Tia Booth had quite the bond with Colton Underwood. The pair went their separate ways during the Monday, September 3, episode of Bachelor in Paradise after he told her he thought he was trying to make their relationship work when really it didn’t.
“I don’t think he was forcing it. I think we both really wanted to make this work. It’s hard when there are people all around you saying, ‘Just give it a shot, just see what could happen,’” Tia, 26, told Us Weekly exclusively at the Bachelor in Paradise finale taping on August 28. “That’s something that I actually talked about with him. I said, ‘If you’re forcing this, if you’re doing this because someone is encouraging you to, I don’t want it. I want it to be truly from you,’ and he reassured me that it was what he wanted, he was ready for it. Turns out he wasn’t, but it’s OK. It all worked out how it was supposed to.”
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Colton, 26, was named the next Bachelor on Tuesday, September 4, but that doesn’t mean he and Tia won’t remain a part of each other’s lives.
“I think we get each other’s humor and there’s that comfort level there. That was the thing in Paradise too, we were always drawn to each other because it was so familiar and comfortable,” she told Us. “I’ll always love him. I think he’ll always love me, just in a friendly way.”
Tia also opened up about how she leaned on Becca Kufrin, who also dated Colton during The Bachelorette, after her split.
“She has been the most supportive person. She’s always the first one to reach out to me and say, ‘Are you OK? I hate seeing you upset, let me know if you need to talk,’” Tia revealed. “She’s been incredible through everything. Colton and Garret are friends. I mean, I just got to meet Garret for the first time and he’s amazing. I love him and Becca together.”
Colton’s season of The Bachelor will premiere on ABC in January 2019.
With reporting by Emily Marcus
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