PROPOSAL FROM HELL
Panic sets in as Rachel Lindsay struggles to decide which man she wants to marry
It should have been the most exciting time of Bachelorette Rachel Lindsay’s life. But in the days leading up to the final rose ceremony (airing Aug. 7 on ABC), she was a total mess. “I have so many feelings right now and my head is spinning,” Rachel admitted before making her final pick — among finalists Bryan Abasolo, 37, Eric Bigger, 29, and Peter Kraus, 31 — and accepting his marriage proposal in the village of San Vicente de la Sonsierra in La Rioja, Spain. “I just feel like I’m making a big mistake.”
She was torn. Though the Dallasbased attorney has since said she is “very much so in love and very much so engaged” to the winner, sending home the runner-up “was the hardest thing she’s ever had to do in her life,” a source tells In Touch, explaining that Rachel, 32, “fell in love with two of the men.” She was so confused over who to pick that “she even considered walking away from the whole thing because she was terrified of making the wrong choice,” adds the source. “The fairy-tale moment that Rachel was dreaming of her whole life was a complete ordeal. It was the proposal from hell.”
She spent hours weighing the pros and cons. “The runner-up is great on paper — he’s good-looking, and their chemistry was great — but he was very nervous about marriage, and that made Rachel question if he was really the one,” says the source, noting that Rachel’s family was also skeptical of the runner-up, which weighed heavily on her. “The winner is extremely handsome and charismatic, but Rachel questioned his sincerity,” says an insider. “At times he came off a little too suave, and that made Rachel wonder if he was there for the right reasons.” Adds the source: “When it came time to pick one of them, she was a total wreck.”
Spoiler alert! We won’t reveal the winner, but you are about to read details of the finale. The night before the final rose ceremony, Rachel made her decision. “She told producers she didn’t want to wait to send the other guy home — she just couldn’t let him get down on one knee if she wasn’t going to accept,” says the insider, explaining that Rachel sent the “inconsolable” runner-up home that night. The next day, she accepted the winner’s proposal. “As soon as it happened, she called her family on Facetime to share the news. Rachel and the winner spent the next few days enjoying some alone time in Spain before heading back home.”
But will the relationship last? “Only time will tell,” says the source, noting that after filming ended in late May, Rachel told the runner-up not to contact her. “She told him it wouldn’t be fair to the winner and that her decision, though difficult, was final.”
Now she only wants to focus on her future. “Rachel believes she made the right decision,” says the insider. “She and the winner have had the opportunity to meet up secretly several times since fi lming ended. Rachel’s been telling friends that they’ve really gotten to know each other and that he’s turning into one of her best friends.” While she admits that getting to this point was a struggle, “Rachel has never been happier,” adds the insider. “She can’t wait to show the world how in love she is.” ◼