After yesterday’s episode that left us hanging with some tension between Britt and pretty much everyone, we were anxious to see which girls were headed to their hometowns. Before that, Chris still had a solo date with Becca in Iowa (who still hadn’t told him about her… um… virtue). They headed to Chris’ temporary loft and he tried to get her to open up and talk more about herself. Becca explained that she had never fallen in love (but stopped there). She said she wanted to bring him home to meet her family and that she was sort of getting to that point with him, but things were going slow. They watched the sunset together and had a romantic moment of smooching, but once again, Becca left out one important detail.
At the hotel, Britt told the other girls that she’d packed her bags and was thinking of leaving, claiming she put herself on the line and was brutally rebuffed. Carly actually called Britt on her shit, but was letting her mean girl side come out when Britt was obviously upset about everything that had happened—even if she was being a little bratty about it.
Going into the rose ceremony, all the girls were pushing for a cocktail party, each of them needing to say a little something, but in walked Chris Harrison to drop the bomb that there wouldn’t be a cocktail party after all. Britt was freaking out because she’d had a whole speech prepared, and just when Farmer Chris was getting ready to dole out the three roses that were securing some hometown dates, Britt pulled him aside to plead her case. She apologized profusely and was waiting for the validation she needed, but when Chris tried to speak his mind, saying he was concerned that some of the girls said she was fake, but Britt interrupted and tried to apologize more, but in the end, her reaction wasn’t what he wanted in a wife, and Britt headed home alone and in tears. Even though she sabotaged all she could, Carly got sent home too, leaving the four others to bring Chris home to meet their families.
First up was visiting Becca’s family in Shreveport, Louisiana, who greeted Chris with a warm, smoochy welcome. They started their date with a little boat ride through the bayou (very The Notebook) while Becca STILL didn’t tell Chris that she was still holding her v-card. Next up was dinner at Becca’s parents’ place to meet the whole crew. Her big sis was the first person to pull Chris aside and sort of hinted that Becca was a virgin—see Becca, this is why you tell the guy FIRST—because she’s not intimate and doesn’t really have the urge to be and doesn’t like PDA and all that. Next up was her mom who was being very mothery about Chris kissing some of the other ladies on the show. Becca’s sis asked her if she’d told Chris in light of the impending fantasy suites, and Becca answered honestly that she wanted to tell him at the right time (unlike the other past virgin on the show). When Becca thought she was saying her goodbyes to Chris, he actually took her for a ferris wheel ride because he wasn’t ready to letB the night end.
Next up was Whitney, who brought Chris to Chicago to show him a bit of her life. Instead of showing him all the touristy places in Chicago, Whitney brought Chris to “make a baby,” since she’s a fertility nurse. Chris was a little weirded out at first—especially when Chris was shown to the “man room” where the “magic happens” to provide his “specimen”—but he was a good sport, even though we couldn’t help but wonder if Whitney would be willing to give this all up for making corn instead of babies. Since Whitney’s mom had passed away and she was a single mom, it was mainly Whitney’s sister that Chris needed to impress and ask for her blessing, which Chris was already thinking about. Chris first sat with Whitney’s uncle, who was the closest thing she had to a father growing up, while Whitney sat down with her sister to explain how real her feelings were for Chris. The two siblings were giving each other the runaround where big sis wasn’t sure she was ready to give her approval with three other girls still in the running. Poor Whitney, who’s already ready to walk down the aisle, was really upset, and Chris was hella nervous when she was in the hot seat and he got the same answer as Whitney. Chris and Whitney had a talk and he admitted he was a little put off by big sister’s lecture. Whitney took this as an opportunity to tell Chris how she really felt, including that big ol’ L-word.
Next was hometown date with Kaitlyn, whose family is actually from Canada, but spend their winters in Arizona with the birds. Kaitlyn brought Chris to a recording studio so they could write and record a rap song, which was kind of adorable. Next they headed to meet Kaitlyn’s family, who in spite of divorce, kept things kosher and happy. Kaitlyn sat down with her mom, who was concerned for a potential heartbreak. Chris didn’t get interrogated, but Kaitlyn’s family seemed very laid back and open to the relationship. After the family dinner, Kaitlyn brought Chris to a billboard that said “Kaitlyn ⤒s Chris,” making her feelings cheesily known.
Last but not least, former Playboy model Jade showed Chris more than he expected. They started the date off by meeting Jade’s family and Chris gave Jade her very own Arlington letterman jacket. Jade’s dad sat down with Chris, and all Jade was hoping was that her family didn’t drop the bomb before she had the chance to tell Chris herself. The talk with Jade’s dad went pretty well, but he was suggesting that there might be more to her than meets the eye—her brother even referred to her as a wild and free mustang. Jade sat down with her pops and he wanted to make sure that she was being honest and open with Chris. Jade and her dad had a really sweet moment where both of them were in tears and even we were having a hard time holding it together. After the family gathering, Jade took Chris for some alone time to finally come clean about her past. Jade told him and then offered to show him the photos, which is kind of awkward considering they haven’t seen each other naked yet. Chris had the most awkward smile on his face and got all embarrassed when the serious nude photos came into view. Chris was very shell-shocked, thinking Jade was all quiet and innocent and he was really at a loss for words. And even though his reaction seemed to say something completely different, Chris said that this didn’t alter his view of Jade because he knew her for who she was and the person she had already showed him.
After a week of seeing hometowns, it was time for Chris to make a decision and narrow it down to the top three (and then head on to some fantasy suites). Even though Chris said Jade’s past didn’t make a difference, in the end she got sent home with Chris saying his relationships had just moved faster with some of the other girls.
Next week the group is headed to Bali for their first international trip and, of course, fantasy dates.
Coming up roses: Part 1: Kaitlyn, Whitney, Becca and Jade; Part 2: Whitney, Kaitlyn and Becca
Kiss count: Becca, Whitney, Kaitlyn, Jade (Episode – 4; Season – 35)
Cry count: Britt, Jade (x2), Carly, Whitney, Kaitlyn (happy tears), Jade’s dad, Chris (Episode –8; Season – 48)
Catfight count: (Episode – 0; Season – 2)
Bachelorettes to watch: Whitney
