The Bachelor star Brad Womack eliminated Shawntel Newton and narrowed his love search to three women during last night's broadcast of the ABC reality dating series' fifteenth season.

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Shawntel, a 25-year-old funeral director from Chico, CA, was eliminated during the eighth episode's Rose Ceremony.

"I saw myself marrying Brad. I did. I really did, especially after he met my whole family and my Dad talked to him. I definitely didn't see this coming. I think he's so perfect. I've never really been treated like that in a relationship, and this is how a woman should be treated. I hope I meet someone like him. He treated me like a princess. I'll miss him," Shawntel said following her ouster.

The Bachelor's eighth fifteenth-season episode began with Brad and the remaining four bachelorettes traveling to their hometowns where Brad would be meeting their families while getting to know the bachelorettes better within their elements and comfortable surroundings.

Before starting his week of hometown dates, Brad reiterated how strongly he felt for each of the four women, but simultaneously, he had concerns about each bachelorette. Brad said he needed to see the more calm and collected side of Chantal O'Brien, a 28-year-old executive assistant from Seattle, WA, without her frequent emotional breakdowns, while he said Ashley Hebert, a 26-year-old dentist from Philadelphia, PA, had to stop retracting and putting up a guard up. Brad explained how he constantly felt he had to reassure her of their solid relationships rather than move forward.

Brad said he and Shawntel had to take a bigger step forward although they had been making good progress, while he questioned whether he could fit into Emily's lifestyle with her daughter. Brad also feared Emily Maynard, a 24-year-old children's hospital event planner from Charlotte, NC, would not be able to fully recover from her tragic past as she sincerely missed her fiance and still carried him with her, forcing Brad to try and fill big shoes.

Brad first traveled to Chantal's hometown in Seattle, WA.

"My parents are great judges of character and this may be the only chance I get to speak with them before I could potentially be engaged to him. So, if they don't feel like he's the right guy for me, I'm going to have to listen to them... It is crucial, absolutely crucial, for my parents to give me the go-ahead today and let me know that they approve me being with Brad," Chantal said in a confessional.

Brad said he loved how he could just enjoy time with Chantal without the worries of the competition, which had taken a toll on her emotions.

"The last time I left Chantal in Anguilla, she seemed rattled, but today I am so glad to see Chantal in her hometown not worrying about anyone else... The Chantal I've seen today is the Chantal I fell for the very first night -- happy, confident secure -- I love to see the old Chantal again, Brad explained.

Chantal and Brad talked about the possibility of moving into a bigger place, as Chantal made it clear her dog and two cats would come along for the ride no matter what. After they spent some time in Chantal's home, she took him to meet her parents.

Brad was intimidated when he entered her family's household, but he quickly broke the ice by laughing with her parents and brother about how Chantal had originally slapped him in the face when she stepped out of the limo, and they shared a good conversation.

"It feels so amazing to finally be with my family and I'm just feeling truly and completely me. I am just myself with him... I'm a little nervous because I know I gotta tell Dad I'm in love with the guy, and I knew that going into today's date that if I didn't have my Dad's approval, there would be no Brad and I," Chantal said.  

Brad said her family was very welcoming although it was still a bit awkward and nerve-racking to meet and talk with Chantal's father, and then Chantal and Brad both had private conversations with her father.

After Brad and her father discussed their pasts and how they worked their way from the ground up, Brad realized how much they truly had in common because they also hadn't spoken to their fathers in years. Brad was pleased and surprised to know how well they would probably get along with each other.

Brad asked her father whether Chantal was ready to settle down and he assured him she was more than ready, while Chantal talked with her mother about how scary it was that she was falling so strongly in love again. Her mother told Chantal to trust her heart and she'll know if it's right for her.

"I've totally put myself out there with him and there's a good chance I'm going to get hurt in the end... honestly, I haven't felt this since before when I was with the person I was married to. It's weird because I have those feelings again. I was scared that I wouldn't, but it's scary... It's weird to have these feelings again that I love this person," Chantal told her mother.

After Brad got to know Chantal's family, he told her father his intentions were true and it was apparent he won them over.

"We may not see you for a long time or we may not see you ever again, but I would say if you and Chantal have an opportunity to get married, we would definitely give you our total blessing," Chantal's father told Brad.

Brad appreciated his approval and Chantal's father said Brad was respectful, totally sincere, and he was a great man.

"I'd be proud to have him as my son in law," he noted.

Chantal was thrilled Brad and her family hit it off so well and felt it was okay to plunge even deeper into their relationship.

