Unpacking all the hints. The Vanderpump Rules cast may forever be looking back at all the signs that Tom Sandoval and Raquel Leviss were hooking up for seven months. Could this recollection be fueled by the disbelief that they missed all the signs? Apparently, a lot was missed. As a result, Tom’s ex-girlfriend Ariana Madix was “blindsided.”
Currently, the entire VPR cast is collectively putting the pieces of the puzzle together. Katie Maloney, Tom Schwartz, Lala Kent, and Scheana Shay, along with alums Kristen Doute and Jax Taylor are running the interview circuit with the info.
Katie realized that her ex-husband knew a lot more than he let on. Page Six reported that he dropped a major hint at BravoCon 2022 in October. While on the Off the Vine podcast with co-hosts Kaitlyn Bristowe and Lo VonRumpf, Katie revealed she asked Schwartz why Raquel was “following [him] around like a puppy dog.”
“She wore this TomTom hoodie and everyone was commenting how bizarre it was,” Katie said of the reference to Schwartz and Sandoval’s restaurant. Katie added, “She went to the Tom and Tom panel and sat in the front row. I thought it was about him because I thought she was after him.”
Schwartz told Katie that Raquel, “Wasn’t there for me. Trust me.’” Hardly an innocuous comment, in hindsight. And it “kind of stuck” with Katie. She “started putting things together.” At the time, the Something About Her founder told Schwartz, “Say less. I get it.”
Regardless of the hint from Schwartz, Katie became “suspicious” of Sandoval and Raquel’s friendship. “I had seen on forums that she had gone to one of his shows in Sonoma but didn’t post that she was there, which is weird because she is normally front-row bopping around [like] the No. 1 fangirl,” Katie explained.
Raquel’s secrecy about her attendance at the November 2022 show was “odd” and “weird” to Katie. In a separate interview on the Viall Files, Katie called Raquel “thick-skulled” and claimed she and Sandoval “reeked” of indiscretion. Katie added, “There was something off about the situation.”
Schwartz’s knowledge of the affair goes back to August 2022. During a recent appearance on Watch What Happens Live With Andy Cohen, Schwartz revealed that Sandoval told him it was a “one-night stand.” Come January 2023, Sandoval started saying he was “in love” with Raquel.
“I was flabbergasted but not surprised,” Schwartz revealed. “There [are] a lot of people out there who kind of knew it was an open secret.” Meanwhile, Sandoval spoke publicly for the first time on the Howie Mandel Does Stuff podcast last week. He described the “magnetic” first kiss with Raquel. Then went on to suggest Ariana was to blame for being “blind” to the affair.
To conclude the ill-advised interview, the Schwartz & Sandy’s co-owner said he and Raquel are “not putting any label on it.” The physical aspect of their relationship is on hold as they “just kind of” take “a break.”
Last week it was reported that Raquel is receiving treatment at a mental health facility. Though she made these plans “months before the relationship was discovered.”
TELL US- WAS SCHWARTZ’S COMMENT OBVIOUS? SHOULD ARIANA’S FRIENDS HAVE KNOWN ABOUT THE AFFAIR? WHAT IS YOUR REACTION TO RAQUEL RECEIVING TREATMENT FOR HER MENTAL HEALTH?
[Photo Credit: Nicole Weingart/Bravo]