Katie Thurston, The Bachelorette from Season 17 of the show, has had to overcome some rocky roads since her season ended and after it aired.
While Katie chose Blake Moynes as her winner and final rose recipient and accepted his proposal, the couple called it quits just three months after Katie’s season finale aired.
Then, rumors stirred when Katie started hanging out with John Hersey, a contestant from her season whom she sent home in week 2. As friends became a romance, others were quick to judge and even called her a possible cheater.
The Bachelorette’s Katie Thurston talks Blake Moynes breakup
Now, happily together, Katie and John have broken their silence together on Kaitlyn Bristowe’s podcast Off the Vine. While Katie wasn’t ready to tell all on the podcast, Kaitlyn was quick to point out what Blake said on a different Bachelor Nation podcast.
Katie talked about her breakup with Blake and said, “It kind of was disappointing, because Blake and I – and I think he’s gone on to say now on other podcasts – we both knew our relationship was not working out.”
She went on to declare, “My relationship with Blake was a very separate situation [from] my relationship with John. There was no overlap. There was nothing but respect. It’s just two different situations.”
John added that he watched Katie and Blake’s relationship unfold as he was by her side as one of her best friends, not a romantic partner. He also revealed how angry he got when Blake had said on the Talking It Out With Bachelor Nation podcast that Katie was emotionally cheating on him with John.
Katie Thurston shares why she sent John Hersey home so early
When asked by Kaitlyn why she eliminated John so early if they clearly had a good connection, Katie talked about how she didn’t get to talk to John until almost the end of the first night.
Katie revealed that she really didn’t get to have a legit conversation with John until the evening part of the first group date. She felt by that time, John was “so robotic, and it felt like an interview.”
Katie actually stated that, as John came out of the limo to greet her, she thought of him as one of her front-runners because he was so attractive and charming.
She even said that she told producers, “’Oh, I have my eyes on him,’ which was a blessing and a curse because you have to make quick decisions … So I put him so high up that as soon as I talked to him, and he failed, that I was, like, ‘We can move to the back of the line.’”
John agreed on the podcast that his nerves really got to him, that the format felt so unnatural, and that those were the ultimate reasons for his early exit.
According to Katie and John, there was no cheating, period, but according to Blake, there was clearly emotional cheating going on. Regardless of who is right or wrong, it seems that Katie and John are happy and thriving in their relationship.
The Bachelorette premieres Monday, July 11th, on ABC.