In hot water! Bachelor Nation reacted to Brendan Morais and Pieper James’ drama on Bachelor in Paradise after the two confirmed they were dating pre-show.
After weeks of Brendan, 31, denying he and Pieper, 24, were anything serious before arriving to the beach in Mexico, things came to a head when she arrived during the episode on Monday, September 6. The former Bachelor contestant asked the Massachusetts native out on a date the moment she walked down the stairs.
Brendan had been striking up a flirtation with Natasha Parker, 33, since day one. After confronting him about the Pieper rumors weeks prior, he assured her they “weren’t serious” and said he wanted to continue his relationship with her.
However, a lot of surprising revelations came to light once Pieper arrived. The Oregon native said they were together before coming to the beach. At first, she accused Brendan of “downplaying” their relationship to the other contestants but then thanked him for “playing the game” in order to stick around until she arrived.
“We have to have each other’s back,” Brendan told his girlfriend during their date. “It has to be you and me, first and foremost, before anyone else on the beach, and that’s the only way we’re gonna get through this, like, being in the position we wanna be in, utilizing this time here and taking advantage of what Paradise would promote together.”
Things got worse once they returned to the beach from their date, and Pieper solidified things more by calling Brendan her “boyfriend.” As Natasha tried getting to the bottom of what was going on after feeling “played,” Brendan told Pieper he thought the contestant was being “annoying.” He also tried arguing that she had “zero prospects,” so it wasn’t like he kept her from pursuing other relationships.
When Natasha and Brendan finally sat down together, he claimed he told her that they were just friends. When she denied that he said that, the male model then accused her of having “selective hearing.”
Even more incriminating, Brendan and Pieper were caught on camera talking about their Instagram follower count and laughing about how “easy” it was for her to “swoop in” to compete on season 7. However, drama was brewing among the cast, as chatter began that the couple came on the show looking for clout, money and fame.
Keep scrolling to see Bachelor Nation’s reactions to Brendan and Pieper’s drama!