Ben Higgins may have given his final rose to Lauren Bushnell, but that doesn’t mean their engagement went off without a hitch. Along with telling JoJo Fletcher that he loved her, it appears as though the Bachelor star is now having trouble getting over his ex-girlfriend. Is Higgins’ engagement with Bushnell on the verge of ending?
According to Celeb Dirty Laundry , Higgins has continued to maintain a relationship with one of his ex-girlfriends. While this in itself doesn’t constitute anything wrong, Higgins reportedly kept his friendship secret, which is not sitting well with Bushnell.
The woman in question is a former girlfriend from Higgins’ college days, whom he considers one of his best friends. Apparently, while the last season of The Bachelor was still airing, Higgins constantly talked to his ex on the phone, as he wasn’t allowed to hang out with Bushnell in public. Unfortunately for Higgins, the decision to keep this from Bushnell has led to trust issues between the newly engaged couple.
Of course, Higgins’ friendship with his ex-girlfriend isn’t the only hurdle the two have faced since their engagement. Speaking with ET Online , Bushnell opened up about having to re-live the moments when Higgins told Fletcher he loved her. Naturally, seeing her fiancé share his love and kiss other women was hard to watch.
“It’s so confusing because here we are weeks out from being engaged and [the] relationship [has progressed] even further [than] when we first got engaged,” she revealed. “I know this happened weeks ago, but you’re re-watching it. It’s like ‘your cheating on me’ or something… It’s not fun to watch your fiancé kissing other women, but it’s also something that happened in the past.”
Speaking of other women, it now appears as though Fletcher may not have been as in love with Higgins as previously thought. According to Celeb Dirty Laundry , Fletcher, who is now starring on The Bachelorette , was cheating on Ben Higgins during her time on The Bachelor .
Speaking to In Touch Weekly , Fletcher’s ex-boyfriend, Chad Rookstool , revealed that he and Fletcher were seeing each other in secret during her time on The Bachelor . Along with admitting that they were intimate, Rookstool shared how Fletcher wasn’t in love with Higgins.
“As soon as she got home, we started hanging out every day and being intimate again. We were sneaking around the whole time The Bachelor was airing because she wasn’t allowed to be seen with me,” he stated. “When she got home, she kept telling me she loved me and that we should have stayed together and fought through our issues. She said we would’ve been married by now. And I agreed with her.”
Meanwhile, despite a rocky start, Higgins and Bushnell are trying their best to work through their complicated issues. According to Us Magazine , Bushnell recently took to social media to celebrate Higgins birthday.
“HBD to this handsome man,” Bushnell wrote on Instagram alongside a collage of photos. “So thankful I get to celebrate with you today and forever!”
Although only time will tell if Higgins and Bushnell are able to stay together, the two are planning on taking a little break from all the fame and fortune, at least for now. Whether or not this helps them get over their past problems is yet to be seen.
“The spotlight is not a desire of mine, right?” Higgins admitted. “If it happens, it happens, and that’s great and grand and whatever you want to call it. Opportunities? Yeah. I have a great job right now and Lauren has a great job. It’s been fun for us.”
Tell us! Do you think Ben Higgins and Lauren Bushnell are one of the Bachelor couples that will last? Let us know in the comments below.
[Image via ABC]