The Bachelor star Grant Ellis has revealed if Dina Lupancu's family not showing up to her hometown date played a role in his decision to send her packing.
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Grant said the news was "disappointing" and "concerning" because he thought meeting Dina's family would grow their connection, and he ended up eliminating Dina in fourth place.
When asked if he denied Dina a rose after hometowns because he couldn't meet her parents, Grant confirmed, "No, it wasn't that," during an interview with Extra.
"I didn't have the ideal situation growing up -- and I'm not saying she didn't -- I'm saying that her family not being there, I could understand. I could understand it," Grant explained.
Grant therefore said he was "willing to work through that" with Dina during her hometown date.
"It wasn't that," Grant reiterated.
"It was just things that I'm looking for in my partner that didn't have anything to do with that aspect."
But Dina pointed out how her family's refusal to meet The Bachelor star clearly affected him.
"He said in his confessional something like, 'It might be a make-or-break situation, given that Dina's family's not buying in,'" Dina recalled of her experience watching The Bachelor on TV during a separate interview with Extra.
"And I was like, 'That's the first time I heard that.' He never told me that it was going to be a 'make-or-break' situation. He never made me feel like it was such a big deal."
Dina explained how she did some "self-reflecting" and wondered what she could have done differently.
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"I'm like, 'What did I do to make him feel like he couldn't tell me that?'" Dina questioned.
Dina said she "clearly" didn't give Grant "a safe space" to express how he was really feeling about her family's absence.
RELATED LINK: 'THE BACHELORETTE' COUPLES NOW: WHOM DID 'THE BACHELORETTE' STARS AND THEIR BACHELOR PICKS ULTIMATELY END UP WITH?! (PHOTOS)
As a result, Dina concluded that her family's decision not to participate in the show absolutely played a role in Grant's decision to let her go after hometowns.
"I think ultimately not having my family there, you know, was a make-or-break," Dina insisted.
"And it ultimately was a break because he didn't get to meet them and my family didn't get to meet him, so how could we move forward with an engagement in two weeks when you don't have that family meeting?"
Dina added that her loved ones couldn't get to know Grant and vice versa.
"And so it made sense that I got sent home," Dina noted. "Obviously it could've changed the ending potentially, but we can't go back to that because we can't undo it."
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Dina said when the topic of hometowns came up, her father was taken aback by how quickly things were moving.
"[My dad said], 'Hold up. Hold the phone. She just left. What do you mean we have to meet Grant? She's going to [potentially] get engaged in two weeks?' That was a no go!" Dina shared.
The 32-year-old attorney said her dad "didn't know there was an engagement" at the end of the show.
"He was like, 'How could a guy go from dating 25 girls in such a short period of time, and make that type of commitment at the end of this?' It just didn't sit well with him," Dina explained.
Dina also said her father wasn't familiar with the dynamics and requirements of the ABC reality dating series.
"He didn't realize that there's a camera the whole time," noted Dina, who doesn't currently belong to her father's church.
"So he thought the show was something it wasn't, and that's my fault for not explaining it."
Dina shared with Parade that her mother, who was also born in Romania, rejected appearing on The Bachelor for a different reason.
"My mom didn't want to be on TV. That was a big one for her," Dina explained.
"She didn't want to expose herself in that way. She's a mother of 11 kids. She went through a lot in life and she's like, 'I don't need to be put through one more [thing].'"
Dina continued, "For her, this would be the biggest hurdle. It's so exposing for yourself and your family, and she was not happy about it. She wants me married, though, so that part, she was like, 'Listen, if you find your man, more power to you.'"
RELATED LINK: 'THE BACHELOR' COUPLES NOW: WHO DID 'THE BACHELOR' STARS AND THEIR BACHELORETTE PICKS ACTUALLY END UP MARRYING? (PHOTOS)
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"I [should] have went back and really stressed and advocated for my family to be there, and talk to them and try to get them to show up for me and not fight about it," Dina said.
Dina apparently wonders if her relationship with Grant would've progressed to Fantasy Suites had he met her family.
Instead, Grant gave roses to Juliana Pasquarosa, Litia Garr and Zoe McGrady.
"Ultimately, I made the decision to not have them come because I didn't want the fighting and me having to convince them, 'Hey, I'm going to get engaged to this guy in two weeks' when I couldn't convince myself at that point," Dina explained.
"And I also didn't want to do that to them when they were at odds with one another."
Even though Dina didn't find lasting love on The Bachelor, she hinted that she's still optimistic about finding her future husband.
Dina said her dad likes setting people up -- and has been successful at it -- and she may be interested in appearing on Bachelor in Paradise's upcoming tenth season.
"Do I think that Grant ultimately was my person? No. That's okay," Dina conceded.
"I have to take everything I learned and make sure I'm open and vulnerable in my next relationship."
RELATED LINK: 'THE BACHELOR' FRANCHISE COUPLES NOW: WHO IS STILL TOGETHER?? (PHOTOS)
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About The Author: Elizabeth Kwiatkowski
