February 6, 2025 • 36 mins
Today on “Happy Hour,” we’re sitting down with Zoe from Grant’s season! This week was a roller coaster for Zoe, and she’s here to spill ALL the tea. We get into her road to the show and how fate aligned for her journey to begin. Then, we dive right into her experience on this week’s group date. She takes us through her decision to steal Grant, the behind-the-scenes of the explosive drama, and so much more. Plus, we get a sneak peek into what went down between her and Grant on the rooftop — did her bold efforts pay off? Tune in now to hear all this and more, and be sure to subscribe so you never miss an episode!
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:02):
Hey, every want Welcome back to Bachler Happy Hour. I'm
Joe and I'm Serena and we are here today with Zoe. Zoe.
Welcome to Bachelor Happy Hour.
Speaker 2 (00:10):
Hi. Thank you for having me, of.
Speaker 1 (00:12):
Course, And before we get into the episode, we're gonna
get a little breakdown of what you were doing before
the show, how you got on the show, a little
bit of a history, and then we'll get into episode two.
Speaker 3 (00:24):
Yeah, there's lots to talk about, so we're excited to
have you on today.
Speaker 2 (00:28):
Thank you.
Speaker 1 (00:29):
Okay, So, Zoe, where where do you live?
Speaker 2 (00:33):
So? Right now, I live in New York City, but
I'm actually from southern Virginia. I went to school in
North Carolina and lived in Philly. So nice New York too.
We're here too, a West village. Oh nice.
Speaker 3 (00:48):
We're in Chelsea, so not too far close.
Speaker 2 (00:50):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (00:50):
How long have you been here?
Speaker 2 (00:53):
Oh? I think like three years food and a half
now I'm like losing track of time. Yeah, I'll together,
we failed the same.
Speaker 1 (01:03):
And how what do you do for a living?
Speaker 2 (01:07):
So when I graduated, I've been working in finance tech
for like six years and my latest job was with
the one in Stock Exchange as a product manager. We
did interest rate things with large investment banks. But I
was actually laid off this summer, and I had started
modeling a couple of years ago once I moved to
(01:28):
New York, so luckily I was able to kind of
just pivot into that realm. But I do always want
to get back into like tech or like startups. So TBD.
Speaker 1 (01:38):
Nice, Nice, And what was dating life like before you
went on the show.
Speaker 2 (01:44):
It was very weird for me, Like I grew up
in southern Virginia as like one of the few people
of color in my like small town, and I did
not have a boyfriend until my senior year of college.
I think because of that, like a lot of the
guys would say like they couldn't date black women, like whatnot,
and I didn't have many options. And then at college
(02:05):
it's like at Duke, everyone was like so nerdy, and
I think they we like we're also focused on studies.
Like once the guys got there, they just wanted to
have fun and party and no one wanted to settle down.
And when I graduated, I moved to Philly. I met
a guy, and you know, I thought, like this is
the one for me. And I think at the time,
I had like really low self esteem. So I basically
(02:27):
wasted like two years of my life like chasing him
and like pick me, like love me. And when we
finally did start dating, I was able to see a
lot of like the red flags and like how I
was not being treated well. And I think that coincided
with me moving to New York and like getting real
girlfriends and like people who were like hyping me up
and like so we're like you're like amazing, Like you
(02:48):
don't need this, and so like the last two years
dating in New York has been interesting, Like I think
the quality of men is so amazing, Like I've met
so many genuine, nice, great people. But now I'm back
with the people who don't want to commit. And even
worse than not wanting to commit, they don't tell you that,
and so you've invested like months to like a year
(03:10):
that they're not actually looking for relationships. So that's where
I was at. And so last year on my vision board,
I was like, I want a husband. That's what I
was looking for, you know, I think it's it's something
I really really do want as just a life partner
and like love and like a family. And when the
opportunity arose like it was the strangest set of coincidences.
(03:35):
Like I said, I got laid off and then I
was going in to compete for Miss New York USA
for my third time. I was the returning fresh runner up,
so I was like, should have won. And that week
between like getting laid off and not winning the pageant
was like when someone had reached out to me of like,
do you want to apply to be on the Bachelor?
And I was like, I guess, I I'll hedge my bets,
(03:55):
like I'll start the process. And once I lost the
pageant and I, you know, no longer had a job,
I was like, I guess this is what I'm supposed
to be doing.
Speaker 1 (04:04):
At the time, was Grant announced as being the next Bachelor.
Speaker 2 (04:09):
No, so by that point all we had seen was
part of gen season, and I was like looking at
that like similar what Jen said. I was like, no,
one's like really sticking out to me, Like obviously there
were some cute guys, Grant was one of them, but
like we didn't really to see a ton of personalities.
So I wasn't like I want this man to be
(04:29):
my husband, but I was open to it, and I
think we found out when the world found out via Instagram,
and yeah, I was like, he seems really sweet. He
seemed like he actually wants to be a husband and
like wants to be a protector and provider. And he's
a little bit mysterious online, so it's like you know
(04:52):
too much about him, But honestly, in this day and age,
that's preferred when it comes to men, like I want
my man on private with like two hundred followers, So
I was excited to meet him.
Speaker 3 (05:03):
Did it feel like, what were your hopes to expectations
going into it, because it almost feels like if I
was in your shoes, I'd be like this is crazy,
Like it almost feels kind of like fate, like everything's aligning,
like someone reached out to me at this perfect time
in my life to do something like this, and I'm
manifesting a husband and this guy's looking for a wife,
and like this could really all work out.
Speaker 2 (05:26):
That's exactly it. And everything in my life that's been
life changing, wrestling, getting into Duke, like everything was that way.
Like it's not like I had these like I'm going
to go do these things and they completely altered my life.
So I was like Oh, this just makes sense in
the life of Zoe, like of course I'd be on
the Bachelor and figure I get laid off from my
job and yeah, so that was my thing. I'm like
(05:48):
very much like trust the process, like it's here. It
made sense and it definitely like no one was surprised.
Speaker 1 (05:55):
One more fact about you. You were on the boys
rest team. How does that work for boys in high
school wrestling with a girl, you know what?
Speaker 2 (06:07):
Like being in like a small like conservative town. I
really thought they weren't gonna let me join because there
was no women's team. It was back in like I
don't even know twenty twelve. But as I said, I'm
very much like the type of person like if I'm
not supposed to do something like, I'm gonna go do it,
like I'm gonna prove you all wrong. So when I
heard that they had openings, I went. I was horrible.
(06:29):
I got pinned in twenty seconds every single match for
my first year, and typical they all were like, she's
not taking this seriously, like don't come back type thing.
But I didn't want to let that happen, and I
came back and I really pushed myself and by my
second year, I don't think I got pinned. By my
fourth year, I was winning half my matches. But the
(06:51):
guys were actually so supportive, funny enough, A guy that
I wrestled like still follows me and he's like, I
wrestled you, and he's like, I saw that I was
on the Bachelor, so he's like so hype. So like
the guys were so impressed because you would think that
I would come in and I would just be like
an easy win and I love to surprise people. And
I never left him. Why what called you to do that? Like,
(07:14):
how are you like?
Speaker 3 (07:15):
I feel called to be a wrestler now and I'm
going to do it on the boys team.
Speaker 2 (07:22):
You know, I was such a black sheep growing up.
I was adopted into like a Caucasian family, as I said,
like in a very like white town. I was a
complete nerd. I like dressed it as Albert Einstein for
every Halloween. So I was.
Speaker 1 (07:39):
That's funny.
Speaker 2 (07:41):
That should have been in your fun facts. You should
have came about the limo dressed up Like I was like,
let me try to get a husband, but maybe one
day I'll show those But yeah, so I was like
always just like so didn't fit in, and at the time,
I was like really tall to him, five to nine.
Everyone in my hometown was like I was the tallest girl.
