When Tamra Barney's husband, Simon, filed for divorce on Jan. 7, no one was more surprised than the Real Housewives of Orange County star herself. But that wasn't the harshest blow: In the divorce papers, Simon accused his wife of 11 years of committing "acts of disloyalty and infidelity." A saddened Tamra sat down with Life & Style's on Jan. 14 to share her side of the story -- and set the record straight about whether she cheated -- in her first print interview since news of the split broke.
"I have never been unfaithful," Tamra tells Life & Style. Does she have any idea whom Simon thinks she may have cheated with? "A couple of years ago, a boyfriend I dated for five or six years before meeting Simon called me," Tamra says. "We just talked," she stresses. But Simon looked through her call log and went ballistic after finding the ex's name. "That happened two or three years ago," she says. "But I think it marked the beginning of the demise of our marriage."
Since then, viewers have watched as the marriage has slowly unraveled. Tamra's biggest decision, however, happened off-camera. "We got into a huge argument on New Year's Eve," she explains. "We were out at a club and started fighting, and I just hit a wall. I couldn't do it anymore. I needed to make a change." A few days later, she moved into a two-bedroom apartment with the couple's three children. Even then, Tamra still held out hope she and Simon might reconcile. "I thought we were having a trial separation," she tells Life & Style. "I thought he agreed with me -- then I get hit with divorce papers."
For more on Tamra's divorce, pick up the latest issue of Life & Style, on newsstands today
Photo Credit: Bill Davilla
