Married At First Sight (MAFS) 2026 bride Rachel Gilmore was left shattered during Intimacy Week, as her groom Steven Danyluk shut down her Ultimate Fantasy Night with a cutting sentence.
After Rachel confessed to expert Alessandra Rampolla that she wanted to feel more fire in her relationship, she set up a Love Actually scene where she asked Steven to kiss her with feeling.
His reply? “I can kiss you Rachel, I can kiss you, but I’m not sure that it’ll make you feel something.” Ouch.
Rachel called it a “slap in the face” and stormed out of their shared apartment while sobbing.
Considering these two have bonded over their body image issues and had some strong heart-to-heart conversations, it was hard for fans to watch.
“Would it have really hurt him to kiss her? Who knows, the kiss may have triggered something for him,” one person wrote on Facebook.
“I felt for her, she was so kind and patient,” another sympathised.
“He’s lead her on, poor darling. He’s a creepy flop,” a third pointed out.
“If he was feeling that way why has he waited three weeks to tell her, leading her on, when they were on the couch and filling her with hope that was never there. Why waste each other’s time?” another asked.
However, there were plenty of viewers who supported Steven’s decision not to lie and force romance out of nowhere.
“He’s just not into her, but unlike all her previous situationships who all strung her along for years of casual friends with benefits at least Steven is honest. He could easily be another situationship and string her along like all the others, but Steven has integrity,” one viewer declared.
“He is truthful at least, and so respectful to her. I feel for both of them,” another said.
“Can’t force attraction, they just met. If it’s not there, it’s not there. Why is she going off about it, he told her and she just ran out swearing, then you see the real her,” a third chimed in.
“Hard to hear but necessary. Just because they put you together doesn’t mean it will work,” another remarked.
Are Rachel and Steven still together in real life?
Sadly, it looks like this Intimacy Week challenge could be what ends Rachel and Steven’s relationship. The MAFS Funny podcast revealed recently that they tracked all of the couples while they were staying at the One Global Resorts Green Square. And while most of the MAFS couples were seen doing errands together, Rachel and Steven weren’t seen once.
“I saw the couples all one by one, going to Woollies, going to the beach, going to whatever. And did I see these two once? Nah, literally, not at all. So I’m just going to call it now and say I’m fairly sure they are one of, if not the first couple to leave,” podcast host Josh Fox revealed.
We’ll have to wait and see if they decide to stay or leave during the next Commitment Ceremony, but it’s not looking good.
Married at First Sight (MAFS) 2026 airs Sunday – Monday on Channel 9 and 9Now.
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