The Bachelorette star Charity Lawson has revealed if Aaron Bryant ever really stood a chance to win her heart once she welcomed him back into the competition after Fantasy Suites.
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Aaron -- whom Charity had dumped in fourth place after hometown dates -- felt he had more to give Charity, and she, in turn, had been "falling in love" with him and still wasn't sure if sending him home was the right decision.
Charity, who didn't want to come to regret any of her decisions on The Bachelorette, therefore decided to bring Aaron B. back and spend more time with him. But at the Rose Ceremony, she eliminated him once again.
When asked if Aaron B. ever really stood a chance, Charity said on the August 22 episode of the "Bachelor Happy Hour" podcast, "I'll be honest."
"I like to think that maybe something magical could've happened, or something miraculous," The Bachelorette star explained to the podcast's co-hosts Joe Amabile and Serena Pitt.
"I think... I gave myself the hope of giving that room for anything to happen, but in the back of my mind, no, if I can just be honest."
At that point in the season, Charity had already said, "I love you," to both Dotun Olubeko and her eventual The Bachelorette runner-up, Joey Graziadei.
And both Dotun and Joey had confirmed, before even meeting Charity's family, that they'd feel comfortable to get down on one knee and propose marriage at the end of the process.
Charity said she welcomed Aaron B. back simply because a part of her "just wanted to respect the fact he came back," which she dubbed "a grand gesture" and no small feat on The Bachelorette finale.
Charity thought during filming that she had gotten more time with Aaron B. they "may have gotten there" -- to the point of being in love.
"That was the one thing I didn't want to leave that situation with, wondering, 'What if?'" Charity explained.
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Charity didn't want to think to herself, "What if we did have one more conversation, or [even just] 20 minutes more?"
Charity elaborated, "So I wanted to give him that [time]. But then obviously after we had our little date, I just felt, like, 'Alright, I did make the right decision [in letting him go the first time].' I did get that confirmation that, no, he is not my person."
The Bachelorette star added, "Aaron wasn't going to get to the point I was at with Dotun and Joey."
But Aaron B.'s shocking The Bachelorette return was definitely an entertaining twist in Charity's season.
Fans also got a kick out of Joey's wide-eyed and startled reaction to when Aaron B. entered the penultimate Rose Ceremony instead of Xavier, whom Joey and Dotun had been expecting to see.
Dotun, however, admitted on the "Bachelor Happy Hour" podcast that he was totally "unbothered" by Aaron B.'s presence at that Rose Ceremony. In fact, he didn't really flinch.
"Aaron comes, I look to my left, and I just said, 'It's good to see you, buddy. I don't know what happened, but I wish you the best,'" Dotun recalled with a laugh. "And I think Joey did a double take."
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"When you said you weren't sure if you were making the right decision, that's what got me stuck and in shock... I want to see where your head is at and if you've been thinking about it as well," Aaron B. told Charity on the show.
Charity confirmed her mind had been in the same place, and so she told the suitor, "To be very honest, yeah, I have been thinking about it every single day -- our relationship and obviously what it meant, and to make sense of saying goodbye... I don't know if I made the right choice and that hurts me."
Charity assured Aaron B. that their relationship was so good and powerful.
Charity acknowledged on the show it's impossible to shut off how you feel about a person, whether two days or a week go by.
Since Aaron B. was the first man on The Bachelorette whom Charity had envisioned as her husband, Charity invited him to stay in Fiji, go to dinner with her, and chat in her hotel room later on.
RELATED LINK: 'THE BACHELOR' COUPLES NOW: WHO DID 'THE BACHELOR' STARS AND THEIR BACHELORETTE PICKS ACTUALLY END UP MARRYING? (PHOTOS)
Charity told Aaron that she was so grateful for their extra time together and to gain more clarity, but time wasn't on their side.
Charity therefore eliminated Aaron B. for the second time at the Rose Ceremony, but she thanked him for showing his heart and being so vulnerable.
"You're just that special of a woman, Charity, and I hope you realize that," Aaron said. "You gave me hope [I'll find my wife]... I'm always in your corner."
Charity then confessed to the cameras, "[Our connection] wasn't going to supersede or pass what I have with Joey and Dotun."
Charity is now happily engaged to Dotun, and Joey will be starring on The Bachelor's 28th season in early 2024.
"With Dotun, it boils down to a feeling you can't really place and you can't really pinpoint; you just have it and it's there, and when it comes together, you feel alive," Charity gushed on the finale of her season.
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Charity and Dotun said on The Bachelorette's live Season 20 finale that they are in no rush to wed; however, they can imagine planning a wedding fairly soon -- and maybe even getting married in Nigeria, according to Good Morning America.
But first, Charity will be competing on Dancing with the Stars' 32nd season this fall.
ABC is also premiering Bachelor in Paradise's ninth season as well as The Golden Bachelor starring Gerry Turner on Thursday, September 28 beginning at 8PM ET/PT.
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About The Author: Elizabeth Kwiatkowski
