Nicole Johnson on fiancé Michael Phelps: 'I hated him' at times

BALTIMORE, Aug. 30 (UPI) -- Nicole Johnson is opening up about her relationship with fiancé Michael Phelps.

The 31-year-old former Miss California reflected on her prior split from the retired Olympic swimmer and their life today with 3-month-old son Boomer in an interview with Cosmopolitan.

"Michael and I both know that had we tried to have a child and get married in the previous time we were together, it probably would not have ended pretty," Johnson said. "We both had a lot of growing up to do."

"There definitely were times, and I think Michael would say the same thing, where I hated him," she admitted. "We were at odds at times. Even when I loathed him, there were still times when I was like, 'God, I wish I was with him.'"

Johnson and Phelps split in 2012 after five years of on-and-off dating but reconciled and got engaged in 2015. The couple, who welcomed Boomer in May, are now looking forward to time together as a family in the wake of Phelps' retirement.

"Assuming he stays retired, it's just us being able to enjoy our relationship," Johnson said. "Now we get to have fun ... We get to enjoy parts of life that everybody gets to on a daily basis that we had to step away from so Michael could [swim]."

"We're still learning what date night is and we're balancing with Boomer," she added. "We love going to dinner. We love being home and cooking together. We're homebodies. We like to play cards together."

Phelps announced his retirement Aug. 13 after winning five gold medals at the Rio Summer Olympics. The athlete said on America's Got Talent this month that fatherhood made his final games "a completely different experience."