Lisa Vanderpump thinks Scheana Shay did hit Raquel Leviss after finding out about her months-long affair with Tom Sandoval, who was dating Ariana Madix at the time.
“I think she slapped her around the chops,” the “Vanderpump Rules” matriarch told Andy Cohen during Wednesday’s episode of “Watch What Happens Live.”
“But you know what, her feelings would be running really high because Ariana was her best friend for like 12 years,” the restauranteur went on.
“You forget it’s not just the show. They were together working four or five years before the show. They grew up together. She very much kind of has Ariana’s back.”
After news of Sandoval and Leviss’ dalliance broke last Friday, Vanderpump, 62, admitted she was dreading filming the “Pump Rules” Season 10 reunion and begged Cohen, 54, to keep it to only “one” episode.
While that remains to be seen, the network honcho is also unsure about whether both Leviss and Shay will be in attendance, as the former beauty pageant queen has filed for a temporary restraining order against her ex-friend.
Leviss, 28, alleged that Shay punched her in the face last Wednesday and shared shocking images of her black eye in court documents obtained by Page Six.
A source previously told us that the pair got into a “heated confrontation” outside a bar when Madix, 37, found a sexually explicit video of Leviss on Sandoval’s phone.
“After taping ‘Watch What Happens Live,’ Scheana and Raquel went out to drinks with friends,” our source shared.
“At one point in the night, Scheana lost Raquel and then found her outside of the bar on the phone with Ariana, who Scheana could hear was bawling.”
When Shay, 37, asked Leviss to explain what was going on, she finally came clean about the affair, leading to an explosive exchange before both women “went back to the hotel separately.”
The “Scheananigans” podcast host has not commented on Leviss’ claims of a physical dispute.
According to Cohen, the cast is scheduled to film the reunion in less than three weeks.
He also explained that he found out about the “disturbing,” “shocking” and “upsetting” revelation one day before it went public and immediately began reflecting on what he now considers to be red flags.
Vanderpump added that she was “gobsmacked” and “flabbergasted” by the news, going on to call Leviss “a wolf in sheep’s clothing.”
“No words,” she said. “I didn’t see it coming.”
Meanwhile, in her public apology for her “actions and choices,” Leviss blamed the scandalous romance — which we’re told “began last summer” — on her “addiction to being and feeling loved.”
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Sandoval, 39, issued a statement of his own but failed to mention Madix, on whom he cheated after almost 10 years of dating. Amid the backlash, the TomTom co-owner ended up releasing a second statement in which he apologized profusely to his now-ex.
As we reported, Madix discovered that Sandoval was having a “full-on affair” while at his cover band’s concert in Los Angeles when the aforementioned video of Leviss popped up on his phone.
It wasn’t long before Madix learned the two had been “communicating inappropriately for months” and swiftly dumped the Schwartz & Sandy’s co-owner.
A source told Page Six that the affair included sleepovers at Sandoval and Madix’s shared LA home “when Ariana’s been out of town.”
Co-star James Kennedy, who was previously engaged to Leviss, claimed the duo’s escapades sometimes took place while the Something About Her co-owner was home and “sleeping.”
We’re told Sandoval and Leviss — who have been sporting matching necklaces since last year — had apparently planned “for weeks” to come clean.
“Ariana was blindsided by the cheating,” a source told us, adding that she had “no idea there were any issues” in her relationship and feels both “heartbroken” and “betrayed by her friend.”
Co-stars Lala Kent and Katie Maloney have shared that Madix is “doing as well as can be expected” and feels “overwhelmed” by fans’ support. Vanderpump added that she’s “devastated.”
Madix deactivated her social media accounts amid the fallout, but her castmates have been blasting the secret lovers on her behalf.
As fans know, co-star Tom Schwartz — Sandoval’s best friend-turned-business partner and Maloney’s ex-husband — made out with Leviss in August 2022 while she was secretly hooking up with Sandoval.
According to “VPR” alum Stassi Schroeder, Leviss’ separate makeout sessions with Schwartz, 40, and Oliver Saunders were a “cover-up” for the affair.
While the currently airing season centers around Leviss’ aforementioned kisses, Bravo is making sure to capture the latest drama to include in the coming episodes.
Insiders close to production told us Sandoval and Madix have discussed his affair on camera and that she felt “gaslit” by the conversation.
Meanwhile, we’re told Sandoval and Leviss “kissed on camera” in their first post-“Scandoval” scene, filmed at the latter’s apartment.
Though they initially “wanted to be together,” we’re told Leviss is now distancing herself from Sandoval.
She also sent legal letters to the cast, demanding that those who are in possession of her sexually explicit video — which Sandoval is believed to have recorded during a raunchy FaceTime call — delete it immediately.
“Vanderpump Rules” airs Wednesdays at 9 p.m. ET on Bravo.