InstagramIt's been about six months since Kaitlyn Bristowe announced her split from Shawn Booth. While the breakup took some members of Bachelor Nation by surprise, the season 11 star had known their relationship was in trouble for about a year.
The Bachelorette alumna made the confession on Tuesday's episode of The Ben and Ashley I Almost Famous Podcast.
"I think I knew for a year that my relationship wouldn't work, and I think I knew that he just couldn't give me the kind of love that I needed in my life. And he admitted that," she told host Ashley Iaconetti. "And I think for a solid year, maybe half a year, I was already grieving the relationship. And I think I was just so prepared for it that, when it happened, I knew what I wanted; and I knew what I deserved; and I knew that I was happy on my own and that I wasn't just replacing somebody."
Fans watched Bristowe and Booth fall in love in 2015 on The Bachelorette. Their season ended in a proposal, and the two were regarded as one of the franchise's successful couples for three years before calling it quits in 2018.
So, some fans were surprised when Bristowe started dating fellow Bachelor alum Jason Tartick a few months later.
"It can seem fast, but to me, it was perfect timing because I just knew what I wanted and I just didn't see it happening—I was like, there's no way I'm going to meet somebody that quick that could make me that happy," she said. "It was weird timing but it wasn't too fast for me."
However, nobody was more surprised than Bristowe, who never expected to date someone else from the franchise.
"Shawn and I had a very difficult time on the show, and I think that was really hard on our relationship. And I think I was a little bit jaded by Bachelor relationships because of that. So, I just figured, you know, I'm just going to move past that, and I won't date anyone from The Bachelor franchise. I thought I'd be single for, like, five years..because I knew I was OK with that."
In fact, Bristowe said she was still "heartbroken" when she met Tartick while recording a podcast. The two soon became friends and Bristowe was actually rooting for him to be the next Bachelor. However, fate had a different plan and the rest, as they say, is history.
"It was like my heart knew that there was something there and there was some reason I was rooting for his happiness and I cared about him," she said, "but I didn't ever see it as anything what it turned into."
To hear Bristowe's full interview, check out the podcast.