Demi Engemann and husband Bret Engemann didn’t have to be at the Secret Lives of Mormon Wives reunion for their affair drama with Marciano Brunette to be the biggest topic of conversation — complete with NSFW texts and a secretly recorded phone call.
During the first Secret Lives of Mormon Wives reunion special, which started streaming on Tuesday, July 1, host Nick Viall confirmed that Demi would not be appearing in person due to a previously planned family trip to Disneyland. Instead, the reunion relied on Jen Affleck, Whitney Leavitt, Mikayla Matthews, Mayci Neeley, Jessi Ngatikaura, Taylor Frankie Paul, Layla Taylor and Miranda McWhorter’s version of events.
Nick also had the chance to interview Demi before the reunion, with footage from their conversation featured throughout the special. But the topic viewers had the most questions about — Demi’s connection with Marciano — was the only topic she didn’t address in the pre-recorded interview.
To quickly recap, before season 2 of Mormon Wives premiered in May, Demi visited Lisa Vanderpump’s villa for Hulu’s Vanderpump Villa. The trip took a turn when Marciano found himself smitten with Demi. While they ended the season on good terms, 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.”
Marciano subsequently appeared in the last scene of season 2 of Secret Lives of Mormon Wives — only to claim he actually (or also?) had an affair with Jessi Ngatikaura. The timeline wasn’t exactly clear and while the reunion helped a little, it was obvious that viewers would need to tune into season 3 for the full story.
Keep scrolling for the biggest revelations about Demi and Bret’s marriage — and how Marciano may have been involved:
Back to the Beginning
Mikayla recalled having concerns about Demi’s behavior toward Marciano when they were still filming Vanderpump Villa.
“They thought we were swingers. I was more worried about the way she was going to be perceived on camera. Then she took it as me slut shaming her and she’s like, ‘I know I know the boundaries of my marriage,’” Mikayla recalled. “I was like, ‘That’s fine.’ But I was just looking out for how she was going to look to the public. It’s not a good look.”
Bringing the Receipts
Demi Engemann,Marciano Brunette, Jessi Ngatikaura Disney/Hulu
Jessi brought alleged text messages she acquired from Marciano between him and Demi. Nick read the flirty exchange where Demi appeared to ask Marciano if his messages to her were an example of how he would “sweet talk all the ladies.”
Marciano replied, “I didn’t realize I was sweet talking you.” Demi subsequently sent a photo of her eating oysters, writing, “Gonna hurl!!”
In response, Marciano told her not to be “a baby” before she compared eating the dish to “swallowing c**.” Marciano joked, “Sooo fun fact about Demi. [She] doesn’t swallow. Got it. I’m never going to be able to eat oysters again and not think about that.”
Demi allegedly replied that she “ruined it forever” before sending the clam, eggplant and water emojis. (In a backstage interaction between Jen and Zac Affleck, he had to explain to his wife the possible sexual implication behind the claim reference.)
Nick, meanwhile, asked the group where Demi’s husband was while she was allegedly flirting with Marciano via texts. Layla said Demi claimed Bret was “in the room” with her but the others cast doubt that Bret even knew the messages existed. Jessi’s husband, Jordan, told the rest of DadTok that he “already tried to tell him” but Bret “doesn’t want to hear it.”
How Jessi and Jordan’s Marriage Was Affected by Marciano’s Claims
Jessi Ngatikaura, Jordan Ngatikaura, and Marciano Brunette. Disney; Getty Images; Disney
When it comes to Marciano’s suggestion that the group should also be looking at Jessi, she admitted her marriage has suffered.
“Jordan and I are working through a lot of hard things at the moment. But all I have to say is that I’m exposing so much of my life and I’m just hoping that someone in my shoes may be able to relate to it,” she noted. “ I’m doing it to help other people but also because it’s my real life. It’s happening and I can’t hide it.”
Jessi was directly asked whether she had sex with Marciano.
“A lot of this story is unpacked in season 3 so I can’t talk about it yet,” she said before assuming that Jordan felt “anxious, nervous and sad” hearing her discuss a possible affair. “We’re both going through a lot right now. But I think he’s willing to tell his truth too and he’s been very vulnerable throughout season 3. So we both just laid it all out there. There was a lot more to the story and it’s not what you think it is. There’s no secrets. Like, we are exposing it all.”
