During season 32 of “Dancing with the Stars,” fans rallied to see Rylee Arnold and her partner, contestant Harry Jowsey, become a romantic couple.
Throughout the DWTS season, Arnold and Jowsey leaned into the buzz that their on-camera partnership might have transitioned into an off-camera romance.
Now, his “Perfect Match” girlfriend, “Love Is Blind” alum Jessica Vestal, has shared her take on what was going on behind the scenes during all of that.
“I get, you know, for viewership and everything that [leaning into the rumors] worked out really well for them. But at the same time, if you want to do that, it’s not respectful to me,” Vestal pointed out.
Jess Vestal Said Watching Harry Jowsey & Rylee Arnold Lean Into Romance Rumors Was ‘Excruciating’
Vestal joined Nick Viall for the July 10 episode of his podcast, “The Viall Files.” Now that season 3 of “Perfect Match” has aired on Netflix, Vestal can talk about her romance with Jowsey. The two connected while filming, but broke things off at the end of the season.
Jowsey and Vestal reunited after filming to give their romance another shot. However, she admits, Jowsey’s partnership with Arnold caused issues in her relationship with him.
As he began “Dancing with the Stars,” Jowsey gave no indication to fans he was already in a relationship.
Vestal visited him in Los Angeles a few times while he competed. She noted they had even talked about her attending a rehearsal or show. However, she added, that never fell into place.
She shared that she didn’t expect Jowsey to clarify that he was dating her during “Dancing with the Stars.” “That was mutually an understanding…even if we could have been public, I didn’t want to be because we had some things that we needed to figure out behind the scenes.”
The “Perfect Match” alum also admitted she doesn’t know if Jowsey and Arnold were really ever more than dance partners. Vestal added that she doesn’t expect she’ll ever know.
Vestal believes, however, that “If you look at the timeline of events and see that he was in a relationship, you can just look at what’s public knowledge and decide for yourself if maybe that was appropriate for someone in a relationship or not.”
The “Love Is Blind” star also indicated she has no issues with Arnold. She doesn’t know if Arnold knew about her. “She was doing her job,” Vestal said.
About three weeks into “Dancing with the Stars,” Vestal visited Jowsey in Los Angeles. She said she decided she couldn’t stay in the relationship and their split was abrupt.
The last straw, Vestal explained, came with Jowsey promising to “lighten the load” with leaning into the fan speculation about a romance with Arnold.
“I was understanding of our relationship having to be a secret for a while, but it’s kind of excruciating watching the world think you’re in love with someone else.”
She also revealed that very night, Jowsey and Arnold were spotted at a concert holding hands. On October 5, 2023, Page Six shared a video clip of the moment caught on camera.
Before the split, Jowsey and Vestal had been “planning logistics” and considering building a home together.
Vestal Was Charmed By Jowsey, But Know Doesn’t Feel She Knew Him at All
@harryjowsey
Vestal admitted she knew about Jowsey’s reputation before getting involved with him. During their first date, however, they “got deep really, really quickly.”
The “Love Is Blind” star came to believe Jowsey was “nothing like he was on TV.” She explained, “He was very insightful and he was really smart and he was very, very mature.”
She added, “He didn’t talk at all about anything silly. He talked about where he was at in his life and how he wanted a wife and children.”
Throughout filming, Vestal said Jowsey was “very attentive, very selfless.” She even told him he was “the most pleasant surprise.”
Now, months after reuniting, splitting, and watching their season of “Perfect Match” air, Vestal sees things differently.
At the time, “I really thought we had a good chance at making things work,” Vestal admitted. She continued, “Every night we were talking about our future and what life would be like outside of the show.”
Looking back, Vestal feels, “After everything I’ve experienced with him…I do not feel like I know him at all.” She admitted, “I’ve experienced so many different versions of him that I don’t know which one is real.”
Vestal also explained, “I don’t have to call a spade a spade, he’s the one who has to live with these things.” She continued, “Maybe it hasn’t hit him yet, maybe it won’t for a long time and maybe it won’t even in this lifetime.”
“But I think when you treat the people that you claim to love the way that he does, I think that speaks for itself,” Vestel shared.