(08:02):
I was taller than most of the boys, and I
had been playing basketball at that time. And I heard
the announcement, I was like, Okay, what's gonna look better
in college? Like tall girl plays basketball or girl plays wrestling,
and like either one, I'm going to the Olympics for
so I chose to do it, and it really was
life changing. I learned so many like skills that you
(08:24):
don't get in any other sport or like really much
anything else in life, for like self discipline if you've
never wrestled, like it's both an individual sport and a
team sport, like you were reliable for maintaining your weight
going to the gym working out, but also like learning
the moves and then getting in the right head space.
(08:44):
And also like I didn't have a great home life,
so it was a great escape for those like many
hours after school that I had a place to go.
And I think it's also what helped me when I
got to engineering, because I'm like, I'm used to being
one of the boys and like all of that, so
definitely amazing. And now I get to like mentor with
some wrestlers here, which is amazing. That is so cool.
Speaker 3 (09:06):
That is yeah, wow, I love that story. Okay, let's
get into the show. So night one rolls around. You
could have dresses Albert Einstein. You could have wrestled him
to the ground. You went with the T shirt gun.
How did we land on this?
Speaker 2 (09:23):
Yes, because I really was like, do I want to
do something like funny whatever, or do I want to
look hot and like do something memorable? And I was like,
let's do the hot. We can do the fun stuff later.
So I had that down from my pad and that
I got everywhere. I gotta get my money's worth, and
I was thinking something along the lines of basketball. But
I figured some of the girls would probably show up
(09:45):
with basketball to play basketball whatever, and I was like,
fan merch, Like I genuinely want to be a power
couple with whoever I am, whether that's just to we
look hot or we're souper successful. And so I was like,
that's perfect, We'll have some merch. I think my idea
was just to throw it over the house to some
of the girls who like lay them around. But someone
(10:05):
had the idea for this super dangerous scary T shirt
cannon and I was like, I have terrible aims, So
I genuinely don't know why they thought that was a
good idea.
Speaker 3 (10:15):
I would be like, someone needs to get like a waver,
like should have me sign a waiver before I use this?
Speaker 2 (10:20):
No, I shouldn't be allowed to use this. Also, I
didn't know there were girls outside, Like I was like,
felt so bad and scared. I was like, is someone
who get hit? So I'm glad it all worked out.
No one was injured, no mansion was injured. And the
making of my Night one entrance, and I think it
made an impression.
Speaker 1 (10:39):
Yeah, I would say, I think from a viewer standpoint
in ours, you're one of the front runners after episode one,
it seems like you and Grant have a really good connection.
Is that how it felt? Did you feel confident after
Night one?
Speaker 2 (10:58):
It was this weird mix, And I think it comes
down like I, yes, I'd come off confident, and yes
I looked like and then I sparkly gowned, But I
genuinely am like always like I don't know if people
like me. I don't know if men like me and
so and I don't know what his type was, Like,
we didn't know much about Grant, like does he want uh,
(11:19):
like powerhouse woman or does he want someone who's like
more like loving and caring or like you know, and
so we had such a mix of women. I was like,
oh yeah, we had a great intro and we had
like actually a good little conversation then. But I was
the second to last girl to speak to him that night,
so oh.
Speaker 3 (11:38):
Yeah, I do remember you saying something like I've been
waiting a long time, or you said something hinting that
you were like one of the later.
Speaker 2 (11:44):
Girls, literally second to last, and you know, by that
point maybe had a few too many drinks and like
and then our conversation that I actually got really deep,
really quickly because of the questions he asked me, And
I was like, I want to make every moment I
have here as impactful as possible, Like I didn't want
to just touch the surface. So I was like, I
don't know if that's going to be too much. And
(12:07):
I also was like okay, like yes, we kissed, but
then he was kissing everyone, so I was like, yeah, kissing,
the kisses meant nothing, But I guess on the hindsight,
like on the flip side, at least I got a kiss,
which then at least showed me that he was attracted
to me. And I do think that we had that
initial chemistry, which is something that's really really important to
(12:29):
me with the men that I date. And yeah, so
it was definitely a world one of emotions. I did
not feel safe at any point, and I was so
grateful my name was called like third because like otherwise
I probably would have had a heart attack.
Speaker 3 (12:44):
Yeah, I don't I don't blame you. It definitely feels
good to be called early. What were the vibes like
in the house, because you definitely made a bold entrance
your shooting T shirts out into the pool. We see Chloe,
she like puts on the T shirt, she's modeling it.
(13:05):
She seemed to have kind of a playful attitude towards
your entrance, like she was almost like bantering about it
with you. Did any of the girls have a negative
reaction towards your entrance?
Speaker 2 (13:17):
I think someone said something about like it almost hit them,
Like I was grateful. Chloe like definitely broke the ice
because it was one of those things where they could
have been like what are you doing and like ignored it,
But yeah, I think my way of operating is like
you never know the opportunities that you're gonna have, and
(13:39):
like I try to take them full for so like
I'm going to try to make an impression, I'm going
to try to mark my territory. And so I think
when I came in, the vibes were like maybe a
little bit weird of like a little bit stand office,
like who is this girl? Who does she think she is?
Which I'm fine with. I think that's how we should
all act, like we don't know each other and we're
all about to fight for the same man, like, but yeah,
(14:01):
I think it was an interesting dynamic. And plus since
we were the last limo, all the other girls were
already talking and like spent quite some time together before
we got there. So I think that was also like
a bit like late to the party, like and I
am making a huge entrance, So it wasn't interesting.
Speaker 1 (14:21):
What is your What was your knowledge of the Bachelor
franchise before coming.
Speaker 2 (14:28):
On the show, Very very little, and in hindsight, on
my getwish thing, I had watched a little bit more episodes,
like I think everyone watches, we've all seen it. We
know the promise, but I think maybe I had watched
one or two seasons in the last like ten years
in its entirety, so I really did not know what
(14:50):
I was getting myself into too much. I tried to
watch a little bit before I left, just to like
have an idea of like even to where like what
are we doing, like what is the vibe? But yeah,
I didn't know too much. But once I got actually
in the casting process, I did look a little bit
more and I was happy, like to see that there's
(15:11):
stuff like this where there's like a whole almost alumni
network where it's like, even if you don't find your
love store on the show, like, there's so many opportunities
to find love and friendship within the franchise. And I
really liked that part. So I was like, I'll win
one way or another. Yeah, that's a great.
Speaker 3 (15:28):
Way to look at it and a great mentality to
have going into it for sure. Okay, let's get into
episode two because that's where all the juice is of. Yeah,
it was a four choice of words. But anyway, you
are on the first group date of the season, You're
on the basketball date, you play basketball. How do you
(15:52):
feel going into the date.
Speaker 2 (15:55):
So I was excited because I did play basketball. I
was I was a little bit upsex. I wanted a
smaller group like that was a large group that was
ten women on one group date, and it was the
day right after the roast ceremony. So it's like we
hit the ground running, like there was no time to
(16:15):
get to know each other, there was no time to
like sit there and reflect. So it was just a
bit nerve wracking.
Speaker 1 (16:23):
Okay, yeah, that makes sense. Something we see. We see
it every season. We see someone pretty early on on
a group date. We'll pull the bachelor or bachelor the
lead aside and take them away from the group, and
it usually rubs the group the wrong way, which which
is kind of what happened, which is which happened, which
(16:44):
is what happened. So yeah, I just want to hear
how that went. What was your thought process doing it?
And yeah, the whole thing, well.
Speaker 2 (16:55):
Exactly as you just said. It happens every season. So
in my brain and like the way I think, it's
like there's no rules there, like if you know what
I mean. And so I knew would rub people the
wrong way, but I didn't think it would anger them.
