The Bachelor star Clayton Echard has explained why he hesitated to tell his Final 3 bachelorettes that he loved them back.

ADVERTISEMENT

So far on The Bachelor's 26th season, Clayton's Final 3 women -- Rachel Recchia, Gabby Windey and Susie Evans -- have all told The Bachelor star that they're "falling in love" with him.

And Serene Russell, who went home in fourth place, flat out said, "I love you," to Clayton.

RELATED LINK: 'THE BACHELOR' FRANCHISE COUPLES NOW: WHO IS STILL TOGETHER?? (PHOTOS)

But the medical sales representative and former college athlete has yet to express feelings of love to anyone, although he was shown telling The Bachelor host Jesse Palmer during the latest episode that he planned to let his guard down and be completely vulnerable going into Fantasy Suites.

When asked to share his reason for being so reluctant to drop an L-bomb on the show, Clayton explained during a Thursday appearance on the "Click Bait with Bachelor Nation" podcast, "My thought was it was really scary for me to have to accept that I was falling for multiple woman."

"I kept fighting it," Clayton admitted, "really from the beginning."

Clayton went on to recall a conversation he had with Jesse at the beginning of the season.

"I said, 'Listen, I do not want to fall in love with multiple women. That sounds like a mess; I don't think it's even possible," Clayton shared.

"And so that was my mindset. And then as I got further and further in, I realized that I started to have these feelings and I was just trying to fight it and not really acknowledge it -- because I knew the second I acknowledged it, I was going to start having trouble with understanding how I could be in love with multiple women."

Clayton expressed how that was his "fear" all along.

"But I got there and of course that's something that I never navigated before," Clayton said, "and I'll never navigate it again. So I just knew the second that it happened, I was going to be in over my head."

He confirmed, "That's why I held back."

RELATED LINK: 'THE BACHELORETTE' COUPLES NOW: WHOM DID 'THE BACHELORETTE' STARS AND THEIR BACHELOR PICKS ULTIMATELY END UP WITH?! (PHOTOS)  

But then there was a turning point for Clayton when he determined he must be true to his heart and let all of his walls down.

According to The Bachelor star, he had an epiphany after denying Serene a rose.

Serene asked Clayton before leaving the show whether her profession of love made him realize that he didn't feel the same way about her. She was desperate for answers as to why  he seemed to suddenly change his mind about her when he had "no reservations" about their relationship up to that point.

"She said, 'Is it because of what I said?' And that really bothered me," Clayton said.

"I'm glad she said it, because what it did was open my eyes to realize that if I don't show these women where I stand and if I don't tell them my emotions, then they're going to start questioning everything about their connection and they may start putting up walls."

Clayton confirmed he now "definitely" thinks it's possible to fall in love with multiple people.

"I did!" Clayton said with a big smile. "And I wonder if I should even waste my breath trying to explain it to people, because unless you go through it, you won't believe it. I didn't believe it, from an outside perspective."

"I said, 'There's no way you can fall in love with multiple people,'" Clayton noted. "[I thought], 'It's not possible. You can be infatuated with someone, but you're only going to have one true connection.' And that's just not the case."

RELATED LINK: 'THE BACHELOR' COUPLES NOW: WHO DID 'THE BACHELOR' STARS AND THEIR BACHELORETTE PICKS ACTUALLY END UP MARRYING? (PHOTOS)

Clayton reiterated on "Click Bait" that unless you star as the Bachelor or the Bachelorette, you probably won't understand and he can't really explain it.

"You just have to take my word for it," Clayton shared.

Based on previews teasing what's to come on Clayton's season, The Bachelor star says he's in love with Gabby, Rachel and Susie, much to the ladies' dismay. Clayton also admits to being "intimate" with at least two of the Final 3 women.

In January, Clayton insisted to Glamour magazine that his feelings of love for three women were "authentic" and genuine, and not a result of getting caught up in the moment.

"I literally walked into this being a Bachelor saying that I won't fall in love multiple people. It's not going to happen. Zero percent chance," Clayton said at the time.

But The Bachelor environment speeds the dating process along with no distractions. Contestants are pressured to have deep conversations and open up early on, and the competitive element pushes bachelors and bachelorettes out of their comfort zones.

Clayton said he began feeling love for multiple women during hometown dates.

The Bachelor is about to air a two-night event on Monday, March 7 and Tuesday, March 8, with both broadcasts airing at 8PM ET/PT on ABC.

Following The Bachelor: The Women Tell All, Clayton will be shown enjoying his overnight Fantasy Suite dates.

RELATED LINK: 'THE BACHELOR' FRANCHISE COUPLES NOW: WHO IS STILL TOGETHER?? (PHOTOS)

Interested in more The Bachelor news? Join our The Bachelor Facebook Group!




About The Author: Elizabeth Kwiatkowski

FOLLOW REALITY TV WORLD ON GOOGLE NEWS