Did Tarzan find his Jane? Not quite. Jill Chin and Jacob Rapini’s relationship on Bachelor in Paradise was rocky, but the two members of Bachelor Nation were able to (briefly) connect off screen.
Chin and Rapini both arrived on week 1 of the 2022 season but didn’t connect until episode five. Following a successful outing and rose ceremony, they faced their first hurdle when host Jesse Palmer announced that the female contestants would be spending a week at a different resort as new contestants arrived at their respective locations. “Split Week” ultimately ended up being their demise in Mexico as Rapini connected with Kate Gallivan.
While his romance with Gallivan didn’t last long, Chin quit the series before he could give things with the architectural historian another chance. The Bachelorette season 19 alum told Us Weekly in October 2022 that he had regrets about how everything went down.
“Obviously, at that point, Kate and I were no longer, and I was perfectly fine with that. I wish I had tried to pursue us as just a couple. Getting engaged at the end, probably not, but us as an actual relationship where we could be, you know, just talking and having fun with each other like we were before. I kind of do wish that [we] continued things,” he explained. “What I did there was I said, ‘OK, look, I don’t want to lead you on anymore. I want you to see if you can find your soulmate here.’ I didn’t want her to leave right away. I didn’t think she would leave right away. But after what happened with her and Romeo and then having a relationship with her and I, Jill just said, ‘You know what? Enough is enough. I gotta go.’ I still wish I had just said, ‘Let’s just see what you and I have.’”
After wrapping the show during summer 2022, the twosome reconnected and clued fans in during the reunion, which aired that November.
“We just started talking. We talked on the phone every other day, like, outside of Paradise,” Rapini told Us after the taping. “It’s fun. … We said to ourselves, no pressure whatsoever, but we’re open to having a relationship.”
Chin, for her part, told Us that they are working on their communication.
“We are exploring it. I think it’s really in its infancy right now, so we just have to see. We have to explore more. We have to have more conversations, go on dates, spend some quality time together and then decide from there. But so far, things are good,” she said. “I think [our next step is] communicating our needs and our feelings. Getting to know him on a deeper level. On the beach, I didn’t get to know him terribly deeply, but even last night, we had such a great conversation. I just think spending more time together. We’re gonna have to do a couple trips, so I think a couple trips are in the future for sure. And then we’ll see what happens from there.”
Scroll through for Chin and Rapini’s timeline: