‘The Bachelor’ Recap: Tyler Cameron, Heather Martin Arrive for Matt James

SPOILER ALERT: Do not read if you have not yet watched the Feb. 8 episode of “The Bachelor.”

Last week’s episode of “The Bachelor” ended after Matt James invited Jessenia Cruz and MJ Snyder for a two-on-one date before the rose ceremony. They bickered before he arrived, including MJ blaming Jessenia for questioning her character while simultaneously calling her names like “little bitch.” But after Matt’s arrival and a conversation with each of them, Matt sent MJ home and gave Jessenia the rose.

Matt decided to skip the cocktail party and go straight to the rose ceremony, where he also eliminated Brittany Galvin, Ryan Claytor and Magi Tareke.

The remaining eleven women split their week between two one-on-ones and a group date — the first date going to Pieper James.

Before Pieper could leave for her date, Serena Chew confronted Katie Thurston. Katie had originally been the one to inform Matt about the toxicity between the contestants ¬– which inevitably led to the elimination of Victoria Larson, Anna Redman and most recently, MJ. Serena C. blamed Katie for losing time with Matt, citing that her bringing up drama took time away from other conversations.

The exchange got heated and turned into a screaming match that reverberated around the house. Katie defended her actions, saying, “I’m not going sit here and let shit happen in this house. I’m not going to sit here and let mean girls be mean girls in this house,” while Serena C. continued to accuse her of not being “here for Matt.”

After Katie stormed out of their conversation, Serena C. went to the other girls and tried to rally them against Katie. However, Katie arrived and defended herself, and the other women questioned why Serena C. was so unnecessarily upset.

After they had resolved the drama, drama rolled up in a van as former Bachelor contestant Heather Martin arrived at the front gates of the Nemacolin Resort. Heather,  who was the notorious contestant that had never been kissed on Colton Underwood’s season of “The Bachelor,” arrived to try her shot at love with Matt. In a plea to host Chris Harrison, she explained that her best friend and former Bachelorette Hannah Brown had said they’d be a great match, so Heather decided to interrupt his season for a chance at love. Chris said he had to run it up the chain of command, and sent Heather on her way.

Meanwhile, Pieper and Matt headed to their one-on-one. The two spent the evening playing games and riding rides at a pop-up carnival. They were friendly and flirty before their emotional dinner conversation about vulnerability and love languages. Matt gave Pieper the rose after she told him that she was falling in love with him. They ended the evening with a performance by Temecula Road.

The group date included Bri Springs, Kit Keenan, Rachael Kirkconnell, Michelle Young, Jessenia, Serena Pitt, Abigail Heringer, Chelsea Vaughn and Serena C. The nine went bowling and were divided into teams — with the winner being rewarded with an after-date cocktail party, the losers having to leave the date. The pink team ended up victorious, sending Michelle, Serena P., Jessenia and Chelsea to the night portion.

After the losers were sent home, upset about the missed opportunity of course, Harrison reemerged with another date card, summoning them back to the cocktail party. The winners were disappointed by their arrival, but it didn’t change the outcome of the rose allocation, as Michelle was given security for another week.

In addition to Heather’s unexpected arrival, another familiar face to Bachelor Nation arrived: Matt’s best friend and former Bachelorette contestant, Tyler Cameron. The two caught up with each other over a game of pool before Matt left for his date with Katie.

When Katie arrived, Matt informed her that their date would be at the spa, but would actually consist of pranking his best friend while he received a massage. Matt and Katie were hidden away with a microphone, trolling Tyler throughout the session.

Matt kept talking about how playful their date was, but when it came to hand out the rose, he wasn’t ready. He said his relationship had progressed further with other women, and he sent Katie home.

The next night during the cocktail party, Heather arrived after her week of quarantine. Heather walked past the women to immediately interrupted Matt’s conversation with Pieper. He recognized her and laughed, and the episode as they started their conversation.

“The Bachelor” airs Mondays at 8 p.m. on ABC.