Teresa Giudice saw right through Rachel Fuda‘s question about the relationship her daughters have with Joe and Melissa Gorga‘s kids.
On this week’s episode of RHONJ, Rachel asked Teresa if her kids are close with Melissa kids. Teresa explained that they used to be but noted that her girls, especially Milania Giudice, were hurt that Antonia Gorga didn’t attend Milania’s Sweet 16 party because they used to be extremely close. Melissa accused Teresa of trying to drag their kids into the family drama and told her not to blame anything on Antonia, which Teresa made clear wasn’t her intention at all.
Melissa then told Teresa: “You be that aunt. I’m not gonna be that aunt” meaning she won’t be the aunt to talk about the kids but she is, in fact, that aunt. More on that in a bit.
Now, the RHONJ OG believes that Rachel’s question was “calculated” and she wonders why Rachel asked her the question instead of turning to her good friend, Melissa, for answers.
“That was so calculated,” Teresa said on the RHONJ: After Show. “I shouldn’t have even answered that question. I think it was a silly thing to ask.”
She continued, “Why would I don ask me about [if the] kids are close and not ask Melissa that? She’s really close with Rachel. She already knows the answer to that, and she could have asked Melissa that question instead of asking Teresa, her sister-in-law.”
As for Rachel she insists that she never meant to cause any drama with her question. Not surprisingly, Melissa believes her.
“I was just kind of curious like, what, what’s that relationship look like? We’re having a deep conversation, like getting to know each other, being like honest, vulnerable, and I just asked a question. I if I had any inkling that I thought it was going to hurt your relationship more, I would’ve never asked it,” Rachel explains.
“No. I know God’s honest, don’t think you purposely,” Melissa replied.
Melissa then claims she told Teresa not to go there with the kids before Teresa even answered Rachel’s question.
“I looked at her before she can really say it and told her not to go there. Don’t drag our kids into it,” Melissa said.
The On Display podcast host then says she would never hold the Giudice girls or Teresa “accountable” for when they have missed events for her kids.
“If I held them accountable for every time they didn’t show up to something like, what am I trying to do, make Theresa look bad, like, make the girls look bad for like, as if they don’t care about family. Like, I don’t get what I’d be trying to do by doing that, you know?” Melissa said on the after show.
Except that is EXACTLY what Melissa has done over the years. Melissa says she won’t be the kind of aunt that drags the kids into the drama yet she has done that to her nieces multiple times.
During season three, Melissa chastised Teresa for not pulling Gia Giudice out of her gymnastics competition to see Joey Gorga get baptized at the church. Then she did the same when Gabriella Giudice had to miss Gino Gorga’s communion for a soccer tournament. Joe and Melissa then called Gia “dipsrectiful” during a season 12 argument. And this season Melissa said the Giudice girls have “hate in their hearts” for her and Joe. On top of that, Joe and Melissa also claimed they “put food” on the Giudice family’s table while Teresa was in prison.
If that weren’t enough, Melissa also tried to claim that her nieces were going to bully Antonia when they got older. Melissa said she and Joe wanted to sell their previous home and move to Franklin Lakes so Antonia didn’t have to go to school with the Giudice girls and be bullied by them.
RHONJ airs on Tuesdays at 9 pm on Bravo.