'Love is Blind' star Bri admits Chris conversation was 'out of left field'

Spoiler alert! We are discussing details from Episodes 7-9 of Netflix's "Love is Blind" Season 10 (now streaming).

"Love is Blind" Ohio's "pod squad" meetup lived up to the drama of past seasons.

The bowling alley event in Episode 9, which brought together not only Season 10's engaged couples but also cast members whose storylines didn't go outside the pods, ended with a bang as Chris Fusco aired out all the reasons why he wasn't attracted to his newly minted ex Jessica Barrett – and made the case for why he's a better fit for Bri McNees.

"You want me to let it rip?" Chris asked Bri. "I'll be honest with you. I feel like you guys aren't ready to get married, and I feel like you need someone who's going to be more dominant in your life. ... He's a very submissive guy. I'm not a submissive guy."

Bri's attitude – staring at Chris indulgently as they leaned against a bar – was as breezy as her nickname when she defended her fiancé, Connor Spies: "He loves me to the nth degree."

But Chris wouldn't let it go as he asked her, "Is it the best [sex] you've ever had?" She replied, "No, but it's good."

Chris' comments about Bri and Connor were 'out of left field'

Though Bri told a group of women earlier in the episode that Chris had messaged her a flirty "oh yeah" on Instagram, she was still taken aback by her conversation with the 33-year-old account executive.

"To be honest, it came out of left field," she tells USA TODAY. "As I reflect back on the conversations I had with Chris prior to that, it was very friendly. We have a mutual respect for each other."

"I do know that when alcohol gets involved – and he had ended things with Jess, and I'm sure emotions were high – conversations kind of spiraled," she adds. "I took the time to hear him out, but I made my decision. And when I tell you it was Connor or bust? I think I make that evident also in the pods."

The uncomfortable conversation only made the couple stronger, Connor says.

But some love was lost with someone he'd called a friend. "In the pod, he was her number two. He was one of the boys hanging out, especially in Cabo, too. So, yeah, it was just kind of tough for that whole situation," he says. "It was tough to watch, but you saw how strong and independent Bri was. She's like, 'I'm going to stay 10 toes down on Connor.' So that makes me feel like the luckiest man in the world.

"So yeah, it sucked, but it only brought us closer," he adds.

As for where Chris' friendships stand with the "Love is Blind" men, Connor went a diplomatic route."He hasn't hung out with me," he says. "I'm not with these guys [Alex Henderson and Jordan Faeth] every weekend, but he hasn't hung out with me in a while."