The Bachelorette's Chris Harrison: Next Week's Decision Is Not As Easy As People Think

On this week's episode of The Bachelorette, Emily got not one, but two "I love you's." But just as the remaining men are falling hard, so is Emily — and it only gets tougher.

"We get to the end of hometowns and she realizes, 'Oh, crap. I can't be falling in love with four people when time is running out,'" host Chris Harrison tells TVGuide.com.

Keep reading for more from Harrison about Emily's split decision, Chris' meltdown and Sean's bold (and very hot) move. (For Harrison's thoughts on Arie's past relationship with a producer click here.)

I don't know that viewers — or myself — have ever been so split over a favorite!
Chris Harrison: [Creator]Mike Fleiss even called me and said, "Is it just me or is the buzz exponentially higher than it usually is?" It's never been such a split decision before and it's definitely driving it pretty hard. And Emily is clearly split, so here lies the dilemma moving forward. As you saw in the tease last night, we get to the end of hometowns and she realizes, "Oh, crap. I can't be falling in love with four people when time is running out." I think she thought she'd come into this, see one guy, and that would be it. And the rest of the season [would] kind of sail through, but it's becoming anything but that.

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But she doesn't seem to be falling for Chris, so could the decision be that hard?
Harrison: Next week is not as easy as people think it's going to be. You'll see when we get to deliberation how emotional it is and why.

Speaking of Chris, had he not interrupted the rose ceremony, would John have received the final rose?
Harrison: I think it was always going to Chris. Emily can correct me otherwise, but from our conversations I don't think it mattered. John was beyond confident and I remember sitting with the guys while Chris and Emily left, and John was laughing, cutting jokes and thought Chris was going home.

Could she tell that Chris has become unglued?
Harrison: She doesn't get the full picture. You see Chris melt down, but not really in front of her. She was more upset about Doug and was happy the group date was over and she knew Chris was disappointed. It was awkward as hell, but the fallout really happened post-date in the hotel with the guys. That last group date always sucks because everyone is done with living with each other. They don't want to be with anyone else and they don't want to hang out with other dudes. And these guys get along better than maybe any other group has. They're really tightknit, which makes it tougher.

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This season's "I love you's" came earlier than in past seasons.
Harrison: Jef — I'm going to count as a half "I love you" since it was "I love you" through a marionette. But there was something so innocent and sweet and endearing about it. I just see a maturity level with this group, and because of her story and what the guys know she's looking for, it allows for that to happen sooner. Maybe with the other Bachelorettes, yes, they're there for love, but you don't want to push the envelope too soon. I think with Emily, everyone knew you couldn't push the envelope soon enough. As soon as someone says ["I want babies"], most guys would literally leave skid marks as they run out of there, but if you're there at this point, you've embraced the fact that she's already a mom.

Are the guys getting to "sneak in" more alone time than usual?
Harrison: You go season by season and there are no hard and fast rules about it. This season lent itself to that activity. The guys are so head over heels and they're dying to be with this woman and have a moment with her. If it's trivial, we say no, but when Arie snuck in, that was amazing. When Sean captured her on the streets of Prague and ended up throwing her up against the wall — I didn't know and I was at breakfast the next morning and a producer said to me, "That was one of the hottest kisses I think I've ever seen!"