Giannina Gibelli and Blake Horstmann.Photo: Image Press Agency/NurPhoto/Shutterstock; Paul A Hebert/Shutterstock
Giannina Gibellidoesn’t believe everyone will be super enthused to see her romance with boyfriendBlake Horstmannunfold on the small screen — but she couldn’t care less.
“I think it’s safe to say that we weren’t shy about how we felt for each other and how comfortable we were,” Giannina, 29, tells PEOPLE exclusively. “During the show, you’ll see some people being like, ‘Get a room. Can you please figure this out over there? I miss my boyfriend. I miss my husband. You’re making me jealous.'”
She continues, “By the end of it, yeah, you might get annoyed with us, but we were at bliss. We were, like, in our honeymoon. So … I really don’t care.”
Paramount Plus/YouTube
Giannina first gained recognition onLove Is Blind, where she metDamian Powers. The couple dated for years after choosing not to wed at the altar, but it was revealed in 2021’sLove Is Blind: After the Altarspecial that they were facing relationship problems. She confirmed their split last August.
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Speaking to PEOPLE, Giannina admits she “wasn’t expecting” to find someone new onAll Star Store— but Blake, 33, proved to be just what she needed.
“The moment I met him, he seemed a little familiar because I saw him, I guess, on his promos or [something] like that forThe Bachelorette,” she recalls. “I never particularly watched the show, but I recognized his face, and so as soon as I was like, ‘Oh, you’re familiar. Where are you from?’ He goes, ‘I’m fromThe Bachelorette.’ He just gave me this massive smile.”
“He’s just such a genuine person, and he’s just a delight to be around that I genuinely wanted to get to know him and to be around his energy,” she continues. “He felt very comfortable. Within the first couple of hours of meeting him, we were already next to each other, like Velcro. We were like sticky tape all the time.”
Paramount+
Though the two struck up a romance during their time on the series,All Star Storeisn’t about finding love.
All contestants— includingJersey Shore’sAngelina PivarnickandThe Only Way Is Essex’sJoey Essex— have to partake in a first-of-its-kind competition, which involves the cast battling it out across a series of party-style challenges for a cash prize.
“I did a version of this in college, but it’s supersized now and it’s just very deadly,” says Giannina. “It’s not compared to how it was when I was in college. You are familiar with these iconic games, but they’re just in a completely different ball field. I’m naturally athletic. So, I was like, ‘I got this. It’s probably going to be a little hard, but not too hard.'”
Giannina adds, “Then, I had a rude awakening because I was just covered in just bruises and I had a little incident that you’ll have to see if I make it through it or not. But it was very hard on our bodies, for sure.”
All Star Shorepremieres June 29 on Paramount+.
source: people.com
