‘The Bachelor’ Season 28, Episode 9 Recap: Who Went Home After Fantasy Suites? And Who Wrote The Note?

The Bachelor Season 28 is down to its final few episodes, and this week Joey Graziadei and his three remaining women headed to Tulum, Mexico for Fantasy Suite Week.

After Rachel Nance, Kelsey Anderson, and Daisy Kent had much-needed check-ins with familiar Golden Bachelor faces, the women embarked on crucial one-on-one dates, had emotional but essential conversations, and took their relationships with Joey to the next level.

Joey began the week battling the nagging fear that he would let his guard down only to be rejected again, like he was by Charity Lawson on The Bachelorette. “I know I have the best intentions. I know I’ve been honest through all this. I know I have a good heart, and I have so much to give,” he told the camera. “I just really want someone to want that from me, and I want it to be reciprocated.”

Ultimately, his three one-on-one dates were smashing successes that left him confident all three women couldn’t imagine life without him. “I have zero doubts that one of these women is going to make me the happiest man in the world,” he said. “So all my fears [and] my concerns just kind of disappeared.” Sadly, that clarity was fleeting. From an unexpected trip to the hospital to a mysterious “We need to talk” note left in Joey’s door, Fantasy Suite Week wasn’t without its drama. A confusing cliffhanger left Joey and viewers questioning everything, so as we anxiously await the next episode, let’s break down the biggest moments from overnights.

Wondering how Fantasy Suite Week went for Joey, Rachel, Daisy, and Kelsey? Curious who went home after overnight dates? And who wrote the note that left Joey in tears? Decider’s Fantasy Suite recap has all the answers.

Here’s everything you missed during The Bachelor Season 28, Episode 9.

Rachel and Joey’s Fantasy Suite Date Recap: A Jaw-Dropping Twist

After telling Joey she was falling for him during Hometown Week, Rachel kicked off Fantasy Suite Week by sharing concerns that she opened up too late. Joey acknowledged that Rachel wasn’t as emotionally available as the other women, but also said she brings out a different side of him and he was hopeful to see where they went.

Ahead of their date, Rachel met with The Golden Bachelor‘s Susan Noles, who explained there’s no way franchise host Jesse Palmer could sit with these women and talk through there relationships this week. “You need a real woman with experience,” she said. Hear, hear! “Think of me as your mom — your best friend, right now. I’m in your corner,” she said. Rachel recapped her time spent with Joey, sharing she has no doubts she’s in love with him. She revealed that her last two big relationships both ended because her partners cheated on her, so the fact that Joey was still dating other women was triggering. Susan encouraged Rachel to tell Joey she loves him, be vulnerable, and not let her fears get in the way. “What I learned about myself from this show is I am the prize. I am what a man needs. You have to love yourself before you can love anyone else,” Susan said. “I’m 66 years old and everybody has self doubt and self esteem issues. We all feel insecure sometimes, but you don’t deserve treatment like that ever. No matter who it is.”

Joey took Rachel to an underwater cave with diving platforms with a fun day planned, but the date quickly derailed when Rachel’s face hit the water, resulting in excruciating jaw pain. She and Joey went to the hospital with cameras by their side and Rachel received X-rays of her neck and jaw before learning everything looked good. The two tried to bounce back and salvage the day, but Rachel struggled to shake the feeling that they lost crucial time together. Later that night, Rachel told Joey she was upset the whole day changed after her accident, and he assured her she did nothing wrong. She expressed her concerns over the other women and shared her past experiences with infidelity. Joey was incredibly receptive and comforting, hugging her as she cried on his shoulder. After their heavy chat, Rachel said yes to the Fantasy Suite card, the lights went out, and we got an adorable wakeup shot of the two in bed together the next morning. The consensus? “Last night was perfect.” Rachel was visibly more confident in their connection after waking up, and Joey assured her he appreciated her vulnerability.

Kelsey And Joey’s Fantasy Suite Date Recap: Butterflies In Tulum

Kelsey kicked off the week in good spirits eager to tell Joey she was in love with him, but before their date she met up with The Golden Bachelor runner-up Leslie Fhima and her mood changed a bit. “You and I are in the same club,” Leslie told Kelsey. “I lost my mom when I was 24 — that really impacted my whole dating life.” Kelsey opened up about the symbolic butterflies that have followed her throughout her time on the show and Leslie told her that her mom would be very proud of her . Before Leslie left, she gave Kelsey a warning from firsthand experience. “I went into my last day confident because of the things we talked about and the things he said to me,” Leslie said about her journey with Gerry Turner. “And I didn’t get chosen, and that was hard. I wish I wouldn’t have felt so confident, because then I was devastated. Very, very sad, cause I was really in love with him. And I would not wish that on my worst enemy — that feeling I had where I was confident and that was it.” She advised Kelsey to always have the reality that it might not be her and Joey in the back of her head, but also encouraged her to be hopeful.

