Heather Dubrow made a dramatic return to The Real Housewives of Orange County on Wednesday on the premiere episode of season 16.
After Gina Kirschenheiter was seen revealing what Shannon Beador had told her about newbie Nicole James‘ alleged past lawsuit against Heather’s husband, Botched surgeon Dr. Terry Dubrow, Heather was seen telling everyone to leave her 22,000-square-foot home. But did she really kick them out?
“I’ll have to let you watch and see what actually happens but that was my first instinct. It was a lot,” she told Access Hollywood on the December 3 episode of their Housewives Nightcap series. “I didn’t expect it to happen. Things go so off-the-rails that it’s like the party is completely hijacked in such a hideous way and I felt so completely blindsided and betrayed and pissed and upset.”
While Shannon was the source of the information, she didn’t bring it up on camera. Instead, she passed the information on to Gina, who then mentioned Nicole’s reported case against Heather’s husband. That said, there doesn’t appear to be any ill will between Heather and Gina. In fact, they seemed to get along fittingly during filming, and Heather admitted to liking Gina right away.
“I had never met [Gina and Emily Simpson], ever, and then the night before I was supposed to film with Gina, I run into Emily, Gina, and Shannon at Javier’s. I said, ‘Hello,’ went to the bathroom, came back and Emily and Gina had left. They wanted to authentically meet me on-camera so the audience didn’t miss any of it, which I loved,” Heather recalled. “I thought, ‘I like those girls. That’s really cool and that’s very authentic. I really like that.’ So right from the start, I appreciated that.”
Although Heather and Gina appear to have remained on good terms throughout season 16, the same can’t be said for Heather and Shannon.
“I think we both came in with the absolute best of intentions and it went off the rails in a really not okay way and as you watch it, you’ll see how we handle it and how and if we move forward,” Heather explained. “I couldn’t even describe it but it’s going to be something people talk about. What do you do when friendships go off the rails like this, or if you have information about someone, what is appropriate?”
Heather also addressed the drama she faced with Shannon when they were first seen alongside one another on RHOC years ago. As fans will recall, Shannon accused Heather of talking about her past marriage to David Beador behind her back.
“There’s a lot more going on behind the scenes to that moment that I’ve never talked about. But I did talk about it this season. It’s time for me to be exonerated,” Heather stated.
Also during the interview, Heather shared her thoughts on the new cast members, including Noella Bergener and Dr. Jen Armstrong.
“I didn’t get to really know Jen and Noella right off the bat. Noella and I had lunch with Nicole and we had a nice time but it was lunch. She gave me a lot of information. That I knew. She likes to share — a lot. I didn’t really get to know Noella and Jen until later,” Heather said.
Heather then teased potentially upcoming drama with Nicole, who was rumored to have either quit or been demoted amid production.
“Nicole is a friend of mine and I’ve known her for years and you’re going to have to see how that whole situation plays out,” she added.
The Real Housewives of Orange County season 16 airs Wednesdays at 9/8c on Bravo.
Photo Credit: Charles Sykes/Bravo