I don’t think so. Regarding the new apprentice.. I think that in ‘the doctor’, he was just moving and controlling the situation so that Regina would become evil…and become his chance to cast the curse. I think that casting the curse was the ultimate goal. 🙂
Was Rumple randomly picking up women to teach them magic? In The Doctor, he put his hand on Regina’s and quirked his eyebrow and at the end there was Regina’s replacement who Regina killed. Was Rumple trying to make Regina jealous?
Perhaps Rumple had other reasons for wanting Belle other than being lonely.