Emmerdale has explained Ross Barton’s silence in Charity Dingle’s baby scandal. After Ross threatened to tell Mackenzie Boyd the truth about being the baby’s father, will he keep quiet?

Viewers know that Charity has been involved in an ongoing pregnancy storyline after she agreed to be a surrogate for her granddaughter Sarah Sugden and her husband Jacob Gallagher.

After becoming pregnant, Charity took a DNA test which confirmed that Ross had fathered the unborn child following a secret hookup, yet Charity has let Sarah and Jacob believe the baby is theirs.

While Mack is aware that the baby Charity is carrying might not be Sarah and Jacob’s, he currently believes that Charity could be pregnant with his child.

In last night’s episode, Charity came clean to Ross, who urged her to tell Mack the truth about the baby. After Charity attempted to bribe Ross, he threatened to tell Mack immediately.

In tonight’s episode, Charity called Ross, begging him not “to do anything that we’ll both regret”, while Mack asked Charity if the DNA results had come back yet.

Later, Ross went looking for Mack to tell him about the baby, but he was stopped in his tracks by an upset Mack, who said he had looked through Charity’s emails to find the results of the paternity test, which revealed that he wasn’t the dad.

A heartbroken Mack said to Ross: “I really wanted that baby more than I’ve ever wanted anything.”

Charity came in to console him, telling him she was really sorry. Mack has no suspicions about Ross, so obviously jumped to the conclusion that the results mean the baby is in fact Sarah and Jacob’s.

Seeing how sad Mack was, Ross decided not to say anything, telling Charity that he won’t tell Mack the truth about the baby as it would destroy him.

Ross told Charity: “You saw him. I’m not kicking him when he’s down.”

Following a heated discussion, Ross left, saying: “Good luck sleeping at night. You don’t deserve a bloke like him.”

Previously speaking about the baby storyline, Emmerdale producer Laura Shaw confirmed that the truth wouldn’t come out until the spring, once the baby is born.

With Ross keeping quiet for Mack’s sake, does he ultimately change his mind or does the truth come out some other way?