Scheana Shay confronted Tom Sandoval and Raquel Leviss over a “cozy” club interaction months before Ariana Madix discovered the duo’s shocking affair.
Sources exclusively tell Page Six that the “Vanderpump Rules” star — who is best friends with Sandoval’s now-ex Madix — spoke with both Sandoval and Leviss after James Kennedy’s girlfriend, Ally Lewber, spotted them canoodling at The Abbey in West Hollywood last fall.
“Scheana heard about what Ally saw from Lala [Kent], and Scheana was shocked,” one insider shares.
“She confronted Raquel twice in the time preceding ‘Scandoval’ and then Tom at some point, too, asking them if something was going on,” the source continues.
“When she talked to Ariana about it, Ariana was like, ‘That would never happen,’ and kind of laughed it off.”
Shay, 37, eventually let it go as “everyone assured her that any speculation was crazy,” the source explains.
“Also, Raquel’s fling with Tom Schwartz was still a hot topic, so most people brushed off the hearsay about Raquel and Sandoval.”
In the mid-season trailer for “Pump Rules,” Kent, 32, presses Sandoval, 40, about his night of clubbing with Leviss, 28.
“She saw the both of you at The Abbey together,” the “Give Them Lala” author says, seemingly in reference to information relayed by Lewber, 27.
“James’ girlfriend, Ally, saw Tom and Raquel at The Abbey dancing alone together and thought it was weird,” the source says.
“When they realized they’d been spotted looking cozy, Tom and Raquel appeared to act a little strange like they were caught doing something bad.”
The insider points out that Sandoval and Leviss were hanging out with a “group of people” — some individuals associated with the reality show peripherally — at The Abbey, but “something seemed off” as Madix, 37, wasn’t around.
“People began speculating that something weird was happening then and Ally was the first to call it out,” says the source. “But Raquel and Tom were both adamantly denying it at the time.”
Another insider notes that Bravo cameras were not up when Sandoval and Leviss decided to hang at The Abbey, though “VPR” Season 10 was still in production at the time.
“Ally did not initially mention what she saw while filming,” the source says. “She confided in other cast members off-camera simply because she was very much bothered by Tom and Raquel’s interaction.”
Our first insider says that Kent and Katie Maloney — the latter of whom was once irate over Leviss’ flirtations with her ex-husband, Schwartz, 40 — mulled over the nature of Leviss and Sandoval’s relationship before the “Scandoval” broke on March 3.
“Over the past couple months, Katie and Lala have been thinking things weren’t adding up,” the source says.
Amid Kent and Maloney’s suspicions, Shay sought clarity again.
“Days before the scandal broke, Scheana nudged Raquel and was like, ‘Are you sure there isn’t something going on?’” the insider tells us of Shay, who was “looking out for” her good pal Madix.
Follow Page Six’s coverage of ‘Scandoval’:
“And Raquel denied it again. So, of course Scheana was really upset when Raquel eventually confessed.”
Page Six has reached out to reps for comment.
Page Six previously reported that Leviss and Shay got into a “heated confrontation” on March 1 after the “Good as Gold” singer found out about her co-star’s months-long dalliance with Sandoval, who had been in a relationship with Madix for nearly a decade.
Leviss later obtained a temporary restraining order against Shay, whom she accused of punching her in the face.
Shay’s lawyer, Neama Rahmani, subsequently denied that his client had hit Leviss, whom he accused of “sabotaging” the “VPR” reunion since it “can’t happen in any meaningful way while this order is in place.”
On Wednesday, Leviss revealed via Instagram that she “will be attending” tomorrow’s reunion “in person” despite previous speculation that the restraining order would force her to appear virtually.
Though logistics of the taping remain unknown as the two women must remain 100 yards apart, Shay asserted last Friday that she would be unpacking the drama in person.
Multiple sources told Page Six on March 3 that Madix dumped Sandoval after seeing a sexually explicit video of Leviss on his phone two days prior and was “heartbroken” by the betrayal.
Both Leviss and Sandoval later issued public apologies to Madix for the affair that began roughly in July 2022.
Madix, for her part, addressed the entanglement for the first time on March 16.
“To say i have been devastated and broken is an understatement. however, i know that i am not in this alone,” she wrote in part, concluding with, “What doesn’t kill me better run.”
“Vanderpump Rules” airs Wednesdays at 9 p.m. ET on Bravo.
