It’s Big Brother meets The Bachelor . In a major reality TV mash-up, Big Brother 18 star Paulie Calafiore is reportedly dating The Bachelor and Bachelor in Paradise alum Danielle Maltby. The new couple made their official debut on Instagram, where they both posted photos of a wedding they attended together in Maltby’s hometown of Nashville, Tennessee.
Danielle Maltby posted a photo of two Polaroid snaps with a rose draped across them. The photos show the two-time Bachelor alum canoodling and smooching Paulie Calafiore at a friend’s wedding. Danielle captioned the photo with one word: “Melting.”
Paulie Calafiore also posted a photo of the couple looking cozy at the wedding reception, simply captioning it with: “Wedding season.”
While they have both been in very public relationships, an insider told E! News that Paulie Calafiore and Danielle Maltby “have never been happier” than they are together. And while they didn’t find lasting love on reality TV, Paulie and Danielle’s reality TV roots played a role in their real-life love connection.
“Danielle and Paulie were set up by their publicist,” the insider told E! News .
“They are completely obsessed with each other and both have never been happier. Everyone is just so happy for them.”
https://www.instagram.com/p/BejzG8aHsiu/?taken-by=dmmaltby
Paulie Calafiore was famously linked to fellow Big Brother 18 contestant Zakiyah Everette dying his season of the CBS reality show. The couple’s rollercoaster romance was a major “storyline” on the show, but Everette later downplayed the romance with her Big Brother boyfriend.
Last summer, Everette told the Charlotte Observer that her Big Brother season was edited to make it seem as though she was “crazy about Paulie.” Zakiyah also revealed that Big Brother fans were “obsessed” with the idea of a “Zaulie” relationship, so after the show wrapped they continued to post photos and videos that showed them spending time together in their hometowns.
“I think Paulie felt like ‘we’ve gotta do this, as like a big f.u. to all the haters,” the Big Brother beauty said. “ I feel like a lot of people were just kind of obsessed with the idea of us being together.”
https://twitter.com/zakiyaheverette/status/818075301573955585
Zakiyah and Paulie split for good exactly one year ago, shortly after fans paid for them to take a vacation in the Dominican Republic. “Zaulie” officially announced their breakup on Super Bowl Sunday in February 2017.
“We experienced what it could have been like in a relationship – a romantic relationship – and we both figured out we are good friends. We’re really, really good friends,” Zakiyah said of her current relationship with Paulie Calafiore.
As for Paulie Calafiore’s new flame, Danielle Maltby has had her own reality TV romances. When competing for Nick Viall’s heart on The Bachelor Season 21, Danielle was eliminated in Week 7 after Viall dumped her during a bicycling date in the Bahamas. Danielle moved on to Bachelor in Paradise Season 4, but she left the show in the second week to pursue an opportunity in Africa. During her short stint on Bachelor in Paradise , Danielle Maltby was romantically linked with Bachelor bartender Wells Adams. Adams is now dating Modern Family star, Sarah Hyland.