If things keep going this way, ABC may have to rename the show “Ashley loves Bentley.”
For the third consecutive episode of ABC’s reality romance “The Bachelorette,” Maine’s Ashley Hebert was haunted by thoughts of a contestant who jilted her.
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Bentley (last names aren’t used on the show) had been seen on several episodes telling the camera that he had no interest in Hebert, other than a physical one, and that he wanted to win her attention only because he’s very competitive.
Hebert herself had said on the first episode that someone who knows Bentley had warned her he was coming on the show for the wrong reasons. Still, she fell for him, and fell hard.
Bentley left the show two episodes ago, saying he felt no reason to stay since he didn’t want to be with Hebert. But instead of admitting he had no feelings for her, he said he was leaving because he missed his daughter.
And he told her he hoped things could be left open-ended.
By the end of Monday’s episode, Hebert was seen acting confused and distraught, telling the other bachelors she was still thinking about Bentley. She told the camera that if she let herself fall for someone else, she feared she “would fall for someone like Bentley again.”
Then she told the show’s host, Chris Harrison, that she wanted to bring Bentley back, just to “ask him a few questions.”
A preview of next week’s episode showed Hebert being told by Harrison that Bentley was in the same hotel as she was, and was ready to meet.
“Something in my brain keeps telling me this may be the guy,” Hebert is seen saying before knocking on Bentley’s door.
The preview clip ended with shots of the other bachelors being outraged that Bentley was apparently back in the game.
Hebert’s insecurities were fueled early in the episode, which was filmed in Chiang Mai, Thailand.
Hebert was on a date with two men when she decided to send home Ben C., a lawyer from New Orleans. The other man on the date, William, told Hebert that Ben C. had talked about visiting dating sites once he left “The Bachelorette.”
Hebert said hearing that brought up insecurities she’s had about the men on the show, feeling that they would not feel as strongly for her as she might for them. So without asking him about it, she sent Ben C. home. In his defense, he said he had been “kidding around.”
But a few minutes later, she sent William home as well, saying that he was too boyish and that she was “looking for a man.”
On an earlier episode, during a group date in which the men roasted Hebert, William had made Hebert insecure. He had made a joke about how he wished another “Bachelor” contestant had become the “Bachelorette,” instead of Hebert.
Also on Monday’s episode, Hebert had a group date with eight men at a kick-boxing training facility. Hebert said she thought it would be fun to watch boxing matches between the men – all of whom are competing for her attention. As the first two men climbed into the ring, Hebert said she hoped “they don’t take it too seriously.”
But they did.
Ames, a portfolio manager from New York City who said he had never been in a fight, entered the ring with a brave smile. He came out of the ring wobbly and glassy-eyed. He was later taken to the hospital by ambulance and diagnosed with a mild concussion.
“I didn’t want anyone to get hurt,” said Hebert, 27, a Madawaska native who is a dental student at the University of Pennsylvania.
Hebert earned her starring role in “The Bachelorette” by finishing third on ABC’s companion show, “The Bachelor,” earlier this year. On that show, she vied for the attention of one man among 30 women.
When “The Bachelorette” began airing in late May, she had 25 men vying for her. By the end of Monday’s show, the official number of contestants left was eight.
Not counting Bentley.
Staff Writer Ray Routhier can be contacted at 791-6454 or at: rrouthier@pressherald.com
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