Robyn Brown shed tears over her fractured bond with Christine Brown on the latest episode of Sister Wives — but Christine isn’t interested in a friendship.
Robyn, 44, got emotional during the Sunday, September 17, episode while discussing the plural family’s division after Kody Brown‘s split from Christine, 51. “I always thought that [Christine] would eventually open herself to a relationship with me, you know, figure that stuff out. … I tried very hard to be kind with her,” Robyn told Meri Brown.
In a confessional, Robyn claimed that she “was constantly holding out an olive branch to Christine” before the former couple’s separation. “[I was] constantly wanting the relationship, constantly trying to ask her, like, ‘What can I do?’ And all [Christine] ever told me was, ‘I’m just jealous of you,’” she alleged.
Robyn remembered there being “so many times” over the years that she had fun with Christine. “I feel like we really did have the potential of just having a great relationship. And I just never understood why we couldn’t,” she added as she welled up with tears. “I just don’t know how to come to terms with the heartbreak of it.”
The camera then cut Christine, who shared a slightly different perspective. “If it bothered her that she didn’t have a relationship with me, she should’ve said, ‘Hey, why don’t we have a relationship? Can we be friends?’” she said in her own confessional. “But I want you to know, I would’ve rejected her friendship anyway. To be completely honest.”
She doubled down, adding, “If Robyn approached me and wanted to be friends, I would’ve not been friends still. Because I couldn’t trust her.”
When Christine began her spiritual marriage to Kody, 54, in 1994, he was already legally married to Meri, 52, and in another spiritual union with Janelle Brown. Robyn joined the family in 2010, but Kody shook up the dynamic in 2014 by divorcing Meri and lawfully marrying Robyn. (Both Meri and Janelle broke up with Kody after Christine led the charge.)
Since its premiere last month, fans have seen Janelle’s relationship with Kody splinter on season 18 of Sister Wives. On Sunday’s episode, Christine attempted to convince Janelle to move back to Utah with her. The women — who have remained close friends since their respective splits from Kody — also discussed their ex’s desire for them to be “better sister wives” to Robyn.
“I’m sorry, plural marriage doesn’t require that you’re always best friends with your sister wife. So I think we need to get over this,” Janelle said while chatting with Christine after the holidays.
Christine proceeded to get heated about the topic in a confessional interview. “I was a great sister wife to Janelle. Meri? Not so much, but I don’t think [Kody] cares about Meri,” she said. “He’s basically saying, ‘Because you’re not the best sister wife to Robyn, I’m not interested in having a relationship with you.’”
She implied that Kody was being hypocritical, claiming, “Who had a great relationship with Robyn for years, yet he wasn’t attracted to her? Oh yeah, that’d be Meri. He’s full of s–t, I’m sorry. That’s ridiculous.”
Kody, for his part, argued that his request “wasn’t ever really about Robyn,” telling the camera, “I wanted Christine to be better to everybody and about everybody.”
Sister Wives airs on TLC Sundays at 10 p.m. ET.
