Chris Harrison & His GF Can Actually Thank 'The Bachelor' For Bringing Them Together

Bachelor Nation, this one's for you. Chris Harrison's girlfriend Lauren Zima just opened up about their relationship for the first time. Yes, the Bachelor and Bachelorette host has a love life outside of the show. The contestants on the ABC dating reality series aren't the only ones looking for romance.

According to Zima, who is a reporter for Entertainment Tonight, they have the Bachelor franchise to thank for bringing them together. While chatting with Nick Viall on his The Viall Files podcast, Zima discussed how she started dating Harrison. Believe it or not, they set up their first date in a direct message on Instagram.

Before Zima and Harrison started dating, she had interviewed him multiple times. She said about their previous encounters, "I never looked at him and ever considered where I found him attractive." She said they always had an "incredibly professional" relationship. However, that all changed during a tell-all taping when they had a different kind of exchange at craft services. Zima explained,

"He just gave me a different vibe. It was fairly overt. He mentioned something about picking his kids up or something. He somehow brought up being single, I think. And then I said something like, 'I'm single now,' and he was like,' Oh.' But I said it in a more eloquent way than that."

For her, "There was something significant," that led her to believe a door was opening into a possible date with Harrison. As she said, "I was so captivated by him in the moment."

After getting a "vibe" from him, Zima said she direct messaged Harrison, but kept the conversation as casual as possible just in case she was misreading him. They ended up exchanging several messages that were a bit flirty and Harrison ended up asking her out for a drink. As Zima put it, "I opened the door and he walked through." She added,

"It all worked out really well and it was also the perfect amount of time. We had a little bit of messaging and he said let's grab a drink and have real person talk."

Since that moment, they've been together and made their red carpet debut at a 2019 pre-party for the SAG Awards.

Zima also dived into the type of relationship she has with Harrison. According to the journalist, he's a great communicator and listener. Also, he's already pulled at least one type of Bachelor-style date. She revealed,

"I sort of feel like I'm reaping the benefits of someone who's worked on this show and learned how to talk to women for so long. He is so communicative. He's so thoughtful. He's so clear with his feelings and a good listener...I don't expect Bachelor dates from him, but I will tell you he has taken me on a helicopter."

Zima said that she has fun pretty much anywhere with Harrison, even when they just watch TV or a movie. They definitely appear to be very happy together.

You can watch Zima's conversation about Harrison in the video above around the 14-minute mark. By the way, she is a big believer in women sliding into DMs, because what's the harm? Zima isn't afraid to take matters into her own hands and she sounds like a great match for Harrison.