Married At First Sight bride Rachel Gilmore has broken her silence after one of the most uncomfortable moments of the season aired on national television. During Intimacy Week, Rachel's 'ultimate fantasy' was simply to have her husband Steven Danyluk kiss her. Speaking to Daily Mail, the 35-year-old admitted reliving the moment was almost harder than experiencing it the first time.
'Seeing a moment that was hard to go through, and then to relive it… reliving that rejection again was very hard to watch,' she said. When asked what was going through her head in that split second Steven rejected her, Rachel revealed: 'My heart just dropped to the bottom of my stomach. My ultimate fantasy was just ripped away from me, which was a simple kiss.'
Rachel explained that she and Steven had discussed boundaries ahead of Intimacy Week, agreeing to keep things respectful with no lingerie or big gestures. 'I thought what I did was really respectful and tame, as per his requests. I simply just wanted a kiss,' she said. Despite the rejection, the couple later completed one of the intimacy tasks, which required them to kiss for three minutes, and Rachel says that moment changed everything.
'The kiss was good. It gave me all the feels instantly. I was very flushed afterwards and I personally instantly felt that connection with Steven. I was absolutely chuffed,' she said. Rachel also addressed concerns about public perception, admitting she feared being labelled as pushy, but was relieved viewers understood her perspective. She stood by her decision to temporarily leave the apartment after the rejection, noting that Steven's words and actions were not aligning.
