Lace Morris and Grant Kemp have decided to call it quits on their relationship almost three months after their engagement aired as part of Bachelor in Paradise's third-season finale on September 6.
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Morris moved out of their shared San Francisco home just days ago, according to Entertainment Tonight, but their breakup was amicable.
"It really was mutual. We both have our issues we need to work on, and we can't really give each other what we need at this time," Morris revealed to ET.
"It's just not the right timing. We have so much love for each other, and it's weird because the chemistry is there, and I'm thinking, 'Why can't we make this work?' But it's just not possible right now."
Morris, a real estate agent from Denver, CO, and Kemp, a firefighter from San Francisco, CA, met on Bachelor in Paradise and fell in love after Morris curtailed a volatile romance with the franchise's villain Chad Johnson. Although Morris had walls up for most of the season, Kemp constantly worked to open her heart and gain trust.
The couple ultimately got "Grace" tattoos -- which combine their first names -- to seal the deal of their love, and despite cold feet after their night together in the Fantasy Suite, Kemp ended up proposing to the woman of his dreams.
However, Morris explained the dynamic of her relationship changed once the show ended.
"For a month, we were kind of starting to bicker, and it was a thing of, something's got to give. It was a cycle we couldn't break... I think he's an amazing man. I'm super sad that it ended, but I know it's for the best right now," Morris said.
Kemp agreed, saying he has "a lot of respect" for Morris and believes she is "a great person."
"There were things we were trying to work on that we expected to get better with time, and unfortunately it kind of went the opposite way," Kemp admitted to ET, adding that he proposed before getting to know Morris in the real world. "When you're in a regular relationship there's already challenges you face. We did everything backwards."
The pair never began to plan a wedding, and according to Morris, she still has some work to do on herself before committing to another person for the rest of her life.
"This [relationship] has been one of my biggest tests," said Morris, who left Ben Higgins' The Bachelor season to better herself and grow to love herself more. "I just started working on myself right before Paradise, so I really haven't had much time to do it. This was kind of an eye-opener. I still have more to work on."
RELATED LINK: 'THE BACHELOR' FRANCHISE COUPLES NOWMorris and Kemp -- who recently appeared on Ben & Lauren: Happily Ever After? and seemed happy -- would both apparently be up for another reality TV opportunity in the future.
"I don't regret any of the choices I made. I don't regret going on the show... It kind of fast-forwarded our whole situation. We figured everything out now that it takes most people a couple years to figure out," Kemp explained.
Despite their decision to split, Morris and Kemp aren't ruling out a reconciliation down the road.
"I think the odds are definitely against us," noted Kemp, who initially competed on JoJo Fletcher's season of The Bachelorette. "But I know the person that she is. That's the person I wanted to marry."
"I could only pray or hope that there is a future with us," said Morris, who has already moved back to Denver and will soon launch a blog called "The Lovely Lace."
She continued, "I see one, but I just don't know when. Now I have to take it day by day and fix my issues, he can fix his... But I pray we'd have a future, because we had something really special."
About The Author: Elizabeth Kwiatkowski
