Ariana Madix couldn’t be happier dating Daniel Wai after dealing with the fallout from ex-boyfriend Tom Sandoval and Raquel Leviss’ affair.
“Ariana is having a great time with Daniel. When things initially unfolded with Tom and Raquel, she never imagined she would want to jump into another relationship as soon as she did,” a source exclusively tells Us Weekly, adding that it’s “refreshing” for Madix, 37, to be in a relationship with “someone who treats her with so much respect and compassion.”
The Florida native — who was first linked to Wai, 37, when they were spotted together at Coachella in April – feels like her new beau is “the total package” and “couldn’t help but fall for him” after her split from Sandoval, 40. (The twosome were together for almost a decade but called it quits when Madix found out about the TomTom cofounder’s infidelity.)
Madix and Wai have been spotted together multiple times — enjoying nights out in Manhattan and packing on the PDA during dinner dates. Last weekend, the lovebirds attended a New York City music festival. The fitness coach revealed at the time that he had planned it as an early birthday surprise for the Pump Rules star, who turns 38 on June 24.
“She thought she was coming here for a dinner, but got surprised by [friend Brad Kearns] on the plane,” Wai wrote via Instagram on Sunday, June 11, sharing a photo of himself hugging Madix as Kendrick Lamar performed in the background. The Fancy AF Cocktails coauthor, for her part, reposted the image and shared several snaps and videos from the event via her Instagram Story.
Last month, Madix opened up about her budding romance with the exercise guru during a May interview on Today.
“I met him at a wedding about 10 days after all of this. And in no way, shape or form did I go into that thinking anything,” she explained at the time. “I have just been taking things very, very slow and really enjoying myself. And it’s just really lovely to interact with someone who is just so nice and kind and lovely and caring.”
The Something About Her cofounder also gushed about Wai during a recent appearance on Watch What Happens Live With Andy Cohen, telling the 54-year-old Bravo exec: “I’ll just say that I am very happy and very satisfied.”
In April, castmate Lala Kent praised Madix for her willingness to open herself back up to love despite the Scandoval drama. “She’s like, ‘Heartbreak, what? Like, I’m solid. I’m banging a fine-looking man,’” Kent, 32, said during an April episode of her “Give Them Lala” podcast. “She’s looking at [everything] like, ‘Look at my life. I’m happy.’ She said [to me], ‘Wow, I don’t have anxiety anymore. This is strange.’”
While Madix continues to find her happiness with Wai, she is also thriving in her professional life, gearing up to open her West Hollywood eatery, Something About Her, with Katie Maloney in the coming months.
“We were hoping by, like, end of May, but you know, in the nature of these things and starting a restaurant, there’s always gonna be things [that delay the process],” Maloney, 36, said in an appearance on the “So Bad It’s Good With Ryan Bailey” podcast earlier this month, adding that the restaurant is “gonna be open this summer. … We are really excited.”
While people will have to way a little longer to grab a sandwich at the duo’s shop, former Pump Rules star Stassi Schroeder recently gave fans of the Bravo hit a glimpse into the Parisian-style eatery, which features light blue walls and multiple paintings.
“Oh, wow,” Schroeder, 34, marveled via her Instagram Story on Monday, June 12, showing off the blue sky blue walls, custom wall decor and bench-style seating area.