I thought it would be something like oh dang, like
(17:16):
she did what I wanted to do, and like I'm
going to take notes for next time, not like, oh
my god, she's this evil, mean woman trying to steal
grant from all of us. Because the thing is too
like there are ways to be rude in this environment,
like if I had a rose and I knew I
was safe, if I had a one on one that week,
or there was something that we had already established a
(17:39):
really strong connection, and then I was just stealing him
to steal him, Like yes, I could get you being upset,
but it was like we were. It was day one,
Like we had been playing basketball for hours and I
had the opportunity to like have some extra time, like
I don't I need to see Also if I like
this guy. And the thing is, if any other girl
(18:00):
had done that, I would not have been angry at them,
So I would have just been like, cool, next group date,
I'm allowed to take him away, Like that's what I think,
and that's the way that my brain works. So it
was a bit interesting. And then the other problem was
I didn't know how angry the girls were until we
got to the cocktail party, so they were like sitting
(18:22):
there one talking behind my back, but like really hyping
each other up to like be angry at me instead
of I like trying to talk to me and just
be like hey, like you did that thing kind of sucks,
Like maybe we had wanted more time with him, like
maybe tonight, like just don't do anything crazy. Like I
would have been like cool, no problem, but they came
in an attack, and they came as a group, and
(18:44):
I was like, I'm not about to be bulldozed into
trying to lessen myself, Like I didn't do anything wrong,
so I can accept that going forward, but like, I'm
not going to apologize for for doing what you would
have done.
Speaker 1 (19:02):
Who out of the women would you say it was
like the ringleader and that because we do see and
I want your thoughts on this. We do see, Alie,
Joe push you pretty hard during the basketball game.
Speaker 3 (19:15):
Which was after you had stolen him, right.
Speaker 2 (19:18):
Yes, I guess that was my first inkling that something
was up because like we had come back. I guess
I don't know. I didn't say honestly, it's awkward, but
like we're about to play basketball. That's more opportunities, Like
if y'all want to go do something. Leave the basketball
game still, like you know what I mean, Like there's
other ways to make your mark, And so for me too,
I'm a competitive person, but I'm also like a rule follower,
(19:40):
Like I don't know if who wins the basketball game
is the only people who gets the cocktail party, So
I'm going to give it my all. We played basketball.
My team was really good and the other team we like,
all of a sudden, there was like a shift where
they just all got so angry and as you saw,
I was literally push on the ground and to me,
(20:00):
I was like that's not basketball, and like, as I'm
a wrestler, like I'm not going to sit here and
fight it back, but are we being for real right now?
Speaker 3 (20:07):
And I could take you?
Speaker 2 (20:08):
I won't, but I could, That's what I'm saying. So
to me at that point, I was like, oh wait,
you guys are like being way too like aggress about this.
And then there was like inklings that like they were saying,
like whispering our team was being aggressive, and then it
was like, oh, Zoe was being aggressive. And it's like
during the basketball game, once we were up by so much,
(20:29):
I started telling my team I was like stop, stop
going full court, like we need to pull back. I
was the one trying to be like, guys, we need
to do less because these girls are getting pissed. So
I was the one like trying to de escalate the situation,
and I got no credit for that, and so it
was just a really weird thing. And then yes I
got pushing the ground. I didn't retaliate, like I was
(20:51):
just like, this is a very weird vibe at that point.
And then once we got to the cocktail party, I
mean I think there was the two that were the loudest,
and specifically we know the girl who pushed me Ali Joe.
Not only is she screaming at me for for stealing
time with him, which it's not stealing. We're all entitled
(21:12):
and you could have like you can come ste him
at any point. And at that point that flipped the
switch in me, like because no one stood up for me.
Speaker 1 (21:26):
Well, that's what I was going to ask you. I
was going to ask you, was there any women that
were on that date that were like on your side
at all?
Speaker 3 (21:33):
Or even like afterwards came up to him, was like, hey,
things have gone too far, like or you on.
Speaker 1 (21:39):
Your you're on your own island at this point, with
like no friends yet.
Speaker 2 (21:43):
So I think, like, as I said, because it was
such a quick turn around, obviously I'm very confident and
like bold and yeah, so at that point I hadn't
formed any friendships. I was like the last limo out
and we're playing. I would have thought my team would
have protesed me, but then suddenly they're trying to switch
sides because I think, and again this is my the
(22:06):
thing with women that I've had throughout over the years
is just that mentality of like group think of like
we all have to be on the same page otherwise
we're going to ostracize and attack you. And I don't
play that. Like me and my friends were all successful.
We're all driven, like but in different areas. Do whatever
you want to do, date who you want to date,
dress how you want to dress. Like, I'm not threatened
(22:27):
by them, I'm inspired by them. And I feel like
a lot of times there's groups of women who need
to like they have their leader and they just like
go along with whatever they're saying. And at that point,
the group of nine other women had the leaders telling
them that I deserve to be attacked, and so during
the evening, not a single person stood up for me,
(22:50):
and by that point, like I'm in tears because what
is going like what is literally going on right now?
And that was like kind of just a really crazy
experience to be in because I have not been in
anything like that before and I definitely have not been
like now, As I said, my group and the people,
whether it be pageants, modeling, tack, all of them are
(23:12):
just so supportive and just like so it's just so
strange and.
Speaker 1 (23:16):
It's tough because you're like being filmed for the first time.
Speaker 2 (23:20):
Yeah, and you're like, and I'm being filmed this entire time,
so you're like, you don't like you're also so hyper
aware because if I go off and I say one
thing to them, I'm like, I don't want to stoop
to anyone's level, Like that was my one thing. It's
I don't do that. And well, thankfully, actually i've grown
very much the I've gotten old there to be to
(23:42):
the point where like I'm not going to stoop your level,
like you're not going to get me out of character,
I'm not going to cuss you out, I'm not going
to do these things, and I'm not going to gang
up and attack someone for no reason.
Speaker 3 (23:52):
Yeah, I feel like you said on the show, you said,
I truly believe all is fair in love and war,
And I feel like that kind of encompasses your approach
of like you are taking a bold approach, like there's
no question about it, Like you are making moves that
are naturally going to ruffle feathers, not saying that the
you know the explosiveness of the situation was justified, but
(24:15):
you know you're going to kind of like pee people
off a little bit. But you do seem to be
accepting of whatever consequences, you know, whatever valid consequences come
with that, And you're like, hey, this is the game
I'm playing, Like you can play it too. We all
have the freedom to move in whatever way we feel
works best for our relationship with.
Speaker 2 (24:35):
Grant exactly, and as I said it, it's all spirit,
love and more. And then if we had all talked
about this, like hey, tonight, we're all going to talk
to him one time and we agree to that and
then I go steal him five times, then then I'm
doing something wrong. But if we've not said that, like
we didn't say it, don't take another date, Like it
(24:56):
is all fair like, and I'm I'm so not going
to operate in a way that's not authentic to me,
Like I do bold things throughout my life, Like that
is who I am. It's who I'm always going to be.
It's not to it's not bold because I need attention,
and it's not bold because I'm insecure. It's just bold
because I like to do things a little bit different
(25:18):
that like, you know, that's just the way I work,
And you're allowed to do whatever you want to do.
But you know, we'll see.
Speaker 1 (25:27):
Yeah, let's pivot to like the positive the positives of
you stealing him, and take us to that conversation on
the rooftop of how that went and if it went well.
Speaker 3 (25:39):
Yeah, we don't see much of what you guys actually
talk about. Yes, what was the interaction, Like, how do
you feel like your gesture was received by Grant?
Speaker 2 (25:48):
Yeah? And Grant really liked it, like he was appreciative.
He's like, I see you like I see you trying
to step out. And the other reason I really did
it too was because I'm a really shy per so
naturally and it's something that I've worked over time, and
I feel like in this environment and in these last
few seasons where we have seen people there very very
(26:09):
clearly not for the lead, Like I wanted it to
be known to him that I'm trying to get to
know you. I don't want to just show up and
like ghost episode like week to week, like make it through,
Like I genuinely want to see if we have a connection,
because I don't want to be taking up any extra
time if I'm not supposed to be here. And so
(26:32):
that conversation was important to me, as I said, because
I only had like two minutes with him on Night
one to see, like what is our actual vibe? And
we actually had a like cute little conversation about just
like general things like food and travel and like what
our type is normally, and like what we're looking for
on the rooftop. Like he had asked me about some
(26:52):
about my previous relationships, and I got to tell him, like,
you know, my last partner was like very much gas lit,
narcissistic and like made me feel really insecure, and I'm
not looking for that again. And it was like a
cute little moment. And so I was grateful that I
got to do it because my time's valuable, his time's valuable,
(27:14):
and yeah, it was just it was meant to be that.
It wasn't meant to do anything else.
Speaker 1 (27:20):
What when we go to the night portion and then
we see you and Li Joe kind of go back
and forth when you are when you both were taking
your time with Grant. That usually is always a rough
situation to be in because it usually never works out
for either party. How was Grant taking it?
Speaker 2 (27:42):
You know, I think Grant it was a nice man.
He I don't think he minded like minded as much
as like he could have like been like why is
this already happening on night one? I think he was
very much just like understood that it was a very
aggressive day of basketball that was competitive to you know
now the night portion, and like there was so many
(28:05):
women all competing for the time during the cocktail party,
Like it's how rare is it that ten women are
all at one cocktail party and we don't know how
much time any of us have with him, And so
I think that was really nerve wracking for all of us.
And I think he was just very like understanding of it.
(28:25):
I know he saw like her storm out, which is
the only reason I said anything, because it's not like
I'm like, was it just trying to bring anything up
to him, to bring some up to him, Like we
were in the same room, and she like said something
nasty and then like stormed off in front of him,
and like he saw that, Like did she say at
this point? I forgot? But that's when I was like,
(28:49):
oh no, like I'm about to walk into that lionstand.
But the thing wasn't. Again, I had the opportunity to
steal him from her, or steal him from her quicker,
and I literally like looked at a watch and was like, no, no,
like five more minutes. I'll give her five more minutes.
Like I just wanted to end the night with him
on a good note because I knew there were so
many targets on my back and like again, I don't
(29:11):
know how I'm being perceived by him as being too
aggressive or true dramatic or problematic, and I just really
wanted to end on like a high note. And that
was it. I just wanted to say good night and
like see you hopefully next week, but yeah, just turn
into this whole thing. And then I think he walked
into us screaming and crying at each other to hand
(29:32):
out the group date rose. So he was tryingly, what
did I get myself into?
Speaker 3 (29:37):
Well, you know it's weak too, He's got a lot
of time to keep feeling like that. He's the vachelor.
Speaker 2 (29:42):
He got himself into a lot exactly.
Speaker 1 (29:46):
So so you get so you end up getting a rose? Yes,
where what's your headspace after you receive the rose? Now
you have it seems like you have a lot of
enemies in the how but Grant is clearly giving you validation.
You gotta rose and he seems to be into you.
(30:06):
So yeah, like like looking forward, what's going on?
Speaker 2 (30:11):
Yeah, I think at that point because there was like
it's so much on you at one time when like
you do get involved in any drama because as I said,
like you're not like me personally, and I'm sure like
some people they love drama, they want to like be
in these fights. I'm like, I don't want that. Like
(30:32):
I'm here for love, I'm here for a husband. I
want Grant to know me and I want to know him,
but I'm also not here to apologize and to not
be myself. And so it was just very much like
I just hope that this drama is over, Like I
don't understand I didn't understan where the girls were holding
a grudge. They were still saying little comments during the
(30:53):
rose ceremony to me about me, Like it was just
so like stranged. I was like, are we really like
doing this right now? Like it's we're moving on, We're
past this week because you know, some people didn't make it,
and yeah, so I was like, I really just wanted
to stay out of the drama coming up. I wanted
to see if granted actually a connection, you know. I
(31:15):
was really hopeful that he saw that I was trying
so hard and that hopefully next week I get one
on one. Like those were like all the things that
I was hoping for too, since it was such a
tough time. I was hoping that like I'll have time
to like for him to see me and not me
trying to compete with many women. But yeah, I just.
Speaker 3 (31:38):
Moving excited. Yeah, but probably a little bit.
Speaker 2 (31:44):
It's nervous, it is. It was, yeah, just all of it.
And like as I said, I hadn't been like in
an environment like that since I lived with my parents
from like years ago. So it was like a very
strange situation to kind of feel like you were back
in that environment as a grown adult. That was just
really triggering for me.
Speaker 3 (32:05):
Yeah, what were your goals and intentions moving into week three?
Were you feeling like you wanted to continue with the
strategy that you had been moving with, or were you like,
I think I'm gonna pull back. What were your kind
of goals moving forward with how you wanted to navigate everything.
Speaker 2 (32:27):
Yeah, I think my approach was like at that point
I had made in my mind like that's all I wanted.
I was like, I just want him to see me,
to hear me, to like hopefully get some sort of
connection going. And I think we did, and like that
was it. Like I'm not I don't need a bunch
of time. I'm not trying to like constantly step on
toes like and so for week three, I'm like, whatever
(32:47):
comes my way, if it makes sense to steal him,
if I get the one on one, like hopefully like
I can utilize that and like tell him more about
myself and like get to know him more. But by
that point I was just so emotionally drained. Even though
it was like the first week, the second week that
I was just like I don't want to do anything
that is going to put any more targets on the
(33:11):
back because like, I genuinely don't want that and I
can't really handle it.
Speaker 1 (33:14):
Yeah, yeah, that makes sense. Okay, we're going to play
a game with you so people get to know you
a little better before we do. If you were to
tease next week with one word without spoiling it, what
would it be?
Speaker 2 (33:31):
Oh? Shark pink?
Speaker 1 (33:36):
Oh nice?
Speaker 3 (33:38):
Okay, that's a first surprising.
Speaker 2 (33:43):
I like it. I like it.
Speaker 1 (33:44):
Okay, we're gonna do rapid fire. Get to know Zoe.
It's just rapid fire, first thing that comes to your mind.
We're gonna ask you some very very easy questions. Okay,
what is your love language when it comes to receiving love?
Speaker 2 (33:58):
Oh? Quality time?
Speaker 1 (34:03):
What is your go to drink at a bar?
Speaker 2 (34:07):
And Martini or NEGRONI?
Speaker 1 (34:11):
Who is someone that inspires you?
Speaker 2 (34:14):
Oh? Okay, I know this is controversial, but Kim Kardashian, like, if.
Speaker 1 (34:20):
You were on a deserted island and could only bring
two girls from your season, Oh, who would you bring?
Speaker 2 (34:28):
Okay? I would have to bring Bailey because she is
like the funniest person I've ever met, and she can
recite every single show that you can think of. And
Dina I love Dina.
Speaker 1 (34:41):
Favorite thing to cook.
Speaker 2 (34:43):
Ooh, I do a good surfing turf. It's a good
date night dish too.
Speaker 1 (34:50):
Gold or silver, jewelry, gold heels or comfy shoes for
a night out heels? Are you an early bird or
a night owl?
Speaker 2 (35:02):
Night owl?
Speaker 1 (35:03):
What is your favorite thing about Grant?
Speaker 2 (35:07):
Oh? Good question. Well, I think he is just was
like very had a protective energy, Like whenever we were together,
just kind of felt very protective.
Speaker 3 (35:17):
So I like that. And last, but not least, if
you could describe Grant season in one word, what would
it be?
Speaker 2 (35:24):
Unpredictable?
Speaker 1 (35:27):
Okay, I like it.
Speaker 3 (35:28):
I feel like the promos are teasing a lot to come,
so we're excited to see how your journey with Grant unfolds.
Thank you so much for coming on, Zoe, Yes, thank.
Speaker 1 (35:38):
You guys, and thank you to all our listeners. And
make sure you stay tuned to Bachelor Happy Hour because
we will be having exclusive interviews with castmates all season long.