"I am in love with Brad and having Brad meet me family and having them approve just basically confirms it for me. I just feel like not only do I want to marry him, I also know that now I could marry Brad," Chantal explained.

Brad traveled to Madawaska, ME, to visit Ashley next.

Ashley first took Brad to a restaurant she used to work at and they shared a classic dish consisting of french fries covered in cheese and gravy. Ashley was obviously so perky and excited to share her life and history with Brad.

"I am so confident in whatever it is that we have. I don't question it. I look forward to seeing you. I just want to move forward. But I do wonder, because every single time I see you, it seems like you use that damn term 'disconnected,'" Brad told Ashley.

"I know. I'm always going to be honest about things and I'm not going to repress anything. If that's the way I feel -- I think you know I'm kind of an open book. I tell you what's on my mind good or bad," Ashley replied.

They then both promised they were done reassuring each other about their feelings for one another because it was an obvious waste of time and unnecessary at that point in their relationship. Brad then told her he wanted to meet her family so badly and hoped they would be as warm as she was. 

"I'm feeling great that Brad and I are thousands of miles away from all the other girls. It makes me feel really secure. I feel like I'm on my way to falling in love with Brad," Ashley said.

Meanwhile, Brad had similar feelings and loved spending time with Ashley when she had nothing to be jealous of or no one to have to compare herself to.

"Life is fun with Ashley. I've never seen her this happy and energetic. I see a brand new woman," Brad said.

Ashley claimed that if her family had reservations about Brad, she would take a step back. However, Brad said he immediately felt like he fit in with Ashley's family and loved seeing her so excited. He believed it was refreshing and he admitted her smile was infectious when he first met her. Ashley's parents said they could see that Brad really liked Ashley and wanted her to be happy but accomplish her dentistry goals at the same time.

The family shared a lobster dinner and then Ashley's father discussed with Brad how she needs to finish school and has a great future, which began to worry Brad.

"I'm beginning to wonder if I'm going to hold Ashley back a little bit. Can I keep up with Ashley? I don't know. I'd like to think we could go to life together, but I need to think this out -- Will a proposal scare Ashley?" Brad questioned.

But then Ashley's sister assured Brad that Ashley has a "rich life" but also wanted to share it with someone who had a rich life. She said Ashley is almost done school and ready to start her life, and Brad was so thankful he learned that about her.

Ashley's mother then to her "if he's the one, he's the one," and Ashley said she was feeling the best she ever felt about Brad, considering that they were truly meant to be.

"I don't want to leave... Ashley is the type of woman that I can see myself with and I'm so happy to say that," Brad said while leaving her house.

Brad's next stop was Chico, CA, where he went to meet Shawntel's family.

"I think it's going to be a little different for Brad coming to my hometown and then immediately coming to the funeral home... People are scared of death, so I want him to come in here not being afraid of death and seeing that this is life, and I put life into that when I meet with family. This is really going to be the final test for Brad and I's relationship. Might as well find out now if he's comfortable with this," Shawntel said.

Shawntel showed Brad around the funeral home and got him up close and personal with some of the utensils.

"I've been thinking that if Shawntel and I get married, these are going to be our conversations. They're going to be centered around death. I've been asking myself all day, 'Can I handle this?'" Brad asked himself.

Brad admitted he started to "freak out a little," but he was also fascinated and impressed by Shawntel's character. She told him she has to talk to the families who are planning the funerals, and explained that they can be happy and sad, but she has a way of working with them and making them feel at ease and comfortable.

"I'm going to tell you, I don't handle death well. I don't. I don't handle saying 'goodbye' to people well," Brad said.

But Shawntel said she thought Brad handled the tour of the funeral home very well and seemed to appreciate what she does on a normal daily basis.

"Brad did so well. Him, just being able to go in the funeral home, oh my gosh that was like, 'Alright, let's just get married!" Shawntel said.

"I told Brad that I'm falling in love with him, but it's almost like I need that validation from my family before I would tell him that I love him," Shawntel explained.

During dinner, Shawntel's Dad began to discuss how he has always planned for his daughter to take over the funeral home business, and then it got eerily quiet because if Shawntel was to end up with Brad, she seemingly had every intention to move to Austin, TX, with him. 

A little upset by the news, Shawntel's Dad then spoke to her about how her involvement with the community has a huge impact on her ability to take over the business, and that his goals for the succession of the business would be ruined if she decided to live a life with Brad.

Shawntel told her father she and Brad complement each other very well and if he was to get on one knee and propose, she felt everything would work out.

