Joe Bradley and Bri Muller are back together… for strictly professional reasons.
The Below Deck Mediterranean yachties caused a bit of a stir this week when they posted photos of their fun-filled reunion in Miami. The pair were seen hanging out at an immersive art installation, an open-air gym, and the iconic Villa hotel and restaurant.
Naturally, many fans assumed Joe and Bri had rekindled their fling from Below Deck Season 9; however, Bri immediately squashed the speculation in an Instagram Story that showed her and Joe posing in front of a mirror.
“Strictly business- for anyone who wants to know,” she captioned the photo.
What brought Joe and Bri back together?
Hours later, Bri returned to Instagram to post more photos of her and Joe’s post-Season 9 reunion but didn’t specify what kind of “business” they were up to.
Well, thankfully for fans, Joe took to the comments section to provide a bit more details.
“The chances of working together are very slim ey,” he wrote, “but here we areee.”
Joe also responded to another user who flatly asked if he and his fellow yachty were “back together.”
Although it was clear the two were on great terms, Joe suggested their relationship was platonic.
“We’re working together on the same boat,” the Spanish yachty replied.
Joe and Bri discuss their Below Deck Med Season 9 hookup
The Below Deck Mediterranean castmates were introduced on the Mustique, with Joe working as a deckhand and Bri as the third stewardess. They became increasingly close throughout the charter season and found themselves in a bit of a love triangle with the second stewardess, Elena “Ellie” Dubaich.
In Season 9, Episode 5 (July 1), Joe and Bri took their flirtatious exchange to the next level and ultimately hooked up after a night out with the Mustique crew. They addressed the incident on the Below Deck Mediterranean After Show.
“I went to the bathroom and then Joe happened to be the one standing outside when I opened the door,” Bri recalled. “And then I low-key didn’t want the cameras to see us, so I was like ‘Come, come, come,’ thinking that the cameras weren’t there, but they’re f-cking everywhere all the time… I don’t know. We were talking sh-t. You know when you look deeply in someone’s eyes? I feel like that moment just happened with us.”
Joe backed Bri’s account, admitting he was simply “drawn in.”
Where does Ellie stand with Joe and Bri today?
The hookup caused a rift between Ellie, Bri, and Joe, so much so that Ellie ended up blocking the pair on social media. Ellie spoke about the tensions on the Below Deck Mediterranean After Show, claiming Joe was trying to hide just how close they had become.
"He told me he could never post a picture with me because people talk, never let me post the flowers he bought me because he didn't want people to talk," she said. "Next thing I know, he's in LA with Bri posting 15 stories with Bri, rubbing it in my face. I'm sorry, you stayed at my place, and you don't even have the respect to post one picture with me to say 'thank you,' but you go to LA and post all these stories with Bri right to my face? I blocked him after that."
Ellie later revealed she and Joe buried the hatchet after he expressed regret over his actions.
"[My] friendship [with Joe] hit a bit of a roadblock in the meanwhile," she told The Daily Dish in September, "but he’s reached out and offered a heartfelt apology for being immature and not realizing how his behavior was affecting others which was big of him. I’ve accepted it and I’m happy to move forward as a friend. I have no animosity towards him."
Ellie also suggested she had no issues with Bri and was "open" to "mending fences."
"My experience with Bri turned unnecessarily negative in the beginning because my feelings got hurt," she admitted. "Getting emotional about things was something I needed to learn how to regulate better," Ellie continued. "I’ve learned to always take ownership of how I feel and focus on my actions matching who I am rather than reacting."
