Bachelor in Paradise star Kylee Russell is sharing her side of the story after breaking things off with Aven Jones following “multiple infidelities.”
“Aven and I, yes, we did have problems in our relationship. Everyone does. But when it came to ever thinking he would cheat on me, absolutely not,” Kylee, 26, shared during the Tuesday, January 23, episode of “The Viall Files” podcast. “I truly felt as though he loved me.”
Kylee and Aven, 30, met during Bachelor in Paradise season 9, which started filming in June 2023. When their season premiered in September of that year, Kylee said that her and Aven’s “Instagram games” of sharing a “like” (or sending a fire emoji) was the only connection they had.
After a tumultuous season on Kylee’s end — she wanted to get engaged while Aven refused to propose — the duo left the beach in Mexico as a couple. Days after the BiP finale revealed that Kylee and Aven were still together, she announced that they had split due to his cheating. (At the time, Aven released a statement about their split admitting to “major mistakes in the relationship.”)
Keep scrolling to uncover the bombshells from Kylee’s interview:
The Beginning of Kylee and Aven’s Relationship
When she watched BiP season 9 back, Kylee said it appeared there was a “disconnect” between herself and Aven on TV. Initially, Kylee did feel like she was “way more” into Aven.
“It was almost like he was there for a vacation with his friends. He was spending more time with the guys than he was with me, but that was only in the beginning,” Kylee said during Tuesday’s podcast. “As the weeks progressed and our relationship became stronger, I could tell he was all in on me.”
After Kylee uncovered his cheating, Aven admitted to her in an apparent text message that he didn’t take their relationship seriously in the beginning.
“As this relationship has gotten to this point, I’ve grown deeper and deeper in love with you. At the beginning I wasn’t taking this seriously at all,” he wrote, per Kylee. “I wasn’t putting in any effort. I didn’t think we were going to get to such a good point and that is not fair.”
Kylee Regrets ‘Begging’ for an Engagement
During the BiP season 9 finale, Kylee and Aven did not agree on the future of their relationship. She begged for an engagement, which he refused to give her.
“There were other conversations where he was giving me false hope in regards to the engagement,” Kylee claimed. “It was just the switch-up that had me so confused and had me so emotional.”
Kylee clarified that she was not looking for a TV engagement but wanted the “commitment” from Aven to “push” them as a couple to “work through the hardships.”
When Aven Cheated
After BiP finished filming, Kylee spent the Fourth of July in San Diego with Aven. Two weeks later, he cheated on her during a night out with other Bachelor Nation members.
After she and Aven went public with their relationship in December 2023, Kylee decided to check the “hidden request” folder of her Instagram DMs where she found a message starting with, “Hey girl.” She decided to engage, and the “nightmare” started.
The social media user claimed that her friend hooked up with Aven in July 2023 during a trip to Santa Monica. He was with Kylee at the time. The girl also sent a picture of her friend in bed with Aven (who was fully clothed), which Kylee verified because she knew what Aven had been wearing during his night out.
When Kylee called Aven to confront him, he immediately admitted to cheating. (There were also other infidelities when Aven took trips to Boston in August and September 2023, which he revealed to Kylee.)
Aven’s Text Message
Initially, Kylee felt that the relationship could be salvageable, but Aven then sent her a “book-long” message which she felt made it seem like “the end” of their relationship.
“I am worthless and I feel totally totally worthless right now. I stepped out on our relationship and I don’t know what to do. I don’t deserve to be painted in any good light. I don’t deserve you. I don’t deserve anyone,” Aven’s text message read, Kylee said on Tuesday’s podcast. “I need to seek major help in rebuilding myself.”
Aven went on to call himself “selfish and inconsiderate,” admitting that he did not take their relationship seriously. “I have ruined everything,” he said.
Where Kylee and Aven Stand Now
Kylee said that Aven is “currently taking the steps” to better himself. As for their relationship, she does not know what the future holds but is still planning on moving to San Diego. “He needs to do the work,” she said.
