Bachelor in Paradise alum Kendall Long insists she wanted a future and a forever with former boyfriend Joe Amabile, whom she split from back in January, in light of critics claiming she wasn't really that into him.
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One fan weighed in, "I just don't think she was that into him," but Kendall wasn't having it.
"Let's not assume my feelings," Kendall fired back.
"I loved him enough to see a marriage and a future," the blonde beauty insisted. "A lot is private."
After the fan issued an apology and said she believes both Kendall and Joe are great people, Kendall replied, "Thank you for saying that. I know your intentions weren't to be mean."
Although Kendall and Joe -- who met on Season 5 of Bachelor in Paradise in Summer 2018 -- split after more than one year of dating and talking about an engagement, they appear to still be friends.
On Sunday, Kendall wished Joe a happy birthday on her Instagram Stories by writing, "Happy Birthday Butthead," according to Us Weekly. She also reportedly added a video from a trip the pair had previously taken together.
Kendall told the magazine last month that she and Joe, dubbed "Grocery Store Joe" by Bachelor Nation, definitely had an "amicable" breakup.
"Joe and I probably talk like once or twice a week if that," Kendall said at the time. "I think we've really made it a point to take the higher road with each other."
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Kendall and Joe officially got an apartment together in West Hollywood, CA, in April 2019.
RELATED LINK: 'THE BACHELOR' FRANCHISE COUPLES NOWHowever, in late January they announced they had decided mutually to part ways because they couldn't agree on a city in which to settle down, given neither Joe (who is from Chicago) or Kendall (who is from Los Angeles) wanted to live far from their family long-term.
Now that Kendall is single again, she's looking forward to finding her perfect match -- but she said she's in no rush.
"Of course I want to get out there again," Kendall told Us in March. "I feel like if love comes my way, I won't push it away. But I'm also not desperate for it."
Kendall previously shared with Entertainment Tonight her split from Joe came as "a little bit of a surprise" given she had pictured them getting married.
"I think ultimately Joe saw his happiness and work in Chicago, and I can't resent him because of that," Kendall shared with ET last month.
"And for me, I just never foresaw a future there, so, I think it became an ultimatum within itself where either I move to Chicago or we broke up. And I didn't really want to have a relationship like that."
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Kendall also said she and Joe were broken up for "about a month" before they dropped the news and went public with their current relationship status.
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Fans were shocked when Kendall and Joe's breakup was announced because the pair had just teased they could be getting engaged soon in December 2019.
Kendall and Joe's relationship initially got off to a rocky start when Kendall blindsided and dumped Joe during the penultimate episode of Bachelor in Paradise's fifth season after he professed how he was falling in love with her.
Kendall found herself making a stream of excuses on the beach in Mexico as to why their relationship wouldn't work, but Joe called her out for simply being unaware of her feelings for him or not reciprocating them at all.
Joe therefore left Paradise confused and heartbroken, while Kendall clearly felt there was more she could have said and the pair had unfinished business.
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"I felt an immediate regret as soon as Joe walked away... I kept running away from the fact that I was falling for him," Kendall admitted to People in September 2018.
"I went into Paradise thinking you need to date, you need to be open-minded, you need to experience people... I also had so much fear about getting hurt... It freaked me out to think I would invest myself in him and then it would break apart after the romantic beach vacation was over."
However, Kendall flew straight to Chicago after the show wrapped to talk to Joe again in-person and apologize, and she expressed to him on-camera, "I am in love with you."
It took some time for Joe to trust Kendall again, but the couple ultimately reconciled and rekindled their romance in the real world. Joe, without a doubt, was in love with Kendall as well.
Joe subsequently competed on Season 27 of Dancing with the Stars in Fall 2018 in Los Angeles, and he was able to remain close to Kendall considering she already lived in the Los-Angeles area at the time.
Their relationship blossomed from there until Joe apparently realized he didn't want to stay in California.
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About The Author: Elizabeth Kwiatkowski
