The Bachelorette star Rachel Recchia has defended Aven Jones appearing on After the Final Rose and how he asked her out in front of Tino Franco.
|
ADVERTISEMENT
|
RELATED LINK: 'THE BACHELOR' FRANCHISE COUPLES NOW: WHO IS STILL TOGETHER?? (PHOTOS)
While Tino was still sitting onstage pretty torn up, Aven walked up to Rachel and asked her out for a drink so they could "catch up." Rachel said she'd absolutely "love to," and then Tino was left in the dust of their tracks.
Aven has since faced backlash for inappropriately rubbing his relationship with Rachel in Tino's face, and fans have been criticizing The Bachelorette producers for orchestrating a low-blow moment and essentially kicking Tino while he was already down and feeling emotional.
"Unfortunately, that was not Aven's choice," Rachel told Variety in an interview.
"And he did express concern of not ever wanting to do that the second we stepped offstage. He still does respect Tino as a person, and no one ever wants to be put in a position where they are humiliated or they feel like that onstage."
Rachel said that was not her intention, Aven's intention, or anyone's intention.
"I didn't even know what was happening," Rachel claimed. "It really just all happened very quickly and it was not something that Aven directly chose to do. So yeah, he would never want to put him in that position."
During a recent appearance on the "Chicks In the Office" podcast, Rachel reiterated how Aven did not know he was going to address Rachel right in front of her ex-fiance.
"Aven didn't know that was going to happen. And he was upset about it! He never wanted that to happen, and he was not happy that there was a crossing onstage," Rachel explained.
RELATED LINK: 'THE BACHELORETTE' COUPLES NOW: WHOM DID 'THE BACHELORETTE' STARS AND THEIR BACHELOR PICKS ULTIMATELY END UP WITH?! (PHOTOS)
Aven apparently just wanted to make sure that Rachel was okay and put a smile on her face.
RELATED LINK: 'THE BACHELORETTE' COUPLES NOW"Aven coming onstage [Tuesday] night really was ultimately just him showing his support for me and knowing that it was going to be a really tough decision," Rachel said.
Rachel explained how there were "so many things happening at once."
"I just don't want there to be blame on [Aven]. It wasn't his intention," Rachel clarified.
When looking back on her breakup with Aven, Rachel suggested she has regrets about dumping him just because he said he wasn't ready to get engaged at the Final Rose Ceremony in a few days from that point.
"It's so crazy because... watching myself back, it's insane how much you learn," Rachel said.
"Because I could see exactly what he was saying to me. But at the time, I was like, 'He's trying to get out of this. He just told me friend this and he told me something else. He's trying to get out; he's trying to pull this out from underneath me.'"
Rachel recalled how it was obvious she had put a wall up at that point, keeping her heart guarded from Aven.
"And it was just the fact my friends found out first. That really was it. And we did talk about it, and people are allowed to change their mind, but it just felt so, like, shocking to me. And then as soon as that wall went up, it was so hard to [let it down]."
ADVERTISEMENT
Aven insisted to Rachel that he was falling in love with her and wanted a life with her after the show, including marriage and kids, but he wanted to pop the question with perfect timing and not rush it.
"He wasn't saying, 'Rachel, I'm not going to get down on one knee in a couple of days. Let's just be on the same page. Am I the only one here?' And I couldn't see it."
Rachel continued, "I was like, 'Well you don't want to get engaged!' And it's hard to watch back because I can see exactly what he meant."
Rachel agreed with the podcast's co-hosts Ria and Fran that she had blinders on and wasn't really understanding what Aven was trying to say in the moment.
"I have been healing so much watching this back. It has been so cathartic in a way, watching myself make these mistakes and learning, and I mean, I have had so much time since my breakup to heal. I definitely look forward to continuing on that trajectory to heal," Rachel said.
Rachel said during a Wednesday appearance on Live with Kelly and Ryan that she may be willing to give Aven another shot and "see where things go" -- but she's not sure what the future holds.
"Anything that happens after this, it's going to be very organic and not rushed at all," Rachel confirmed on the podcast.
RELATED LINK: 'THE BACHELOR' FRANCHISE COUPLES NOW: WHO IS STILL TOGETHER?? (PHOTOS)
Interested in more The Bachelor news? Join our The Bachelor Facebook Group!
About The Author: Elizabeth Kwiatkowski