"Now are plans would be just kind of destroyed, because you're making a huge turn here," Shawntel's father told her.

"I took a leap of faith doing this and look where it has led me, and I've been falling in love with him. He's so great, but yes there's a huge thing too where he wants to be in Austin and I have everyone here in Chico. You guys just need to know that it's okay. You fall in love with someone and you just don't know what could happen. You really don't," Shawntel told him.

Shawntel then said she could see herself marrying Brad but would need her whole family beside her in order to move forward because they are so important to her.

"I know I haven't known you that long, but we really trust her, her life experiences, her being herself -- being real, being honest -- Brad, if it's meant to be for both of you to spend the rest of your lives together, you have our blessings. She is falling in love with you and we want happiness for both of you. That's from our hearts," Shawntel's Dad told Brad.

Upon Brad leaving Shawntel's house, Shawntel then told him her family loved him and shared some big news.

"I'll tell you that I'm in love, and I just want you to know," Shawntel told him.

"With Brad, I'm feeling a love that I never knew really existed. It's already feeling this good. It can only get better. This is my future. Just to tell him that I'm in love with him felt so good. I'm really hoping that he chooses me in the end," Shawntel said afterward in a confessional.

Brad then traveled to Charlotte, NC, to visit Emily and meet her daughter Ricki.

"It's my job to protect her. If I end up being the girl that Brad gets engaged to at the end of this, I wouldn't feel right about it, because Ricki has to got to put her stamp of approval on everybody," Emily said.

Emily then told her daughter that she made a new friend in preparation for her to meet Brad. 

"I'm rock solid where I stand with Emily where our feelings are, and if this works out, I could be little Ricki's stepfather. Yeah, I'm nervous," Brad said.

Emily was just as nervous if not more so that Brad and her daughter may not get along as well as she had hoped.

"If Brad and Ricki don't mesh, it would be just like Brad and I not meshing," Emily noted.

Ricki was very shy and wouldn't even make eye contact with Brad, but Brad gave her a butterfly kite and explained that he doesn't want to force her into liking him. He wanted Ricki to open up on her own time and he was willing to wait. After the initial awkward meeting, Brad then began to make Ricki feel comfortable.

"I love the fact that little Ricki is in Emily's life. I would welcome and cherish the opportunity to be a father figure to little Ricki," Brad said.

Emily then noted how perfect the day was and how everything seemed to go very well.

"Brad is definitely somebody that I would like to have in my daughter's life," she said.

After playing board games and enjoying time together, Brad said it was the "perfect image" of what he'd like his life to be. He wanted a family and choosing Emily would give him a family right away. Emily and Brad then put Ricki to bed together, but then Brad got awkward because he didn't want to be intimate with Ricki upstairs and sleeping.

Emily wanted to kiss Brad very badly because she said she finally felt like he was all hers, but Brad had reserves and was questioning how to act in the given situation.

"I want so badly to be affectionate with you okay, to show you how I care. I just met your daughter, she's sleeping upstairs -- I want to kiss you, but I'm just not. I care enough about letting you know how much I respect you and your daughter. I want to leave, I want to hug you and not let go. I want to hug you, tell you goodbye and that I'll be thinking about you, and hope that means I care so much more than a kiss," Brad told Emily.

However, Emily was obviously not buying it and just wanted to kiss Brad. She said Ricki would always be sleeping upstairs and it would be something he would have to get used to if they were going to be together down the road.

It got weird between them and Emily grew disappointed, but she kissed Brad outside the door and comforted him that it was okay.

"My God, kissing this woman is so perfect," Brad said.

And Emily was certainly reciprocating those strong feelings for him.

"I am definitely ready for Brad to change my life forever," Emily said.

After the hometown dates were over, Brad met with The Bachelor host Chris Harrison in New York to discuss the time he had with each bachelorette. Brad said he could fit into Ashley's family and life the best, but Chris explained that Ashley was one of the only woman who had also yet to tell Brad she loved him. However, Brad told Chris he was basing his decisions on how he feels and would wait to find out if the feelings felt the same later.

The Bachelor's eighth Rose Ceremony then commenced and Ashley, Emily and Chantal received roses.

Brad then walked Shawntel out and told her he didn't feel how he should feel when she told him she loved him. Shawntel said he set the bar for her in terms of what to look for in a man and now knows what she deserves. She then recognized how much respect she had for Brad and wished him all the happiness in the world.
About The Author: Elizabeth Kwiatkowski

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