It’s been over two years since Christina Anstead, 36, and Tarek El Moussa, 37, called it quits. Only recently has the Flip Or Flop star “flipped” his heartbreak and found love. Fans found out that Tarek was dating Heather Rae Young, 31, a Playboy Playmate and star of Netflix’s Selling Sunset, at the end of July after photos showed them making out. They made it “Instagram official” a week later, so we know this is no “summer fling.” In fact, Tarek EXCLUSIVELY tells HollywoodLife that he’s eager to “see what happens” with this new love.
HollywoodLife: What is it about her that drew you to Heather?
Tarek El Moussa: She’s just a special girl. There’s something about her. The second you see her, she just irradiates she has that “It” vibe that just makes you want to smile, you know? She’s just amazing.
We know it’s still really new but do you guys talk about marriage and kids and moving in together and any of that stuff quite yet?
We’ve talked about all that stuff, but it’s still really new, so we’ll see where things go.
Are you optimistic you’ve found the one again?
I’m very optimistic — I always am, I am a believer in hope, I’m a believer in love. I’m a believer in taking chances, so we’ll see what happens.
And you’re open to marriage and kids again?
Yeah, I’m open to it.
Did she know who you were?
Yeah, she had heard of me. She wasn’t a, you know, a die-hard fan or follower but she had heard of me, I’ve been on media quite a bit.
And you kind of been dubbed or you dubbed your new house the “Bachelor Dad Pad” so talk me into through that and what that means to you?
Well, it’s no longer gonna be the “Dad Pad” it’s just gonna be the “Dad and Girlfriend Pad” so you know, I made sure I brought some candles into the house, I need to reset up some of the ‘lady touches’ right up right now.
What do you like to do for your girlfriend, what’s one way you like to be romantic and what kinds of things do guys you like to do together?
I think the important thing in a relationship is the little things, the small things that no one thinks of. So, I try to do little things to make sure to put a smile on her face.
What made you decide to share your relationship now?
Paparazzi photos.
Were you guys trying to keep it under wraps?
Yeah, a little bit you know it was kind of newer but somehow there’re some photos on the back of my boat that gave it away, and I was like, “Okay well, it is out there.”
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Since splitting up in 2016 (and finalizing their divorce in 2018), Tarek and Christina have gone their own ways when it comes to love. Christina married Ant Anstead, 40, in a surprise wedding in Dec. 2018. Three months after saying “I do,” Christina announced that she was expecting her first child with Ant. In a case of truth being stranger than fiction, Tarek accidentally revealed the sex of his ex-wife’s baby during an April edition of TMZ Live.
Tarek, who shares a son (Brayden, 3) and a daughter (Taylor, 8) with Christina, told HollywoodLife that though she was upset, Christina “understood it was an accident, and we moved on.”
“The kids and I are excited, you know,” Tarek told HollywoodLife. “I think overall it’s great for them. And I’m glad she’s happy, and I’ll do everything I possibly can to be as great as I can be to her kid.