by Gina Scarpa

 

Just a week shy of hometown dates, Emily sent single dad Doug packing on last week's episode of The Bachelorette. The two shared a bond, as they were both parents, but lacked chemistry and passion that she just couldn't overlook. When he finally decided to make his move, she turned him down and politely ended their courtship. Doug spoke to reporters in a conference call about his elimination, his thoughts on the remaining guys, and whether or not his son has been watching the show.

 

Q. You seemed very shocked when you finally realized Emily was sending you home. What was going through your mind while she was talking and where did you think she was going with her speech?

A. Doug: I was thinking to myself, "You know, I really probably should have tried kissing her."  I thought she was saying, you know, "Hey, Doug, like, you've got to be a little more aggressive in terms of, you know, showing me, you know, you're interested in me." Emily was such a sweetheart throughout the whole thing and just because I'm a single dad, I tend to take things a little more slowly and so, I really just wanted to get to know Emily on a personal level and build a good friendship there. She was talking to me and I thought she was... I thought the conversation was heading towards, you know, like come on, give me a kiss and then I really wasn't expecting to be sent home. I was hoping to get a hometown date and so I was kind of bummed out.

 

Q. When Emily asked you where you saw yourself at the end of your Bachelorette journey, you said something like you and Emily would just be starting out. Do you think that's what ultimately made Emily's mind up?
A. Doug: When I said starting out, you know, The Bachelorette experience is a great experience and it's one that I am so happy that I did, but it's one of those things where it's kind of surreal in that you're quote unquote "dating" a girl who's been dating guys that you've been hanging out with and you're having these experiences all around the world which are completely amazing. But, you're not, you know, at home doing normal day to day things.  I spend my days... I get up and I work out at four in the morning and then I get some work done and I get my son up and off to school or off to camp and then work throughout the day and then get him home or off to practice. And so, you're not doing the normal kind of life stuff. And Emily's got Ricki and she has her normal routine. And so, the comment about starting out was in reference to starting to build a normal life. You know, this is... When you date somebody you take two separate lives, especially when you have kids involved and then you try to put those lives together. That's what I meant by starting out.

 

Q. Do you think that was maybe a little bit of a red flag for Emily, just to clarify then, because do you think she is kind of looking for that engagement right away?

A. Doug: I think Emily's heart is definitely in the right place.  It will be interesting to see how the hometown dates go, but I know she definitely wants to find the right person. And I hope it wasn't a red flag. I was just trying to say that it would be, you know, it would be an experience or coming home after the whole... after the cameras were turned off and starting the day-to-day life of dating. And as I understand it, whoever Emily ends up with, they don't get to see each other for quite a while after taping, between taping and the last show. So you've got some time in there. So I definitely didn't mean it to be a red flag. I was just trying to be very, you know, just upfront about kind of where I saw things.

 

Q. Has your son been watching the show and does he think Emily has the qualities that he's looking for in a stepmom?

A. Doug: Austin's 12 and he is going in the seventh grade next year. And Austin was aware. A big part of me going on the show was him saying, "Dad, you need to get out and do some stuff for yourself." I was really reticent to go on the show just because I didn't want to leave him and my sister ended up marrying one of my very best friends in the world and they live down in Redding, California. And they don't have kids and they've always wanted some extended time with Austin. And so, when the opportunity came up to do the show, Austin was, like, "Dad, go! I want to go spend time with my auntie and my uncle."  While I was gone, he was in school down there and when I got back, I would ask him, like, "What's going on at school?" And he'd be like, "The kids ask me about it but I've got to be honest, Dad, it's really not the kind of show I like."  He'd just rather watch cartoons. So, the little girls at school would, you know, kind of keep him up-to-date on what was going on and he'd be, like, "Yes, that sounds about like my dad." But, so, he was very cognizant of what was going on, but I just don't... his interest wasn't there. He was much more interested in sports and 12-year-old boy shows.

