Bachelor in Paradise couple Amanda Stanton and Josh Murray are opening up about their relationship post-filming, which wrapped in June, and how everything has fallen into place.

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"I was hoping she was going to be in Paradise. I can't lie about that," Murray admitted to Us Weekly in its September 5 issue. "I followed her on [Ben Higgins]'s season [of The Bachelor] and thought she was amazing -- a very sweet woman... I just knew there was something special with her."

"I thought he was adorable," Stanton gushed about the moment they first met. "He has the cutest smile in the world."

Stanton and Murray hit it off in Paradise right away but were forced to adopt an us-against-the-world mentality because cast members and viewers not only suspected they wouldn't make it, but they also criticized the legitimacy of their romance due to allegations that have damaged Murray's reputation.

Against all odds, Stanton and Murray are still dating and currently living together in her Irvine, CA, apartment with Stanton's two little girls -- Kinsley, 4, and Charlie, 2.

"Things are going amazing! We balance each other out so very well. She's a calming force. She helps bring that inner peace to me. I finally met my unicorn!" Murray said.  

"He's so dedicated and so loyal. He's sweet and thoughtful and caring. It's not just something he turns on for the cameras," Stanton explained. "Josh is mature, he's family-oriented. He's everything I was looking for."

The couple then revealed how their new living situation came about.

"I brought my dog out here," noted Murray, who moved from Atlanta with his eight-year-old bulldog named Sabel.

"[Josh] moved in with us shortly after we got back from the show. The girls are really excited to have a dog. They're more excited about the dog than him," Stanton joked.

So when did Murray first meet Stanton's two little girls from her previous marriage?

"About two weeks after we finished filming, he came out here for a few days and hung out with the girls," Stanton explained to Us.

"He's told me that he has wanted a family since he was 21. He has all of the qualities that would make him a great stepdad. He wakes up every morning with me to drop the girls off at school, picks them up with me every single day."

The situation, however, isn't picture perfect just yet.
     
"She's not used to having anybody with her except the kids," Murray said, "and I'm used to having just my dog. It's a little hectic sometimes."

"It's a little chaotic," Stanton confessed.

"We like the craziness, though. It's fun. That's life," Murray added.

When discussing what the future looks like, both Stanton and Murray can see wedding bells and babies.

"I definitely want to get married again," Stanton confirmed. "I do want more kids, eventually. I have my hands full right now, but somewhere along the road -- yes!"

"We've had a lot of discussions about the future, for sure," Murray elaborated. "I 100 percent believe that Amanda is somebody I could spend the rest of my life with."

Stanton divorced her ex-husband and the father of her kids, Nick Buonfiglia, in December 2014 after two years of marriage. The divorce was finalized in June 2015.

As for Murray, he was previously engaged to Dorfman, but they split nine months after The Bachelorette's tenth-season finale aired on TV in July 2014.

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Murray has said he learned what he does and does not want in his future wife thanks to his relationship with Dorfman, so when asked to elaborate, he told Us that he desires "a kind person who loves her family" and is also spiritual to a certain extent.

Murray's dealbreakers? Meanness, hypocrisy and someone who "can't get along with others."

Whether Murray meant to associate Dorfman with those specific traits is unclear, but Dorfman had her fun when she called Murray "verbally abusive" in her memoir as well as controlling and temperamental.

To read more about the status of Murray and Stanton's relationship post-Paradise, click here, but be aware the article contains spoilers as to how the season ends. 
About The Author: Elizabeth Kwiatkowski
Elizabeth Kwiatkowski is Associate Editor of Reality TV World and has been covering the reality TV genre for more than a decade.