The Bachelor couple Juan Pablo Galavis and Nikki Ferrell's relationship is apparently a slow burn -- very slow. 

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When asked whether Ferrell is embarrassed that Galavis has yet to profess his love to her -- at least publicly -- The Bachelor's eighteenth-season winner told People, "It is tough for me because I've never told somebody I loved them first. It's kind of girl code."

"And now I'm in control," Galavis, 32, added.

If Galavis has told his final bachelorette he's in love with her recently, no one knows but them.

"I'm not telling you!" the Venezuela native and former pro soccer player barked.

Yet Ferrell, 27, insisted to the magazine in its latest issue that Galavis is the one for her.

"I came into this [process] skeptical but with an open mind. The more I got to know him, the more sure I was. Things that might have been red flags for the other girls weren't red flags for me. It just works. We understand each other," Ferrell said of the controversial The Bachelor star.

"We understand each other's sarcasm and our jokes," Galavis added.

"I feel like we had great conversation, but more physical things were shown as opposed to a good mental connection," Ferrell noted.

"Mental connection," Galavis laughed. "That's a funny term."

When the show was airing on ABC, the couple tried to remain in contact as much as they could.

"We talked every day, and we'd see each other every couple of weeks. We were flying into separate airports -- top-secret stuff! I couldn't call him in front of certain people. I couldn't talk to him in a sweet voice. Everyone would have figured it out," Ferrell told People.

"It wasn't easy," Galavis noted.

Since then, the Miami, FL resident and Ferrell have been trying to get to know one another better without any public persona getting in the way. According to the pair, things have been working out for them just fine.

"It's all about communication. Lack of communication can separate people. I've told Nikki, 'Whatever you feel, tell me. Don't hold it in,'" Galavis explained.

"I have a tendency to do that. Sometimes I need to process things. But he's very receptive to my feelings," Ferrell said.

Galavis added that he likes how honest his girlfriend tends to be with him.

"We've had disagreements, but there hasn't been a moment for me where I'm like, 'This is not happening. I'm going to walk away,'" Ferrell admitted.

"For me that's happened like five times!" Galavis said with a laugh.

How serious they are about each other still remains in question, however, as Ferrell is a pediatric nurse from Kansas City, MO, and there's been no talk of moving.

"We're figuring it out. We had a plan to move to L.A., but unfortunately it broke down," Galavis said, finally referencing how he most likely planned to compete on Dancing with the Stars' eighteenth edition but was dropped last minute from the line-up for being too controversial.

"We have to figure out not only what works best for us, but what works best for our families," Ferrell elaborated.

"Nikki's going to see Camila a lot, but as 'Daddy's friend,'" Galavis told People of his five-year-old daughter Camila.

And as far as an engagement goes, even Ferrell has seemingly convinced herself she's not ready now -- although she made it known she had her heart completely set on accepting Galavis' potential proposal late last year when the show wrapped filming the final Rose Ceremony in St. Lucia.

"I still feel the exact same way about Juan Pablo, but an engagement is not in front of us right now. No need for that pressure again," Ferrell told the magazine.

"I want to get married and have two more kids and never get divorced. I want to make sure I pick the right person. I hope [it's Nikki]. If you behave. If you and I behave!" Galavis joked with her.

"It's a team effort," Ferrell noted.


About The Author: Elizabeth Kwiatkowski

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