Chock Chapple wants it to be known he was more than ready to propose to Joan Vᴀssos.

“There’s a little bit of backstory on this, and I want to explain this because I did catch some heat on social media for being a guy with no commitments,” Chock, 61, told Us Weekly during the couple’s first joint interview when asked about how he knew he was ready to pop the question.

“I had a great marriage for 12 years. This happens to more than 50 percent of the people — it ended,” he continued, referring to ex-wife Heather, with whom he shares daughter Taylor, 25, and son Tyler, 23. “And then I was involved with someone for nine years.”

Chock was still engaged to his partner of nine years, Kathy, when she died in 2022.

“We both had kids in elementary and high school and she was very adamant about getting the kids out of school before we got married. That was a decision that I supported,” he explained. “And the reason why I bring that up is I wanted to get married. … I wanted to show [Joan] how committed I was to her and how much I loved her.”

Related: Golden Bachelorette’s Joan and Chock Are Moving to NYC: ‘Dream Come True’

Joan and Chock are ready to party — and then take NYC! After getting engaged on the Wednesday, November 13, episode of The Golden Bachelorette, Joan Vᴀssos and Chock Chapple are set to celebrate their relationship with a big engagement party in Los Angeles before heading to the East Coast. “It’s gonna be bigger than […]

While Joan, also 61, happily accepted a Neil Lane diamond from Chock during the Wednesday, November 13, finale of The Golden Bachelorette, the twosome aren’t in a rush down the aisle.

Chock Chapple and Joan Vᴀssos. Disney/Gilles Mingᴀsson

Joan, for her part, shared Nick, 34, Erica, 33, Allison, 30, and Luke, 28, with late husband John, who died in 2021 following a battle with pancreatic cancer. She also has three grandchildren.

“We know that we’re gonna spend time in Maryland and in Kansas, but then we have this really fun plan because both of us have always dreamed — and we’re finally at this weird stage in life for making this dream come true — that we live in a big city, and, specifically, we’ve always wanted to live in New York,” Joan said. “So Chock surprised me and said, ‘I want us to go find a place.’”

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Related: What Golden Bachelorette Joan Vᴀssos Has Said About Late Husband John

Golden Bachelorette star Joan Vᴀssos will never forget her late husband, John Vᴀssos. John died in 2021 at age 59 after battling pancreatic cancer. The couple was married for 32 years and share four children. After two years of grieving, Joan decided she was ready to put herself back out there. “I did not want […]

Before she got engaged to Chock, Joan had to send runner-up Guy Gansert home. During their interview with Us, the twosome gushed about the ER doctor, with Chock noting they were good friends. During the season, however, there was one awkward moment with the men when Chock was accused of hogging Joan on a group date.

Joan Vᴀssos and Chock Chapple. Disney/Gilles Mingᴀsson

“The topic [has been] the bowling alley date. I’ve looked back at it, there’s been a lot of things said about it, ” Chock told Us. “It was just so natural that Joan and I were pulled together. And Guy came up to me and he said, ‘Hey, can I have some time?’ And I said, ‘Absolutely.’ … I didn’t go pull Joan away, I didn’t do anything. … It was the first time the guys were able to see, firsthand, the connection that Joan and I had. And I could see why some of ’em were frustrated because they cared for her.”

Chock added that he wasn’t being strategic and owned that he did make the comment about taking Joan home early. “I have to admit, I did say, ‘Hey, can I just take you home? Let’s just put an end to this. We’re in love. Let’s just go get our lives started,’” he recalled. “But that was not the whole journey.”