The Bachelor star Ben Higgins admits the only competition for the rose on his three-on-one date in Warsaw, IN, was between Becca Tilley and Amanda Stanton.
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During Monday night's episode of The Bachelor, Higgins took Tilley, Stanton and Caila Quinn to a farm in his hometown of Warsaw, where they rowed canoes, flew kites and just enjoyed the sunshine.
However, the three-on-one date quickly became awkward and uncomfortable because only one girl could get the rose and it represented Higgins' sincere desire to meet her family and visit her hometown.
"I was more worried about this three-on-one date than I had been the two-on-date last week. By far. Last week I knew I was going to have to send someone home at the end of the day, and, as hard a decision as that was, I was prepared for it. I went into this date honestly wanting to meet the families of each one of these women," Higgins wrote in his People blog.
"I knew that tensions were high after the past week in the Bahamas, and the pressure had only increased since we arrived in Indiana. From the second we sat down in the barn, you could cut the tension with a knife. Normally I would want to have some activity to lighten the mood but the boats just showed me that nothing was going to help today and I just needed to get to it."
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Higgins then confessed Quinn basically had no shot to receive the only rose up for grabs that day.
"To be honest, I was pretty sure I wasn't going to give Caila the rose... Mostly because while I was still extremely interested in her, I knew I needed more time with Becca and Amanda, and I had just had a one-on-one with Caila last week," Higgins explained.
"So it came down to Becca and Amanda. I hadn't had a one-on-one with Becca since Las Vegas, and I knew that she needed some validation in a bad way after our talk. But Amanda being a mom and knowing the depth of what a hometown date meant to her was not lost on me."
Going into the three-on-one date, Higgins wasn't sure what he was going to do. However, after talking to all three women, the choice became clear.
"I really felt like I needed Amanda to know I was ready to meet her children. I felt that if I was really going to be able to see if Amanda and I had a future, I needed to see her as a mom. I don't really feel like I could accurately know who Amanda really is without that. And on top of that, I just really liked her," Higgins said.
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Stanton then got a mini one-on-one date with Higgins during the night portion of the Group Date. He ended up taking her to McDonalds, a favorite spot of his in Warsaw, and they hopped behind the counter and worked the drive-through. Afterward, they enjoyed a carnival in town complete with rides, games and the community.
"The rest of the date with her just confirmed that I had made the right decision. She had such a joy doing something as simple as handing out food at McDonalds and all I could think about during the carnival was how fun that would be with her daughters there. I could not wait for next week."
The Bachelor airs from 8-10PM ET/PT every Monday night on ABC.
About The Author: Elizabeth Kwiatkowski