Here comes the countess bride! On the Wednesday, July 20, episode of The Real Housewives of New York City, the ladies were still absorbing the news that LuAnn de Lesseps had, in fact, gotten engaged (a fact they’d learned via the internet while en route to the Mohegan Sun, not from the countess herself). The waters seemed to have calmed between Bethenny Frankel and Sonja Morgan, and the two enjoyed messing around like old times while eating dinner at the Connecticut casino.
“I love to fall out on the floor, laugh, lose a tooth,” Sonja said of her time with Bethenny. And Bethenny reported of the newly sober aspiring entrepreneur, “You can kind of have a conversation with Sonja now, which is refreshing.”
Jules Calls Bethenny a Hypocrite
Things with Jules Wainstein and Bethenny weren’t so great, however. Jules complained to Sonja that Bethenny had a brand called Skinnygirl, and then was mean to a real skinny girl. “She’s a hypocrite,” Jules declared. (Though it’s probably worth pointing out that Bethenny’s brand probably wasn’t referencing people with eating disorders.)
“I’m never going to share intimate things with her ever again in my entire life,” Jules said. “Someone who said they know everything about eating disorders wouldn’t act this way around someone in recovery!” As Sonja listened patiently, Jules added, “You know what? Maybe it’s not healthy for me to be around her.” (This was in direct reference to a comment Bethenny had made earlier that because of Bethenny’s own history with eating disorders, it wasn’t safe for her to be around Jules.)
On the other side of the aisle, Carole Radziwill told Bethenny that she was “confused” by Jules’ outburst — and so the teams were forming.
Carole’s Book Agent Doesn’t Think She and Adam Will Last
After returning from a rather uneventful time at the casino, Carole and her boyfriend, Adam, reviewed an email from Carole’s agent about the book proposal they had submitted. (ICYMI, they were writing a cookbook together.) Though the agent said the idea was “adorable” and had the potential to be “commercial,” she warned them that even if it were to be published, copies wouldn’t be ready for sale for a year at least. In other words, she wanted to check the temperature on their relationship.
Carole responded by insisting that she and Adam were actually “the most normal, happiest” couple of the group, and then listed her friends’ marital failures and the backlash she’d initially gotten about Adam’s age. Ultimately, she and Adam vowed that they could be adults and promote the book even if they broke up, though Adam insisted that on a scale of one to 10 — ranking how happy he was in their relationship — he was at a 10. “Now I don’t believe you,” Carole said laughing.
Ramona Tries to Plan LuAnn’s Engagement Party
For some inexplicable reason, Ramona Singer really (really!) wanted to host an engagement party for LuAnn, who was now engaged to a man Ramona had dated a few times (though just how many times was up for debate). Ramona met Sonja for some shopping, and said that since LuAnn hadn’t answered any of her texts, she was “going to do the etiquette thing” and text Tom directly. Even Sonja knew this was a bad idea and told Ramona not to reach out to Lu’s fiancé.
Of course, Ramona had already texted him. Sonja called it a love triangle, and Ramona laughed it off. Fortunately, Ramona met up with Dorinda Medley, who insisted she be the one to host the party since she had been the one who set LuAnn and Tom up in the first place.
Ramona was annoyed and angry, insisting that she was just “trying to do something nice for LuAnn,” but Dorinda stood her ground, and Ramona ended up backing down. “I just don’t like people who aren’t forthright,” she huffed as they finished their meal.
Dorinda Wins
After confirming with the bride-to-be that she would prefer for her to host the event, Dorinda planned a lovely dinner for the group. Everyone came except Bethenny, who was on a skiing trip with her daughter despite her health issues. As everyone began to arrive, Dorinda announced that since they hadn’t been able to go to Mexico, she thought they should all go to Hawaii instead. All the other ladies thought this was a grand idea — which is when Ramona turned the conversation back to the fact that she had dated Tom. This seemed to be her new favorite topic.
“She’s just mad because I dated Tom,” Ramona quipped as pretty much everyone said she was mistaken. That’s when Sonja jumped in: “Can I help it if my three degrees of separation goes to these guys every time?” (Actually, yes, she could — but it was more of a rhetorical question.)
Carole, who had been busy insisting how happy she was for Lu, threw in a few of her own backhanded compliments. “If anyone deserves to be married, it’s LuAnn,” she began saying to the camera. “She’s a better woman with a man than without a man.” To the group, Carole said she thought LuAnn was “very competitive with women” and “a little aggressive with men,” but now she had “found her place.” Umm. Congrats?
LuAnn Has a Really Big Ring — But Sonja Isn’t Impressed
Luann arrived flashing her giant canary yellow sparkler and recounting the story of how Tom proposed. “I’m like, ‘Holy s–t,'” Jules admitted upon seeing the rock. But Sonja was not impressed, ragging on the ring’s clarity and style to the cameras, and insisting that hers — when she’d had one — had been much better.
“This is LuAnn at LuAnn’s best,” Ramona said to the camera, noting that “LuAnn’s best” meant it was all about LuAnn. Sonja used her camera time to restate that she “never thought of [Tom] as the marrying type.” She went on to clarify that she was “not a jealous person” and really wanted “them to be happy.”
Ramona noted that it seemed like “LuAnn is more happy with the thought of being in love than actually being in love,” before also insisting that she too was “happy for her.” Right.
Tell Us: Do you think anyone is actually happy for LuAnn?
The Real Housewives of New York City airs on Wednesdays at 9 p.m. ET.
