The Bachelor has seen Season 27 unfold in a much more mild-mannered way void of some of the usual nonsense that occurs. With Zach Shallcross, there’s been less drama among the group and more of a focus on individual moments. There are always going to be a few women who begin to get inside their heads and start to panic. Outside of that, it’s been as smooth sailing of a season as the ABC program has seen. Because of that, there has been a pretty tough-to-read competition going on for Zach’s heart. Up until Monday’s episode, which featured the staple hometown visits, there really wasn’t a clear-cut frontrunner. That uncertainty cleared up quite a bit after the interaction Zach had while visiting with Kaity Biggar. It was an interaction he had with her mother that may have tipped his hand to where his heart lies.

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'The Bachelor's Hometown Episode Sees Zach Open Up to Kaity’s Mom

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Image via ABC

On his fourth and final hometown visit after previously visiting with Gabi Elnicki, Ariel Frenkel, and Charity Lawson, Zach headed to his current residence, Austin, Texas, where he met up with Kaity. Right off the bat, it’s clear there’s something special between these two. While it’s not the easiest to read where Zach’s head has been at this season, the most obvious sign that Kaity was high on the radar occurred on their first date. That was when the two got to hang out all alone at a museum and even stayed together in a tent, which was something typically not seen outside the Fantasy Suites that occur at the end. Taking that into account and that he and Kaity already live in the same city, Kaity clearly has an advantage over the other three contestants.

Yet, there still was something with the other three girls, namely Ariel and Gabi, that kept viewers guessing. All of this came to an end when he sat down to talk with Kaity’s mother, Anne. Prior to this, The Bachelor producers did a good job of showing how much Kaity emphasized her mother’s importance. We were reminded that the two share a special bond as Kaity was her support when her father left at a young age and her stepfather left later in life. Raising Kaity as a single mother for much of her life, it’s understandable why Anne means so much to her. That’s why Zach’s talk with her was going to be so important and likely why ABC opted to save this hometown visit until the end.

The Question We All Wanted to Know Was Asked by Kaity’s Mom

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Image via ABC

There comes a point in each hometown where someone from the family wants to know the truth. Most times, the show’s lead will talk around the subject as a way to not over-commit and build up the family’s confidence that it will be their daughter being picked. Occasionally, some Bachelors will fall into the trap, sometimes with multiple families, which always ends messy. In Zach’s case, he navigated the waters pretty well through the first three hometowns, but it was clear he approached Kaity’s visit differently.

When the two sat down, Kaity's mom Anne posed to Zach, “Do you think you’re falling in love with Kaity?” Instead of avoiding the L word, Zach went and answered it as honestly as he could have without ruining the suspense of the final few episodes. Zach explained that love is an important word and one he doesn’t “just toss around.” He appeared to head one way before telling Anne what she wanted to hear, “I can tell you this. I can see myself falling in love with her.” This moment clearly had a different feel than any of his other conversations with the first three families. Being as honest as he was without explicitly saying the l-word suggests that Kaity truly does have a leg up in the competition. Anne would later go on to tell Kaity that she “100% supports this moving forward.”

There’s only so much the show can do to lay out what is going on inside its Bachelor's head, but this move by Zach really makes it tough to envision him picking Ariel or Gabi (Charity did not receive a rose at the ceremony), barring something unexpected happening at the Fantasy Suites. There’s always a chance, because The Bachelor tends to have a few twists and turns over the final few weeks, but there’s no doubt that Kaity is the leader of the pack after the hometown episode.

The Bachelor airs on Monday nights on ABC.