Speaker 3 (35:49):
And more recaps to come. Don't forget to tune into
episode three of Grant season of The Bachelor next week
and be sure to subscribe to Bachelor Happy Hour. Thanks
for listening.
Speaker 2 (35:57):
By
Hey, every want Welcome back to Bachler Happy Hour. I'm
Joe and I'm Serena and we are here today with Zoe. Zoe.
Welcome to Bachelor Happy Hour.
Speaker 2 (00:10):
Hi. Thank you for having me, of.
Speaker 1 (00:12):
Course, And before we get into the episode, we're gonna
get a little breakdown of what you were doing before
the show, how you got on the show, a little
bit of a history, and then we'll get into episode two.
Speaker 3 (00:24):
Yeah, there's lots to talk about, so we're excited to
have you on today.
Speaker 2 (00:28):
Thank you.
Speaker 1 (00:29):
Okay, So, Zoe, where where do you live?
Speaker 2 (00:33):
So? Right now, I live in New York City, but
I'm actually from southern Virginia. I went to school in
North Carolina and lived in Philly. So nice New York too.
We're here too, a West village. Oh nice.
Speaker 3 (00:48):
We're in Chelsea, so not too far close.
Speaker 2 (00:50):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (00:50):
How long have you been here?
Speaker 2 (00:53):
Oh? I think like three years food and a half
now I'm like losing track of time. Yeah, I'll together,
we failed the same.
Speaker 1 (01:03):
And how what do you do for a living?
Speaker 2 (01:07):
So when I graduated, I've been working in finance tech
for like six years and my latest job was with
the one in Stock Exchange as a product manager. We
did interest rate things with large investment banks. But I
was actually laid off this summer, and I had started
modeling a couple of years ago once I moved to
(01:28):
New York, so luckily I was able to kind of
just pivot into that realm. But I do always want
to get back into like tech or like startups. So TBD.
Speaker 1 (01:38):
Nice, Nice, And what was dating life like before you
went on the show.
Speaker 2 (01:44):
It was very weird for me, Like I grew up
in southern Virginia as like one of the few people
of color in my like small town, and I did
not have a boyfriend until my senior year of college.
I think because of that, like a lot of the
guys would say like they couldn't date black women, like whatnot,
and I didn't have many options. And then at college
(02:05):
it's like at Duke, everyone was like so nerdy, and
I think they we like we're also focused on studies.
Like once the guys got there, they just wanted to
have fun and party and no one wanted to settle down.
And when I graduated, I moved to Philly. I met
a guy, and you know, I thought, like this is
the one for me. And I think at the time,
I had like really low self esteem. So I basically
(02:27):
wasted like two years of my life like chasing him
and like pick me, like love me. And when we
finally did start dating, I was able to see a
lot of like the red flags and like how I
was not being treated well. And I think that coincided
with me moving to New York and like getting real
girlfriends and like people who were like hyping me up
and like so we're like you're like amazing, Like you
(02:48):
don't need this, and so like the last two years
dating in New York has been interesting, Like I think
the quality of men is so amazing, Like I've met
so many genuine, nice, great people. But now I'm back
with the people who don't want to commit. And even
worse than not wanting to commit, they don't tell you that,
and so you've invested like months to like a year
(03:10):
that they're not actually looking for relationships. So that's where
I was at. And so last year on my vision board,
I was like, I want a husband. That's what I
was looking for, you know, I think it's it's something
I really really do want as just a life partner
and like love and like a family. And when the
opportunity arose like it was the strangest set of coincidences.
(03:35):
Like I said, I got laid off and then I
was going in to compete for Miss New York USA
for my third time. I was the returning fresh runner up,
so I was like, should have won. And that week
between like getting laid off and not winning the pageant
was like when someone had reached out to me of like,
do you want to apply to be on the Bachelor?
And I was like, I guess, I I'll hedge my bets,
(03:55):
like I'll start the process. And once I lost the
pageant and I, you know, no longer had a job,
I was like, I guess this is what I'm supposed
to be doing.
Speaker 1 (04:04):
At the time, was Grant announced as being the next Bachelor.
Speaker 2 (04:09):
No, so by that point all we had seen was
part of gen season, and I was like looking at
that like similar what Jen said. I was like, no,
one's like really sticking out to me, Like obviously there
were some cute guys, Grant was one of them, but
like we didn't really to see a ton of personalities.
So I wasn't like I want this man to be
(04:29):
my husband, but I was open to it, and I
think we found out when the world found out via Instagram,
and yeah, I was like, he seems really sweet. He
seemed like he actually wants to be a husband and
like wants to be a protector and provider. And he's
a little bit mysterious online, so it's like you know
(04:52):
too much about him, But honestly, in this day and age,
that's preferred when it comes to men, like I want
my man on private with like two hundred followers, So
I was excited to meet him.
Speaker 3 (05:03):
Did it feel like, what were your hopes to expectations
going into it, because it almost feels like if I
was in your shoes, I'd be like this is crazy,
Like it almost feels kind of like fate, like everything's aligning,
like someone reached out to me at this perfect time
in my life to do something like this, and I'm
manifesting a husband and this guy's looking for a wife,
and like this could really all work out.
Speaker 2 (05:26):
That's exactly it. And everything in my life that's been
life changing, wrestling, getting into Duke, like everything was that way.
Like it's not like I had these like I'm going
to go do these things and they completely altered my life.
So I was like Oh, this just makes sense in
the life of Zoe, like of course I'd be on
the Bachelor and figure I get laid off from my
job and yeah, so that was my thing. I'm like
(05:48):
very much like trust the process, like it's here. It
made sense and it definitely like no one was surprised.
Speaker 1 (05:55):
One more fact about you. You were on the boys
rest team. How does that work for boys in high
school wrestling with a girl, you know what?
Speaker 2 (06:07):
Like being in like a small like conservative town. I
really thought they weren't gonna let me join because there
was no women's team. It was back in like I
don't even know twenty twelve. But as I said, I'm
very much like the type of person like if I'm
not supposed to do something like, I'm gonna go do it,
like I'm gonna prove you all wrong. So when I
heard that they had openings, I went. I was horrible.
(06:29):
I got pinned in twenty seconds every single match for
my first year, and typical they all were like, she's
not taking this seriously, like don't come back type thing.
But I didn't want to let that happen, and I
came back and I really pushed myself and by my
second year, I don't think I got pinned. By my
fourth year, I was winning half my matches. But the
(06:51):
guys were actually so supportive, funny enough, A guy that
I wrestled like still follows me and he's like, I
wrestled you, and he's like, I saw that I was
on the Bachelor, so he's like so hype. So like
the guys were so impressed because you would think that
I would come in and I would just be like
an easy win and I love to surprise people. And
I never left him. Why what called you to do that? Like,
(07:14):
how are you like?
Speaker 3 (07:15):
I feel called to be a wrestler now and I'm
going to do it on the boys team.
Speaker 2 (07:22):
You know, I was such a black sheep growing up.
I was adopted into like a Caucasian family, as I said,
like in a very like white town. I was a
complete nerd. I like dressed it as Albert Einstein for
every Halloween. So I was.
Speaker 1 (07:39):
That's funny.
Speaker 2 (07:41):
That should have been in your fun facts. You should
have came about the limo dressed up Like I was like,
let me try to get a husband, but maybe one
day I'll show those But yeah, so I was like
always just like so didn't fit in, and at the time,
I was like really tall to him, five to nine.
Everyone in my hometown was like I was the tallest girl.
(08:02):
I was taller than most of the boys, and I
had been playing basketball at that time. And I heard
the announcement, I was like, Okay, what's gonna look better
in college? Like tall girl plays basketball or girl plays wrestling,
and like either one, I'm going to the Olympics for
so I chose to do it, and it really was
life changing. I learned so many like skills that you
(08:24):
don't get in any other sport or like really much
anything else in life, for like self discipline if you've
never wrestled, like it's both an individual sport and a
team sport, like you were reliable for maintaining your weight
going to the gym working out, but also like learning
the moves and then getting in the right head space.
