Charity Lawson on That First Impression Rose Decision & Her Brother’s Cameo

[Warning: The following contains MAJOR spoilers for The Bachelorette Season 20 premiere.]

Charity Lawson‘s first impression rose pick may have you scratching your head, but she says to trust the process — well, her process. Speaking with TV Insider about the Monday, June 26 premiere of The Bachelorette, the new franchise star explained why she made her choice, particularly why she went against her brother’s advice.

Charity’s brother, Nehemiah, made a surprise appearance in the Season 20 premiere. And truly, no one was as surprised as the cast of men vying for Charity’s heart. Nehemiah disguised himself with a wig and a fake mustache while bartending at the first cocktail hour of the season. Fans previously met him during Charity’s hometown date with Zach Shallcross in The Bachelor Season 27, so his fierce protectiveness of his sister was nothing new to Bachelor Nation. It was, however, a first to have the star’s family involved in the show so early on.

Nehemiah surprised his sister by arriving in a limo like the rest of the cast, with an introduction from host Jesse Palmer. Charity first feared it would be an ex who wanted her back, which she tells TV Insider would not have been welcome. “God, no. Are you kidding? Sorry, wrong delivery,” she jokes. Seeing Nehemiah, however, was a breath of fresh air.

“It definitely was a comfort, truly. I was so excited when I realized he was getting out the limo and it was him and not someone from my past,” Charity says.

Charity, a 27-year-old family therapist, shared a slew of steamy kisses with some of her suitors during the premiere. One of them, Brayden, ended up getting the first impression rose, but only after he had made a bad impression on the leading lady’s brother. As viewers saw in the premiere, Brayden talked a big game after his first kiss with Charity. He didn’t realize was he wasn’t her first and only kiss of the night, nor did he read the room when talking about how his time with her went. He spilled all of the tea while hanging out at the bar, and Nehemiah caught it all.

After revealing his identity to the contestants, Nehemiah left to tell Charity what he learned while working undercover. He told Charity about Brayden’s braggadocios behavior and ego, warning her that he might be there for the wrong reasons. Charity then spoke with Brayden to get his side of things, and she seemed a bit shook by it all. Despite the tension, Charity still ended up giving Brayden the first impression rose. How did she ultimately decide Brayden was still trustworthy?

“I think getting the information from my brother obviously was helpful, because I can’t hear all things or see all things. So that’s the whole point of why he was there,” Charity explains. “But I think my brother ultimately gave me that information to just keep in mind for future references. I like to say maybe not in specific to that night — because obviously we see Brayden’s personality definitely shines through right off the bat, someone who’s truly charismatic and full of energy — me and my brother definitely came to terms with Brayden being overall really happy. We compared it to him just being like a giddy school girl. But I think he just wanted me not to get too caught up in that and just be on the lookout for future references of like, OK, he seems confident, he’s happy to be here, but don’t let that cross over to cockiness. Just being aware, I think, is ultimately what my brother was trying to deliver me in that moment.”

ABC/Ricky Middlesworth

“With Brayden, he was someone that I just connected right off the bat with,” she continues. “Clearly, we have great chemistry. And then that whole night was a lot. But when I sat down with him, it was a breath of fresh air. Both of us were really nervous, but when we were together, we didn’t feel that at all. So it was really refreshing just to have someone that I was at ease with.”

Sharing his excitement over a great date was “probably something that was incredibly common for him to do in his normal life,” she notes. “But now this is a totally different world, so, welcome.” She’s “not nervous” about how fans will respond to her first impression rose choice.

“I know you’re not going to win over everyone,” she shares. “There might be just confusion there of like, ‘Oh my goodness, why did Brayden get the first impression rose? And then there might be people that [think it makes] sense and understand it. But I gave it to Brayden for a reason, and I stand by that. Were there other people that I was considering? Sure. But for that reason and what I felt in that moment, it made sense. Hopefully viewers can understand that, and if not, hopefully they can just truly respect it.”

The Bachelorette, Mondays, 9/8c, ABC