Sutton Stracke expressed her thoughts on being abruptly cut off by Garcelle Beauvais during a BravoCon panel held on Friday.

Credit: Rich Polk/Bravo, Dave Starbuck/Future Image/Cover Images

The 54-year-old star of The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills refuted claims that her former assistant, Avi Gabay, left under dubious circumstances. Sutton considered Garcelle’s sudden disengagement a “blessing,” explaining how their relationship evolved after the season 14 reunion.

“I’ve come to know these women much more intimately and have genuinely enjoyed building these bonds, which I didn’t have before. So, in a way, Garcelle’s departure turned out to be a blessing,” Sutton confessed in a shared video clip while discussing the end of her friendship with Garcelle, 58.

At another point in the event, Sutton mentioned her repeated attempts to reach out to Garcelle after she unexpectedly exited the reunion taping, a moment where Sutton felt unsupported.

At another moment, shared, Sutton said she attempted to get in touch with Garcelle on numerous occasions after she abruptly left the reunion taping, during which she received a lack of support from Sutton.

“I called her so many times. I texted her a million times and finally, when she made her announcement that she was going to be leaving, I called and she picked up,” Sutton recalled. “We did have a conversation. And it was a good conversation. She never said, ‘I wish you had taken responsibility.’ She never said anything like that to me.”

According to Sutton, she wishes Garcelle had been honest with her feelings so that they could’ve “talked about it.”

“But that was it. As far as I was concerned, we were still friends, and she just never talked to me again, and I guess blocked me on Instagram because that’s the way to show somebody that you are no longer friends,” she shared. 

Also at BravoCon, Sutton opened up about parting ways with Avi, who was recently seen with Garcelle on the red carpet.

“We had a lot of fun and I really loved him. He was like a member of my family. But my life has changed,” she explained. “I don’t have any children at home. I live by myself. I can make my own dentist appointments, and I don’t really need a personal assistant, so I know it hurts, but, you know, things change, and we can’t always depend on a job. None of us can.”

“I wish him the best and that’s it. There’s no real scandal or anything. He’s a great guy,” Sutton added.

In response, Jennifer Tilly, 67, recalled her good times with Avi.

“I adore Avi. He’d bring me a drink, and after we ate, he’d bring me a doggy bag without me even asking. And I loved Sutton and Avi together when they were laughing and having a great time,” she revealed. “We all miss Avi, but people move on.”

The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills season 15 premieres on Thursday, December 4, at 8/7c on Bravo.