(08:44):
And also like I didn't have a great home life,
so it was a great escape for those like many
hours after school that I had a place to go.
And I think it's also what helped me when I
got to engineering, because I'm like, I'm used to being
one of the boys and like all of that, so
definitely amazing. And now I get to like mentor with
some wrestlers here, which is amazing. That is so cool.
Speaker 3 (09:06):
That is yeah, wow, I love that story. Okay, let's
get into the show. So night one rolls around. You
could have dresses Albert Einstein. You could have wrestled him
to the ground. You went with the T shirt gun.
How did we land on this?
Speaker 2 (09:23):
Yes, because I really was like, do I want to
do something like funny whatever, or do I want to
look hot and like do something memorable? And I was like,
let's do the hot. We can do the fun stuff later.
So I had that down from my pad and that
I got everywhere. I gotta get my money's worth, and
I was thinking something along the lines of basketball. But
I figured some of the girls would probably show up
(09:45):
with basketball to play basketball whatever, and I was like,
fan merch, Like I genuinely want to be a power
couple with whoever I am, whether that's just to we
look hot or we're souper successful. And so I was like,
that's perfect, We'll have some merch. I think my idea
was just to throw it over the house to some
of the girls who like lay them around. But someone
(10:05):
had the idea for this super dangerous scary T shirt
cannon and I was like, I have terrible aims, So
I genuinely don't know why they thought that was a
good idea.
Speaker 3 (10:15):
I would be like, someone needs to get like a waver,
like should have me sign a waiver before I use this?
Speaker 2 (10:20):
No, I shouldn't be allowed to use this. Also, I
didn't know there were girls outside, Like I was like,
felt so bad and scared. I was like, is someone
who get hit? So I'm glad it all worked out.
No one was injured, no mansion was injured. And the
making of my Night one entrance, and I think it
made an impression.
Speaker 1 (10:39):
Yeah, I would say, I think from a viewer standpoint
in ours, you're one of the front runners after episode one,
it seems like you and Grant have a really good connection.
Is that how it felt? Did you feel confident after
Night one?
Speaker 2 (10:58):
It was this weird mix, And I think it comes
down like I, yes, I'd come off confident, and yes
I looked like and then I sparkly gowned, But I
genuinely am like always like I don't know if people
like me. I don't know if men like me and
so and I don't know what his type was, Like,
we didn't know much about Grant, like does he want uh,
(11:19):
like powerhouse woman or does he want someone who's like
more like loving and caring or like you know, and
so we had such a mix of women. I was like,
oh yeah, we had a great intro and we had
like actually a good little conversation then. But I was
the second to last girl to speak to him that night,
so oh.
Speaker 3 (11:38):
Yeah, I do remember you saying something like I've been
waiting a long time, or you said something hinting that
you were like one of the later.
Speaker 2 (11:44):
Girls, literally second to last, and you know, by that
point maybe had a few too many drinks and like
and then our conversation that I actually got really deep,
really quickly because of the questions he asked me, And
I was like, I want to make every moment I
have here as impactful as possible, Like I didn't want
to just touch the surface. So I was like, I
don't know if that's going to be too much. And
(12:07):
I also was like okay, like yes, we kissed, but
then he was kissing everyone, so I was like, yeah, kissing,
the kisses meant nothing, But I guess on the hindsight,
like on the flip side, at least I got a kiss,
which then at least showed me that he was attracted
to me. And I do think that we had that
initial chemistry, which is something that's really really important to
(12:29):
me with the men that I date. And yeah, so
it was definitely a world one of emotions. I did
not feel safe at any point, and I was so
grateful my name was called like third because like otherwise
I probably would have had a heart attack.
Speaker 3 (12:44):
Yeah, I don't I don't blame you. It definitely feels
good to be called early. What were the vibes like
in the house, because you definitely made a bold entrance
your shooting T shirts out into the pool. We see Chloe,
she like puts on the T shirt, she's modeling it.
(13:05):
She seemed to have kind of a playful attitude towards
your entrance, like she was almost like bantering about it
with you. Did any of the girls have a negative
reaction towards your entrance?
Speaker 2 (13:17):
I think someone said something about like it almost hit them,
Like I was grateful. Chloe like definitely broke the ice
because it was one of those things where they could
have been like what are you doing and like ignored it,
But yeah, I think my way of operating is like
you never know the opportunities that you're gonna have, and
(13:39):
like I try to take them full for so like
I'm going to try to make an impression, I'm going
to try to mark my territory. And so I think
when I came in, the vibes were like maybe a
little bit weird of like a little bit stand office,
like who is this girl? Who does she think she is?
Which I'm fine with. I think that's how we should
all act, like we don't know each other and we're
all about to fight for the same man, like, but yeah,
(14:01):
I think it was an interesting dynamic. And plus since
we were the last limo, all the other girls were
already talking and like spent quite some time together before
we got there. So I think that was also like
a bit like late to the party, like and I
am making a huge entrance, So it wasn't interesting.
Speaker 1 (14:21):
What is your What was your knowledge of the Bachelor
franchise before coming.
Speaker 2 (14:28):
On the show, Very very little, and in hindsight, on
my getwish thing, I had watched a little bit more episodes,
like I think everyone watches, we've all seen it. We
know the promise, but I think maybe I had watched
one or two seasons in the last like ten years
in its entirety, so I really did not know what
(14:50):
I was getting myself into too much. I tried to
watch a little bit before I left, just to like
have an idea of like even to where like what
are we doing, like what is the vibe? But yeah,
I didn't know too much. But once I got actually
in the casting process, I did look a little bit
more and I was happy, like to see that there's
(15:11):
stuff like this where there's like a whole almost alumni
network where it's like, even if you don't find your
love store on the show, like, there's so many opportunities
to find love and friendship within the franchise. And I
really liked that part. So I was like, I'll win
one way or another. Yeah, that's a great.
Speaker 3 (15:28):
Way to look at it and a great mentality to
have going into it for sure. Okay, let's get into
episode two because that's where all the juice is of. Yeah,
it was a four choice of words. But anyway, you
are on the first group date of the season, You're
on the basketball date, you play basketball. How do you
(15:52):
feel going into the date.
Speaker 2 (15:55):
So I was excited because I did play basketball. I
was I was a little bit upsex. I wanted a
smaller group like that was a large group that was
ten women on one group date, and it was the
day right after the roast ceremony. So it's like we
hit the ground running, like there was no time to
(16:15):
get to know each other, there was no time to
like sit there and reflect. So it was just a
bit nerve wracking.
Speaker 1 (16:23):
Okay, yeah, that makes sense. Something we see. We see
it every season. We see someone pretty early on on
a group date. We'll pull the bachelor or bachelor the
lead aside and take them away from the group, and
it usually rubs the group the wrong way, which which
is kind of what happened, which is which happened, which
(16:44):
is what happened. So yeah, I just want to hear
how that went. What was your thought process doing it?
And yeah, the whole thing, well.
Speaker 2 (16:55):
Exactly as you just said. It happens every season. So
in my brain and like the way I think, it's
like there's no rules there, like if you know what
I mean. And so I knew would rub people the
wrong way, but I didn't think it would anger them.
