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'Bachelor' star Matt James is not on speaking terms with his ex Rachael Kirkconnell after drama over another woman — read more
So over they need a new word for over. If there was ever any chance that Bachelor stars Matt James and Rachael Kirkconnell might get back together after their brief reunion, it appears to have evaporated.
“Rachael and Matt are on non-speaking terms after she learned about him lying about being in communication with another girl,” a source told Us Weekly exclusively on Monday, April 19. “He was in Atlanta this weekend, which is less than an hour away from where Rachael resides, and he has not reached out to her to make amends or apologize. As far as she’s concerned, what they had is in the past now.”
Though the former NFL player, 29, met up with the graphic designer, 24, in New York City earlier this month, the claims that James had been speaking to another woman during his visit hit Kirkconnell pretty hard.
“Rachael is very emotional right now because she was very hopeful that things were going to work out,” a second source told Us earlier this month after a woman named Grace claimed that she was seeing him. “She’s still trying to process this.”
According to the second insider, the Georgia native thought she was on track for a reunion with James, but once she found out about Grace, she felt “manipulated” by him. Grace, who revealed her alleged relationship with the ABC Food Tours founder during an Instagram Live with Reality Steve, also didn’t appreciate finding out that James had seen Kirkconnell during his trip. The source confirmed that she “dropped him” after she heard about his meeting with his ex.
A source close to James maintained that the North Carolina had no intention of getting back together with his Bachelor ex, adding that he “tried to make it clear to her that he just wants to be friends.” The insider added, “Matt is a caring and supportive person, so he wouldn’t want to block her out of his life completely.”
The Wake Forest alum chose Kirkconnell as the winner of season 25 but did not propose to her in the finale, instead asking that they take time to get to know one another. During After the Final Rose in March, he revealed that they broke up after controversial social media posts showing her attending an antebellum-themed party started making headlines.
“As someone who grew up in the South, it takes me to a place that I don’t often like to think about. I wasn’t OK,” James said of the posts. “It was in that moment and the conversation that I had, that Rachael might not understand what it means to be Black in America. It’s heartbreaking. If you don’t understand that something like that is problematic in 2018, there’s a lot of me that you won’t understand. It’s as simple as that.”
The realization that the pair weren’t destined for a reconciliation initially left Kirkconnell “very hurt,” but the first insider says that she’s “doing good” now. “She’s working on her mental health and getting into a much better headspace,” the source adds. “She’s focusing on her own antiracism work and working on herself right now. She’s not looking to jump into the dating field any time soon.”
With reporting by Diana Cooper
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This story originally appeared on: US Magazine - Author:Eliza Thompson
