'Bachelorette' Breakup: Emily Maynard and Jef Holm End Engagement

After publicly denying allegations of cheating and persistent rumors that their reality-TV romance was falling apart, Emily Maynard and Jef Holm of "The Bachelorette" have officially called it quits.

Maynard and Holm talked to People Magazine about the decision to end their engagement.

In a statement, Maynard confirmed the split to People, saying, "It was a very difficult and heartbreaking decision. … We tried our best because the love between us was so real. … Ultimately we are at different points in our lives."

Holm, 28, said in a statement, "I've never loved someone so much in my whole life, Emily is the best person and mom I have ever met. … Everyone wants a salacious story to break, but the truth is we are just two people who fell in love and tried our hardest to make it work. I will always love her."

Maynard, 26, who called herself a "hopeless romantic" in the statement, said she believes in the show and has "no regrets."

When unlucky-in-love Maynard, a single mom to 7-year-old daughter Ricki, met Holm on this summer's "The Bachelorette," their engagement seemed like a fairy tale. The engaged couple appeared on "Good Morning America" in July after the proposal aired and said their relationship was different than all the other "Bachelor" and "Bachelorette" couples that came before, including her failed relationship with season 15 bachelor Brad Womack.

"I think that ours is going to work because we have really become like immediate best friends," Maynard said of her relationship with Holm.

The couple, dubbed "Jemily," dodged rumors of infidelity in the course of their three-month engagement, notably allegations from Holm's brother that Maynard had been caught cheating.

In the Us Magazine September cover story, Mike Holm said that while on vacation with Holm's family in South Caroline, Holm had discovered explicit texts and photos from another man on Maynard's phone.

The beleaguered couple then came on "GMA" in an attempt to set the record straight. Maynard said all of the break-up rumors were false, that Holm had just moved cross-country from Los Angeles to Charlotte, N.C., to be near Maynard and Ricki, and that they were still engaged.

On top of rumors, Maynard and Holm's flurry of activity on social media was another clue for fans and reality-TV bloggers that the two were moving on with the next chapter of their lives.

On their respective Twitter pages, both swapped out photos of themselves as a couple: Holm for an individual shot and Maynard for one of her and Ricki. Holm reportedly changed his Facebook status from "engaged" to single.

Holm said in the statement that he and Maynard are still "great friends" and that she will always have a place in his heart. Maynard asked for privacy and time to heal.