No thorny feelings here! Bachelorette runner-up Robby Hayes isn’t bitter toward JoJo Fletcher, who dumped him on the show’s season finale Monday, August 1, a source exclusively reveals to Us Weekly.
“He’s doing really well,” says a source close to the genetically blessed Florida native, 27. “With the help of family and friends, he’s progressively been able to move on.”
Hayes was the first of Fletcher’s suitors to proclaim his love for the Bachelorette during a one-on-one date in Uruguay. But weeks later, on the beach in Thailand — on what he assumed would be the greatest day of his life — the real estate developer rejected him for his pal Jordan Rodgers.
“I can’t let you get down on one knee — I can’t let you do that because I don’t want to take that moment from you,” Fletcher told the former competitive swimmer. “I fell in love with you, but for some reason my heart is somewhere else.”
Left shocked, Hayes finally got closure during his appearance on After the Final Rose on Monday. “Finding out that JoJo is happy was comforting and is helping him move on,” adds the insider. “Robby still cares for her and in caring for her, all he wants is for her to be happy.”
Hayes, known for his perfectly coiffed hair, got the opportunity to confront Fletcher during the reunion special for the first time since she broke his heart. “You say a lot of things that make me think that it should have been us,” the suitor said to Fletcher while flashing his pearly whites. “[You said] that you love me, that your family thought it should’ve been me. … I’m asking now, with the time that has passed, is there anything that’s more clear as to why one love was stronger than the one love we had?”
Admitted Fletcher, “My heart was always with Jordan.”
Still, Hayes leaves with no regrets. “The entire experience was positive and Robby would do it again,” the source tell Us. “Robby just wants JoJo to be happy and he knows she had to make the right decision for her.”
Watch Hayes ask Fletcher for closure during the After the Final Rose special above!
