As they navigate their new reality, Bachelor Arie Luyendyk Jr. and fiancée Lauren Burnham live by a shared mantra. When fans scrutinize the couple’s sincerity, Burnham says she remembers three little words: “It’ll blow over.”
In the meantime, they have learned to block out cynics. “People have a very strong opinion about it, but at the end of the day, I had to follow my heart,” Luyendyk explained to Us during a March 7 conference call, adding that the duo “have a healthy relationship. We lean on each other. I didn’t do this to become popular. I did this to find someone.”
He accomplished that mission, twice. In what has been dubbed the love hunt’s most dramatic finale, Luyendyk proposed to publicist Becca Kufrin, only to break up with her two months later. Then, just 24 hours after filming the split — which aired unedited, a first in the ABC show’s 16-year run — Luyendyk, 36, flew cross-country to reunite with runner-up Burnham, 26.
“It took a lot of intense conversations for Lauren to go back to him,” explains a source. “But she knows Arie is The One.”
Their rocky journey only makes the happily ever after sweeter. “They have been through a lot and it’s made them more of a power couple,” says the insider. “Arie and Lauren fully trust each other. They are excited for the future.”
And the celebrations to come. After Luyendyk proposed with a 3.65-carat Neil Lane sparkler on the March 6 After the Final Rose special, “Lauren and Arie’s families went out to dinner in L.A.,” says the source. “They toasted the happy couple with two bottles of champagne and got to know each other.”
Both sides approve of the pairing. “They all love each other,” continues the insider. “Everyone thinks Lauren and Arie are perfect for each other. Their love radiates.”
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