Clayton's final pick said it was 'heartbreaking' to see his conversations with his exes.
Susie Evans had a hard time watching her beau reunite with his exes. The morning after the season finale of The Bachelor, Clayton Echard's final pick told ET's Denny Directo that watching the medical sales rep's conversations with Gabby Windey and Rachel Recchia was "heartbreaking."
During the two-part season finale, Clayton reeled from Susie's decision to leave the show, after learning that he'd been intimate with and was in love with multiple women.
Clayton came clean to Gabby and Rachel about the same thing, and convinced them to stay and meet his parents, but ended up breaking up with them when he couldn't get Susie off of his mind.
Those splits led Clayton to have awkward live conversations with Gabby and Rachel on Tuesday's episode, both of which Susie watched from the wings as she waited to make her couple debut with the Bachelor himself.
"It was really tough," Susie told ET. "We obviously knew those conversations were coming. I had those conversations with Clayton and I was privy to having hours and hours to ask the questions that I needed, whether it was for closure or to continue the relationship. These women had eight minutes or whatever it was to get their peace and have their closure."
Though Rachel asked Clayton if he'd said "I love you" to get her into bed, and Gabby slammed the Bachelor for making her feel "so misled," Susie thought that "everyone did a great job" with the uncomfortable conversations.
"We knew it was gonna be emotional, but it was hard to watch," she said. "It was just heartbreaking to see the devastation from these women. We both care deeply about them, so it was just tough."
Despite having a hard time watching the conversations with the newly announced co-Bachelorettes play out, Susie was well aware of the entirety of the situation going in, which provided some sense of comfort. In fact, getting all of the information from Clayton ahead of time turned out to be key in rekindling her romance with the Bachelor, as they watched the season air on TV.
"It was actually better than I expected in some ways, but it was tough. I mean, there were times that were emotional and it was just a hard situation to be in. You’re dating this guy and then you’re watching him fall in love with other people, so it's not, like, super fun," she said. "... They were tough conversations for sure, but the best thing that I can say and I applaud Clayton for is that he was transparent from the beginning."
"We did not jump back into this relationship without turning every stone. We talked about everything. I knew where his heart was at every point in the journey. When I saw it back, none of it was a surprise to me," Susie added. "I knew what I was in for... There were tough conversations or tough moments, but ultimately I am very proud of him for following his heart, and just for being the kind and compassionate person that he is, and [for] growing so much through this."
Tune in to Wednesday's episode of Entertainment Tonight for more of ET's interview with Clayton and Susie.
RELATED CONTENT:
