Will 'Bachelor' Ben Meet Courtney's Family?
The promos for this Monday's The Bachelor made it seem like it was "game over" for Courtney, as Nicki put it. Leave it to the stone-faced model to work her magic to stay in the competition, emphasis on "competition" because she's not really there to find love, is she?
In Belize, Ben Flajnik escorted the women on three one-on-one dates and one group date with three bachelorettes. No roses were at stake on the solo excursions, but one lucky lady got a rose on the group outing. This dream vacation spot was a time for soul searching as Ben decided which four families he'd be visiting.
The three individual dates seemed to have gone really well, with each woman feeling confident at the last kiss. Lindzi said, "Fairytales are magical and right now I think Ben and I are living in one… Ben's my Prince Charming." They sent a message in a bottle off to sea to capture their love story.
While Ben was spending quality time with Emily, Courtney grew disenchanted with their shared boyfriend. "My spirit is down… He's falling for someone who treated me so bad," the model pouted. "You want that person to stick up for you and be on your side." At this point in the show, Courtney wasn't ready to introduce Ben to her family and had lost "the spark" she once shared with him. What a difference a two-hour episode can make.
Courtney's turn was next. Giving him an ultimatum, she threatened, "I'm not going to bring someone home if I'm not sure where we're at.”"With his "heart dropping," Ben responded, "It's hard for me not to console you… In those group dates I noticed you because you made yourself stand out." On a side note, he said he liked the "weird" in her. Just what every girl wants to hear from her boyfriend, right?
'Bachelor' Girls Express Concern about Courtney
They climbed the steep steps of an old stone pyramid-shaped temple. Ben reminisced, "When we were sitting on top of that temple, I had past, present, and future visions… I pictured you in my future." Courtney "re-found that spark" and invited Ben to meet her parents, who she considers to be "soul mates." Trying to avoid being 'cocky" (haha), Courtney proclaimed, "I'm kind of high on love right now." On the confession camera, the usually angelic Kacie B. referred to Courtney as a "black widow" while making a squashing motion with her palms.
On the three-on-one date, Ben focused his attention on a shark-phobic Rachel, coaxing her into the Jaws-infested water. Rachel appreciated his 'attentiveness." Although the braver Kacie B. and Nicki felt ignored at times, they each had the opportunity to pitch a hometown visit to Ben. Kacie B. was the first to secure a rose.
Making up his mind early, Ben decided to forgo the cocktail party. Before beginning the rose ceremony, though, he pulled Courtney aside to discuss her intentions. On the group date, her integrity was brought up in conversation and Ben "fears being with a woman that people don't [like]." Courtney swore, "With all due respect, I'm only here for you. I'm not here to win these girls over and make friends." Guess that was enough to seal the deal. They rejoined the rose ceremony of perplexed women and Courtney got the red petals.
Nicki and Lindzi also received roses. Rachel felt "very rejected" after making a connection with Ben earlier in the episode. Emily was in "disbelief" over her elimination. "Ben deserves someone who's honest and someone who's themselves no matter what. I just hope there's enough time left for Ben to see who [Courtney] really is."
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Will Ben get the parental approval or will a door be slammed in his face? The Bachelor travels to the hometowns of the final four women next Monday on ABC.