Charlie Jeer and Katherine LaPrell left the Too Hot to Handle retreat optimistic about their future as a couple, but where do they stand now?
This post contains spoilers for Too Hot to Handle season 6.
“Life’s been great. I’ve been out to L.A. twice to go and see her [and] she’s been over to Kent to see me [and] all my family,” Charlie, 21, exclusively told Us Weekly ahead of the Friday, August 2, finale. “We went on holiday to Amsterdam while she was over here as well and … we spent loads of quality time together.”
Charlie has even officially asked Katherine, 27, to be his girlfriend.
“To be honest, I really wanted to just spend the time after recording the show and before the show went out to get to know each other again,” he said. “I think that, in the show, I was very mindful not to take things too far because I did know I liked her and I wanted to actually get to know her properly on the outside before I committed to being in a relationship or anything like that. I’m glad that I did.”
Charlie’s decision to take things slowly came from Brendan, one of the Too Hot to Handle workshop leaders.
“[Brendan] said to me, ‘Charlie, one of the best pieces of advice I can give you in relationships is to slow down,’” the British Netflix star said. “When he said that to me, I was like, ‘You know what? That’s really good advice.’ That’s just what I’ve taken on board.”
Now that Charlie and Katherine are official, their bond has grown even more.
“I tell Kat I love her every day [and] she’ll tell me she loves me every day,” Charlie gushed. “Genuinely, I’m really happy with Kat. I needed someone who was maybe a bit older than me [who had] a bit more life experience than me in certain areas and someone who actually pushes me.”
He continued, “When I dated girls in the past, I hadn’t bothered committing myself to them because I genuinely didn’t feel like I was growing with them. I didn’t feel like I was learning anything with them. Everything [from the show] has caused me to grow in this relationship and that’s what I wanted … and what I feel I’m getting out of it.”
Charlie and Katherine currently are in a long-distance relationship between London and Los Angeles but aren’t rushing their next steps.
“We’re taking it as it comes. Kat could definitely come over here for a bit [and] I could definitely go over there for a bit, but I’m slowing down [and] taking my time,” Charlie said. “We don’t need to rush anything. There is no rush and there’s no pressure to make any decision or jumping to, ‘Oh, I’m going to drop my entire life and move out to L.A.’ or she’s going to drop her whole life and move to London.”
For Charlie, living apart allows both him and “confident” Katherine to have “freedom to be individuals.”
“I actually think long distance kind of … enables us to be our own people,” he said. “Then when we come together, it’s just amazing.”
Lana is reporting for duty! When Too Hot to Handle premiered on Netflix in April 2020, viewers were introduced to the show’s strict set of rules for its contestants. Each season, the participants live together in a house in a tropical location and are tasked with building a connection with one of their fellow competitors […]
Charlie and Katherine got together in the middle of the Too Hot to Handle retreat, abruptly breaking off their respective connections with Lucy Syed and Louis Russell. Charlie told Us he has “100 percent” remained on amicable terms with Lucy, 27.
“I think Lucy is a very mature woman and she knows in herself [and] she understands what happened. I think as well for her seeing that me and Kat have gone on to do things together, you can’t hold resentment for that,” Charlie said. “I wanted to give [her] time after the show. I didn’t really want to reach out too much. I thought there’s no need for me to do that. But a little bit before … the show aired, I did drop her a message just to say, ‘I hope there’s no hard feelings. I hope you’re all good. If there’s literally anything that you want to talk to me about, you just let me know because I don’t want to do anything to make you look bad.’”
Charlie did not win Too Hot to Handle — the top prize went to Bri Balsam and Demari Davis — but he’s “really happy” with his placement.
“Look, I love money [and] it would’ve been really nice if I could have got out [of the show with] money, but at the same time, what’s meant for me will come,” Charlie told Us. “I think that ultimately me and Kat’s story was way too controversial for us to win. No one was going to vote Kat to win [after she] spent the most money and no one was going to vote [for] me [when I] got the most girls.”
Too Hot to Handle is currently streaming on Netflix.
With reporting by Christina Garibaldi