Below Deck Mediterranean’s Nathan Gallagher and Gael Cameron made efforts to spend time together away from the cameras following a flirtatious night out.
Episode Recap
In the Monday, June 10 episode, Gael began to express concerns about the sustainability of her long-distance relationship with an offscreen boyfriend. Nathan, who had hinted at his attraction to Gael, appeared ready to seize the opportunity.
As the crew celebrated their first charter’s conclusion with a dinner outing, Gael confided in chief stew Aesha Scott about her relationship doubts.
“At the moment, our relationship is a little bit of a long shot. We are still trying to figure out this whole trust factor,” Gael admitted. “I know he’s a bit of a flirtatious person and what happens when he is on a boat full time with some really attractive girl?”
Advice from Aesha Scott
Aesha Scott, who is engaged to Scott “Scotty” Dobson, provided Gael with advice, saying, “It is scary especially because there’s so much cheating in yachting and I’ve always hated it. But you deal with it when it happens and up until that moment, just don’t worry about it.”
In a confessional, Aesha explained her own relationship perspective, noting, “Scott and I have been together for three and a half years. There has not been one time where I have ever been paranoid. So I just think if you are worried about each other then surely it is not right.”
Flirtation and Planning
Nathan was also aware of the conversation between Aesha and Gael. As the night went on, Nathan and Gael were seen flirting at a club.
“I haven’t given you a strawberry yet,” Gael remarked to Nathan. “Can I do it tonight?”
A producer inquired if “strawberry” was a euphemism, to which Nathan responded, “A strawberry is just a wee bit of fruit that we share. You will eventually find out.”
In the premiere episode, Nathan had told Gael she was “trouble already” when he saw her taking a strawberry from the chef’s pantry.
“It’s just a strawberry,” Gael replied at the time, with Nathan adding, “You could steal me a strawberry in there. I will hold you to it.”
The Escape Plan
Upon returning to the boat, Nathan suggested to Gael, “Do you want to keep me company? We can sneak the strawberry,” with cameramen still around. “We need to lose these cameras.”
Both returned to their individual cabins, but Nathan soon texted Gael while their cabin mates were asleep.
“Where should we meet that has no cameras?” read Nathan’s message to Gael. “The starboard bow locker has no cameras. Let’s go there.”
Gael instructed Nathan to notify her once he arrived and whether he got “caught.” She was then seen leaving her cabin and heading to the front of the boat.
“What is right and what is wrong? Am I doing the right thing or the wrong thing?” she pondered in a confessional. “Maybe I like him a little tiny bit. Maybe I just want to hang out with him a little bit. I’m not harming anyone.”
A Continuation
Nathan confirmed the coast was “all clear” just before the episode ended with a “To Be Continued” title card. No trailer for the upcoming episode was shown.
Some Below Deck fans may recall similar scenarios. In season 5 of Below Deck — which aired in 2015 — Eddie Lucas and Raquel “Rocky” Dakota clandestinely met in the laundry room due to the absence of cameras.
Eddie, who had a girlfriend at the time, initially denied Rocky’s claims but later admitted to the crew that he was indeed involved with her. Chief stew Kate Chastain noted that their offscreen interactions prompted the installation of cameras in the laundry room.
“They ruined it for everyone,” Kate commented in a 2020 interview. “This is why we can’t have nice things, Eddie and Rocky.”
Wrapping Up
Below Deck Mediterranean season 9 airs on Bravo Mondays at 9 p.m. ET. New episodes stream the following day on Peacock. For more updates and behind-the-scenes content, visit HitPlay.