We're finally getting answers about that mini Very Cavallari reunion.
Yes, the one with Jay Cutler and Shannon Ford, the former Uncommon James employee who Kristin Cavallari fired during the E! show's season two premiere. As fans may recall, the retired NFL player took to Instagram over Thanksgiving weekend, sharing a video of him and Shannon—along with Mark "Chuy" Block, who briefly appeared on Very Cavallari and is Shannon's agent—clinking wine glasses while enjoying lunch together in Charleston, S.C.
The post naturally stirred up some drama, and many of Jay's followers left comments like "Petty Jay is the best Jay." However, according to Shannon, who's good friends with Mark, the entire outing was completely innocuous.
"I was home in South Carolina for Thanksgiving, and I saw that Mark was in Charleston," she revealed on the Jan. 5 episode of Dear Media's Not Skinny But Not Fat podcast. "And I was like, shut the f--k up...What are the odds? And then I went back to his social media and I was like, what bar is he at? And he posted another story and he was with Jay, and I was like, 'Oh no.'"
Shannon was, at the time, under the impression Jay "hated" her. She thought he was annoyed with her on the show, and they'd never spoken since she was fired.
Despite being initially hesitant to reach out to Mark, she still wanted to see him, so she sent a text: "Mark was like, 'No, come join us. Like, [Jay] already knows you're here. It's fine.'"
Shannon, of course, wound up joining the two for lunch—along with her mom and grandma. "Like, that's how not spicy it was," she joked.
When Jay whipped out his phone to film the video he would soon post on Instagram, Shannon described being surprised. And when he didn't know how to post said video, she was even more surprised.
"It was on his story, and he goes, 'I'm confused. Where do I type the caption?'" the reality TV star recalled. "That's how removed he is from social media. And Mark was like, 'That's a story.' And he was like, 'I want to be able to type...do it where I can type.'"
Shannon still isn't clear on why Jay was so adamant about posting the video—any sort of public romantic speculation wouldn't make sense since she's been with her current boyfriend for three years—but she did say she thought "he knew it'd be funny."
At the time, it had only been around eight months since Jay and Kristin announced their divorce, and seven months since Kristin announced the end of Very Cavallari. Though his intentions are obviously unknown, there's no denying that the Uncommon James founder isn't on the best of terms with Shannon. The social media manager was fired on national television, and Shannon revealed on the podcast that there's even more to the story. To this day, they've barely spoken.
"Everyone is shocked when I say this, [but] I literally have seen her one time," Shannon said.
Still, the 27-year-old influencer was sad to hear about Jay and Kristin's split.
"A lot of people ask me my opinion and I was very close to Jay and Kristin outside of working," she began. "The brand originally started in her home. Like, we were in her living room every day working. So both of them are such good parents—like so, so wonderful at parenting—that every time someone asked me, I was like, sad. I don't know anything about, like, them together, I only just viewed them as parents."
She continued, acknowledging the former couple's three kids: Camden, 8, Jaxon, 6, and Saylor, 4. "And I remember everyone's like, 'What are your thoughts? What is your opinion?'" Shannon added. "And I'm like, 'It's none of my business. And there are three small children who have parents that are divorcing and that's sad.' And I'm not even trying to sound like Mother Theresa here. I just genuinely mean that."
The divorce announcement came in late April. "With great sadness, after 10 years together we have come to a loving conclusion to get a divorce," the former longtime couple said in a joint statement on Instagram at the time.
"We have nothing but love and respect for one another and are deeply grateful for the years shared, memories made, and the children we are so proud of," their statement continued. "This is just the situation of two people growing apart. We ask everyone to respect our privacy as we navigate this difficult time within our family."
A month later, Kristin revealed that Very Cavallari would be coming to an end after three seasons.
"As I start this new chapter in my life, I have decided not to continue with Very Cavallari," Kristin shared at the time. "I've absolutely loved my time filming and am so grateful to E! Entertainment for making this journey possible. To the fans: I can't thank you enough for all your support and for keeping up with me all of these years. I love you guys."