The Bachelor star Ben Flajnik says there's no doubt in his mind that he selected the right bachelorette when he chose and proposed to Courtney Robertson during the finale of the ABC reality dating series' sixteenth edition.


"I am completely confident in the decision I made at the end of The Bachelor, and I stand behind that decision. No regrets," Flajnik wrote on his People blog.

According to Flajnik, he found a real "true love" with the 28-year-old model from Santa Monica, CA, and believes she turned out to be everything he thought she was despite what viewers saw while The Bachelor aired and the warnings he had received from his fellow bachelorettes -- who had directly observed Robertson's manipulative and aggressive behavior while taping.    

"Trust in me to make calculated decisions, and know that I wasn't blinded by anything along the way. She truly is a caring, nurturing woman who is so thoughtful and kind. Unfortunately, America only got to see one side of her, but I know she loves me in a way that I want to be loved," explained Flajnik, a 29-year-old winemaker from Sonoma, CA.

"We both understand that it is going to be a long road to recovery. We are confident in our love and realize that we are going to take it slow and work on our relationship for the foreseeable future. The fact of the matter is, we are really good together. We have always been really good together; it was everything surrounding us that was a mess."


Also in his People blog, Flajnik provided some additional details on his short breakup with Robertson, which the couple had revealed during Monday night's broadcast of The Bachelor: After the Final Rose.

"It was really difficult watching this season and hearing all the negativity about her. I will admit, over the course of the season airing, I had my doubts about the woman I proposed to. I wouldn't have done anything differently, but I was scared that maybe I didn't know her as well as I thought I did. I found myself shocked at some of the comments she made," Flajnik said.

"At one point the pressure became too much and I told her I needed a break. Courtney was cool enough to allow me time to clear my head. I became worried about staying in a relationship that had so much negativity surrounding it, so I eventually called off the engagement and we broke up."

Also read our The Bachelor interviews with rejected bachelorette Lindzi Cox and host Chris Harrison

However, Flajnik quickly had a change of heart, and as a result, changed his mind.  

"Fortunately, that breakup didn't last long. The love I feel for her, love that I couldn't deny even amidst all the bad press and lack of public support, brought me back to her."


The Bachelor star also elaborated on his split from bachelorette Lindzi Cox, a 27-year-old business development manager from Seattle, WA, and why he thought things wouldn't work out between them down the road.

"My hope for us was that she would have continued to stay open with me, but every time we got close to really falling deeply in love, she retracted. I couldn't take the risk of that happening during a relationship after the show, especially after everything I have already been through," Flajnik explained.

"Our last few dates together were wonderful, but I think we both knew we were forcing it a bit."

However, hurting Cox unfortunately reminded Flajnik of the pain he had endured when former seventh-season The Bachelorette star Ashley Hebert broke his heart by rejecting his marriage proposal during the show's season finale, which aired in August 2011.
      
"The proposal day was so hard on me, because I was about to do something to Lindzi that Ashley had done to me, and it is truly the worst feeling in the world," Flajnik admitted.

"I now look back on my experience on The Bachelorette and realize how difficult a time Ashley had, and respect her decisions to this day. I hope that Lindzi can forgive me and will feel the same way in time."


Flajnik also insisted that while many viewers were critical of his bachelorette selections and controversial decisions, they couldn't possibly understand what he went through by simply watching his season of The Bachelor unfold on TV. 
     
"I have found the positives to focus on amidst all the speculation and hate. People don't know what it's like to go through an experience like this, and until they have been a contestant -- or the person in the driver's seat -- I say, 'Take it easy, because you aren't speaking from personal experience,'" Flajnik added.






About The Author: Elizabeth Kwiatkowski