“Part of Me Still Wonders ‘What If’”: Southern Charm’s Craig Conover Talks Paige Breakup and If He’d Reunite With Ex Naomie After All They’ve Been Through

Is Craig Conover open to the idea of a reconciliation with his ex-girlfriend, Naomie Olindo, now that he and Paige DeSorbo are no longer together?

During an interview over the weekend, the 36-year-old Southern Charm star addressed his “messy” split from Paige, 32, revealed what fans didn’t see of their relationship, and admitted to stretching the truth while also sharing his thoughts on his next girlfriend and dating.

“No. No. She’s um, a sweetheart and I wish her the best. The thing with me, is once a chapter’s closed, well, I don’t like to make definitive statements, [but] I wish Naomie the best .. I’m just moving forward in my life and meeting new people,” Craig revealed when asked about Naomie, 32, on the February 16 episode of Access Hollywood‘s Housewives Nightcap. “That was season three, season four, I need to move on to the next season.”

In the weeks since the Summer House cast member announced their breakup on her podcast, things between her and Craig have gotten increasingly tense publicly, especially as she appears to spend more and more time with rumored boyfriend Joe D’Amelio.

“We were the first crossover relationship, and obviously, the beginning of any breakup is going to be messy, especially when you’re under the microscope,” Craig admitted. 

But despite the messiness, Craig said there was “so much good” that came out of his relationship with Paige.

“It’s really just trying to focus on the future instead of the past … [and] putting your energy in the right places. There’s no right or wrong. It’s just breakups happen, and it’s a good thing,” he continued. “They’re sad, but you only live once, so you should find the person that’s for you. And I don’t think it’s anyone’s fault. So now you have to be excited for the future and be like, ‘There’s gotta be a plan out there for me somewhere.’”

“No one’s ever not better off after a breakup. It just takes some time sometimes. I guess, sometimes we make things more complicated than they are. It just is what it is,” he added.

Looking back at the three years he spent with Paige, Craig admitted that a lot of what was seen on Southern Charm and Summer House was negative.

“Our sweeter moments weren’t shown. A lot of people put out their really good stuff, but you actually got to see our conflict. But 99% of the time there wasn’t,” he explained. 

Then, when asked if he was guilty of stretching the truth, Craig confessed, “Yeah.”

“I’m an exaggerator. It’s funny because they’re obsessed with this lying thing, which hurts my feelings because I think that goes to your character, but I was like, ‘I’m a lawyer. I’m never gonna lie on camera. You guys are crazy.’ But I do exaggerate and I’m a storyteller,” he noted. “I’ve been like that since I was little.”

As he looks ahead to his life without Paige, Craig said he’s “excited to find someone.”

‘I just want someone to travel with cause I’m on the road so much now, and I’m fortunate that I can be very spontaneous with my time, and I think it would be fun to find someone to share that life with again,” he revealed. “I’m not obsessing about planning. You just gotta stay optimistic and see what happens.”

“I’m just taking it in stride … just spending a lot of time with family and just having fun,” he continued. “You just can’t plan stuff. You just take it how it comes, and I was so fortunate to have a great relationship for three years and learn so much about myself, and have a lot of fun. This is a chapter I didn’t expect to be writing, but I guess I’ve accepted that it’s okay to be excited about it.”