Melinda Gates is opening up about what led to her and Bill Gates' divorce last year.
During her conversation with Gayle King on CBS Mornings—which aired in full on March 3— the billionaire philanthropist revealed that the Microsoft co-founder's past meetings with late financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein contributed to their divorce, saying, "As I said it's not one thing, it was many things. But I did not like that he'd had meetings with Jeffrey Epstein, no."
Melinda said she voiced her concerns to Bill about his ties to Jeffrey. However, she met with the convicted pedophile once and almost immediately "regretted" her decision.
"I also met Jeffrey Epstein exactly one time," she shared. "Yes, because I wanted to see who this man was. And I regretted it from the second I stepped in the door. He was abhorrent. He was evil personified. I had nightmares about it afterwards. So you know, my heart breaks for these young women because that's how I felt, and here I'm an older woman. My god, I feel terrible for those young women. It's awful."
Infidelity also played a factor in Bill and Melinda calling it quits after 27 years of marriage. Elsewhere in the interview, the 57-year-old told Gayle that she previously forgave Bill for having an intimate relationship with one of his former employees in 2000, but there "came a point in time where there was enough there that I realized it just wasn't healthy, and I couldn't trust what we had."
Though their marriage ended, Bill and Melinda still have a working relationship, which she would like to keep amicable.
"I would say we're friendly at this point," she said. "Friends is a different word for me. And you know, that might come over time, but for me, there's still healing that needs to happen. Certainly, I wish him well. I don't wish him harm. And I think we have a productive working relationship, and I think that will continue."
In a statement to CBS on March 3, Bill said, "I will always be sorry for the pain that I caused Melinda and our family. I admire Melinda and everything she does to improve the lives of women and girls around the world, and I'm grateful for the work we continue to do together at our foundation."