A match made inParadise!
Chris Randone and Krystal Nielson, who fell in love and gotengagedonBachelor in Paradiselast June, exchanged vows in front of fellow Bachelor Nation alum on — where else? — the site of their very first date in Mexico.
“We are so excited to start this new chapter of our lives together,” Nielson tells PEOPLE exclusively. “We will have each other’s backs forever.”
Randone, a sales trainer, and Nielson, a fitness coach, each went on dates with otherParadisecast members (Tia Booth and Kenny King, respectively) eventually found their way to each other and remained hot and heavy through the season. In the end, Randone proposed with a 2-carat pear-shaped Neil Lane ring.
And ultimately, Randone and Nielson say they’re grateful for each other — and for the positive changes their relationship has brought to each other’s lives.
“I was very thick-skinned and hard-shelled when I got to Paradise,” Randone previouslytold PEOPLE. “I was not myself. I was trying to act like this tough guy, that I had an ego.”
Continued Randone: “She pulled me aside and said, ‘You need to be more self-aware or you’re going to lose friendships here and you’re going to lose me.’ I realized that this woman came out of nowhere to give me direction. I felt it from her heart and I realized that if I don’t change now and be vulnerable, I’m going to lose this incredible woman.”
John Fleenor/ABC
Nielson, who, like Randone, grew up with a single mother, said she related to Randone’s initial aloofness. “We were both hard-skinned because we went through tough times, and we bonded over that. I could understand him.”
Now, the newlyweds say they’re looking forward to the future — and to one day, starting a family.
Bachelor Nation can tune in to Chris and Krystal’s wedding when it airs on August 5 as part of the upcoming season premiere ofBachelor in Paradise.
source: people.com
