Publish date: 2023-12-21

Javen Butler and Shari Ligons were the only Temptation Island couple who came on the show as a couple and left as a couple. After an emotional final bonfire, Javen and Shari knew they wanted to leave together. Javen was so sure that he proposed right there in Maui! HollywoodLife talked EXCLUSIVELY with Shari and Javen about all things Temptation Island.

Shari admitted that she did not see Javen’s proposal coming. “Literally, I had no clue,” Shari told HollywoodLife. “I was stunned. I probably didn’t react the way people typically react. I was just shocked.” She also added that her gorgeous engagement ring is “literally amazing.” Shari’s family will be learning about the epic engagement during the finale. “I pretty much wanted them to find out when the episode came out. So I held this secret in and I wanted to get their genuine reaction,” Shari said.

Javen opened up about why he decided to propose after the final bonfire: “I’ve always known deep down in my heart that I wanted to be with Shari and I wanted to marry her. We both came to the show with an open mind. Like, hey, we love each other, we want to be with each other, but let’s really put our words to test. So, we went through the motions of dating other people and just trying to figure ourselves out. We could have possibly broken up or just found someone else. So, when the opportunity was present [to propose], probably like three quarters through the show, that’s when things got kind of put into play. So, I knew for a little bit, but I’ve always known I’ve wanted to marry Shari but didn’t think I would ever have the opportunity to do it on TV.”

Both Shari and Javen say that the Temptation Island experience has made their relationship stronger. “It’s made us just feel more connected, and it’s only strengthened our bond,” Shari told HollywoodLife. Javen said, “It’s caused us to mature a lot more than I expected. We have ground rules. We’re more on our own with our own friends or groups. Before the island, everything we did was together. Like, every single thing. So, now we’re branching out.”

Three other couples came on the show to test their love, but the relationships fell apart by the end of the season. While Shari noted that it was a “little bittersweet” to see these couples go their separate ways, she said that “they’re all happy with their decisions, and I feel like they all made the right decisions for themselves at that time.”

HollywoodLife asked both Shari and Javen whether or not they would do something like Temptation Island again. “Not Temptation Island-like. I would definitely do something with Javen again, if possible. Something positive, nothing that tests our love in this way though. This was a lot,” Shari admitted. Javen had his own thoughts. “I don’t really see another scenario that can come into play that can benefit us in a certain sense, but then I can in a way,” Javen said. “I don’t know. It would depend. I do not want to share my girlfriend or have her date somebody else. To be honest, that was hard for me. It bothered me. I can’t think of a premise, but to let her be away from me and stay with some other people, some other man, and hang out? No. Never.”

Temptation Island has been renewed for a second season, and the couple shared their advice for the next batch of couples who want to take this journey. “If you’re a girlfriend, please don’t overreact when you watch a bonfire clip,” Shari said. “Make sure you think things through. Make sure that you are equipped for this show because it’s not as easy as you think it is.”

Javen advised that the couples should weigh all their options. “I definitely recommend it to anyone at a crossroads in their relationship who are looking for answers. At the end of the day, it comes down to being an individual. Once you kind of get that freedom to break away and reassess your life and your situation and go through the motions and meet new people and go on these dates, you can find yourself realizing that you haven’t been happy this whole time or you have been happy. There are a lot of possibilities, but at the end of the day, it’s going to bring out your true character and who you are and what you really want, whether it’s positive or negative.”

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