Finally public! Colton Underwood and Cassie Randolph gushed over each other on Instagram after their whirlwind reconciliation on the season 23 finale of The Bachelor on Tuesday, March 12.
“Whatever I write will never fully articulate the feelings I have for you,” the former NFL player, 27, captioned a photo of himself shirtless while kissing the speech pathologist, 23, in bed. “You are the most incredible person whom I have ever met, you have the kindest soul and the sweetest heart. You changed my life for the better and made this year the best year of my life. I can’t wait for our adventures ahead… I have my best friend. I have my girlfriend. I have my future fiancé. I have my future wife. But most importantly I have you. Let’s do this thing they call life… together… forever. I love you @cassierandolph.”
Randolph, for her part, shared two posts on her Instagram page, the first of which reflected upon her journey to finding love with Underwood.
“Stepping out of the limo on night one, I had no idea what was in store for me,” she recalled. “The saying ‘God always has bigger plans in mind’ has never felt more real to me than it does now. I’m honestly holding back tears as I write this, trying not to get too sentimental as all the memories and emotions flood over me while I reflect on this whole experience. I am unbelievably grateful for every single relationship that was formed with 29 amazing women, Colton and all the crew involved. … I’ve learned things about myself, relationships, and life in general, that I would never have known otherwise. Thinking back to before I was cast on The Bachelor S23, I get chills realizing just how crazy it is that ONE THING has the potential to change life SO MUCH.”
The Huntington Beach, California, native went on to explain that she “took a much-needed break from my social media” in the week leading up to the finale to avoid “allowing the opinions of others, and their sometimes cruel speculations, really get to me.” She concluded by thanking viewers for “the opportunity to share with you all a glimpse into some of the most pivotal moments of my life. So far :).”
In her second post, Randolph focused more on her relationship with Underwood. “The secret is finally out!!! Colton, you truly have my heart,” she captioned a mirror selfie of them kissing.
“Walking into this experience, I honestly wasn’t sure that true love could come from it,” she continued. “It hasn’t necessarily been the easiest road to get to where we are, but if that’s what it took to get here, then every single twist and turn has been undeniably WORTH IT. The last 4 months, just focusing on ‘us’ have been amazing and you have become my best friend. You have shown me the purest, strongest love that any girl could ask for. You jumped a fence, took a risk, and challenged the ‘rules’ to fight for us. I can’t even begin to describe how lucky I feel to have you by my side. I am so excited to see what is next for us in this new phase of our ‘journey’… I’d jump a thousand fences for you and ‘like, I know, I KNOW’ that I love you more than words, point blank. ps. you still give me butterflies.”
Randolph was considered to be a front-runner throughout the season, so it came as a surprise to viewers when she broke up with Underwood ahead of their fantasy suite date. She explained to him that she was scared about the fast pace of their romance on the ABC series and the prospect of an engagement. The former athlete was heartbroken, but his feelings never wavered. He broke up with finalists Hannah Godwin and Tayshia Adams on the Monday, March 11, episode and tracked down Randolph to reconcile.
Later on Tuesday, the couple stopped by Jimmy Kimmel Live!, where late-night host Jimmy Kimmel presented them with an engagement ring courtesy of The Bachelor’s longtime jeweler Neil Lane for when they’re ready to take the next step.
Underwood’s contestant Hannah Brown has been named the lead of The Bachelorette season 15.
