Paulie Connell says Dolores Catania calls him a ‘scumbag’ as he shares how they met

Paul “Paulie” Connell is spilling the tea about his girlfriend, Dolores Catania. He explains how they met and whether she’s the same person on TV.

Let’s clear that up right now; yes, she is even referring to him as a “scumbag” — a word we’ve heard her use many times before.

The Real Housewives of New Jersey star and her beau are still going strong despite some rocky moments this season.

RHONJ fans blasted the Irishman for stalling on his divorce from his ex-wife despite being separated for over a decade.

Last season, Paulie claimed he already had a ring picked out for Dolores, but the clock is ticking, and the mom of two is growing frustrated that he’s still married.

Despite a rough season, the pair is still together, and Paulie recently opened up about how they met.

Paulie Connell shares how he met Dolores Catania and admits she calls him a ‘scumbag’

Paulie was a guest on the Don’t Let It Stu podcast and talks turned to his relationship.

Interestingly, the RHONJ star jumped into Paulie’s DMs after their mutual friend, Vanessa, told them about each other.

However, Dolores was quite shady in her message.

“Dolores reached out to me very nicely on Instagram; she’s like, ‘Oh, so you’re Paulie, you’re who Vanessa’s speaking about,'” shared Paulie. “I really thought that you were gay.”

Meanwhile, the couple’s first meeting was at an Apple Store, and it was totally coincidental, at least according to Dolores.

Paulie is convinced that the Bravo Housewife saw his car parked outside and decided to come inside.

“I have a feeling she knew I was in there, but she said she didn’t, so we’ll go with that,” he exclaimed.

Meanwhile, the 50-year-old admitted he was tongue-tied when Dolores first approached him but quickly got over that hurdle, and the rest, as they say, is history.

As for what Dolores is like in person, Paulie confessed his girlfriend is the same outspoken Housewife we’ve been watching on the show for the past eight years.

“Has she ever called you a scumbag?” asked Stu.

“All the time!” Paulie responded laughingly, later adding, “It’s in a loving way.”

Paulie talks about his relationship with the RHONJ husbands

This season, we’ve seen more of Paulie on RHONJ, seemingly picking sides among the fractured cast.

He’s been spending time with Luis Ruelas and Bill Aydin; admittedly, he’s closer to them than the other Jersey husbands.

“I would speak to Luis, and I would speak to Bill Aydin a lot… and we would occasionally meet up for lunch and whatever like that,” he noted.

“I speak to Joey, Frank… he’s a good guy,” added Paulie.

Check out Paulie’s podcast interview below.

The Real Housewives of New Jersey airs on Sundays at 8/7c on Bravo.