‘I brought shame on my family’ says Selling Sunset’s Mary Bonnet as star claims she was ‘shunned’ after pregnancy at 15
SELLING Sunset’s Mary Bonnet has claimed she was ‘shunned’ by her religious hometown after falling pregnant at 15.
Mary, 44, bravely spoke about her difficult teen years raising her son, Austin Babbitt, 27, as a single teen mother on The Dr. Richard Podcast.
The reality star reflected on growing up in Lapel, Indiana, which she described as being a “teeny, tiny, farmtown” in the candid interview.
She told dentist Dr. Richard Marques, who runs his celebrity-favourite clinic at London‘s 18 Wimpole St, “When I got pregnant, I was judged tremendously because I was THAT girl.
“And I embarrassed my family and everything and so I really had to walk around with that shame all the time and watch people judge me and whisper all the time so that really, really hurt me.
“But I realised, once I started the show, that I had to have gone through that now for me to be able to have the thicker skin I have now.
“And I’m very sensitive, very sensitive, but it thickened it enough that I’m like, ‘I’ve been through that before, that’s okay.'”
While not much is known about Austin, including the identity of his father, Mary shared via Instagram in March 2022, that he was joining the Airforce.
She wrote: “Can’t begin to express how I’m feeling with my son going off to boot camp for the Airforce today. Mama’s and Daddy’s … hug your kiddos tonight and cherish every moment.”
Two months later, Mary took to the social media app to reveal Austin graduated from BootCamp.
“Just spent time with my son at his #Airforce BootCamp graduation,” she wrote.
“Such a proud mama! Forever grateful to Sgt Butler for making this moment happen.”
Mary is a top realtor with The Oppenheim Group, which sells luxury properties in the Hollywood Hills and is the basis for the show.
The show features her life and relationship with Romain Bonnet, a 31-year-old Wilhelmina model from France.
After graduating from Ball State University in Indiana, Mary began her real estate career in 2008 in the South Bay.
She spent her initial years in the industry working in New York and London.
According to her Oppenheim Group profile, “Mary sets herself apart with unrivaled work ethic, integrity, and honesty.”
On October 12, 2019, Mary and Romain tied the knot in what the star described as their “dream wedding.”
Speaking with People, Mary said: “Neither of us are big, showy kind of people, and we just wanted the people closest to us, where it just felt sincere and comfortable. So that’s what we did.”
Her son, Austin, was also in attendance and has been very vocal over the years that he and Romain have a great relationship with one another.
In terms of expanding her family, Mary told The Sun in 2020 that she wants to freeze her eggs, as having a child with Romain isn’t their top priority.
“I’ll never say never, just not right now.”
However, in November 2023, Mary revealed to People that she had become pregnant but sadly miscarried.
The famed real estate broker said she suffered a septic miscarriage in early 2023.
She also revealed that following her miscarriage, Mary suffered a uterine infection.
During this time, Mary praised her husband for being “sensitive” and supportive throughout.
She said: “I can’t ask for a better partner. He’s just very, very thoughtful and sensitive to the whole situation, and he just tried to take care of me the best [way] possible, and I’m like, ‘honey, you’re going through this too.'”