The latest episode of The Bachelorette wasn’t very kind to James. Sure, he was very emotional over visiting the area that was destroyed by Hurricane Sandy. But he revealed he had once cheated on his girlfriend, and now the previews for the upcoming episode lead us to believe he may not be on the show for the right reasons, the two most overused words this season.
While he dodged a bullet with the cheating admittance — it happened long ago, he grew up and owned up to it — what will happen after Monday’s episode? James talked about that as much as he could and more in a conference call with the media.
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On Whether He Is/Will Be Misrepresented:
James couldn’t reveal much on if he’ll be misrepresented in next week’s episode that he might not be on The Bachelorette for the right reasons, only saying to stay tuned. So it definitely appears like it’s going to be addressed, and it’ll be up to the viewers to determine his intentions.
“I hope people judge me on the merit and who I am and what they’ve seen thus far,” he said. “I went on the show, and I have no regrets whatsoever.”
He did say how he got on The Bachelorette, however. He did not apply — he was approached by someone with the show on the streets of Chicago as he was leaving work. He said he was scared at the time, as he had just taken a new job in digital marketing so he didn’t want that to become affected.
“I’m single, I’m living in a new city — it’s hard to find a woman to date here,” James said. “It’s been difficult for me with work. I felt like [it’s] a great opportunity. There are multiple reasons why I chose to go on that show. One of them obviously was to find love.
“Who says you can’t find it on the street? In a bar or on TV? The whole experience itself — if somebody tells you it’s just to find love, they have to be crazy. There’s lots of opportunities: I got to travel the world, I got to do a lot of things other people aren’t able to do, I took advantage of that and I had an awesome time.”
On His One-on-One Date:
James thought Desiree picked him specifically for the Hurricane Sandy date because of his urban planning and urban economic background and his charitable endeavors. He also spoke of the “unbelievable” connection he has with her.
“The two words that sum up Desiree are humble and selfless,” James said. “She’s just an awesome person, and I really did start to have a lot of feelings for her at that point.”
The special date may have created its own litte drama, James alluded, after he told the men about what they did.
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On the Other Men in the House:
James spoke about the attention to Brooks and picked him as the frontrunner for Desiree’s heart. As for Ben, James isn’t one of the ones who thinks he’s there for the wrong reasons.
“Everyone comes into this show with a strategy, I would say. I think a majority of us just came in to see if we could find love. I think that Ben came with a kind of a different approach, but who’s to say he’s wrong for that approach?”
“He wasn’t there to make friends. He was there to find love and move on,” he said. “So he didn’t realize how it would all play out with the friendships that were made.”
James said he gets along with everyone, but his best friends on the show are Bryden and Mikey.
“They’re just true men who come from great families. I could say a lot about Dan Cox, Drew and the rest of the guys on the show as well. They were all great guys,” James said.
The Bachelorette airs Mondays at 8pm on ABC.
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(Image courtesy of ABC)
Contributing Writer, BuddyTV
