Coming to terms with it. After Us Weekly broke the news of Katie Thurston‘s new romance with Bachelor Nation’s John Hersey, her ex-fiancé, Blake Moynes, revealed whether he saw the relationship coming.
“I really don’t think there was any physical cheating there, but there [was] clearly emotional [cheating] for it to transition as quickly as it did. I feel stupid and foolish for allowing it to happen, to some degree,” Moynes, 31, revealed during an episode of the “Talking It Out With Bachelor Nation” podcast on Wednesday, November 24.
The wildlife manager, who proposed to Thurston, 30, during the August season 17 finale of The Bachelorette, opened up about how he attempted to process the news after initially finding himself completely “speechless” when he saw Thurston moving on.
“I don’t know if it was partially me too, like, was she emotionally cheating to some degree because I wasn’t able to provide something with words of affirmation, which I know I struggle with sometimes,” he wondered. “I try to stand by having no regrets, but it is instances like this where you really start to fight yourself with having no regrets just with the way things played out.”
Thurston initially hinted at her new romance when she dedicated Taylor Swift‘s “Begin Again” to Hersey, 27, on the final day of her “12 Days of Messy” challenge on Tuesday, November 23. The post highlighted a montage of sweet moments between the Washington native and Hersey, who Thurston originally sent home during week two of her Bachelorette journey.
Throughout the season, fans saw the former bank marketing manager find love with Moynes, who previously appeared on season 16 of the ABC series, but made a surprising return to pursue Thurston. The pair left the show engaged.
“It’s actually probably the most romantic thing someone’s ever done,” the Bachelor alum gushed during the After the Final Rose special in August. “I know you question it in the beginning. I know a lot of people did, but knowing that I could’ve turned him away and he would’ve looked dumb, he took all these risks for me and no one’s ever believed in me like that. So for him to just trust in us early on, it just means everything.”
Two months after their proposal aired, Thurston and Moynes called it quits.
“It is with mutual love and respect that we have decided to go our separate ways. We are so grateful for the moments we shared together and the entire journey that has unfolded this year, but we ultimately have concluded that we are not compatible as life partners, and it is the most caring choice for both of us to move forward independently,” the exes captioned their joint statement via Instagram in October. “We ask for kindness and privacy as we both navigate this transition. Both of us will forever want the best for one another and ask you to please support us in our decision.”
Nearly one month later, news of Thurston moving on made headlines — and the Canada native admitted that he “didn’t see this coming.”
He noted on Wednesday’s podcast, “Everyone is asking questions like I have the answers. I don’t. I had no idea. When everyone heard this, I heard the exact same thing. There was speculation, I think, obviously, but I really thought there was no way just based on the timeline.”
Scroll down for all the details about Moynes’ reaction to Thurston’s new relationship: