Luke Pell and Hayley James. Courtesy of Hayley James/Instagram
Luke Pell didn’t meet his fiancée in person until February 2024. By July, they were engaged.
Pell, 39, shared the story of how he met Hayley James in an August 1 appearance on the “Almost Famous” podcast with Ben Higgins and Ashley Iaconetti. (Higgins and Pell appeared together on Bachelor Winter Games in 2018.)
It started with a DM slide after Pell, who got his Bachelor Nation start on season 12 of The Bachelorette, saw a photo of James on his Instagram explore page.
“We don’t have a lot of mutual friends, I think it’s the instagram algorithm,” Pell said. “It was like an explore page thing and I was like, ‘Oh my God, she’s gorgeous.’”
Many stars are taking their relationships to the next level in 2024 by getting engaged. Less than one month after Bachelor in Paradise season 9 alum Brayden Bowers revealed that he was dating fellow Bachelor Nation personality Christina Mandrell, he proposed. “I just knew that there was something special, and there was something different, and […]
The two got to talking and, long before they ever met in person, Pell knew it was a match.
“She’s just an incredible person and so we talked through DMs for a little bit and we didn’t actually meet until late February this year in person,” he said.
“So it’s been quite an expedited timeline,” he added, before joking, “if you’re not on reality TV shows it’s an expedited timeline.”
Since February, the two have spent Easter together and Pell has met James’ family. On July 21, they announced their engagement in a joint post via Instagram.
“The easiest yes. I love you forever,” James commented.
While some roses stand the test of time, others wilt before the Neil Lane engagement ring can be resized. The Bachelor premiered on ABC in March 2002 with Alex Michel dubbed the world’s most eligible Bachelor. More than 20 women competed for his heart and one of the most successful reality TV franchises was born. […]
Followers took to the comments immediately to congratulate them, including a few other members of Bachelor Nation, begging the question: Will any familiar faces be invited to the wedding?
Pell addressed that directly on the podcast, naming Chase McNary and Chris Soules specifically.
McNary, who finished third on Pell’s season of The Bachelorette, recently got married himself.
“Chase McNary just got married in Colorado over the 4th of July weekend, and so I was a groomsman for that wedding, and we had a great time there,” Pell said.
Soules was the star of season 19 of The Bachelor and he and Pell grew close while Pell was living in Arizona.
“I lived in Scottsdale for a couple of years. He would come down in the winter and stay with me and golf and whatnot,” Pell explained.
Pell also teased that there may be more from Bachelor Nation at the wedding, though he didn’t name names, only adding, “there’s going to be several people from Bachelor Nation there, and obviously a few people from Nashville that were on the show as well.”
