Michelle Money is addressing speculation about Clare Crawley's Bachelorette season.
As E! News revealed, Tayshia Adams will replace Clare on the ABC dating series after the 39-year-old fell in love with one of her suitors just weeks into filming. Though there is speculation Clare began communicating with him ahead of the show, her friend Michelle is setting the record straight
In a series of videos posted to her Instagram Story, Michelle—who fans first met on season 15 of The Bachelor—said that Clare "never spoke" to the contestant she fell for prior to filming. "That is 1,000 percent factual information," Michelle claimed. "Never happened, fake news."
While Michelle did say that Clare was "impressed" by his social media, she reiterated that Clare "never DM'd, never texted, never talked."
Michelle went on to praise her friend, saying that if the rumors surrounding Clare's departure from the show are true she's "never been more proud." As she explained, "Can I just get a 'hell ya' on how much self-respect and respect for the other men it takes to stop production, stop the whole process of amazing, romantic dates with numerous guys. Including the guy she 'fell in love with,' we don't know for sure. That says so much about Clare."
So, how will the new season play out now that Clare has found love? "The producers have told her that the season will still lead with Clare and her short-lived journey, and will show Clare falling in love with one of her suitors," a source told E! News. "Clare will then conclude her journey and announce that Tayshia is the lead."
As for how Clare fell for one contestant so early on in the season, a second insider told E! News, "Everyone is under the impression they began communicating before filming. He got her first impression rose and that was basically that."
The source added, "She did not want to go through the motions of pretending to be interested in other men. She was done."
ABC has not commented on Bachelorette reports.