JoJo Fletcher‘s final rose ceremony is — yep! — the most dramatic ever!
In the new issue of Us Weekly, sources confirm that the Dallas real estate developer, 25, got engaged to one of her final two suitors on The Bachelorette. (So as not to spoil the August 1 finale of the ABC dating show, taped in May, Us is not revealing whether that is Robby Hayes or Jordan Rodgers.)
Before she joyfully accepted a bended-knee proposal on a picturesque beach in Phuket, Thailand, she let the runner-up go. The once-confident man could barely make eye contact during the awkward breakup — even as she professed her love for him. “JoJo was sobbing,” according to a show insider. “She told him, ‘I wanted it to be you.’”
A major factor in her decision: When the suitors each met Fletcher’s parents in the days leading up to that last, all-important rose ceremony, one of them neglected to ask permission to propose to their daughter!
Fletcher’s parents, Joseph and Soraya, as well as brothers Matt and Ben and sister Rachel, had flown in from Texas to weigh in on her prospects. Suitor No. 1 arrived at the Fletchers’ hotel suite with flowers for Soraya and gag gifts for everyone else. He was, perhaps, just a little too smooth. “After he left,” according to the insider, “Soraya said she thought he was a player.”
The other suitor charmed the visitors. Unlike the first, he revealed his wish to pop the question and sought their approval — which they happily gave. “Everyone thought he was husband material,” says the insider. “Later they told JoJo that they liked the other man too, but they thought the second would be more loyal and a better fit.”
They also revealed the first suitor’s big blunder. “It was important to JoJo that the guys get her parents’ permission before proposing,” says a show source. “JoJo viewed it as disrespectful that he didn’t.” The insider adds that Fletcher “cried and said she didn’t know how she was going to make a decision.”
For more on Fletcher’s emotional finale, pick up the new issue of Us Weekly, on stands now.