Joey and Kelsey spent the day on a boat chatting about what life together could look like, swimming, and smooching. The two met up for dinner where Kelsey opened up about her chat with Leslie. Joey shared that with Charity, he thought she would choose him 100%, so he still struggles to be completely open for fear his dream will get taken away again. Despite the fear of heartbreak, Kelsey told Joey she loves him and he assured her he was falling for her as well. “I feel like I’m on top of the world right now,” Kelsey said before accepting the Fantasy Suite invite. “When I look into Kelsey’s eyes I feel like I can really see my future,” Joey said. “I can picture it and it’s really exciting.” After a nighttime dip in the pool, the two spent the night together and we checked back in the next morning. Positively glowing, Kelsey and Joey made breakfast together (this may have been Joey’s first time cracking an egg) and shared a rom-com worthy countertop kiss. Joey said “see you soon,” which would have been cuter if he didn’t say it to EVERY girl.

Daisy And Joey’s Fantasy Suite Date Recap: Giving It Some Oomph

Last but not least, Daisy prepared for her Fantasy Suite date with Joey by fantasizing about having a ring of her finger. She talked through her feelings with The Golden Bachelor‘s Sandra Mason, who encouraged her to stay positive and try to forget about the other women. “It’s not even competition with them. It’s the relationship you develop with him and him alone, so don’t even focus on them,” Sandra said. “Just be open and don’t be afraid to talk with Joey about expectations, what’s in your head, [your] feelings.” Because she’s a little spicy, Sandra also advised Daisy to “give it some oomph.”

Before Daisy and Joey hopped on a quad and explored Tulum’s terrain, they sat down to chat and each made it clear they were smitten with each other. “I’ve never been so sure of someone in my life. I’m so intrigued by him, too. I am in love with him,” Daisy told cameras. “When I’m with Daisy there’s nothing else I can think about,” Joey added. After washing the mud off from their wild ride with a steamy shower, the two met for dinner and got extremely vulnerable about fears and past relationships. Daisy said her last partner wasn’t emotionally available, which is why she appreciates Joey so much but struggles to feel safe.

Joey told Daisy it’s taken time for him to get to such an understanding place in life. He referenced a past relationship in Hawaii that led him to question if he was a good person, saying, “I didn’t make her feel as special as she wanted to feel. I got lost in it and I lost my confidence in being a good person — a good boyfriend. I took a lot of steps back. I started to question if I was ever enough, if someone would ever choose me. I have this feeling deep inside if I ever truly show myself, every part of me, people won’t fall in love with me or won’t see me as something that great…I have insecurities in this that someone falls in love with the idea of Joey as The Bachelor instead of Joey the person.”

Daisy got emotional, then Joey set the Hometown Week record straight. In case you forgot, after Joey met Daisy’s family she told him she was falling in love with him and he said he felt the same way. He apologized for that “word vomit” and said, “I am falling in love with you, and it has been building for a while.” Daisy predictably accepted the Fantasy Suite invite, and the two woke up next to each other “really happy.” Daisy told cameras “I feel like nothing will bring me down,” and Joey said if he proposed to Daisy he thought she’d say yes.

“We Need To Talk”: Who Goes Home After Fantasy Suites? And Who Wrote Joey A Note?

Joey’s Fantasy Suite Week was a whirlwind, but coming off his final date his spirits were high —until he found the mysterious “We need to talk” note in his hotel door. Who wrote the note? In a last-minute twist, Kelsey told cameras she couldn’t stop thinking about her conversation with Leslie and didn’t know if Joey potentially breaking up with her was something she could handle. “There’s something I need to talk about with Joey. I think it’s important because I made a promise to myself and a promise to him that whenever there is something that comes up in my mind that I need to share it with him,” she explained.

“This is a conversation that needs to be had before the rose ceremony. It is more pressing now than later,” she said. “I don’t want to blindside Joey ever. I want to be honest and I want to be able to tell him everything that’s on my mind. I would rather leave now than have my heart completely broken.” When Joey received the note he broke down, saying, “I don’t understand what this is. I don’t understand it. I’m confused…Usually when someone writes ‘We need to talk’ it’s scary and you think something went wrong, and I don’t understand what could have went wrong because I haven’t said anything to her.” Joey said the thought of Kelsey leaving early would derail everything. “I don’t want her to leave, I want her to be here. I want her to want to be here,” he added.

So who went home after Fantasy Suite Week? To be continued… Yep, Bachelor Nation watched a painful cliffhanger that will pick back up next week ahead of the “Women Tell All” special. You won’t want to miss Kelsey and Joey’s big talk, or the return of Season 28 fan-favorite contestants including Lexi, Maria, and more.