Kristin Cavallari Shuts Down Claims Boyfriend Mark Estes Is 'Using' Her
Kristin Cavallari has no qualms clapping back at the critics of her relationship with Mark Estes.
Cavallari, 37, quipped that she’s paying Estes, 24, “a lot” to be with her while answering fan questions via Instagram on Thursday, April 4.
When a second follower wondered how Cavallari handles the “hate” surrounding her current relationship, the former reality star offered an honest answer.
“By knowing that everyone’s opinion on it actually has nothing to do with me,” she said. “It’s for PR! I’m paying him! He’s using me! He’s gonna leave you! Seeing everyone get so worked up makes me laugh.”
Kristin Cavallari and Mark Estes’ Relationship Timeline
Cavallari has been making headlines for her love life since hard-launching her relationship with Estes during a February vacation in Mexico. Since then, the duo have been fielding criticism about their age gap. (Estes is 13 years Cavallari’s junior.)
“Back in like September, I’m scrolling and I come across this boy group, I guess you could call them, The Montana Boyz,” Cavallari said on her “Let’s Be Honest” podcast last month, revealing how she met Estes. “So I go, ‘Holy s—t, who are these guys? Because they’re so hot. Specifically, this one, who I’m gonna refer to as ‘Montana.’”
She invited The Montana Boyz on her podcast after one of them — later revealed as Estes — DMed her, “I love you.”
During the same podcast episode, Cavallari offered further insight into the relationship.
“Me dating a 24-year-old is not something that I was searching out. It’s not something that I at all ever thought would ever happen,” the Uncommon James founder admitted. “I understand what it looks like to the outside world. I really do. I get that. He is not a typical 24-year-old.”
While she agreed that “it was a little early to hard launch someone,” she also explained that her decision was thought out.
A Complete Guide to Kristin Cavallari's Dating History
“However, what we’ve been talking about, I feel very different with this man,” she continued. “But also, I got a call from my publicist that TMZ was going to write an article about us. … I’ve been in this business for 20 years. The media has always controlled the narrative to a large degree. And part of me was like, ‘I want to take it in my own hands.’”
Those close to Cavallari are also fully on board with the relationship.
“After seeing them together, they realize Kristin and Mark have a genuine connection, and they see how happy he makes her,” a source told Us Weekly last month of Cavallari’s friend group.
A second insider made it clear that Cavallari “doesn’t care what people think when it comes to his age.”
Cavallari was married to ex-husband Jay Cutler for seven years before they split in 2020. The former couple — who share kids Camden, 11, Jaxon, 9, and Saylor, 8 — finalized their divorce two years later.
