Clare Crawley is speaking out about her past experience with Matt James, and it seems like there was a lot more drama behind the scenes than we realized.

In an Instagram Stories post on Wednesday (Jan. 29), Crawley, 43, shared her first thoughts after a two-week social media detox. However, it wasn't just a casual catch-up – her comments quickly grabbed attention. Crawley hinted at a past Bachelorette contestant, without naming names, and seemed to throw some serious shade his way.

"Remember that one time I specifically asked producers to please not allow one specific guy on my season because I knew for a fact he was NOT looking for a serious relationship whatsoever, and I didn't want him to waste anyone's time," Crawley wrote alongside a photo of two farm animals. 

While she didn't name James directly, it's clear who she was referring to. James, 33, was initially cast to compete on Clare's season of The Bachelorette before the pandemic forced a delay in filming. 

Instead of joining Crawley's journey, James was later announced as the lead for the next season of The Bachelor. Crawley's words hint that she had concerns about James' intentions long before he became the Bachelor.

She ended the post with, "So, instead, they made him the next Bachelor."

This wasn't the first time Crawley called out James' behavior. Back in April 2020, before the food influencer was officially introduced to Bachelor Nation, Crawley tweeted, "If you are doing interviews and creating Cameo accounts before you are even on my season... you are in it for the wrong reasons... #dontwasteyourtime." 

If you are doing interviews and creating Cameo accounts before you are even on my season... you are in it for the wrong reasons... #dontwasteyourtime

— Clare Crawley (@Clare_Crawley) April 25, 2020

The tweet (now known as X) was widely believed to be a reference to James, who had recently started his own Cameo account to raise money for COVID-19 relief. It wasn't long until he responded by explaining that his Cameo presence was for charity, but Crawley clarified the next day that her tweet wasn't targeted at any one person. 

With his recent breakup from Rachael Kirkconnell, fans are revisiting his time on The Bachelor and questioning whether he ever truly wanted to find love or if he was simply after the fame. 

Fan Of View: Bachelor Nation definitely had Matt James pegged all wrong. We all thought he was the standup guy, the perfect catch, especially with his bromance with America's heartthrob Tyler Cameron. But looking back, we might have overlooked some major red flags. Crawley definitely saw through it early on, calling out his intentions before most of us even realized there was a problem. 

Photo Credit: @clarecrawley on Instagram.