Why Wouldn’t Peter Propose On ‘The Bachelorette’? Rachel Isn’t The Only One Confused

The Bachelorette finale gave us one of TV's most dramatic moments of the year, and no it wasn't when Rachel announced the winner. In their final date, things came to an emotional head between Rachel Lindsay and contestant Peter Kraus when he firmly told her he would not propose to her if she selected him as the winner. It's a decision that led to a ton of tears and turmoil and may have cost Peter the game. So why wouldn't Peter propose on The Bachelorette and why was he so adamant against proposing on a show everyone knows ends in a proposal each season?

Well, the discussion came off as incredibly confusing, so we actually don't get much answers from Rachel or Peter themselves. In the emotional final date scene, and in a lengthy live reunion talk in the finale, Peter just continued to reiterate although he wanted to be with Rachel, he wasn't ready to go so far as to propose to her. And, I mean, it's pretty reasonable for someone to not want to propose after a couple months of dating, but then why would you come on The Bachelorette, which famously ends each season with wedding in place?

Since there doesn't seem to be a concrete reason, we'll have to turn to the cynical one, which is also the one most hardcore fans are gravitating towards: Peter was vying to be cast as the next bachelor. The franchise chooses its Bachelor and Bachelorette stars from standout contestants in past seasons, usually selecting one of the finalists who wind up coming close to winning but going home alone. Since it seemed like Rachel was ready to give Peter her final rose up until that disastrous final date, many fans think Peter was just trying to find a good excuse to come in second, so he stuck with that "I'm not going to propose" story.

Then again, Peter's tears did look real, so he probably did have genuine feelings for Rachel. Really, we don't have a clear answer why Peter was so dead-set against proposing. Maybe we'll get a better clue if he's selected as the next bachelor?