by Gina Scarpa

 

This season on The Bachelorette, it has been quite tough for Desiree to pinpoint the guys that are there for the right reasons versus the guys that are not. Fortunately for her, a few suitors have stepped up to (guide and) protect her from people like Ben and James. Leading the charge was attorney Michael Garofola, who made it all the way until just before hometown dates. Despite opening up to her and showing that his intentions were true, Desiree didn't see a future with him and sent him home. After his elimination, he talked to RealityWanted and reporters in a press conference call about whether or not he has regrets and his opinions on the remaining four.

 

Q. Gina, RealityWanted: It seemed like you were really on a mission this season to weed out the guys that were not there for the right reasons, but do you think that it hurt you in the long run?
A. Michael: You know, I don't think that it hurt me in the long run. I think that Desiree knew that my goal was to defend her and to protect her and to shine a light on some things that maybe she wouldn't know not having lived in the house with all of us. In hindsight obviously, in having gained some perspectives since these things happened, I will say that maybe I took it a little too far and maybe was a little too aggressive, particularly in front of Desiree on the two on one date with Ben, but I do think that that is part of my personality that I don't sort of act fake to people's faces and talk badly about them behind their backs. I sort of like to hash things out and confront people to their face and give them an opportunity to explain themselves and justify their actions. I think in the long run, I think Desiree understood that and that was reflected in her positive comments about me in during our time in Portugal together.

 

Q. Gina, RealityWanted: I know it was difficult for you to leave, but based on what you know of the guys and what you've seen in the episodes, what do you think of the four that are left?
A. Michael: Well first, let me say the four guys that are left are great, great guys and will be great friends of mine for the rest of my life. Even when I left, I could sleep very easily knowing that Desiree will end up with a great guy, so that's number one. Number two, I would say that in seeing how far along her relationships had progressed with these four other gentlemen and comparing it to her relationship with mine, there is no doubt in my mind that she made the right choice, you know? She was, you know, falling in love with one or two of these guys and one of the guys, Chris in the last episode, told her he loved her. I mean, these are things that being there you don't sort of have a window into that time and into her relationships with the other men. Now that I've seen it unfold on television, I could see why she made the decision she made. I certainly have no hard feelings whatsoever and I think she made the right choice for herself.

 

Q. Chris Harrison wrote in his blog this week that you were put behind the eight ball going into your one-on-one with Des because she already had two incredible dates with Brooks and Chris solidifying how strong her feelings already were for them. Do you think had you gotten your date before the other guys things might've turned out differently?
A. Michael: Right. Yes, that's an interesting point. You know, I think Chris [Harrison] obviously is the guru here and he has a lot more insight into those types of things than I would have in my position so I would trust what Chris says. As far as whether I agree or not, I don't think it really mattered at that point, to be honest with you, what order the dates were in once we were in Madeira, you know? Chris and Brooks were ahead, as far as I could tell and this is from watching, they were far ahead of the pack at that point. So I don't think having my date first that week would've made much of a difference. In fact, if my date were first that week, then one could argue that I would've been an afterthought once she went out with Chris on that boat and then Brooks and the clouds, and then, so much time would have passed until the rose ceremony that maybe, although Des and I did have an incredible date and had a great time together, that it might not have been enough for her to even remember how great of a time we had by the time the rose ceremony came around.

 

Q. Chris Harrison also mentioned that you could kind of see in Desiree's body language and hear it in her voice that she wasn't really falling for you. So I just want to see like on that date with her, did you get that vibe?
A. Michael: No. I mean, I think that part of the television show is that just not everything makes it into the final cut, and I think there was a lot more back and forth conversation between myself and Desiree. She also shared some things and I felt that she was touched by what I was sharing with her and that I was sharing with her what my feelings were and that because of her I was feeling hopeful again about falling in love. Now, my feelings of hope about falling in love eventually turns out were nothing compared to guys telling her that they, in fact, loved her or on the verge or preface of doing that. So I just think... look. I just think my relationship had just not progressed as far as along as it had with the other guys, you know? Whether or not that's because I didn't have my one-on-one until Portugal or what, or just the chemistry she felt with the other guys, I'm not really sure, but I didn't think that she wasn't into me. Now that I see the way she is with Brooks and Chris, for example, I can tell that she obviously was not as into me as she was those two other guys. That is why I said earlier that I can't really blame her for the decision she made and deciding to send me home.

 

Q. You said you were cheated on in your last relationship and Des was the first girl you could really see yourself trusting. Given that she kind of broke your heart, are you ready to start dating again or did she set you back even more?
A. Michael: Okay, I have to clarify something from my conversation with Desiree because unfortunately, the way that that conversation appeared on television, it's a little misleading. My ex-girlfriend did not cheat on me. My ex-girlfriend and I did long distance, we lived together, it didn't work out. I was trying very hard to salvage the relationship, you know? I wanted to get back together and work things out and then that's when I saw that she was already skiing with another man. It wasn't that she was living with me at the time and we were still boyfriend/girlfriend and serious and then she went and cheated on me. That would've been really bold, but she didn't do that. It was just that I thought that we were going to get back together and things were going to work out and I was sort of led to believe that that would happen. Then I saw this evidence to the contrary and that's why I was so devastated. I just want to make that clear, she did not cheat on me. It was just that I was heartbroken to learn that she had moved on so quickly, and so thoroughly with someone else. The one thing I took away from the experience with Des was that I do have that ability to love again and that my heart is open to loving again, and I thought that it might be closed off after going through the rollercoaster I went through with my ex.

 

Q. So with that said, would you ever consider being the next Bachelor?
A. Michael: I mean, that's a funny question. If I were to be offered something like that position, I mean, obviously I would consider it. I mean, that's completely flattering. But, any of those four remaining guys... they can't go wrong with any of those guys. If I were asked, I would have to consider it. I am happily back into my job and my career and getting back to normal here in Miami. Of course I would consider it, especially if at that time I'm still single and still looking for love because I'll be honest, in my life I have everything I want except for the most important thing which is someone to have a family with. I would have to give it some serious thought.

 

Q. You guys obviously all spend a lot of time together living in the house, and I was wondering if Chris, Brooks, Drew or Zak ever talked about their past relationships, and if so, what did they say?

A. Michael: I don't really know specifics off the top of my head, but certainly we talked about them. We're all very good friends, you know? I consider Brooks to be one of my best friends in life, not just on the show, and so he and I have had talks about our past relationships and insight into them. I don't have any specifics really about them, you know, just little anecdotes would come up like, oh, I went through that before when this happened and that happened, and we all sort of shared those stories in building our friendships.

 

Q. And if you had to pick one of the four left for Des, who would you pick and why?
A. Michael: Well, gosh. I mean, if we're talking about for Desiree, based on what I've seen... I'm watching these episodes obviously for the first time as well and based on the last episode, it seems to me that, you know, Chris might be the best fit for her but I will tell you that being there and what I've witnessed and observed, there was no sort of getting around the undeniable chemistry between Des and Brooks. I just felt like she looked at him differently and acted differently around him. I mean, I could tell from very, very early on. You could just tell that Brooks was sort of a frontrunner from the beginning and I have nothing but great things to say about Brooks. So I will just say that I guess Des has good taste.

 

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

 

(Image courtesy of ABC)

 

 

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