OAKLAND, Iowa — Iowa's own Jonathan Rone experienced both hope and heartbreak on Wednesday's episode of "The Golden Bachelorette".
Rone, who hails from Oakland, Iowa, was one of seven contestants left at the start of Episode 5. With Hometown Dates on the line, Rone and his fellow contestants were eager to express their feelings for Golden Bachelorette Joan Vassos.
Keith Gordon and Mark Anderson both received one-on-one dates with Vassos, while Rone and the rest of the contestants headed out on a bowling group date.
"Just like this group date, it's gonna be all about the follow-through," Rone said in a confessional. "Follow through with the ball, follow through with Joan and then hometowns, here I come baby!"
During the group date, Rone showed Vassos some family photos, including photos of his kids.
"Joan I think would be a perfect fit," Rone said. "She makes me feel hopeful. The idea of Joan being in my family just makes me super excited."
Later in the episode, Vassos sent Anderson home the day after their one-on-one date, leaving just six men left at the rose ceremony.
"If I went home tonight, I would be heartbroken," Rone said. "But I feel confident because the moments that I've been able to spend with Joan, she's makes me feel validated, she makes me feel seen, she makes me feel loved."
But all good things must come to an end. Rone did not receive a rose at the ceremony, ending his journey on "The Golden Bachelorette." Still, he shared a sweet moment with Vassos when she asked if she could walk him out of the mansion.
"You've made such an imprint on my heart," Vassos told him. "I will always remember how you came with such an open heart and so vulnerable and you helped me be that way too."
"You have not only made me feel visible and seen, but you validated a lot of the values that I try to be as a man and as a father," Rone replied. "You see that in me, and I can't ask for anything more than that. I'm just so grateful."
After leaving the mansion, Rone said he was "devastated" but wished the best for Vassos on the rest of her journey.
"I came out here because I believed in a second chance for love and she did heal my heart," Rone said. "Although this is the end of my journey on Joan's journey, in a sense, maybe my journey is just beginning."
Only four contestants remain going into Hometown Dates: Chock Chapple, Guy Gansert, Jordan Heller and Pascal Ibgui.
Who will win Vassos' season? Will Rone be the next Golden Bachelor?
Watch "The Golden Bachelorette" Wednesdays at 7 p.m. CT on ABC.
