DWTS Alum Defends Relationship With Much Younger Man

Heavy/ABC Kristin Cavallari talks Mark Estes relationship.

Season 13 “Dancing With the Stars” alum Kristin Cavallari was asked about her relationship with Mark Estes in a new interview. The former MTV star has received a great deal of criticism due to the age gap between her and her new guy; Estes is 13 years her junior.

“I understand what it looks like from the outside world of, like, yeah, I’m dating a 24-year-old, but no one in my life has been like, ‘This is weird.’ Everyone’s like, ‘I get it. It makes sense.’ I own my own house. I have kids. I don’t need a man for anything other than just pure happiness,” Cavallari told Bustle.

“Emotionally, he’s able to step up to the plate, and he’s shown up for me more than anyone else I’ve ever dated,” she said of her TikTok star beau.

Cavallari and Estes went public with their romance in February 2024.

Kristin Cavallari & Mark Estes Have Been Enjoying Life Together

Cavallari and Estes have been spending as much time together as possible since they started dating. The two have even left the country a couple of times, taking their love all over the world.

“Bahamas with my favorite people,” Cavallari captioned an Instagram post on June 24. She traveled to the Caribbean with her three kids and Estes, 24.

Back in March, Cavallari talked about how Estes had already met her family; she shares three kids with her ex-husband, Jay Cutler.

“[He] came and picked me up and he met my kids. He actually met my mom too because my mom was babysitting my kids, so it just really threw him in the mix,” she said on an episode of her “Let’s Be Honest” podcast.

In July, Cavallari and Estes popped up in Europe.

“Greece,” she captioned a post on her Instagram Stories. She also uploaded a selfie in which Estes was looking away from the camera with a toothy grin. “His smile,” Cavallari captioned the post.

Kristin Cavallari Has Been Letting the Criticism Roll Off Her Back

In her interview with Bustle, Cavallari said that she’s handling negative attention well because she doesn’t care “what anybody thinks.”

“I’ve had 20 years of people [expletive] about something I’m doing. I feel like my whole career has led me to this moment…This is the first time in my life I truly have not given a [expletive] what anybody thinks,” she said.

“I think if people are upset about it, that has nothing to do with me. You don’t know me. My life doesn’t affect you in the slightest. If that’s triggering for someone, they need to take a look in the mirror and figure out why,” she added.

Whenever Cavallari has spoken about the criticism of her relationship in the past, she has shown that she’s not letting it get to her.

“When they’re all up in arms that im dating a 24 year old. Andddd?” Cavallari captioned a TikTok video on March 1.

“So, what are you gonna do about it? Are you gonna arrest me? Are you gonna give me a ticket?” she mouthed in the video.

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