Getting serious. Clayton Echard narrowed down the field of remaining women to his final four during the Monday, February 21, episode of The Bachelor.
First, Sarah returned from her one-on-one date claiming that Clayton believed whoever said she wasn’t ready for an engagement was making a last-ditch effort to survive elimination. Mara owned up to warning Clayton about Sarah, and at the cocktail party, Mara accused Sarah of being overly confident and making the other women insecure by acting like she was going to win, which Sarah denied. At the rose ceremony, Clayton sent home Mara and Eliza.
The group subsequently traveled to Vienna, where Susie landed a one-on-one date. Clayton appreciated that Susie made the most of every moment they had together and felt like everything else faded away when he was with her. He was ready to take the next step with Susie, so he gave her a rose, making her the first woman to secure her spot ahead of hometowns.
Rachel, Genevieve, Teddi, Gabby and Sarah then ended up on a group date, during which they participated in couples counseling with Clayton. Genevieve struggled to open up, noting that she was not in touch with her emotions. Clayton sensed that her walls were up, so he told her that he would not feel comfortable meeting her family and sent her home on the spot. Genevieve was understanding and admitted that she needed to work on herself.
Sarah, meanwhile, was confident that her therapy session would go well because her connection with Clayton was so strong. She cried while bringing up the allegations that she was not ready to get engaged, while Clayton explained that his intuition told him the claims about Sarah were untrue. However, after all of the sessions, the therapist told Clayton that someone in the group was being “performative” — without naming a specific woman.
At the afterparty, Clayton questioned the women individually. Rachel cried while recounting how Sarah told her and Teddi intimate details about her first one-on-one date, which Clayton said were untrue. Rachel believed that Sarah tried to manipulate her competitors into pulling away from Clayton by making them think he had already made up his mind about choosing her. Gabby and Teddi backed up Rachel’s claims as the trio revealed that they considered leaving because of Sarah’s assertions.
Clayton confronted Sarah, but she denied the allegations, saying that the women were once her friends, but they turned on her after she received her second one-on-one date. Sarah began crying while claiming that the contestants didn’t want her to share her feelings even though she had been there for them.
Clayton accused Sarah of fake crying and said that he didn’t believe her side of the story, so he sent her home immediately. Sarah noted in her exit interview that she wouldn’t want to be engaged to someone who would believe that she manipulated the women. Clayton then told Gabby, Rachel and Teddi that he needed more time to decide who should make it to the final four, opting to not give out the group date rose.
Serene also landed a one-on-one date, during which she told Clayton that she trusted him amid the drama with Sarah. She later confessed that she was falling in love with him, and he offered her a rose.
At the rose ceremony, Clayton eliminated Teddi, making Susie, Serene, Rachel and Gabby his final four. Teddi was blindsided because she thought she was The One for Clayton following their last conversation.
The Bachelor airs on ABC Mondays at 8 p.m. ET.
