Honesty hour. Tayshia Adams broke her silence on her split from fiancé Zac Clark during Michelle Young‘s episode of The Bachelorette: The Men Tell All on Monday, December 6.
“Tayshia, I want to talk to you about something. And, of course, we’ve talked about this off camera, but you’re not wearing your engagement ring. I know there’s a lot of rumors, a lot of speculation, but I do think it’s important for you to have the chance to clear the air, have a voice for yourself, say whatever you want to say before other people, you know, get to make the story for you,” Tayshia’s Bachelorette cohost Kaitlyn Bristowe began. “Can you tell us what’s going on in your relationship with Zac?”
“All I have to say is that I’m heartbroken,” Tayshia, 31, replied through tears. “But we tried really hard and I still love him very much and I’m not sure what the future holds.” Shortly after telling Kaitlyn that it was “really tough,” Tayshia walked off stage to take a moment and wipe away her tears.
Her statement comes two weeks after Life & Style confirmed the pair’s breakup on November 22.
On November 19, Life & Style broke the news that Tayshia and Zac, 36, were “on a break” following their televised engagement in December 2020. “It doesn’t look good,” a source revealed.
Although they’ve decided to call it quits, the ABC personalities “still care about each other,” a separate insider assured Life & Style. “They really did have a good run.”
Fans were first introduced to Zac during season 16 of The Bachelorette. The New Jersey native initially competed for Clare Crawley‘s affections before she left the show early with contestant Dale Moss. Tayshia later stepped in as the leading lady and the pair left the series engaged after she chose Zac over runner-up Ben Smith.
Throughout their romance, Zac and Tayshia faced breakup rumors, namely in March 2021 after fans noticed the Bachelor in Paradise alum wasn’t wearing her Neil Lane engagement ring.
After receiving several messages, Tayshia took to social media to clear the air. “There’s all these weird rumors circulating around that I’m not wearing my ring and that Zac and I are broken up. I don’t know what is happening, but you guys, I was holding my phone with my left hand,” she wrote via Instagram Stories at the time.
“Ironically enough, as I was showing my hand, maybe a week-and-a-half ago, my ring was literally swinging around my finger, and a lot of your messaged me like, ‘Don’t lose your ring!’ Well, I was in L.A. for a hot minute and was finally able to drop off my ring and get it sized,” Tayshia continued. “I love that there’s so much love and support around our relationship, but please don’t put unnecessary rumors/pressure on us.”
The following month, Zac spoke with Life & Style about how the speculation affected their relationship. “We didn’t give it too much weight,” the addiction specialist recalled. “Tayshia went on and kind of made a little statement on her Instagram, which I appreciated.”
Tayshia’s engagement ring was ultimately the catalyst for their recent breakup rumors. Fans noticed that the California native wasn’t wearing her diamond on three separate occasions, including to the House of Gucci premiere in Los Angeles on November 19.