Note: The following story contains spoilers from “The Golden Bachelorette” Episode 7.
As “The Golden Bachelorette” Joan Vassos inches closer toward a potential engagement, this week’s overnight dates led to a surprising exit, which the leading lady said had been moving in the right direction.
“We had gone back and forth … he had his walls up [and] he said they’re coming down,” Vassos told TheWrap of Pascal Ibgui, who had introduced his family to Vassos just a week prior during hometown dates. “He was moving in the right direction.”
Despite this progress, Vassos noted Ibgui got “scared” by their fantasy suites date, which involved a Tahitian bonding ceremony in which the couple shared their greatest fears with one another before releasing them. In the episode, Ibgui admitted he was “freaked out” by the date and had hoped for something more casual, and Ibgui ultimately broke up with Vassos during the evening portion of their date.
“He clearly, probably wasn’t in the right headspace yet — he was trying to get there,” Vassos said. “I know he’s a kind person. He didn’t want to hurt me and he was trying to get there, and he just couldn’t make it … I can’t blame him for that, and I would never want anybody to try to talk themselves into it. You either feel it or don’t.”
Despite admitting the breakup was “hurtful,” Vassos applauded Ibgui for doing the “right thing,” saying “he shouldn’t want me to be happy and sacrifice his own [happiness] … he needs to take care of himself.”
Even prior to the breakup with Ibgui, Vassos went into fantasy suites with a mindset that differed from former leads of “The Bachelor” franchise, as the leading lady told her suitors upfront that she was not comfortable experiencing physical intimacy with anyone other than her future husband, whose identity she couldn’t yet guarantee.
“I didn’t picture having a physical relationship with more than one person, so I took that off the table — that was just going to be about emotional intimacy,” Vassos said. “And I feel like I got exactly what I needed.”
Vassos added that her overnight dates were filled with “lots of hours” of “just talking,” noting that the off-camera time was crucial to “protect your own privacy and protect your family’s privacy.” “It was exactly what you need,” Vassos said. “I can’t imagine doing this journey without having done that.”
Despite Ibgui’s early exit, Vassos had two successful overnight dates with her final two suitors, Chock Chapple and Guy Gansert.
“We got to talk about what life would be like together and and even the difficult things — how you figure out kids and grandkids and parents and all of those things,” Vassos said. “You talk finances, you talk about home life … it’s when you dive deep — you really do — and see if this could really work, because this is your time. Fantasy suites leads up to the final rose.”
“The Golden Bachelorette” airs Wednesdays at 8 p.m. ET/PT on ABC and streams the next day on Hulu.
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