Jessi clarified that any interactions with Marciano happened “after” he allegedly spoke with Demi off screen. Later in the special, Jordan joined the group and revealed whether he thought he and Jessi would work through their issues.
“I knew what happened because of the conversations that I had had with Jessi, butBut it was really tough to have the allegations made,” he said about continuing to work through their issues. “I tried to talk to Bret [about Marciano]. It’s a really tough place to be. I see him a couple times a week. We wave at each other at the gym but outside of that we don’t talk.”
A Message From Demi
Outside of the alleged affair, Demi had plenty to say in her pre-taped clip.
“ There’s definitely some things going on with the girls but I would have been there [if I could]. We planned a Disneyland trip with my family,” Demi noted in a pre-recorded message with Nick. “I think Taylor is [going to be the most critical of my absence]. She is going to think that I’m running away from something. I did step away from the group to protect my peace.”
In various clips, Demi explained her issues with Taylor and the other members of MomTok. She also weighed in on her issues with Jen — and whether there was any regret.
“I wish I could say that I regret the way that I handled that. I don’t. There’s a humanness to me that goes, ‘Yeah, you were dealing with a lot.’ We all are going through a lot and it doesn’t discredit you lying about people and discrediting their reputation. It’s strange to me,” Demi claimed. “Jen got pregnant, and that seemed to be a turning point for her and almost a reason to remove herself from MomTok. Obviously, we’re happy for Jen and we want her to protect her peace.”
Demi called Jen’s behavior and subsequent apology to the group “suspect timing,” adding, “What I saw is her running away from the problem. I didn’t really feel the sincerity and the genuineness behind it. Maybe that wasn’t a fair assumption — given the fact that I don’t know the exact intentio. But that’s how it felt.”
She continued: “[Jen’s apology video] felt a little bit calculated and I have to give her credit for sending that. That couldn’t have been easy. I’m sure there was a level of genuineness to it to where she’s feeling like she really messed up and she needs to make things right. But then I text her afterwards and she never responded. To me it’s kind of like, ‘OK, well, were you just being performative or did you genuinely mean that?’”
Zac Fights Back
During the reunion, Zac played an alleged conversation where Demi appeared to give him and Jen talking points about the Marciano drama.
“[You should say] Demi and I have very different ideas and different boundaries in our marriages. What I value and what I really appreciate is the open and honest communication and relationship that Demi and Bret share. I think it’s amazing and it’s something that I admire,” Demi was heard saying in the audio played at the reunion. “I may have jumped the gun about judging her about that. It wasn’t fair for me to hold that over her head. Then it doesn’t go into any detail about what may or may not have happened and certain membersers from the show. It’s more a personal standpoint.”
Bret was seemingly heard jumping in to say they needed to address the victim “buzzword” that was used. In response, Jen said she “felt uncomfortable” speaking too much to Demi’s experience since they didn’t see eye to eye on certain situations that took place in Italy.
Demi was not asked by Nick about the audio that Zac surprised everyone with at the reunion.
Sneak Peek Into Season 3
Demi Engemann, Bret Engemann, Marciano Brunette. Disney/Cristian Lopez; Courtesy of Demi Engemann/Instagram; Denise Truscello/Getty Images for Caesars Entertainment
At the end of the reunion, the season 3 trailer showed Jordan’s immediate reaction to the rumors about Marciano and Jessi.
“If I find anything else out, I am done,” he told Jessi, who was later seen asking Marciano, “Why did you lie to Layla about us?”
Marciano hinted that he was “influenced” by Demi and even agreed to a lie detector test with Jessi about what actually happened between them.
Two months before the reunion aired, Marciano took to Instagram to urge Bret to contact him.
“You are saying Jen is 100 percent false when Jen is 100 percent true. Dude, you are a smart man. You are not delusional. It is admirable that you want to defend your woman like that. But you must just not know the whole truth,” Marciano said. “You heard Jen, she says she has receipts. If she has receipts, imagine what kind of receipts I have. Even if there weren’t any receipts, she was at Vanderpump Villa and I was at Vanderpump Villa. Everyone knows what went down — it is all on camera. All I am saying is if you want the truth, get my phone number and we can have a talk.”
