Rachel Leviss Reveals Why Tom Sandoval Was 'Not Happy' with Schwartz During Reunion

On the second episode of her new podcast, Rachel Goes Rogue, the former Vanderpump Rules star alleged that Sandoval's best friend and business partner, Tom Schwartz, knew about her relationship with Sandoval from the start.

Fans of the series will recall that last March, Sandoval ended his almost decade-long relationship with girlfriend Ariana Madix, following news that he cheated on Madix with their co-star.

"Schwartz knew since the very beginning," Leviss claimed. "I got a phone call from Tom after we hooked up for the first time. My mind was racing, I was feeling so much guilt and shame about it. And I finally got a call from Sandoval, he was at Schwartz's apartment and that was a safe space for him."

She continued, "So Schwartz knew before we even had a conversation to talk about it and what the game plan was going to be because immediately I was going to film with Ariana and our group of girls that night and I was saying I was seeing Ariana later."

While Leviss says Schwartz knew about the hookup -- which seemingly began in early August 2022 -- all along, he claimed in April on Watch What Happens Live that he found out about Sandoval's "one night stand" with Leviss in "late August" 2022, and only learned of the full-fledged "emotional affair" last January. Remember, Schwartz also made out with Leviss at Scheana Shay's wedding in late August.

"The one-night stand was in August and then it became, from my point of view, it became an emotional affair. Which is still inappropriate but I didn't think it was linear," Schwartz explained at the time. "[Then] in January, he came to me and told me that he was in love with Raquel (a.k.a. Rachel)."

Schwartz admitted to finding out about their relationship in August during the show's three-part reunion too ... which Raquel said ticked off Sandoval.

"We're partially acting on this show and the main goal is to not break that fourth wall, and Sandoval I think wanted to maintain that," Leviss claimed. "He was not happy with Schwartz when he said at the reunion that he found out in August [2022]."

She also revealed what Sandoval said to her when he pulled her aside outside of her trailer during the reunion -- a moment Sandoval pleaded with production not to film.

"That was part of the conversation that we had when he pulled [me] aside out of the trailer. And the cameras went down," she continued. "He was like, 'It's not cool that Schwartz came clean with his answer,' or he didn't come fully clean, but he definitely didn't stick to the date Sandoval wanted him to."

Schwartz has made several comments about the scandal and his his longtime friendship with Sandoval over the last year, going back and forth on where they stand, with the show's season 11 trailer seeing Schwartz question what the future looks like for the pair.

But Leviss thinks whatever rift does or doesn't exist between Sandoval and Schwartz won't last long, calling their dynamic the most "co-dependent relationship" ever seen on Vanderpump Rules.

Their ups and downs will likely play out on the upcoming season -- which Leviss bowed out of -- citing Madix as one the reasons she decided not to return to the show.

Calling her affair with Sandoval "a huge betrayal," Leviss said she couldn't imagine Madix -- her former best friend -- continuing to have to work with someone who'd done that and then see them interacting with the person you thought was your person ... "it would just be so catastrophic."

"I didn't want to do that to Ariana," Leviss said on her podcast's inaugural episode. "I didn't want to put her in that position."

What's more, is after spending time at a trauma therapy center last spring, Leviss says she has whole different understanding of her relationship with Sandoval, telling listeners she has "a lot of clarity" about the whole situation.

"The story I would tell myself about our relationship that we had, it seemed so special and it seemed so real, but when you look at the cold, hard facts and write them down on a piece of paper and see all of those red flags clear as day, that will break you out of your denial," she said.

"Once I was broken out of denial and realized how manipulative he is," Leviss added, "I couldn't put myself in a situation where, at my most vulnerable state, it would probably get me back to those old patterns that I'm trying to break free from."

Season 11 of Vanderpump Rules premieres January 30 at 8pm ET on Bravo.