Cynthia Bailey says she “gravitated” toward Teresa Giudice over Melissa Gorga after meeting both “Real Housewives of New Jersey” stars on Peacock’s “Real Housewives Ultimate Girls Trip” spinoff last year.
“I organically gravitated more toward Teresa,” the “Real Housewives of Atlanta” alum, 55, exclusively tells Page Six while promoting her upcoming appearance on E!’s “Celebrity Beef.”
“You watch ‘Jersey’ and, in my mind, I just thought Teresa was crazy or something. I didn’t know what she was like,” she continues. “I was like, ‘Is she going to come to the trip and just flip all the tables in Turks and Caicos?’”
But after getting to know the Garden State OG, Bailey says she was pleasantly surprised.
“I realized that she’s just the coolest, sweetest woman that I’ve ever met. She’s just happy and in love and I really connected with that — because when I first met [my husband] Mike [Hill], I was just so obsessed and madly in love.”
The “Terror Lake Drive” actress detected similar devotion in Giudice’s relationship with her now-husband, Luis “Louie” Ruelas.
“If anyone could actually be worse than I was when I met my husband, that was Teresa. She was like, ‘Louie, Louie, Louie!’” Bailey adds with a laugh. “Teresa and I really connected on ‘Girls Trip.’ It’s nice that we’ve been able to continue being friends.”
The Bailey Agency CEO was among the many “Real Housewives” who attended Giudice and Ruelas’ Aug. 6 wedding. However, Gorga, 43, was notably absent.
After Giudice brought up unfounded infidelity rumors about Melissa and her husband, Giudice’s brother Joe Gorga, while filming the final scenes of “RHONJ” Season 13, the Gorgas decided to skip the nuptials.
“What I did learn from ‘Girls Trip’ is that they don’t seem to be that close,” Bailey tells Page Six of the sisters-in-law. “They are obviously connected as family. But I just didn’t get the feeling that, if they weren’t connected as family, they would actually even be friends.”
Still, the model finds it “a little sad” that the Gorgas didn’t put their feelings aside to show up for Giudice’s big day.
“I was sad that Teresa’s brother and Melissa weren’t able to make it — because I do feel like, at the end of the day, whatever they’re going through, you can’t get that moment back to be a part of a celebration like that,” she says.
“As amazing as it was, I think it would have been even more amazing had she had her brother there and his wife.”
Bailey says she is “praying” that Giudice and the Gorgas can broker peace in the near future for the sake of their seven combined children, who are cousins.
Giudice shares daughters Gia, 21, Gabriella, 18, Milania, 16, and Audriana, 13, with ex-husband Joe Giudice. Meanwhile, the Gorgas share daughter Antonia, 17, and sons Gino, 14, and Joey, 12.
“Their relationship is going to dictate how the kids will have a relationship in a lot of ways. And if there’s friction with the adults, that kind of drizzles down to the kids,” the CB VIOR founder explains.
“At the end of the day, they’re family and if for no other reason than the kids, I really hope they can come back together as family.”
Bailey knows a thing or two about reconciling with her adversaries.
On tonight’s episode of “Celebrity Beef,” she reunites with sitcom legend Todd Bridges to hash out their explosive “Celebrity Big Brother” confrontation in a culinary competition mediated by host Joel McHale.
“We got a chance to have a full-circle moment, which I thought was important for our fans to see us come together and realize that we’re friends now. We went through that experience, we got out on the other side of it and it was just a fun way to reunite,” Bailey says.
“I did have the biggest blowup with him and it got pretty heated. But now that we’re out of the house, he’s actually one of the people that I’m closest to. Todd Bridges and I talk all the time.”
“Celebrity Beef” airs Tuesdays at 10 p.m. ET on E!