I thought it would be something like oh dang, like
(17:16):
she did what I wanted to do, and like I'm
going to take notes for next time, not like, oh
my god, she's this evil, mean woman trying to steal
grant from all of us. Because the thing is too
like there are ways to be rude in this environment,
like if I had a rose and I knew I
was safe, if I had a one on one that week,
or there was something that we had already established a
(17:39):
really strong connection, and then I was just stealing him
to steal him, Like yes, I could get you being upset,
but it was like we were. It was day one,
Like we had been playing basketball for hours and I
had the opportunity to like have some extra time, like
I don't I need to see Also if I like
this guy. And the thing is, if any other girl
(18:00):
had done that, I would not have been angry at them,
So I would have just been like, cool, next group date,
I'm allowed to take him away, Like that's what I think,
and that's the way that my brain works. So it
was a bit interesting. And then the other problem was
I didn't know how angry the girls were until we
got to the cocktail party, so they were like sitting
(18:22):
there one talking behind my back, but like really hyping
each other up to like be angry at me instead
of I like trying to talk to me and just
be like hey, like you did that thing kind of sucks,
Like maybe we had wanted more time with him, like
maybe tonight, like just don't do anything crazy. Like I
would have been like cool, no problem, but they came
in an attack, and they came as a group, and
(18:44):
I was like, I'm not about to be bulldozed into
trying to lessen myself, Like I didn't do anything wrong,
so I can accept that going forward, but like, I'm
not going to apologize for for doing what you would
have done.
Speaker 1 (19:02):
Who out of the women would you say it was
like the ringleader and that because we do see and
I want your thoughts on this. We do see, Alie,
Joe push you pretty hard during the basketball game.
Speaker 3 (19:15):
Which was after you had stolen him, right.
Speaker 2 (19:18):
Yes, I guess that was my first inkling that something
was up because like we had come back. I guess
I don't know. I didn't say honestly, it's awkward, but
like we're about to play basketball. That's more opportunities, Like
if y'all want to go do something. Leave the basketball
game still, like you know what I mean, Like there's
other ways to make your mark, And so for me too,
I'm a competitive person, but I'm also like a rule follower,
(19:40):
Like I don't know if who wins the basketball game
is the only people who gets the cocktail party, So
I'm going to give it my all. We played basketball.
My team was really good and the other team we like,
all of a sudden, there was like a shift where
they just all got so angry and as you saw,
I was literally push on the ground and to me,
(20:00):
I was like that's not basketball, and like, as I'm
a wrestler, like I'm not going to sit here and
fight it back, but are we being for real right now?
Speaker 3 (20:07):
And I could take you?
Speaker 2 (20:08):
I won't, but I could, That's what I'm saying. So
to me at that point, I was like, oh wait,
you guys are like being way too like aggress about this.
And then there was like inklings that like they were saying,
like whispering our team was being aggressive, and then it
was like, oh, Zoe was being aggressive. And it's like
during the basketball game, once we were up by so much,
(20:29):
I started telling my team I was like stop, stop
going full court, like we need to pull back. I
was the one trying to be like, guys, we need
to do less because these girls are getting pissed. So
I was the one like trying to de escalate the situation,
and I got no credit for that, and so it
was just a really weird thing. And then yes I
got pushing the ground. I didn't retaliate, like I was
(20:51):
just like, this is a very weird vibe at that point.
And then once we got to the cocktail party, I
mean I think there was the two that were the loudest,
and specifically we know the girl who pushed me Ali Joe.
Not only is she screaming at me for for stealing
time with him, which it's not stealing. We're all entitled
(21:12):
and you could have like you can come ste him
at any point. And at that point that flipped the
switch in me, like because no one stood up for me.
Speaker 1 (21:26):
Well, that's what I was going to ask you. I
was going to ask you, was there any women that
were on that date that were like on your side
at all?
Speaker 3 (21:33):
Or even like afterwards came up to him, was like, hey,
things have gone too far, like or you on.
Speaker 1 (21:39):
Your you're on your own island at this point, with
like no friends yet.
Speaker 2 (21:43):
So I think, like, as I said, because it was
such a quick turn around, obviously I'm very confident and
like bold and yeah, so at that point I hadn't
formed any friendships. I was like the last limo out
and we're playing. I would have thought my team would
have protesed me, but then suddenly they're trying to switch
sides because I think, and again this is my the
(22:06):
thing with women that I've had throughout over the years
is just that mentality of like group think of like
we all have to be on the same page otherwise
we're going to ostracize and attack you. And I don't
play that. Like me and my friends were all successful.
We're all driven, like but in different areas. Do whatever
you want to do, date who you want to date,
dress how you want to dress. Like, I'm not threatened
(22:27):
by them, I'm inspired by them. And I feel like
a lot of times there's groups of women who need
to like they have their leader and they just like
go along with whatever they're saying. And at that point,
the group of nine other women had the leaders telling
them that I deserve to be attacked, and so during
the evening, not a single person stood up for me,
(22:50):
and by that point, like I'm in tears because what
is going like what is literally going on right now?
And that was like kind of just a really crazy
experience to be in because I have not been in
anything like that before and I definitely have not been
like now, As I said, my group and the people,
whether it be pageants, modeling, tack, all of them are
(23:12):
just so supportive and just like so it's just so
strange and.
Speaker 1 (23:16):
It's tough because you're like being filmed for the first time.
Speaker 2 (23:20):
Yeah, and you're like, and I'm being filmed this entire time,
so you're like, you don't like you're also so hyper
aware because if I go off and I say one
thing to them, I'm like, I don't want to stoop
to anyone's level, Like that was my one thing. It's
I don't do that. And well, thankfully, actually i've grown
very much the I've gotten old there to be to
(23:42):
the point where like I'm not going to stoop your level,
like you're not going to get me out of character,
I'm not going to cuss you out, I'm not going
to do these things, and I'm not going to gang
up and attack someone for no reason.
Speaker 3 (23:52):
Yeah, I feel like you said on the show, you said,
I truly believe all is fair in love and war,
And I feel like that kind of encompasses your approach
of like you are taking a bold approach, like there's
no question about it, Like you are making moves that
are naturally going to ruffle feathers, not saying that the
you know the explosiveness of the situation was justified, but
(24:15):
you know you're going to kind of like pee people
off a little bit. But you do seem to be
accepting of whatever consequences, you know, whatever valid consequences come
with that, And you're like, hey, this is the game
I'm playing, Like you can play it too. We all
have the freedom to move in whatever way we feel
works best for our relationship with.
Speaker 2 (24:35):
Grant exactly, and as I said it, it's all spirit,
love and more. And then if we had all talked
about this, like hey, tonight, we're all going to talk
to him one time and we agree to that and
then I go steal him five times, then then I'm
doing something wrong. But if we've not said that, like
we didn't say it, don't take another date, Like it
(24:56):
is all fair like, and I'm I'm so not going
to operate in a way that's not authentic to me,
Like I do bold things throughout my life, Like that
is who I am. It's who I'm always going to be.
It's not to it's not bold because I need attention,
and it's not bold because I'm insecure. It's just bold
because I like to do things a little bit different
(25:18):
that like, you know, that's just the way I work,
And you're allowed to do whatever you want to do.
But you know, we'll see.
Speaker 1 (25:27):
Yeah, let's pivot to like the positive the positives of
you stealing him, and take us to that conversation on
the rooftop of how that went and if it went well.
Speaker 3 (25:39):
Yeah, we don't see much of what you guys actually
talk about. Yes, what was the interaction, Like, how do
you feel like your gesture was received by Grant?
Speaker 2 (25:48):
Yeah? And Grant really liked it, like he was appreciative.
He's like, I see you like I see you trying
to step out. And the other reason I really did
it too was because I'm a really shy per so
naturally and it's something that I've worked over time, and
I feel like in this environment and in these last
few seasons where we have seen people there very very
(26:09):
clearly not for the lead, Like I wanted it to
be known to him that I'm trying to get to
know you. I don't want to just show up and
like ghost episode like week to week, like make it through,
Like I genuinely want to see if we have a connection,
because I don't want to be taking up any extra
time if I'm not supposed to be here. And so
(26:32):
that conversation was important to me, as I said, because
I only had like two minutes with him on Night
one to see, like what is our actual vibe? And
we actually had a like cute little conversation about just
like general things like food and travel and like what
our type is normally, and like what we're looking for
on the rooftop. Like he had asked me about some
(26:52):
about my previous relationships, and I got to tell him, like,
you know, my last partner was like very much gas lit,
narcissistic and like made me feel really insecure, and I'm
not looking for that again. And it was like a
cute little moment. And so I was grateful that I
got to do it because my time's valuable, his time's valuable,
(27:14):
and yeah, it was just it was meant to be that.
