Before Tom Sandoval’s affair scandal with Raquel Leviss came to light, the Vanderpump Rules star had been candid about his hope to improve his relationship with now-ex Ariana Madix.
“Ariana and I have been together for nearly 10 years, and obviously, love Ariana but because of how different we are as people, we’ve kind of grown a little bit apart,” Tom, 40, said in an emotional confessional during the Wednesday, May 10, episode. “The issues that Ariana and I are having are not just her fault, they’re mine also. I’m hoping that Ariana and I can get back to where we were. It’s the best relationship that I’ve ever been in.”
The TomTom owner and Ariana, 37, had been dating since 2014. Us confirmed in March that the pair split after Tom’s months-long secret affair with costar Raquel, 28.
While most of Vanderpump Rules season 10 was filmed before the twosome’s breakup and the affair scandal, Tom frequently lamented about his and Ariana’s relationship woes.
“It feels like we haven’t been as connected. There’s been a lot of things that have been bothering me and stacking up and swept under the rug,” the Schwartz & Sandy’s owner confessed to Ariana during Wednesday’s episode. “My very presence f—king annoys you. … That’s another thing, you snap at me and belittle me in front of people and that really f—king hurts my feelings.”
He added: “I don’t feel like we are connected the way that we should be. We didn’t even take a picture together at Scheana [Shay]’s wedding, like, that’s f—king crazy.”
The Lifetime actress, for her part, denied ever saying “your presence” during an argument with the Tom Sandoval & The Most Extras frontman before admitting that she always wants to “hang out” with Tom but his schedule never aligns with hers.
“I love you, I want us to be better,” Tom tearfully added, explaining that he wished they were more intimate.
Later in the episode, Tom and bestie Tom Schwartz both turned up at Ariana and costar Katie Maloney’s grand opening of their Something About Her sandwich shop. Sandoval even impressed his then-girlfriend when he showed up with a fresh bouquet of congratulatory flowers.
However, things quickly soured when Ariana broke down in tears over the group’s heated screaming match amid her “f—king awful summer” following her grandmother’s death. Sandoval, meanwhile, barely noticed Ariana’s meltdown because he was preoccupied with defending Raquel from Katie, 36, after the former pageant queen’s August 2022 hookup with Schwartz, 40. (The Utah native and Schwartz finalized their divorce in October 2022 after 12 years together.)
“I would just love for you to take any accountability for doing anything wrong ever,” Sandoval yelled at Katie, noting he was involved in the drama because he is “in the middle of this.”
The “You’re Gonna Love Me” podcaster, for her part, told the Missouri native to stay out of her and Raquel’s business and instead pay attention to Ariana, who was sobbing in the corner with SUR boss Lisa Vanderpump.
Vanderpump Rules airs on Bravo Wednesdays at 9 p.m. ET.
