Grid so you know it’s real! Dolores Catania and her boyfriend, Paul Connell, took an important step in their relationship — they made things Instagram official.
The Real Housewives of New Jersey star, 51, shared a sweet selfie with the businessman on Monday, February 14, in celebration of Valentine’s Day. “Oh its looks like he found ‘real love,'” the New Jersey native wrote via Instagram. “Together is better always 💕🎈♥️🎈💕 Stay tuned.”
Many of Catania’s friends and colleagues congratulated her on her romance, including her RHONJ costar Margaret Josephs. “Happy Valentine’s Day lovers!!” wrote the Caviar Dreams, Tuna Fish Budget author, 54. “Have the best time!!”
Dorinda Medley, formerly of The Real Housewives of New York City, added, “This is incredible ❤️so happy for you!!”
Though Catania and Connell started dating last year, season 12 of RHONJ doesn’t include their romance because they met after filming was over. When the episodes were produced, the Bravo personality was still dating David Principe. The former couple called it quits last summer after four years together.
In March 2021, Catania openly discussed the way her choice to have plastic surgery affected her relationship with Principe, 57. “He really was angry. He was so mad at me and he didn’t let up on it,” she told Us Weekly at the time. “I let him be mad for a little while and then I had to say, ‘Listen, you either live with it or we just have to move on.’”
By the end of the year, however, she decided to give love another shot with Connell, who was introduced to her through mutual friends.
“She likes him a lot and they have a lot in common,” an insider told Us in December 2021. “She’s attracted to him on a deeper level, especially his charitable side and giving back which is something she does all the time.”
The reality star has previously detailed what she wants from a potential partner, noting that one major factor is how he handles her relationship with her ex-husband, Frank Catania. The former spouses, who share daughter Gabrielle, 26, and son Frankie, 23, divorced more than 20 years ago, but they’re still on good terms.
“Everybody wants us to be together. We are together, we really are,” she explained to Us in May 2021. “We never separated, even though we got the divorce, which I hope I could write about someday so that people can understand that you could still have a relationship with someone.”
