‘Bachelorette’ Kaitlyn Bristowe: Was She Forced By The Show To Send Ben Higgins Home To Continue The ‘Shawn-Nick Rivalry’?

Do you think that Kaitlyn Bristowe sent Ben Higgins home on Monday night for the right reasons? There was a definite attraction and respect towards Ben. And Bristowe — without telling too much — said that they had a “fun sleepover” during their night in the fantasy suite. She called him a mature 26-year-old with much life experience and one of the most genuine people she had ever met, which means he is husband material, according to Access Hollywood.

Yet she sent him home.

There is some talk that an inside source spilled that Kaitlyn may have been forced to send Ben home so that the drama can continue between Nick Viall and Shawn Booth, according to OK! Magazine. After all, drama means ratings. A source allegedly said the following.

“She [Kaitlyn] wasn’t feeling a long-term connection with [the runner-up] and felt like she was leading him on. But producers loved the idea of the Shawn-Nick rivalry and wanted to play it out to the end….She still feels terrible about it….If she had to do it all over again, she would have insisted on sending [the runner up] home earlier”

Kaitlyn stated the following about Ben — who she clearly was attracted to and had fun with — according to Access Hollywood.

“I knew what I had to do and that I had to follow my heart, but the thought of sending Ben home broke my heart. Ben was always nothing but sweet, genuine and open with me. I will forever be grateful I got to meet him and that he was a part of this journey with me. It’s not that what I had with Ben wasn’t real or didn’t mean anything to me, but I had to make a choice of how I was going to move forward….It crushed me to say goodbye [to Ben] but all I could do was trust my heart in that moment.”

Who did Kaitlynn really want as her final two? Time will tell, but she told Shawn he was the one and they had palpable chemistry from their “love-at-first-sight-type” moment. Of course, the controversial sleepover with Viall prior to the fantasy suites demonstrated the undeniable chemistry Bristowe had with Viall. And her honest talk with Booth telling him about her sexual escapade with Viall showed she cared about him enough to be honest, albeit he would have probably found out anyway. Of course, Viall’s entering late in the game made him pretty much disliked by the remaining men at the time, and Shawn had a special dislike that he openly spoke about.

Do you think that the producers of The Bachelorette had any say regarding her final two contestant choices? Or do you think that Nick and Shawn were her choices? Please leave your comments below.

Don’t feel too bad about Ben Higgins. According to an article in the Inquisitr, he’s apparently going to be the new Bachelor next season. So he will get another chance at love.

[Photo By Jason Merritt/Getty Images]