Former The Bachelor star Jake Pavelka has announced he's engaged to the woman of his dreams.
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The Bachelor: On the Wings of Love star and Season 2 Bachelor Pad contestant took to Instagram this week and wrote, "I'm engaged to the most beautiful woman in the world and my best friend."
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The former pilot, 48, popped the question to his girlfriend of two years, Aimee -- a 41-year-old who works in aerospace and defense contracts -- on November 22, People reported.
While Jake briefly considered a "really big and extravagant" marriage proposal, he told the magazine that he ultimately went with a "simple and intimate" plan.
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After enjoying dinner and champagne at Drake's Hollywood near their high-rise apartment in Dallas, TX, Jake proposed marriage once they returned home.
"I had rose petals on the ground and a table set up with candles. We walked in the apartment and she was like, 'What's going on here? Did somebody break into our apartment?' She was looking at a table trying to figure out how a candle got lit," Jake recalled.
"When she turned around, I was down on one knee with a really pretty ring, and I asked her to marry me."
Jake said Aimee "gasped" at the sight of the ring and said "yes."
"I definitely made the right choice keeping it private. It was a really special moment," Jake shared.
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Jake admitted, however, that creating the romantic scene in their apartment without Aimee noticing was a challenge.
"On the way to dinner, I walked Aimee to the elevator and then I said, 'Oh, my gosh, I forgot something. I got to run back to the apartment real quick,'" Jake said.
"I frantically ripped a bag of rose petals open, I pulled the table away from the wall and set a battery-operated candle on there. I sprinkled the roses everywhere and decorated real quick, got back to the elevator and she was like, 'What did you forget?' I was like, 'I needed to get a drink of water.' I couldn't even think of a good lie."
But Aimee assured People that Jake's marriage proposal "would've been perfect" with "just him asking."
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Following the proposal, the couple called their parents to share the good news.
This marked Jake's second engagement considering he was previously engaged to Vienna Girardi.
After Jake competed for Jillian Harris' heart on The Bachelorette in 2009, he starred on The Bachelor's 14th season and got engaged to Vienna during the ABC reality show's March 2010 finale.
Jake -- who also appeared on Dancing with the Stars' 10th season -- and Vienna announced their breakup in June 2010, after which they awkwardly competed against each other on Bachelor Pad 2, which aired in the Summer 2011.
"When I did The Bachelor, there were two people who gave me really solid advice," Jake shared.
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"The first one was [then-host] Chris Harrison. He said, 'If I could offer you any advice, don't quit your day job. This is an opportunity and it's a moment in time to accentuate what you're doing currently. There's all of this opportunity after The Bachelor, because for a short moment in time, you're recognizable, you get offers. Do all of it, and stay true to who you are.'"
Jake also revealed that The Bachelor executive producer Martin Hilton gave him similar advice.
"I went out to Hollywood and had an absolute blast and met some great people," Jake recalled. "Then I came back to Dallas and kept flying airplanes for a little while."
After a brief cameo on JoJo Fletcher's season of The Bachelorette in 2016, Jake started a waste management business called Rhino Removal in 2017.
"I would say it's one of the more meaningful things I've done," Jake said. "So yes, I stepped away from Hollywood and built a garbage company."
About a week after Rhino Removal was acquired by a publicly traded company in January 2024, Jake said he and Aimee matched on the dating app Bumble.
"I was on a layover in Santa Barbara with the airline, and we matched up," Jake said. "She was living in Los Angeles. I was very, very intrigued, I'll tell you that."
The pair decided to meet up in Las Vegas and have their first date a week or two later at a sushi restaurant, and, according to Jake, their dinner lasted for about six hours.
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Since Aimee hadn't watched Jake's The Bachelor season, he admitted he didn't want to "lead with that."
"The Bachelor, Dancing with the Stars, and all the really fun things that I got to do, those don't define who I am," Jake told People. "So, I think it's really unnatural for somebody to lead with that."
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But Jake acknowledged that he eventually had to bring up his reality TV past.
"I remember the conversation was going really well, and it's really crazy, but even 15, almost 16 years later, I still occasionally get recognized as Jake, the pilot," Jake said.
"It feels a little disingenuous if somebody comes up to the table or something and says, 'Hey, are you Jake?' And the other person is left trying to connect the dots. The conversation went on for a couple of hours, and then I just told her, 'I did get to do something really unique and really special years and years and years ago.'"
Aimee apparently asked Jake if The Bachelor franchise is scripted and if he had fun and found love.
"[She asked] the normal questions that I get. And that was kind of it," Jake noted, adding how he trusted Aimee "completely" very early on in their relationship.
"I wanted her to be involved in decisions, even the stressful ones. She's made everything feel a lot lighter and manageable. As a man, a great woman can make you feel like you can tackle the world. I've never met anybody that could help me with that. And Aimee, it's just so natural for her."
Aimee gushed about how she also knew Jake was "The One" for her "early on" in their romance.
"I just never experienced anything like this with anyone. Jake is just so genuine. He's so kind and thoughtful, and he makes me feel so loved," Aimee told the magazine.
"He makes me feel safe, supported, secure. He just has the biggest heart. Being with him is just so easy and effortless and I just feel completely at peace with him. He just makes me the happiest I've ever been."
Aimee said she feels like "the luckiest girl in the world" to be Jake's partner, and Jake, in turn, said he's truly been able to settle into who he is.
"Early in life, I felt like I had things to prove to myself and maybe to the world," Jake confessed.
"Now, I'm more focused on building something steady and meaningful. Success looks a lot different today than maybe what it did 15, 20 years ago."
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Jake said he "wasn't sure" if he was ever going to get married and Aimee is "completely" worth the wait.
"You hear people talk about marriage being the best decision that they ever made, and I can clearly see it. I see exactly what they're talking about. It's very simple: Aimee makes me better as a person. She brings perspective and balance," Jake said.
In terms of their wedding plans, Jake teased that he and Aimee will probably tie the know in California.
"Aimee's family, for the most part, is in L.A.," Jake said.
"I think it's going to make most sense to have a wedding in California where it's easy for her family, and my aunts and uncles live between [L.A.] and Orange County. My family from Texas is pretty mobile, so we can travel out there."
Jake added that the wedding will probably take place in "early summer," although he didn't clarify if it's going to happen in 2026.
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RELATED LINK: 'THE BACHELOR' FRANCHISE COUPLES NOW: WHO IS STILL TOGETHER?? (PHOTOS)
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