‘RHOP’: Ashley Darby Says Her Estranged Husband Michael Caused Her Breakup With Luke Gulbranson
Many fans of The Real Housewives of Potomac were not shocked by Ashley Darby’s divorce announcement. After eight years of marriage, two children, infidelity, and sex scandals, she and Michael Darby split. She appeared happier after their split. And once she began dating fellow Bravo star Luke Gulbranson, many wondered if they could go the distance. Unfortunately, they split after a few months together, and she says it’s because of her ongoing split from Michael.
Ashley Darby was enjoying getting to know Luke Gulbranson
Darby and Gulbranson met in person during BravoCon 2022 after she revealed she had a crush on him on national television. Bravo honcho Andy Cohen was thrilled at the idea of the Darby and Gulbranson fling. After meeting, they hit it off and began dating.
Darby told TODAY.com that she visited Gulbranson “four times” since meeting at BravoCon. At the time of the interview, she was heading to meet with him again.
“It’s been about two months now that we’ve been talking, so we’re just taking it slow and getting to know each other and talking on the phone more than anything else,” she told the outlet.
She also revealed what she was enjoying the most about their budding romance, telling TODAY: “He and I are very different, being from Minnesota and D.C. We have different cultural backgrounds. We have different interests, he’s the on-the-go mountain man, and I’m a pretty city girl. So it’s really cool how we’re able to share a lot about ourselves, and even in some of our differences, we find so much commonality.”
She says Michael made things difficult for her budding relationship with Luke Gulbranson
During an interview with Andy Cohen on Watch What Happens Live, Darby revealed she’s no longer dating Gulbranson, and blames their split on her issues with her estranged husband. Speculation about her and Gulbranson’s breakup began after Darby deleted a photo of her and Gulbranson visiting his hometown.
“Luke and I are not romantically involved anymore,” she admitted. “My life is very complicated, as you guys can imagine, I’m going through a very difficult situation. And Luke was a trooper. Believe me, he went through some things. It’s not really about Luke, but we [Michael and I] just have a hard time period with co-parenting and separating. It’s my situation with Michael that affected Luke and I. Like I said, he [Luke] was a trooper. But ultimately, it’s just not there.”
Despite their split, Darby gushed over the time they spent together. Before their breakup, it appeared things were steady. She told Cohen she’d met his entire family.
The reality star is open to dating new people in the wake of her and Luke Gulbranson’s split
Darby isn’t letting the split from Gulbranson or her divorce from Michael get her down. She says she’s open to meeting new people. “I am newly single, and this was my first relationship after [my split]. It’s just nice to be reminded that I am that girl. And I love to love, and I love to be loved. Give me all the love!” She then challenged Cohen to set her up with someone, as he introduced her to Gulbranson.
