Nice guys can finish first!
Though he was sent home heartbroken by Kaitlyn Bristowe on The Bachelorette, Ben Higgins' televised journey to find love is far from over, as multiple sources exclusively confirmed to E! News that the 26-year-old software salesman has been chosen to be the next Bachelor. While he has yet to finalize his contract and ABC won't be making the announcement anytime soon, our source told us Ben is "pretty much a lock." And judging from what the third runner-up told E! News at the Men Tell All special taping, just before we learned he'd been chosen as the next Bach, he's definitely ready to sign the dotted line.
"Doing this experience, you come in skeptical and you walk out of the experience, I did at least, realizing it's a very real thing," Ben said to us. "True emotions do evolve and it does give you the opportunity to meet somebody that you could potentially spend the rest of your life with."
However, Ben hinted that he did have some reservations about taking over for Chris Soules, saying, "I had a great experience on the show, from beginning to end. Like I've said it, I have a good life, though. I have a job that is steady, I have a house in Denver and I have a great family...I think if the offer was on the table, there'd be things I'd have to consider and seriously consider those things."
Fortunately for us, he made the decision pretty quickly!
While he didn't end up finding everlasting love with Kaitlyn, Ben still believes it's possible "to find love through this process." And he revealed he's seen it up close and in-person.
"I actually ran into Trista and Ryan Sutter this past week," he said of the first Bachelorette and her winner, who have been married for almost 15 years and have two children together. "I think seeing them gives me hope that this works."
Plus, Ben made a great point about how there is no much thing as traditional dating anymore, thanks to online dating sites like Tinder and Christian Mingle. Calling The Bachelor process just as "effective," Ben explained, "As weird as it is, you as a man, you get 25 women to date and that's pretty good odds that one of those women is going to be compatible with you."
And yes, ladies, he's already closed his Tinder account: "My Tinder days are done," he revealed."They existed at one time and they are done now!"
To hear more from Ben, including how he feels about Kaitlyn after watching the season, watch our interview with him above. Spoiler alert: You might fall in love!
The Bachelorette's Men Tell All special airs Monday at 8 p.m. on ABC.