The Bachelor alum Melissa Rycroft admits she doesn't think Clare Crawley and Dale Moss' relationship will last.
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Clare believed she had met her future husband when Dale stepped out of a limo on Night 1 of The Bachelorette's sixteenth season and took her breath away.
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It took less than two weeks for Clare to determine Dale was the guy she wanted to be with forever, and so she dumped all of her other The Bachelorette bachelors to pursue one serious relationship.
The 39-year-old hairstylist's journey on the show therefore ended prematurely with Dale, a 32-year-old model and former college basketball and football player from Brandon, SD, getting down on one knee and the couple getting engaged.
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"This is going to sound really negative. I don't think they're going to last because I don't think they have the foundation, you know?" Melissa, who competed on The Bachelor's 13th season starring Jason Mesnick, told Us Weekly in an interview while promoting the return of Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders: Making the Team.
"At least we haven't seen [that foundation]. We haven't seen the deep intimate talks and, you know, there is a big difference between a 39-year-old woman and a 31-year-old guy."
Melissa apparently fears Dale will get caught up in the fame that comes with appearing on The Bachelor franchise.
"He's now in the spotlight -- this really attractive 30-year-old -- and does [Dale] want to get married next year and have kids? Maybe. Maybe," Melissa acknowledged.
"But he may also get a taste of what Bachelor Nation can do to somebody and then say, 'You know what? I don't want to be tied down right now and I want to experience all of this.'"
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During a recent episode of The Bachelorette, Clare and Dale sat down with host Chris Harrison to discuss their relationship, and the pair gushed about love at first sight and being crazy together.
But when Clare brought up how she wants babies in the near future, Dale deflected the conversation and then circled back to how he'd like to get married before starting a family.
"So that's why I think every time we see Dale, he's like, 'Okay, oh all right. Oh, kids? We're having kids.' He looks totally shell-shocked every time that you see him," Melissa said with a laugh.
Taking all of that into consideration, Melissa shared, "So, I mean, the pessimist in me is saying it's probably not going to work out."
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"The romantic though is like, 'Maybe!'" she said. "I mean, for Clare's sake, we all want it to work out -- because heaven forbid it doesn't, right?!"
Clare insisted to The Bachelorette host during her appearance on the show with Dale that the pair never spoke or communicated prior to meeting on the first night of filming.
"I can wholeheartedly attest to this on my dad's grave. There was never, ever a single ounce of contact or communication or friends through outlets, through phone numbers or through any source," Clare insisted at the time.
"And I think that to me is honestly one of the most beautiful things."
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Melissa said she doesn't doubt Clare's claim; however, she has a theory of her own on why Clare fell in love with Dale just 12 days into getting to know him.
"I think I'm convinced that she stalked him online [and] fell in love with him online because she said that," said Melissa, who previously competed on Dancing with the Stars.
"I think that's what happened is she created a fantasy in her head. He walked out of the limo and she goes, 'Check!'"
Although Melissa isn't sure Clare made the right decisions for herself, she was originally a huge cheerleader of Clare starring on Season 16 as a 39-year-old woman.
"[At first I thought], 'She's a great pick. I love that she's older, I love that she's outspoken. I think it's going to be a different feel of The Bachelorette,'" Melissa shared with Us.
"But an episode in, I was like, 'Alright, now I'm over it.' I almost wanted her to come out [and say], 'Okay, I stalked Dale, I've been talking to him and I really like him.' Then I'd be like, 'Okay, I get it! No worries, we're not judging.'"
Melissa admitted "it was hard to watch Clare towards the end" and "the way she [was] treating the guys."
"We're the same age, and I would never randomly look at a guy and be like, 'That's my husband! That's him.' There are things you need to figure out!" Melissa exclaimed with a laugh.
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After Clare and Dale left the show together, Tayshia stepped in and took over as the new Bachelorette.
On Tayshia replacing Clare, Melissa explained, "I think she was the perfect energy. She just came in and seemed happy to be there, and she's giving all the guys a fair shot. It's like we're actually watching The Bachelorette again, which it didn't necessarily feel like at the beginning."
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"We're five weeks into the show and I still don't know whom half the guys are," Melissa added.
"But Tayshia as the Bachelorette, I think she's great. I think she's really fun to watch and easy to watch, and I really like her."
On Season 13 of The Bachelor, Melissa won Jason's heart and the couple got engaged at the Final Rose Ceremony that aired in 2009.
But Jason ultimately changed his mind about Melissa and realized he still had strong feelings for his runner-up, Molly Malaney.
As a result, Jason dumped Melissa on The Bachelor: After the Final Rose and asked Molly for a second chance. Jason and Molly wed in 2010 and are still together now.
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