Exclusive Interview
‘Bachelor in Paradise’: Jess Dishes on Spencer Romance & Why She Chose Him Over Sam
Jess Edwards got off to a good start on Season 10 of Bachelor in Paradise. She quickly formed a connection with Spencer Conley, then went on a date with Sam McKinney after he arrived with a date card on Day 2.
In the end, Jess decided to give her rose to Spencer, which meant Sam was sent home. Jess admitted that Sam and Spencer are “two very different people,” and opened up to Swooon about why she ultimately went with her original connection.
“[They’re] both great guys, but I just had such an instant connection and spark with Spencer,” she explained. “I was really trying to be present on the date, but my mind just kept going back to, ‘Oh my gosh, Spencer’s at home, he’s probably wondering what I’m doing. I can’t wait to see him again.’ So I feel like, at the end of the day, if your mind is wondering, then that’s probably where your heart is leaning. It’s like, you want to go and you want to be open, but you can’t deny what is happening.”
Jess said that Spencer was “on [her] radar” before filming even began. “He actually was my number one,” she admitted. “When I was watching Jenn [Tran]’s season [of The Bachelorette], I was like, ‘Oh my God, I love you Jenn, but I really hope you guys aren’t together because what if we both end up in Paradise one day.'”
Disney/Bahareh Ritter
At first, Jess simply found Spencer “super attractive,” and noticed that he “gave off the energy of, like, ‘I am emotionally mature, I have my s**t together.'” Once she met him in person, she was “excited to see what kind of personality he had to backup all of those great things.”
She quickly realized that Spencer was definitely her “type,” adding that he’s “super bubbly and outgoing and, you know, can get along with anyone and just really puts [himself] out there. Meeting him, within seconds, I was like, ‘Oh yeah. Oh yeah.'”
But despite having one of the stronger relationships right away, Jess noted that she and Spencer weren’t tied down. “At this point, I stressed to him, obviously new girls were coming in, so I was like, ‘Just because I gave you my rose last night, or however many days ago, at the last rose ceremony, I don’t want you to think that you can’t talk to anyone. I want you to explore things. I want you to talk to other people so you can come back and be like, ‘I feel stronger for you.’ And if you don’t that’s going to suck, but…’ I wanted him to have as much of an experience as I had.”
We’ll have to wait and see what happens between Jess and Spencer, including whether they make it to the final rose ceremony, where engagement is on the table.
“Before going into Paradise, I absolutely just wanted to see how it felt in the moment,” Jess shared regarding a possible proposal. “I didn’t want to put pressure on, ‘Oh, you need to do this because this is what could happen at the end. I just wanted to see what happens and if I feel like I’m ready for that at the end of it, then I’ll do it, but if not, I’ll just as happy to be in a relationship. At the end of the day, you go to meet people, and I’m not going to do something just for the TV show.”
Bachelor in Paradise continues with back-to-back episodes on Monday, July 14, and Tuesday, July 15.
Bachelor in Paradise, Season 10, Mondays, 8/7c, ABC
