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The Bachelorette Finale Recap: Does Kaitlyn Bristowe Choose Shawn or Nick?

Kaitlyn Bristowe, Nick Viall, Shawn B
The Bachelorette Kaitlyn Bristowe narrowed down her choices to Shawn Booth and Nick Viall -- find out which suitor wins in Us Weekly's finale recap.

May the best man win! The final episode of The Bachelorette kicked off with both remaining suitors declaring their feelings for Kaitlyn Bristowe. “I absolutely see Kaitlyn as the person that I want to spend the rest of my life with,” Nick Viall gushed. “My family absolutely loved her and the only thing that I’m left thinking about is proposing,” Shawn Booth echoed.

Kaitlyn was very excited to introduce the men to her family, but her mother seemed concerned to learn that Nick had joined the show mid-season and was one of the remaining two.

Related: PHOTOS: Meet Kaitlyn Bristowe's Suitors

“I’m totally shocked that he is here,” her mother said with a twinge, prompting Kaitlyn to tell her mom that she and Nick can’t keep their hands off each other — and that they had sex pretty early on. “Whoops!” Kaitlyn said with a smile. Her mom didn’t seem too concerned that they’d knocked boots so quickly, but she did stress to Kaitlyn that there has to be more to a relationship than the physical. Enter Nick!

Nick V. Meets the Family

Nick arrived right on cue, though he seemed less than enthused that Kaitlyn had told her parents about their little “whoops!” The Bristowes were nice enough to The Bachelorette vet, but they definitely expressed their concerns.

“I hope that he is here for the right reasons, and I really hope that he is just here just for Kaitlyn,” her sister confessed to the camera. But it was Mama Bristowe who really grilled him.

Related: PHOTOS: Bachelor's Top 16 Biggest Splits

“I have to be honest with you. You were possessive. You were jealous. We saw this — I don’t want to use the word arrogant, but who are you?” she asked during a private sit-down with her daughter’s suitor. He did his best to convince Kaitlyn’s mother that his intentions were genuine. “I am in love with your daughter. She is the most incredible woman I have ever met. If she will have me, I want her for the rest of my life,” Nick said as both he and her mother got a little misty-eyed. Ultimately, he earned both Kaitlyn’s mother’s and father’s approval.

Nick Viall and Kaitlyn Bristowe date
Nick Viall swooped in on Kaitlyn Bristowe during an earlier group date.

Kaitlyn’s Sister Is Team Shawn

Next it was Shawn’s turn to charm the Bristowe clan. He wasted no time making it clear how much affection he has for Kaitlyn, and seemed to win Kaitlyn’s father over quickly. Her mother, though, had some hard questions.

“I’m concerned about jealousy,” she said to the hopeful suitor. “How are you going to handle that feeling of jealousy in the outside world?”

Shawn explained that they would continue to build their relationship on trust, prompting her mother to go for the jugular and force him to talk about how he felt when he found out Kaitlyn had sex with Nick. To Shawn’s credit, he handled it without getting emotional and told her simply, “I’m in love with your daughter.” He rounded out the day by securing her parents’ blessing to propose.

Related: PHOTOS: Bachelor Relationship Updates

Meanwhile, Kaitlyn caught up with her sister, who declared that she was “Team Shawn.” Kaitlyn seemed surprised to hear that, but took her sister’s opinion to heart.

Kaitlyn Makes the Most of Her Two Final Dates

Kaitlyn and Nick spent their final date drinking and making out on a boat. “Nick brings out the side of me that nobody really does,” Kaitlyn cooed to the camera. “That connection is just so strong and undeniable.” Later in the evening, Nick brought out the big guns with a framed photo from their first one-on-one date along with some romantic words he wrote.

The next day, Katilyn was riddled with anxiety during her date with Shawn. They cuddled and drank wine, but she didn’t seem to be enjoying it much. “I wasn’t nervous at all coming into today,” Shawn said to the camera. “I was excited to see her and I knew 100 percent I was going to propose to her tomorrow. But now, after talking to her, I don’t know anymore. I’m starting to get a pit in my stomach. I don’t know if she’s having doubts about me, but I’m definitely very nervous.”

They relaxed, however, as the night went on, and had a heart-to-heart about their future children. Shawn finished the evening by giving Kaitlyn a homemade “memory jar,” which she clearly loved.

The Bling Ring(s)

Neil Lane dropped by to visit both Shawn and Nick (which Nick took to mean that he was the last man standing since the last time he was on the show, Andi Dorfman had arrived at his place instead of the jeweler to spare him the humiliation of proposing to her on national TV when she had chosen the other guy). Apparently, Kaitlyn decided to give both suitors the chance to propose.

Related: PHOTOS: Bachelorette Bikini Bods

Nick Proposes

“The reason I showed up in the first place was that I just felt something about you and it was a feeling that I always wanted to feel about someone,” Nick explained. “I look at you and I think about how in love I am with you and what you mean to me. I’m not ready to let you go and I don’t want to let us go.”

He continued his speech, declaring, “I look at you and I have such confidence in you and in us and I am yours forever if you’ll have me.”

“I’m sorry,” Kaitlyn whispered. “I know that we talked about if I didn’t feel this, that I would let you know and I don’t want to take away — because I did need every single second that we’ve had together. … I’ve looked for everything and I want to find something that has gone wrong. The only explanation that I have is that my heart is just with somebody else.”

She then tried to get Nick to talk about his feelings, but he wasn’t having it. (Can you blame him?) “I’m not trying to be short, I just don’t think there’s anything you could say that would make me less confused,” an obviously stunned Nick replied. “I don’t need to continue to hear how you love me.” He finished up by saying, “It’s not fair to tell me that what I feel, you feel the same. If you did, you’d have a ring on your finger right now. … You don’t love me.”

In the limo, he lamented, “I do feel like it was the best set up. To actually hear her tell me she loves me more than once — it is a f—ing joke. I am the world’s biggest joke.”

Shawn Proposes 

Shawn’s proposal went much better than Nick’s. “When I went to introduce myself and you grabbed my hands, I felt something that I’ve never felt before,” he began. “These past couple months we’ve made some incredible memories and through all the highs and the lows, the ups and the downs, I would not change any of it because it led us here, tonight. You have exceeded all expectations, more than I could ever have imagined.”

Shawn B and Kaitlyn Bristowe
Shawn B puts his heart on the line for Kaitlyn.

He continued, “I fall more and more in love with you every time I see you and I look at you and I see a best friend, a partner in crime, a teammate, the love of my life. You have already made me the happiest guy in the world and all I want to do is make you the happiest girl in the world. I love you so much, Kaitlyn.”

Without missing a beat, Kaitlyn told Shawn, “The truth is you light me up and make me laugh and, most importantly, you allow me to be myself.” She went to acknowledge (again) that she had made some mistakes (like letting Nick propose on national TV moments earlier, perhaps?). “I never want you to question what we have ever again because I am completely yours. I will always be faithful to you. I have been waiting so long to tell you how I feel because I love you with all of my heart like I’ve never loved anybody before. I can’t wait to make a lifetime of memories with you and only you because you are the one and you always will be.”

Shawn then got down on one knee and proposed to a crying, overjoyed Kaitlyn, who promptly accepted.

Tell Us: Should Kaitlyn have let Nick propose? Did she pick the right guy?

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