Jessi Ngatikaura has shared that Demi Engemann‘s spouse, Bret Engemann, reportedly had concerns about a potential affair between his wife and Marciano Brunette.

In the Friday, November 21 episode of the “Not Skinny But Not Fat” podcast, Jessi, 33, discussed her perspective on the perplexing interactions between Demi, 30, and Marciano after they met during the filming of season 2 of Vanderpump Villa.

“Did you catch the scene where Layla [Taylor] confronted her, and she was scrolling through all those texts with him? It was like reading a novel, yet she insisted, ‘No, nothing happened,’” Jessi remarked. “You don’t engage in that much conversation with another man if nothing’s going on.”

Jessi continued to say that Demi “is quite persuasive,” which might explain why Bret, 46, didn’t initially question the friendship. Nevertheless, Jessi also mentioned that Bret did express some worries about the frequency of communication between Demi and Marciano, 31.

“After the villa, he came to Jordan [Ngatikaura] at the gym a few times to say, ‘I am sick to my stomach. Do you think anything happened?’” she alleged. “He kept asking. There was a day we were all hanging out and he asked Taylor [Frankie Paul] the same thing saying, ‘I just feel like something is off.’”

Before season 2 of Mormon Wives premiered earlier this year, Demi and Bret’s marriage was already a major topic of conversation on Vanderpump Villa. A visit to Lisa Vanderpump‘s villa took a turn when Marciano found himself smitten with Demi. They ended the season on good terms, but Demi later called out Marciano for perpetuating rumors that she was unfaithful.

“Nothing happened with Marciano. At the expense of sounding rude, there wasn’t even a remote attraction to him. It sucks that women can’t be kind and friendly and even playful with men in this world without it being taken as like you’re open. I had a rock on my finger the entire time I was there,” she exclusively told Us Weekly in May. “I brought up my marriage multiple times and they were told that we were married women — so it sucks that we couldn’t just go and have a good time and that he couldn’t respect that.”

Bret, for his part, defended Demi’s version of events as well.

“I’m so proud of this beautiful human. She’s the most incredible woman I will ever know,” he wrote via Instagram before season 2 of Mormon Wives also brought up claims Bret cheated on Demi, which he denied. “The amount of nonsense she’s had to endure at the hands of disingenuous and deceitful fools is astounding. She’s conducted herself like a graceful lioness amongst a bunch of yipping hyenas.”

The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives is about Utah content creators — but the smash reality show has given screentime to many, many cheating scandals. When Hulu debuted The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives in September 2024, viewers were introduced to Jen Affleck and husband Zac Affleck, Demi Engemann and husband Bret Engemann, Whitney Leavitt […]

Marciano subsequently appeared at the end of season 2 to accuse Jessi of having an affair with him. Jessi ultimately confessed that, during a rocky point in her marriage to Jordan, she got caught up in a two-week emotional affair with Marciano.

Meanwhile Demi returned in season 3, which started streaming earlier this month, to maintain that she didn’t consensually engage in any romantic relationship with Marciano.

“I want to be absolutely clear: I am taking this matter extremely seriously,” Marciano said in a statement to People on Thursday, November 20, about Demi accusing him of sexual harassment. “This is the most difficult situation I have ever faced, and the allegations against me are not only entirely false but profoundly damaging. I remain committed to addressing this issue fully and transparently.”

The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives is currently streaming on Hulu.