The Bachelorette star Tayshia Adams determined her Final 4 bachelors and eliminated Bennett Jordan -- again -- along with Noah Erb, Blake Moynes, and Riley Christian during the Season 16 episode Monday night on ABC.
ADVERTISEMENT
Tayshia sent Blake, a 29-year-old wildlife manager from Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, packing in the middle of their first one-on-one date, and she eliminated Riley, a 30-year-old attorney from Long Island City, NY, shortly after letting Blake go.
RELATED LINK: BACHELORETTE SPOILERS: WHAT HAPPENS ON TAYSHIA ADAMS' 'THE BACHELORETTE' SEASON? WHO DID TAYSHIA PICK AND END UP WITH? (SPOILERS)
Tayshia finally ousted Bennett, a 36-year-old wealth management consultant from New York City, NY, and Noah, a 25-year-old registered travel nurse from Tulsa, OK, at the Rose Ceremony preceding the men's hometown dates.
Tayshia's Final 4 bachelors are therefore Brendan Morais, a 30-year-old commercial roofer from Milford, MA; Ivan Hall, a 28-year-old aeronautical engineer from Dallas, TX; Zac Clark, a 36-year-old addiction specialist from Haddonfield, NJ; and Ben Smith, a 29-year-old Army Ranger veteran from Venice, CA.
ADVERTISEMENT
The Bachelorette Episode 10
The Bachelorette broadcast began with Tayshia admitting she was feeling "overwhelmed, shock and confusion."Tayshia said she couldn't get a grasp on exactly how she was feeling or her thoughts on all the remaining men. With hometown dates right around the corner, Tayshia said she needed to make a lot of hard decisions quickly.
Tayshia had eight "amazing men" left, but she could only meet four of their families.
The Bachelorette host Chris Harrison then paid Tayshia a visit, and she noted how Bennett had returned with love in his heart for her and asked for a second chance.
Tayshia said the guys were pouring their hearts out to her and she really wanted a happy life with one man after the show. Tayshia was prepared to make some heartbreaking choices.
ADVERTISEMENT
RELATED LINK: 'THE BACHELOR' SEASON 25 BACHELORETTES ANNOUNCED! MEET ALL OF MATT JAMES' LADIES! (PHOTOS)
Tayshia then took Blake on a one-on-one date, which marked their first solo date of the season. Tayshia noted how Blake has many layers to him and he's simply an incredibly sweet man.
For their date, Tayshia and Blake met with "a crystal master" to have questions answered about their relationship.
Blake acknowledged it was a "do or die" day for him and their relationship, and Blake hoped to build on "the late connection" he and Tayshia had developed.
Blake said he just needed to show Tayshia his serious side because if she met his family, they'd probably get along wonderfully and really hit it off.
ADVERTISEMENT
The crystal master could tell Tayshia was "cautious," but Blake thought the date was perfect and really connected them. Blake only envisioned good things in the future for them.
"I care for Blake, but when I looked in his eyes, I was looking for more validation and confidence in the situation. I don't see it. Maybe that's why we haven't progressed like some of the other relationships," Tayshia shared in a confessional.
Tayshia said both of their hearts were open, but then she suddenly realized, "I don't think he's my guy -- and I have to tell him that."
Blake told Tayshia that he needed more time to show her all he could offer and learn everything she could about him, but Tayshia believed they had run out of time with family dates right around the corner.
RELATED LINK: 'THE BACHELOR' FRANCHISE COUPLES NOW: WHO IS STILL TOGETHER?? (PHOTOS)
ADVERTISEMENT
"I wish we had more time. I just don't know if we can get there. It's not that you're not an incredible guy, I just don't know if the timing was just off for us. I think it's time to go our separate ways," Tayshia told Blake.
Tayshia said Blake has all the qualities she wants in her person and he's "such a great guy," but she knew her heart was "more invested" in some of her other relationships.
Tayshia broke down into tears upon saying goodbye to Blake, and she kept repeating, "I'm really sorry! I really am."
Tayshia nearly dropped down on the ground hysterical with emotion after Blake left.
"I didn't see that coming -- at all. How did that change so quickly? She still has no idea -- no clue -- I'm, like, so crazy about her," Blake said following his ouster.
Tayshia said the goodbye "really hurt" but she was confident she had made the right decision despite her feelings of being overwhelmed.
Tayshia told the cameras that saying goodbye to Blake gave her some clarity she needed and there was another thing she needed to do before the Rose Ceremony that evening.
Tayshia then met with her group of guys and cried to all of them about how hard the process was becoming. Tayshia could barely compose herself as she explained to the guys that she had just eliminated Blake moments beforehand and was having a very difficult time.
