'The Bachelor': Jordan Kimball Is 'Over' Frontrunner Cassie, Why He Thinks She's Lying (Exclusive)
Colton Underwood may be falling in love with frontrunner Cassie on The Bachelor, but his former Bachelor in Paradise co-star, Jordan Kimball, isn't buying it.
While recapping Monday night's episode of The Bachelor with ET's Lauren Zima on Tuesday, Jordan didn't hold back when sharing his "frustration" with the 23-year-old speech assistant.
"The contestant that frustrates me the most is absolutely Cassie. Absolutely!" he said. "She's just kind of there. But she's getting called out on, so there's something that we're not seeing."
Fans saw contestants Tayshia and Kirpa tell Colton on this week's episode that Cassie and Caelynn weren't here for the right reasons, alleging that the two weren't ready for an engagement or marriage, and had had discussions about becoming the next Bachelorette. While it was hard to get Tayshia and Kirpa's stories straight (was it an actual conversation between Cassie and Caelynn, that we just didn't see as viewers?), Jordan thinks they're onto something.
"As much as I think Tayshia was there for the wrong reasons with breaking up with someone the day before, I actually believe her," he said, referencing rumors that Tayshia had a boyfriend right before going off to film The Bachelor last fall. "There's something about Cassie and Caelynn's arguments when they're talking to these girls... If you're going to defend yourself, you need to do it with conviction. I don't see any conviction with Caelynn or Cassie."
"I totally believe Kirpa. If I was in that house, you threw a wig on me, I would be sitting right next to Kirpa going, 'Mm, girl, you better figure it out. If you're going to lie, figure it out,'" Jordan continued. "It's the way that Cassie and Caelynn defend themselves."
The Bachelorette alum went on, explaining that Kirpa especially didn't have any reason to call anybody out since Colton's connection with Cassie was deeper than his with Kirpa. "To me, Kirpa and Tayshia's story lines up," he insisted.
"At the end of this, if the girl that [Colton] picks isn't ready, I'm going to be like, 'Yo, Kirpa told you!' I'm going to tweet out, 'Kirpa told you!'" Jordan said. "I'm going to call everyone out because someone's gotta do it. There's been all these red flags. ...I can't wait for the Women Tell All."
Jordan thinks Colton is "running red lights" this season -- "obviously if he's attracted to someone, he's going to want to hear what they have to say, whether it's the truth or not," he said -- and guessed that "50 percent" of the women left in the competition (Caelynn, Cassie, Tayshia and Hannah G.) are there for the right reasons. Still, he's impressed by the way Colton is handling his season.
"I know Colton well, and he's doing a better job than I think we all thought he was going to do," he said, noting his buddy is taking the process very "seriously." "The girls this season, they're leaving on their own, they're calling each other out, they're not villainous, but they're becoming villainous towards each other. You've got girls wanting to be the Bachelorette or influencers."
"I dealt with an engagement that ended because someone wasn't there for the right reasons. So it's like, I get what he's going through. I can directly relate to Colton being like, 'I don't know if there's someone ready for this.' So I feel for him," Jordan added.
Jordan and his ex-fiancee, Jenna Cooper, got engaged on the season finale of Bachelor in Paradise last season. Their relationship ended shortly after, amid allegations that she cheated on him, and allegations that he fabricated text messages to prove it. Jenna has denied any wrongdoing, while Jordan told ET on Tuesday that he has "nothing to do with" fabricating those messages. "It's silly," he said.
"I don't [regret proposing]," Jordan noted. "People need to realize, you can fall in love with everything about somebody, and then go back into real life and start to realize there's things that weren't true or put up as a facade or something. That's just something you've gotta go with."
"You have to be vulnerable in dating. It was kind of extreme getting engaged in such a short period of time, but the feelings were there, and it is what it is," he shared, adding that he has nothing to say to Jenna at this point.
The Florida native might, however, be interested in giving Bachelor in Paradise another go next season. "If they asked me, I wouldn't say no. I'd like to go back to that beach and just at least have closure. Even if I didn't meet anybody, have that closure," Jordan expressed.
The Bachelor airs Mondays at 8 p.m. ET/PT on ABC. Join ET's Bachelor Nation Facebook group here.
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