Love Is Blind’s Bartise Bowden Reveals Real Reason He Hasn’t Shared New Girlfriend’s Identity

Bartise Bowden is keeping fans blind to his love's name—at least for now. 

The Love Is Blind star confessed that he won't be sharing his new girlfriend's identity in order to have some fun with his followers on social media. 

"We are gonna hold off on it," Bartise told E! News in an exclusive interview, "because we're having too much fun getting the [social media] engagement going and then running up the comments."

And while the reality star—who hard-launched his prior relationship with Cait Vanderberry back in July—won't reveal the name of his new girlfriend, he did provide some clues, admitting that she also has a "decent-sized social media following."

"Her comments are popping off with guesses and mine are going off with guesses too," Bartise hinted. "Some have been right and some have been way off."

Of course, that doesn't mean the 27-year-old—who is a single dad to Hayden, 14 months—has kept completely quiet about his relationship, which began "several weeks ago" after the pair hit it off at an influencer event in Dallas. In fact, Bartise revealed in a Feb. 14 Instagram post that the couple got complementary "x" and "o" tattoos—an idea that originated on a whim while he was hosting a Valentine's Day party. 

"We had some drinks already, and I look over and see the tattoo guy," he told E!. "I look at my girlfriend and I'm like, 'You aren't down to get matching tattoos.'"

To Bartise's surprise, however, his partner was down for the spontaneous ink. "As soon as I said that to her, she got up off my lap and walked right over there," he continued. "I was like, 'Oh s--t, we're actually doing this.' They're the real deal. People think they're fake. But no, we have connecting tattoos."

Of course, Bartise's new relationship isn't only filled with influencer parties and matching tattoos. After all, he insisted being a full-time dad is his "priority" since gaining full custody of his son several months ago. 

"Hayden was actually with me on my first date with my new girlfriend and watching him interact with her is something that is a completely different experience," Bartise gushed. "I saw firsthand how motherly and nurturing and caring and thoughtful my girlfriend was and it was like, 'This is freaking awesome.'"

And rest assured, Bartise's secrecy over his partner's identity has nothing to do with being uncertain about his feelings. 

"My mom was always like, 'When you know, you know,'" the Perfect Match alum shared, "and even though this is kind of fresh and new, this is the first time where I've been like, 'Wow.' We can literally be doing nothing—like hanging out here with my son in her lap—and it feels so comfortable and effortless."

And as for what's next in Bartise's love story? Expect to see a hard launch on Instagram in the "near future" and lots of drinking Cupcake Vineyard's new Love is Wine chardonnay, which comes in a bottle inspired by the franchise's iconic gold wine glasses. Bartise, who partnered up with the brand ahead of the show's new season, said working with Cupcake on the white wine was a "no brainer."

"Actually, me and my girlfriend were watching the new season of Love Is Blind last night, and we finished a bottle of Love is Wine," he added. "This wine definitely pairs better with watching Love Is Blind."

Keep reading to revisit all the best reunion moments from Bartise's season of Love Is Blind, when he got engaged to Nancy Rodriguez. 

During Love Is Blind's season three reunion, SK and Raven confirmed that they got back together after filming wrapped. After sharing a sweet smooch, Raven revealed that SK has gotten several messages on social media from interested women.

"Stay out of my man's DMs," she quipped to her co-stars. "I see y'all ladies."

The pair are still figuring out their long-distance situation.

As fans of the show will recall, Bartise controversially praised Raven's attractiveness in front of fiancée Nancy. Though Nancy applauded Bartise for being brutally honest during the reunion, she slammed his behavior as "childish."

Looking back on the conversation, Bartise said it was "hard to watch" and apologized for the comments he made about someone else's fiancée. He then doubled down on his stance, noting, "I don't think the feelings were inappropriate. This experiment is so unique and the connections that we made were so fast and so fresh, it might make sense that two of us were having those thoughts."

Despite exchanging wedding vows in the season three finale, Colleen and Matt revealed that they don't currently live together. "I know it sounds crazy," Matt shared at the reunion, "but it's really just doing it on our own time."

Per Colleen, the unexpected decision was made due to money reasons. "We weren't money-wise ready to give up on our leases," she said. "I was with roommates, so I would've screwed over some people."

For the record, Colleen and Matt say they spend most days of the week together, with Monday, "laundry day," being the occasional exception. They plan to move in together in the near future.

After his eye drop confessional went viral, Andrew was invited to attend the Love Is Blind season three reunion. However, according to co-host Vanessa Lachey, "he chose not to come."

The typically private Raven and SK shared details about their romantic life post-Love Is Blind, as Raven confirmed that the duo got intimate after their failed wedding. "You gotta taste test," she quipped, with SK then chiming in, "Pilates might be good for you."

Not only did Nancy feel blindsided by Bartise at the wedding altar, but then, 24 hours after their breakup, she saw him on social media getting cozy with a mystery woman. "He had a tall blonde by his side," Nancy spilled. "It was someone posting a video of the scene, and then you caught Bartise and this tall blonde next to him. And then that same tall blonde—over the weekend—on his lap. All over him."

Though Bartise defended that nothing happened that first night, he did admit to getting with the mystery woman on July 4. "To be honest," he snapped, "I don't think my sex life is anybody's business here."

 

While looking back at Cole and Zanab's failed relationship, Alexa and Raven suggested that there were off-camera moments that led to the couple's demise. Alexa shared, "He's likeable when you're watching it, and just knowing what I know it's hard."

Raven jumped in and revealed, "He got a girl's number at the bachelor party."

Though Zanab explained that Cole confessed this to be true the night before their wedding, Cole vehemently denied that the conversation, as well as the alleged cheating, ever happened. 

 

Zanab further accused Cole of body-shaming her, and claimed that the footage was not used on the show. "That is your saving grace, Cole, is that they did not use it," she stated. "Because so much of that stuff, the pushing food away from me, asking me if I'm gonna eat that, trying to get me to order a salad, the daily comments about my face and body were not used."

Cole alleged that Zanab was making up these accusations, stating, "I never once cared about what you ate. What are you talking about?"

In contrast, Zanab claimed that she "stopped eating" during filming. "I was eating a banana and a teaspoon of peanut butter," she said, "just so I wouldn't pass out on the long days we were filming."

After taking in everything Zanab had to share, a tearful Cole noted that he regretted doing the show. "Look at what I've done," he said. "If I destroyed someone's self-esteem, then I regret it. I would not do it over."

Zanab assured her ex that she has "completely forgiven" him, adding, "I don't want you to have another failed relationship."

Cole admitted that watching their relationship play out "destroyed" him.

Amid the reunion drama, co-host Nick Lachey, who starred on MTV's Newlyweds: Nick and Jessica with ex-wife Jessica Simpson, advised Cole, "Coming from someone who did reality TV, it's a powerful and very strange and very bizarre thing to see your life on screen."

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