 

Q. If you had been able to take Emily on a hometown date, at this point you still hadn't met Ricki and we have yet to see if she introduces her to any of the men. But, were you planning on introducing her to Austin?

A. Doug: I was really hoping that Emily and I would get a great hometown date. You know, Ricki's younger and so it's a little different. Because Austin's 12 and he's a pretty mature 12, he understands the difference between maybe a little one. When he was younger, I was very, very hesitant of introducing him to anyone at all. Now that he's older, if I go out on a couple of dates or if Emily would have come home for a hometown date, Austin would totally understand and he would have been a huge part of the hometown date.

Q. Emily said one of your dates that she felt like you were hiding things, and that you were telling her things that she wanted to hear and not, you know, the truth. How do you feel about that and was there any truth in what she was saying?

A. Doug: No. That kind of hurt my feelings, actually. I'm a pretty on-the-surface guy and what you see is what you get. And I think she felt like... I think one of her comments was that my answers were too perfect or something. I did not know this about myself, but you guys can obviously see I'm pretty shy in front of the cameras, and I did not know that about myself going into this. But, so, I think maybe that comment just came from me being shy around the cameras. I would say that hurt my feelings. A lot of my friends and family and even ex-girlfriends that I still am really good friends with have watched it and they're like, "No, that's just Doug." I pretty much just put it out there, I think.

 

Q. You seemed like out of all the group of guys that were left to kind of just take charge and you seemed to get along with everyone. Who are you rooting for now?

A. Doug: Well, so, the guys that are left.  I was really great friends with Sean, Arie's awesome, Jef is one of the most hilarious guys I know, Chris and I had a little bump in the road there, which took me by surprise because I really liked Chris and I still do, but it kind of bummed me out in Bermuda. But, I think - gosh, it's a tough call between Arie, Jef and Sean.  Just because of our backgrounds, Sean and I were really close, so, I'd say probably Sean.

Q. Were you, in a way, pleased Emily chose to say goodbye to you before the hometown dates and before she met your family and everything like that? Do you think it was better that if she knew you weren't going to end up together to say goodbye now?

A. Doug: No. Actually, I was really bummed out. I think that if Emily would have got the chance - even if we didn't end up together in the end, I think she would have had a really great experience here in Seattle. I've got a wonderful network of friends and I would have really loved to have her meet my son, and we would have probably gone over to my best friend's house and his wife and she could have met my goddaughters, who are pretty much - my opinion, but obviously I'm a little biased - the cutest girls on the planet. And so no, I wasn't relieved at all. I was bummed; I think we would have had a really great time. And again, even if we didn't end up together in the end, I think, you know, just for an ongoing friendship, I've never not kind of maintained a friendship with anyone I've dated. And so, you know, it would have been just good to even further our friendship if we didn't end up together. So no, I was pretty bummed out.

Q. If you had to pick between Jef and Arie for her, who would you pick?

A. Doug: They're both really good guys. I mean, that's tough. That's like trying to, you know, tell one of your good girlfriends, like, between two of your buddies which one she should date and you're just like, "Man, I don't know; they're both good guys."  I mean, I definitely think throughout the whole process that Jef and Arie were in it for all the right reasons and, you know, our - they're both mature and good guys and I think that they're up for being a stepfather and a good role model. And so, I can't say which one is better because they're both right there.

 

Q. Because you are a dad and because you have had that similar experience to what Emily has had and now you know the guys and there was always this question about are they ready to be dads. Do you think that the guys left are truly ready to be good stepfathers?

A. Doug: I definitely think that Sean 100 percent, Arie and Jef right up there. Watching the last episode, you know, left me with some questions about Chris for sure. There was some tough moments there. But, I definitely think that those three guys are up for it and would put their heart into it and I think that those guys are definitely up for it.

 

 

The Bachelorette airs Mondays at 8/7c on ABC.

 

(Image courtesy of ABC)

 

 

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