Taylor Frankie Paul revealed that her scrapped season of The Bachelorette had ended with an engagement, but her relationship drama continued almost immediately after she returned home.
During the conversation, Paul also admitted that she reconnected with ex Dakota Mortensen after filming.
Taylor Frankie Paul says she accepted a proposal and later reconnected with ex Dakota Mortensen
The SLOMW star shared the spoiler in a preview from Season 5 of The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives, which Hulu’s Get Real podcast released on Sept. 3.
Paul spoke with costars Jessi Draper, Mikayla Matthews and Mayci Neeley about what happened during her Bachelorette experience.
When Draper asked whether one of the contestants had proposed, Paul confirmed it.
“[I said,] ‘Yes.’ Yes, I did [get engaged],” she said.
Paul did not name the suitor in the clip, though the conversation suggested it was Doug Mason.
After filming ended, Paul said she and Mortensen started texting again. Their communication soon led to an in-person reunion.
“Then, I come home. Obviously [me and ex Dakota Mortensen] were texting. ‘When are you going to be home?’ I don’t know how it led to it but he came over,” Paul recalled.
Mikayla responded, “Umm … I think I know how that happened.”
The women also pointed out similarities between Paul’s Bachelorette suitor and Mortensen. They noted that both men shared the same initials and came from Idaho.
Paul insisted she had not noticed those similarities until other people brought them up.
“I didn’t start thinking that until people said it around me,” she said.
The revelations came after ABC canceled Paul’s season of The Bachelorette while she and Mortensen were involved in a domestic violence investigation in Utah. The Salt Lake County District Attorney’s Office later declined to pursue criminal charges in the case.
Paul subsequently promoted a fan petition asking ABC to release the unaired season. The petition had collected more than 25,000 signatures at the time of the source report.
Meanwhile, Paul and Mortensen remained unable to film together because restraining orders required them to stay at least 100 feet apart for three years.
The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives Season 5 is scheduled to premiere on Hulu on Sept. 10, with viewers expected to hear more about Paul’s canceled Bachelorette season.
If you or someone you know is experiencing domestic violence, call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233 for confidential support.