Tayshia then asked Riley to go outside and talk with her. Tayshia told Riley he had grown the most since Day 1 and his vulnerability and openness was rare and meant a lot to her.
RELATED LINK: 'THE BACHELORETTE' COUPLES NOW: WHOM DID 'THE BACHELORETTE' STARS AND THEIR BACHELOR PICKS ULTIMATELY END UP WITH?! (PHOTOS)
Tayshia said she knew how much family means to him and she didn't want to "put him in the position" of meeting his family because her heart was not 100 percent matching his.
ADVERTISEMENT
"I don't want to hurt you, and I know how protective you are over that... I don't want to lead you on, and I'm sorry," Tayshia said.
Riley asked what he was missing, and Tayshia assured him that she felt safe and comfortable around him and could be herself.
"I can't help where my heart is right now," Tayshia noted.
"Okay, why keep me around so long?" Riley asked. "Why not just let me be?"
Tayshia felt like they had breakthroughs in the last couple of conversations they had but they arrived in the process "a little bit later." Tayshia insisted she really cared about Riley and wanted him to find the woman who makes his heart sing.
Riley said he could argue all day but the end result would be the same so he should just go before feeling more pain my looking at Tayshia and her beautiful face and smile.
Tayshia walked Riley out and the pair hugged, which caused Tayshia to have another emotional breakdown.
"I didn't have a lot of time to tell Tayshia how I truly felt. I would tell her how beautiful she is, how strong she is, how confident she is. I would tell her that she was -- or is -- someone that I could see myself spending the rest of my life with," Riley told the cameras.
"At the end of the day, I felt like and I still feel like Tayshia is The One for me."
RELATED LINK: 'THE BACHELOR' COUPLES NOW: WHO DID 'THE BACHELOR' STARS AND THEIR BACHELORETTE PICKS ACTUALLY END UP MARRYING? (PHOTOS)
Riley told Tayshia that he didn't regret coming onto The Bachelorette and meeting her -- at all.
Tayshia felt horrible about hurting Riley and took time to gather her composure.
ADVERTISEMENT
It then became time for the cocktail party, and Bennett walked into the room, which shocked all of Tayshia's remaining men. Zac was especially angry by Bennett's sudden arrival.
Bennett explained he had an emotional exit and didn't want to be written off as "a Harvard d-bag that [he's] certainly not." Bennett revealed he had expressed his love for Tayshia and then she invited him to join the Rose Ceremony.
Tayshia told the cameras she genuinely cared about each man that was left and didn't want to make a mistake. Tayshia said she finally felt clarity, and with that, she decided to cancel the cocktail party -- and Chris Harrison broke that news to the men.
Bennett hoped for a rose because he didn't think Tayshia would allow him to come back unless she had sincerely strong feelings for him.
Ivan admitted he was "shocked" about the cocktail party being canceled, and Noah said he hated the idea that "a Harvard d-bag" stood in his way of developing a deeper connection with Tayshia earlier on.
There were six guys left -- including Bennett -- and only four men would receive roses and subsequent "hometown" dates.
ADVERTISEMENT
RELATED LINK: 'MARRIED AT FIRST SIGHT' COUPLES NOW: WHERE ARE THEY NOW? WHO IS STILL TOGETHER? WHO HAS RE-MARRIED? (PHOTOS)
At the Rose Ceremony, Tayshia announced that she felt very confident in her decisions and appreciated each and every guy that was standing in front of her.
Tayshia then handed out roses to Zac, Ivan, and Brendan. (Ben already had a rose from his one-on-one date with Tayshia).
Bennett and Noah were therefore eliminated, and Noah thanked Tayshia for opening her heart and show how incredibly she is. Noah told Tayshia that he hoped she would find exactly what she was looking for, and he asked the men to treat Tayshia well.
"I am heartbroken. Maybe things didn't go exactly how I wanted, but I do care for Tayshia and I want what's best for her. I will make somebody feel very special and very happy as my life, but it wasn't Tayshia. That's a shame," Noah said in tears following his ouster.
And Bennett told Tayshia that he wished the situation was different but he clearly just wasn't the guy for Tayshia.
ADVERTISEMENT
"I'm feeling hurt. I'm feeling sad. But it's more confusion really. This was not going to end this way -- never in a million years -- in my mind, and here were are doing this again," Bennett told the cameras.
Tayshia then toasted with her Final 4 guys and gleefully announced, "Bring on your families!"
RELATED LINK: 'THE BACHELOR' FRANCHISE COUPLES NOW: WHO IS STILL TOGETHER?? (PHOTOS)
Interested in more The Bachelor news? Join our The Bachelor Facebook Group!