RHONJ: Dolores Catania & Ex David ‘Grew Apart’ After She Moved Out

Dolores Catania from The Real Housewives of New Jersey says she and her ex-boyfriend David Principe ended their relationship because they “grew apart.” The long-time couple met in 2017, which Dolores was coy about in the beginning. However, she started opening up about their relationship more on RHONJ, with plans to marry him one day. David was always unsure about making that commitment, and Dolores began to think she didn’t want a commitment either. 

Over the summer, Dolores and David broke up in the middle of filming RHONJ season 12 after four years together. Dolores officially moved out of David’s newly renovated home and into a new place she bought for herself. Despite letting go of a four-year relationship, she got back into the dating world rather quickly. Dolores is now dating her new man Paul Connell and confirmed the romance via her Instagram. The two were vacationing in St. Martin ahead of the holidays. 

During an exclusive interview with Page Six, Dolores admitted that she “felt alone” in her relationship with David when RHONJ  season 12 started filming last summer. After Dolores, who admitted the split was hard, moved into her own townhouse, she and David eventually “grew apart.” The 51-year-old started renting her own place until her ex-husband and contractor, Frank Catania, was finished renovating her North Haledon home. “David and I weren’t spending much time together, to begin with,” Dolores explained, adding that she “felt like it was time to end things.” Throughout Dolores’s time on RHONJ, she has always expressed how she wished David would be more involved in her social life. Due to the nature of David’s job (he’s a maternal-fetal medicine specialist), the pair had little to no time together. Dolores always knew David was “married to his work” and finally acknowledged it was time for her to make a change.

The mother of two knew she deserved more out of the relationship and realized it was time to move on. Even though she and David built a home together, where he currently lives, Dolores, who has a new boyfriend, never officially moved in. Without an engagement ring from her now-ex, the reality star wasn’t willing to share a roof with him full-time. “I always asked him to do things that he didn’t want to, so I got used to doing things alone […] A relationship is between two people,” Dolores explained, adding that if she was going to “do things alone” she “might as well just be alone.” While it wasn’t easy to end her longtime relationship with David, they did end it amicably. Dolores pointed out that the pair never yelled or fought with each other, calling their romance “peaceful.” Their dynamic no longer worked for Dolores, and she exited the relationship when she was ready. 

Even though Dolores and David grew apart, viewers are happy Dolores is finally on the path to finding someone who wants to spend time with her. The Real Housewives of New Jersey star only deserves the best, and hopefully, the new man in her life gives her what she needs. 

Source: Page Six

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