Inside the Mind of 'The Bachelorette'

March 5 -- When it comes to couples, some — like The Bachelorette's Meredith Phillips, 30, and Ian McKee, 29 — are simply meant to be. Two years before she appeared in ABC's hit reality series, Phillips was a model in New York City's East Village.

Little did she know, her soul mate was practically outside her door. "We lived across the street from each other!" says McKee. And the bar he took her to on their Big Apple trip, Industry? "It was the first bar I ever went to [when I lived] in Manhattan — and it became my favorite," she tells Us.

"We went there because it was his favorite."

The coincidences don't end there. Their favorite book: The Alchemist, by Paulo Coelho. Their footwear: "I wear these Brazilian sandals, called Havaianas," says Sao Paolo-bred McKee. "Without knowing it, she wore the same pair on our date in Puerto Rico."

If you looked closely, McKee says, "There were little signs."

Now, on February 27, two days after 15 million viewers watched McKee accept his final rose boutonniere, the ultimate symbol of their destiny — a 3-carat-plus engagement ring — is in plain sight. "It's been a long time coming," Phillips says. ‘I Love How Affectionate He Is’

At the Us photo shoot in Beverly Hills, they can't stop touching and sharing small kisses. "I love how affectionate he is," Phillips says. When he strolls by in a T-shirt that showcases his muscular arms, she tells him, "Honey, we're going to have to buy you a few of those."

So how is it that, in an ABC poll, nearly 80 percent of the show's fans predicted she would pick sweet, ready-to-wed Texan Matthew Hickl, 28, over former investment banker McKee, who swore all along he wouldn't propose? Careful editing ("The best parts of our relationship were never shown," complains McKee), with the inclusion of Phillips's confession to Hickl: "I would be honored if it ended with a ring."