It wasn't meant to do anything else.
Speaker 1 (27:20):
What when we go to the night portion and then
we see you and Li Joe kind of go back
and forth when you are when you both were taking
your time with Grant. That usually is always a rough
situation to be in because it usually never works out
for either party. How was Grant taking it?
Speaker 2 (27:42):
You know, I think Grant it was a nice man.
He I don't think he minded like minded as much
as like he could have like been like why is
this already happening on night one? I think he was
very much just like understood that it was a very
aggressive day of basketball that was competitive to you know
now the night portion, and like there was so many
(28:05):
women all competing for the time during the cocktail party,
Like it's how rare is it that ten women are
all at one cocktail party and we don't know how
much time any of us have with him, And so
I think that was really nerve wracking for all of us.
And I think he was just very like understanding of it.
(28:25):
I know he saw like her storm out, which is
the only reason I said anything, because it's not like
I'm like, was it just trying to bring anything up
to him, to bring some up to him, Like we
were in the same room, and she like said something
nasty and then like stormed off in front of him,
and like he saw that, Like did she say at
this point? I forgot? But that's when I was like,
(28:49):
oh no, like I'm about to walk into that lionstand.
But the thing wasn't. Again, I had the opportunity to
steal him from her, or steal him from her quicker,
and I literally like looked at a watch and was like, no, no,
like five more minutes. I'll give her five more minutes.
Like I just wanted to end the night with him
on a good note because I knew there were so
many targets on my back and like again, I don't
(29:11):
know how I'm being perceived by him as being too
aggressive or true dramatic or problematic, and I just really
wanted to end on like a high note. And that
was it. I just wanted to say good night and
like see you hopefully next week, but yeah, just turn
into this whole thing. And then I think he walked
into us screaming and crying at each other to hand
(29:32):
out the group date rose. So he was tryingly, what
did I get myself into?
Speaker 3 (29:37):
Well, you know it's weak too, He's got a lot
of time to keep feeling like that. He's the vachelor.
Speaker 2 (29:42):
He got himself into a lot exactly.
Speaker 1 (29:46):
So so you get so you end up getting a rose? Yes,
where what's your headspace after you receive the rose? Now
you have it seems like you have a lot of
enemies in the how but Grant is clearly giving you validation.
You gotta rose and he seems to be into you.
(30:06):
So yeah, like like looking forward, what's going on?
Speaker 2 (30:11):
Yeah, I think at that point because there was like
it's so much on you at one time when like
you do get involved in any drama because as I said,
like you're not like me personally, and I'm sure like
some people they love drama, they want to like be
in these fights. I'm like, I don't want that. Like
(30:32):
I'm here for love, I'm here for a husband. I
want Grant to know me and I want to know him,
but I'm also not here to apologize and to not
be myself. And so it was just very much like
I just hope that this drama is over, Like I
don't understand I didn't understan where the girls were holding
a grudge. They were still saying little comments during the
(30:53):
rose ceremony to me about me, Like it was just
so like stranged. I was like, are we really like
doing this right now? Like it's we're moving on, We're
past this week because you know, some people didn't make it,
and yeah, so I was like, I really just wanted
to stay out of the drama coming up. I wanted
to see if granted actually a connection, you know. I
(31:15):
was really hopeful that he saw that I was trying
so hard and that hopefully next week I get one
on one. Like those were like all the things that
I was hoping for too, since it was such a
tough time. I was hoping that like I'll have time
to like for him to see me and not me
trying to compete with many women. But yeah, I just.
Speaker 3 (31:38):
Moving excited. Yeah, but probably a little bit.
Speaker 2 (31:44):
It's nervous, it is. It was, yeah, just all of it.
And like as I said, I hadn't been like in
an environment like that since I lived with my parents
from like years ago. So it was like a very
strange situation to kind of feel like you were back
in that environment as a grown adult. That was just
really triggering for me.
Speaker 3 (32:05):
Yeah, what were your goals and intentions moving into week three?
Were you feeling like you wanted to continue with the
strategy that you had been moving with, or were you like,
I think I'm gonna pull back. What were your kind
of goals moving forward with how you wanted to navigate everything.
Speaker 2 (32:27):
Yeah, I think my approach was like at that point
I had made in my mind like that's all I wanted.
I was like, I just want him to see me,
to hear me, to like hopefully get some sort of
connection going. And I think we did, and like that
was it. Like I'm not I don't need a bunch
of time. I'm not trying to like constantly step on
toes like and so for week three, I'm like, whatever
(32:47):
comes my way, if it makes sense to steal him,
if I get the one on one, like hopefully like
I can utilize that and like tell him more about
myself and like get to know him more. But by
that point I was just so emotionally drained. Even though
it was like the first week, the second week that
I was just like I don't want to do anything
that is going to put any more targets on the
(33:11):
back because like, I genuinely don't want that and I
can't really handle it.
Speaker 1 (33:14):
Yeah, yeah, that makes sense. Okay, we're going to play
a game with you so people get to know you
a little better before we do. If you were to
tease next week with one word without spoiling it, what
would it be?
Speaker 2 (33:31):
Oh? Shark pink?
Speaker 1 (33:36):
Oh nice?
Speaker 3 (33:38):
Okay, that's a first surprising.
Speaker 2 (33:43):
I like it. I like it.
Speaker 1 (33:44):
Okay, we're gonna do rapid fire. Get to know Zoe.
It's just rapid fire, first thing that comes to your mind.
We're gonna ask you some very very easy questions. Okay,
what is your love language when it comes to receiving love?
Speaker 2 (33:58):
Oh? Quality time?
Speaker 1 (34:03):
What is your go to drink at a bar?
Speaker 2 (34:07):
And Martini or NEGRONI?
Speaker 1 (34:11):
Who is someone that inspires you?
Speaker 2 (34:14):
Oh? Okay, I know this is controversial, but Kim Kardashian, like, if.
Speaker 1 (34:20):
You were on a deserted island and could only bring
two girls from your season, Oh, who would you bring?
Speaker 2 (34:28):
Okay? I would have to bring Bailey because she is
like the funniest person I've ever met, and she can
recite every single show that you can think of. And
Dina I love Dina.
Speaker 1 (34:41):
Favorite thing to cook.
Speaker 2 (34:43):
Ooh, I do a good surfing turf. It's a good
date night dish too.
Speaker 1 (34:50):
Gold or silver, jewelry, gold heels or comfy shoes for
a night out heels? Are you an early bird or
a night owl?
Speaker 2 (35:02):
Night owl?
Speaker 1 (35:03):
What is your favorite thing about Grant?
Speaker 2 (35:07):
Oh? Good question. Well, I think he is just was
like very had a protective energy, Like whenever we were together,
just kind of felt very protective.
Speaker 3 (35:17):
So I like that. And last, but not least, if
you could describe Grant season in one word, what would
it be?
Speaker 2 (35:24):
Unpredictable?
Speaker 1 (35:27):
Okay, I like it.
Speaker 3 (35:28):
I feel like the promos are teasing a lot to come,
so we're excited to see how your journey with Grant unfolds.
Thank you so much for coming on, Zoe, Yes, thank.
Speaker 1 (35:38):
You guys, and thank you to all our listeners. And
make sure you stay tuned to Bachelor Happy Hour because
we will be having exclusive interviews with castmates all season long.
Speaker 3 (35:49):
And more recaps to come. Don't forget to tune into
episode three of Grant season of The Bachelor next week
and be sure to subscribe to Bachelor Happy Hour. Thanks
for listening.
Speaker 2 (35:57):
By
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Joe Amabile
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Serena Pitt
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