Entertainment

Dean & Lesley's Relationship Took A Major Step Forward On 'Bachelor Winter Games'

ABC/Paul Hebert

Dean and Lesley were the power couple on Bachelor Winter Games. While most of the cast was competitive and desperately looking for love on the ABC series, these two were actually competing to be the most in love. So it's no surprise that they attempted to one up everyone at "World Tells All" too, and while Dean and Lesley did not get engaged on Bachelor Winter Games, they have embarked on quite the romantic adventure.

Chris Harrison called them an unusual couple. "We've been spending a lot of time together," Dean said, before asking Lesley a question... that was not a marriage proposal. He gave her a key to his house, a forgotten relationship milestone, and she accepted. "Best thing ever," she said, almost off mic. "I love you."

If Dean was looking for redemption post-Bachelor In Paradise flip-flopping, he found it. "I think that you embody so much of the person that I know that I need in my life," Dean told Lesley on the show "And it’s hard to find a balance between liking you and not wanting to move too quickly. I don’t want to ruin things like I have in the past."

Sure, there were some doubts. During the kissing competition, judge and former Bachelorette Rachel Lindsay was not feeling their choreographed routine. It was about as natural as a summer camp talent show skit. But their relationship was actually pretty solid from the start. These two barely tried to hide the fact that they were still dating on social media in the past couple of weeks. They spent Valentine's Day together. They were seen together at Sundance Film Festival.

From posting pictures on social media that just happened to be taken in similar spots to geotags and full on faces, it was clear that they two were still hanging out. Currently, according to Instagram, they're in Honduras. It seems like either they stopped caring about spoiling the show, or ABC thought they were too cute together to reprimand.

“We bonded over the fact that both of our moms had breast cancer and his mom unfortunately passed away," Lesley said in an interview with People. "He knew about my surgery and my recent double mastectomy. He had the sweetest things to say about it. He was like, ‘I commend you so much for doing that.'”

In the same interview, she talked about their romantic connection as well. “We’re very different people," she said, "but that’s attractive in a way. He drew me in. He’s hard to look away from!”

“I had a bad experience on Bachelor in Paradise," said Dean in an interview with Us Weekly, "but I learned a lot over that experience so it was nice to be able to go on with a new perspective and really be able to focus on how to improve and not be as much of a sh*thead as I was the first time around. It wasn’t even about redemption. It was just a matter of applying the lessons that I’ve learned into successful dating.”

That has clearly worked out. He told Us Weeky that he is in an amazing place, happier than ever, and is hoping for a future in his current relationship.

“I like someone that is adventurous," he said, which certainly applies to Lesley. "Someone that has a lot of personality. Someone that can help make decisions for me because I’m incredibly indecisive. I need someone like that in my life. I’d say those are the three most important things.”

The final episode saw Dean and Lesley's heading to the Fantasy Suite, and things only got better from there. "I can't believe I'm leaving here with a boyfriend," Lesley said at the end of the episode. Isn't that all that matters? Dean and Lesley are at the start of something, and it's really kind of beautiful.