The Bachelor‘s Rachael Kirkconnell reportedly feels ‘manipulated’ after learning that her ex Matt James was allegedly chatting with another woman around the same time the briefly reunited in New York City.
Kirkconnell, 24, and James, 29, had been ‘talking about a future together’ when they saw each other on Tuesday, a source close to her told Us Weekly on Friday.
But shortly after their meeting, a woman named Grace Amerling claimed to the blogger Reality Steve that James had invite her to spend the night with him in Miami — just one day after he allegedly bought a ticket for Kirkconnell to visit him in New York.
James and Kirkconnell ended their relationship in February after racist social media posts from 2018 emerged that allegedly showed her at a sorority party held on a plantation.
Twisted web: Rachael Kirkconnell, 24, feels ‘very hurt’ after a woman named Grace Amerling claimed that Matt James asked her to spend the night in Miami with him around the same time he reunited with Kirkconnell in New York City this week, Us Weekly reported on Friday
Amerling chatted with Reality Steve (real name: Stephen Carbone) via Instagram Live on Friday and told him that she had been dating James prior to his stint on The Bachelor.
An insider confirmed to the outlet that Amerling dated James prior to the series and supported her claims that he had tried to get her to audition for the reality series.
During her virtual chat, she said she thought Kirkconnell was a ‘victim’ amid James’ alleged attempt to juggle two women, and she opined that he had just signed up for the Bachelor to chase ‘fame.’
The source claimed that James tried to arrange for Amerling to visit him in Miami on April 4 shortly after his February breakup with Kirkconnell, even though he had allegedly bought Kirkconnell’s plane ticket prior to that date.
Spilling the beans: Amerling chatted with Reality Steve via Instagram on Friday and told him she had been dating James prior to his stint on The Bachelor. She said he urged her to audition
Two-faced? A source told Us Weekly that James asked Amerling to visit him ‘for the night’ in Miami after he had already set up his meeting with Rachael in New York City
After it was revealed that James and Kirkconnell had spent more time together, the two women were put in touch with each other to get to the bottom of the situation.
Both Kirkconnell and Amerling decided to drop the former Bachelor after connecting, the source claimed.
‘It just didn’t sit right with me,’ Amerling said during her interview. ‘I just felt like Rachael was so in love with him and for him to be trying to contact me and hang out with me — someone he’s had past romantic relationships with — two days prior in Miami… I felt like I had to say something for Rachael’s sake.’
‘Rachael is very emotional right because she was very hopeful that things were going to work out,’ said the source close to her.
‘She’s still trying to process this,’ they continued, adding that it ‘doesn’t seem like they will be getting back together.’
Sympathy: Amerling said she thought Kirkconnell was a ‘victim’ amid James’ alleged attempt to juggle two women, and she opined that he had signed up for the Bachelor to chase ‘fame’
Fed up: A source close to Kirkconnell said she had been in touch with Amerling and both women decided to drop James for good after they talked
Later on Friday, a source close to James told Us Weekly that ‘There seems to just be a big miscommunication between’ him and his ex.
They claimed he had told Kirkconnell he wanted them to ‘support one another as they both have gone through this journey together,’ though he ‘just wants to be friends.’
The source close to Kirkconnell said the graphic designer felt ‘manipulated’ because the two had been ‘talking about a future together’ during their reunion.
Later on Friday, the insider with Kirkconnell told People that she wasn’t just visiting James in New York, but that she was going ‘to stay with him,’ suggesting a more intimate reunion.
She reportedly thought the two might patch things up between them, though she was disappointed when that wasn’t the case.
Different story: The source close to Kirkconnell said the graphic designer felt ‘manipulated’ because the two had been ‘talking about a future together’ during their reunion
Out of sight: ‘Matt and Rachael have FaceTimed every day since March, besides one week in between the finale and After The Final Rose when they were processing the photos scandal,’ an insider close to Kirkconnell told People
‘Matt and Rachael have FaceTimed every day since March, besides one week in between the finale and After The Final Rose when they were processing the photos scandal,’ the insider said.
James previously left the door open to restarting his relationship when he appeared on The Bill Simmons Podcast and said ‘I don’t think that anyone’s irredeemable’ when asked about reuniting.
But the insider said The Bachelor sounded even more interested in getting back together in his private conversations with his ex-girlfriend.
‘He’s been telling her he loves her and has never felt this way for anyone else before,’ they claimed. ‘After the scandal, he said it would take time for them to work on themselves separately, but he wanted to get back together one day and still pictured a life for them together, with a family and everything.’
According to the insider, Kirkconnell ‘understood why he publicly said he couldn’t see a future with her because of what she had done and the responsibility he felt as the first Black Bachelor, and she supported him.’
The statements suggest James’ public statements about the breakup may have been more about optics amid the controversy over Kirkconnell’s years-old racist posts.
Sweet nothings: ‘He’s been telling her he loves her and has never felt this way for anyone else before,’ they claimed
Betrayed: Kirkconnell was reportedly ‘extremely upset’ after sources close to James said they were ‘just friends’ after their reunion
She allegedly agreed to come up from her native Atlanta to spend time with him so that ‘they would work on their relationship and be consistent about things — out of the public eye, until they figured everything out.’
The insider added that Kirkconnell was ‘shocked’ that James ‘didn’t seem worried about being photographed’ when he publicly took her out to dinner in the city.
But a source close to The Bachelor told People that he and his ex ‘are just friends’ earlier this week, leaving her feeling ‘extremely upset’ when she saw the news stories.
‘He insisted that he didn’t know anything about those articles and had nothing to do with them,’ the insider claimed.
They added that James had ‘broken her trust’ and that she had ignored too many ‘red flags’ with him.
Despite all the drama, Kirkconnell appears to still have a relatively positive view of the former Bachelor.
‘She knows he does love her,’ the insider claimed. ‘She knows he’s not a bad guy, but he’s not in a place to be in a relationship.’
Gracious: Despite the drama, Kirkconnell appears to have a relatively positive view of James. ‘She knows he’s not a bad guy, but he’s not in a place to be in a relationship.’