Neither Tom Sandoval nor Raquel Leviss has pinpointed when their affair started. All that is known is a timeline of roughly seven months. Maybe such details are spared to respect Tom’s ex-girlfriend Ariana Madix’s privacy. Or perhaps the duo just doesn’t want to be honest about when their illicit actions began.
Certainly, Vanderpump Rules fans are overly preoccupied with searching for clues in the latest episodes. How about that little smile Tom gave Raquel when she joined the boy’s night? Very telling that something was already brewing.
Us Weekly reported that Scheana Shay’s friends Jamie Lynne and Kael Ramsey Ackerson seemingly confirmed the timeline of deceit. They alleged that Raquel started getting “closer” to Sandoval that night and spilled some tea while on the Jamie All Over podcast.
“She basically just told me [it happened] seven months ago and after the Las Vegas trip,” Kael said. “I told her, ‘Bro, you literally called me an hour or two after the girls that made you cry and then you hit me back when you were in Los Angeles.’ And she was like, ‘[After the boys night] is when we got closer.’
Jamie was part of a group that stayed out and moved the party to a different venue. Within a smaller group, the dynamic between Raquel and Tom changed.
“Next episode of Vanderpump Rules is boys night. You and I were there. Afterward you went home and I went to Saddle Ranch with Raquel, Sandoval and [Schwartz and Sandy’s manager] Brett. You were there because Raquel had just gotten back from Vegas and was very upset and asked you to come out that night,” she recalled. “It somehow just ended up being the four of us going to Saddle Ranch after and Raquel and Tom were super into deep conversation at the bar.
Upon leaving the bar, Tom and Raquel ended up seated on the curb deeply engaged in conversation. Jamie was so struck by what was happening, she started to film the duo.
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“I’m now in my car with Brett and Raquel and Sandoval were sitting on the curb outside of Saddle Ranch just talking. I didn’t realize that at the time like how close they were talking or how intimate it actually looked. So I start filming the two of them talking. We’re so clueless that we have no idea what’s actually transpiring,” she said.
Jamie decided not to post the footage out of respect for Ariana. And while Tom and Raquel’s proximity and body language may have caused a second glance, she didn’t feel concerned.
She explained, “I had this thought [at the time]. I thought I’m not posting this because this looks way too intimate and I don’t want Ariana [Madix] to feel a certain way about this. I don’t want her to feel disrespected, but it didn’t set off alarm bells, like, is something inappropriate happening? It was just that she might get the wrong idea and I don’t want to put anyone in that position.”
Looking back on it, knowing what we know now, the footage is damning. Jamie added, “If you watch it back — without the voiceover on it — it looks super close and super intimate. But bottom line is that none of us knew beforehand.”
The statement that Ariana and Tom “were having problems for a while” does not explain away sneaking for trysts since the summer of 2022. Ultimately, it “only came to a breaking point” when Ariana discovered sexually explicit footage of Raquel on her ex-boyfriend’s phone. She was “blindsided.”
The Schwartz & Sandy’s co-owner issued an apology to his former love via Instagram. Tom wrote, “I want to first and foremost apologize to everyone I’ve hurt through this process. Most of all, I want to apologize to Ariana. I made mistakes, I was selfish and made reckless decisions that hurt somebody I love. No one deserves to feel that pain so traumatically and publicly. I can only imagine how devastating this has been for Ariana and everyone around us. I feel really horrible about that. My biggest regret is that I dishonored Ariana. I never meant to disappoint so many people, including our loving families and friends.”
Raquel followed suit. “I want to apologize for my actions and my choices foremost to Ariana, and to my friends and the fans so invested in our relationships. There is no excuse, I am not a victim and I must own my actions and I deeply regret hurting Ariana,” she stated.
“Knowing how many people we hurt, I need to understand my choices and learn to make better ones. I need to take care of my health, work on self-growth and take time to be OK with being alone. I care for Tom and I don’t want to label anything or predict what lies ahead. Right now I need to heal,” she offered in an Instagram post.
But the drama doesn’t stop there. Raquel accused Scheana of alleged assault after her former friend found out about the betrayal of Ariana. Scheana is fighting the allegations. The former beauty pageant queen had her lawyer threaten the VPR cast with legal actions should they post or share the video of her.
TELL US- DO YOU BELIEVE RAQUEL ABOUT THE 7-MONTH TIMELINE? WHAT DO YOU THINK OF SCHEANA’S FRIENDS’ STATEMENTS? SHOULD JAMIE HAVE SHOWN ARIANA THE VIDEO OF TOM AND RAQUEL TALKING? WOULD YOU HAVE SUSPECTED SOMETHING IF YOU WERE THERE?
[Photo Credit: Rodin Eckenroth/Getty Images]