Taking his time. Tarek El Moussa and Christina Anstead’s 5-year-old son, Brayden, didn’t immediately connect with his dad’s fiancée, Heather Rae Young.
“He was three years old [when] she came in one day out of nowhere and, like, just moved in,” the Tarek’s Flip Side star, 39, exclusively told Us Weekly on Tuesday, January 7, while promoting the Discovery+ show. “It took him a few weeks to get accustomed to it.”
The little one is “now best friends” with the Selling Sunset star, 33, El Moussa added. Not only do they “do everything together,” but Brayden runs to the real estate agent when she and his dad pick him up from school.
“They play tennis together. They cuddle, they just absolutely adore each other,” El Moussa, who also shares daughter Taylor, 10, with Anstead, 37, told Us. “Honestly, for me as a dad, I am so happy. I’m so excited about getting married, especially because she’s such an amazing stepmom to the kids. Like, they really do adore her.”
The Flip or Flop star got engaged to Young in July 2020 while celebrating their first anniversary.
Over the holidays, the bride-to-be reflected on her relationship with her future stepkids. “I feel so lucky to have these little sweethearts in my life,” Young captioned a December 2020 family photo. “They bring so much happiness to my life. It’s so fun to watch their curious minds and teach them life lessons and watch them grow and learn. I’ve been close with Tay from the beginning, it took longer for me to build a bond with Bray, but now we are besties.”
The Netflix star concluded, “If you would have told me 18 months ago, I’d be a bonus mama AKA (soon-to-be-stepmama) I’d say, ‘Yeah right!!!!’ And now look raising two amazing kids with my sweet love who is such an incredible daddy.”
She and El Moussa started dating in 2019, two years after his divorce from Anstead. The Christina on the Coast star went on to marry Ant Anstead and welcome their now-16-month-old son, Hudson, before calling it quits in September 2020.
Christina will not be invited to El Moussa and Young’s upcoming nuptials, he told Us on Thursday. “That’s where we draw the line,” he explained.
With reporting by Christina Garibaldi
