Vanderpump Rules star Tom Sandoval revealed that he and Raquel Leviss put the brakes on their sexual relationship after their months-long affair came to light in March.
After the recent end of his nine-year relationship with Ariana Madix on his infidelity, the 39-year-old bar owner revealed that they’re “kind of taking a break.”
“We don’t label it,” the reality star said on the Howie Mandel Does Stuff podcast.
When asked if they were still friends with benefits by the comedian, 67, Sandoval denied they were still in a relationship.
“Not now,” the rocker, who is in cover band Tom Sandoval & The Most Extras, told listeners, after insisting he and the former pageant queen are still “good friends.”
Cooling down: Vanderpump Rules star Tom Sandoval revealed that he and Raquel Leviss hit the brakes on their sexual relationship, after their month-long affair came to light in March
As for how their relationship blossomed from platonic to intimate, Sandoval opened up about his attraction to Leviss when he and Madix, 37, drifted apart after nearly a decade together.
“We were at my house, and I’m locked out of my house and we talk and we kiss,” he recalls. “It was magnetic. We got closer and while we were talking time went on, and we talked closer and closer, and all of a sudden we’re kissing. I felt something I hadn’t felt in so long, emotionally, for instance.’
He went on to explain how he and Madix had taken on their own lives and how the romance between them had grown stale.
“We were together for nine years and had obviously built a house and business together and everything. We were a brand. And like many relationships, it became more of a best friend/family/sometimes roommates situation,” he explained.
The Missouri native said their relationship was generally “just a lack of intimacy” and “connection.”
He felt like they stuck together to ‘keep the optics this high’ [they] were solid’ for their reality show and other business endeavors.
“We were definitely behind each other and that was nice. There was security and stability in it,” he said of Madix.
After turning 40, he recalled thinking his life “looked very bleak” and began to think his “best years were over.”
Still friends: Following the recent end of his nine-year relationship with Ariana Madix due to his infidelity, the 39-year-old bar owner revealed that they’re “kind of taking a break”
“We don’t label it,” the reality star said on the Howie Mandel Does Stuff podcast
“I started to lose my life optimism and drive. I felt like I had to change something to feel alive again, to be motivated, to be optimistic again,” Sandoval confessed.
Prior to his affair, he said his “confidence was wiped out” and any sexual experience with him would be like hooking up with “a 19-year-old” on “his second time” when he lost his “game.”
‘I’m not saying it is [Ariana’s] wrong, we just didn’t have that intimacy,” Sandoval claimed.
After hearing his guest’s side, Mandel urged fans to have “empathy and compassion” for Sandoval, who previously said he felt “one of the most hated people in America” for betraying Madix .
Backlash: After hearing his guest’s side, Mandel urged fans to have “empathy and compassion” for Sandoval, who previously said he felt “one of the most hated people in America” for betraying from Madix (seen on Tuesday)
“You need to be heard, because the story belongs to everyone but you,” the judges of America’s Got Talent told listeners. “I don’t understand the hate and the vitriol.”
While the father-of-three stated that he “didn’t approve of cheating on a partner,” he raised eyebrows for saying the amount of backlash Sandoval has received has been confusing.
Social media users flocked to Twitter to express their frustration that Mandel would defend Sandoval or even give him a chance to give his “side of the story.”
One mused, “Howie Mandel defends Scandoval by saying the media and the world treat him unfairly when he has no idea who he is but has him on his podcast for views.”
There’s a special place in hell for Tom Sandoval and Howie Mandel. These two together are so dirty,” said another.
However, some laughed at the idea of Sandoval getting his “big break” on Mandel’s podcast while his ex-girlfriend was booking “movie roles” and “doing DWTS.”
There’s a special place in hell for Tom Sandoval and Howie Mandel. These two together are so dirty,” said another
Confusing: One mused: ‘Howie Mandel defends Scandoval by saying the media and the world are being unfair to him when he has no idea who he is but has him on his podcast for views’
Cracking jokes: However, some laughed at the idea of Sandoval getting his ‘big break’ on Mandel’s podcast while his ex-girlfriend was booking ‘movie roles’ and ‘doing DWTS’