meghan were "strong-willed women" with lots of opinions, so conflict was inevitable.
More interesting than that, however, was the big surprise that Heather and Shannon were hanging out as friends at all‹a development not lost on the ladies. "It's amazing to think that Shannon and I, last year, could barely be in the same room together without something exploding and now this year we are really enjoying each other's company," Heather marveled to the camera.
Vicki Visits Brianna and Ryan — During a Tornado
Vicki was hardly stewing about her blowup with Meghan, however, as she was busy visiting her daughter, Brianna, in Oklahoma (for the 14th time in 12 months).
When a tornado warning struck, Vicki freaked out and refused to hang out in the storm shelter. Instead, the gang headed to a steakhouse downtown.
"I don't know what's worse, being in the storm shelter with the top closed or being in a tornado. Either way, I'm going to die," Vicki said with a laugh.
But the laughter couldn't cover the tension completely. Though Brianna openly admitted that she and husband Ryan have no social life in Oklahoma, she insisted they're nowhere near ready to move back to California.
"I would love nothing more than to move back to Orange County, but there is no way that's going to happen with Brooks living in my family home," Brianna explained to the camera. "My kids are never going to be around him because I still think Brooks is a terrible person."
And Vicki clearly knew how Brianna felt. "I've paid the price by making the decision to be with Brooks. I've had to live this double life for several years now and I'm not going to be able to change Brianna's opinion," she sighed to the camera.
Still, though, Vicki put this disagreement aside and splurged on a giant white SUV for Brianna for her birthday.
"I'm so embarrassed, like to the core, like my stomach hurts I'm so embarrassed," Brianna said of the extravagant gift. "But who's not going to accept a car that their parent's going to buy them?" (Not you, Brianna!)
Tamra Wants to Get Baptized
Back in the OC, Tamra and Eddie met with a pastor to discuss the possibility of Tamra being baptized. In an emotional moment, Tamra opened up to the pastor about her motivation to reconnect with her faith.
"Last year I think with everything I was going through, my relationships with my friends got screwed up. I lashed out. I did things that hurt people," she confessed. "It was just hard. It was hard all the way around so now I'm trying to make good."
For his part, Eddie was on board with her decision. "I support her, 100 percent," he said. Tamra was truly touched by Eddie's devotion.
"The fact that Eddie is sitting here supporting me right now means the world to me," she said as tears welled in her eyes.
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Meghan Has a Cancer Scare
After finding a lump near her chest area, Meghan decided to get it checked because breast cancer runs in her family. Fortunately, it turned out to be a false alarm, but it jostled the 30-year-old blonde enough that she went forward with the BRCA gene testing.
Though she wouldn't get the results for a few weeks, she did imply that if the results came back positive she would consider taking rather drastic actions (i.e. surgery like Angelina Jolie) to lower her risk for developing cancer.
The Pressure's on for Terry and Heather's Skincare Launch
Heather and Terry seemed to have some real momentum with their skincare line, though she admitted that part of her motivation was just to get face-time with her husband.
"Terry's idea of foreplay is like an 18-hour day in the OR," Heather said to camera. "Working on our skincare is not only something that we're both so passionate about but also it's a great way to spend time together."
The executives they met with explained that on home shopping television, they would be able to tell in a matter of minutes whether the product line was going to be a hit or not. Heather seemed to be feeling the heat, but Terry took it all in stride.
"If nobody wants it and nobody buys it, you're a loser!" Terry laughed to the camera before adding, "Nobody wants to be a loser." They might want to fine-tune that sales pitch before going on-air.
Adeline and Sophie Cook Up Some Magic for the Beadors
After a disastrous birthday dinner for Shannon, her two daughters decided to take another stab at the celebration by opening the Beador's Restaurant . . . in their palatial home.
"We made this dinner because we want to make your relationship better and help you talk about your relationship," the girls explained to their parents. Shannon quickly realized how much they had hurt their daughters with their tension and fights and jumped to reassure them.
"In life you're going to have bumps in the road and it's how you handle them and you move forward," she told her daughters. "We see you guys, when everything is good, how happy you are and we're committed to continuing to grow as a family and be the happiest family we can be." David didn't say much (at all), but it's safe to ssume he agreed.
Tamra's in Hot Water for Giving Ryan Money
After some urging from her friends, Tamra finally confessed to Eddie that she had given son Ryan money to help get him into a new house with his family‹and Eddie was not too pleased.
"You gave Ryan, a 30-year-old adult, $8,000 to move into a place?" he asked.
"Well, he's my son," Tamra replied. "If you want to get mad at anybody, get mad at me." But Eddie was one step ahead of her.
"I am mad at you!" he clarified.
"I am not about to work my ass off to support another man's family," Eddie said. "I love Ryan — but he doesn't follow through. I see a train wreck. I see that he's not going to be able to afford the month-to-month and guess what are you and I going to bail him out again? No. And if you do, it's going to be a big problem between you and I."
Tamra promised it wasn't a gift; it was a loan, and Eddie said that was fine. But then she confessed to the camera that she knew Ryan was "never" going to pay them back, but "Eddie doesn't need to know that." Err . . . he might know now.
Vicki and Brianna Spar Over Brooks
Round 997! Discussing her family's upcoming visit to California, Brianna mentioned they might just stay in a hotel because she didn't want to interfere or interact with Brooks, which hit a nerve with Vicki, who stormed inside the house, shutting the film crew out.
"I'm trying to be nice about it! I'm not going to kick somebody out of their own bed when they have cancer!" Brianna said. (Though she also insinuated that she had her own doubts about whether his cancer was real, but that didn't seem to be a focal point of the fight.)
"I'm not filming this so if you guys want to film it I'm not going to be part of it!" Vicki insisted before turning to her daughter and saying, "You're not staying in a hotel!"
Brianna reiterated, "You moved somebody into your house that I didn't want around my family, so this is where we're at."
Tell Us: Do you think Brianna's right to consider staying in a hotel?
