Getty ImagesThings in Bachelor Nation could be getting hotter than an impromptu hot tub date.
While Colton Underwood's season of The Bachelor began Monday night with a (very, very long) live show premiere, it appears that two of the many co-hosts may be quite smitten with each other. Sadly, we're not talking about Chris Harrison here. Although, if that were to happen, it would be the most dramatic plot twist in Bachelor history.
No, it's two previous mansion dwellers who were brought together by Bachelor Nation.
According to an insider, Jason Tartick and Kaitlyn Bristowe are going on a date this weekend and they're both pretty pumped about it. The source told E! News, "Jason has a crush on Kaitlyn. They met for the first time on her podcast [Off the Vine]."
In fact, he asked her out during today's podcast episode.
"Jason, are you finally going to ask me on a date," Bristowe inquired of her guest.
"You're making me blush over here Kaitlyn," he replied. "I mean if we're both going to be in the same city at the same time I see no reason why we shouldn't go to dinner or grab drinks."
Once the 33-year-old accepted Tartick's invite, he gushed, "My heart is racing over here, my beats per minute are off the chain."
She gave him one fair warning before their get-together: "Don't f--k it up."
Let's hope he arrives with a special date card!
Bristowe competed on Chris Soules' season of The Bachelor and then became The Bachelorette herself in 2015. She got engaged to Shawn Booth at the end of the show and the two moved to Nashville afterwards. They were together for over three years, but broke up in November.
Moments before their split, E! News reported exclusively that they were having some relationship trouble. "It's been a rough couple of months for them and they've been trying to figure out their balance, but it just isn't working," a source shared.
That insider also said there were some "major issues" and that they "barely see or spend time together anymore."
Upon announcing their breakup, Booth and Bristowe told People, "This difficult decision comes after thoughtful, respectful consideration. Even though we are parting as a couple, we're very much committed to remaining friends. We have both evolved as people, which is taking us in different directions, but with the hope that we will continue to support each other in new ways."
The Canadian native opened up about the split on her podcast and called it a "really hard few months."
"To be honest, I thought we would choose the road where we would end up together. I just never took our commitment, or being engaged, lightly at all," she continued while clearly fighting back tears. "Sometimes you need to take a moment and take a step back to think about what you are fighting for and if it make sense for your long-term happiness."
Bristowe said later, "A part of me always felt like I was disappointing people with this breakup and my heart just aches."
Booth also addressed the split in a note on Instagram. "I just want to thank everyone who has been so supportive of my relationship with Kaitlyn over the years. You've made me feel incredibly special, supported, and very loved. So from the bottom of my heart, thank you. It truly means a lot. And thank you to everyone who has sent their love & support during this painful time. I love you guys," he wrote.
Some fellow members of Bachelor Nation, including engaged couple Ashley Iaconetti and Jared Haibon, mourned Booth and Bristowe's relationship. "I think it might be the most heart-wrenching break-up," Haibon told E! News.
Iaconnetti shared similar words. "We're just so sad, we always looked at them as such an ideal couple. We always strived to have their playfulness, it's just really sad," she said.
But in Bachelor Nation, everything happens for a reason, right? There are copious opportunities to meet significant others in Bachelor-verse, including Bachelor in Paradise and others.
After vying for Becca Kufrin's heart and making it to the final three, Tartick went home broken-hearted and a fan favorite to become the next stud to hand out roses. Other possibilities to be the leading man included Kufrin's runner-up Blake Hortsmann as well as Peter Kraus from Rachel Lindsay's season. Perhaps initially disappointed, the New York native supported ABC's decision to have Underwood be the next Bachelor.
"I'm very happy for him and his journey to find happiness. I think he's going to do a great job as the Bachelor," he told E! News in September.
He said later, "This was an opportunity I would've liked to have had simply because I wasn't sure that it would work the first time around but I did find love in a place I really wasn't certain I could."
At the time, Tartick told us he hadn't started dating anyone yet, but he was "willing to start." So it has begun!
As Chris Harrison would say, this is one couple we won't want to miss.