Carina Mirabile’s relationship with her Married At First Sight groom Paul Antoine turned rocky this past week after it was revealed the Frenchman punched a hole in the door during a heated argument with his bride.
But the brunette beauty did her best to put the drama behind her as she dined with two male friends at swanky eatery Fred’s in Paddington last Monday.
The digital marketing manager dressed-to-the-nines and appeared in good spirits at the long lunch.
The 31-year-old almost suffered a wardrobe malfunction in a daring burnt orange cowl neck frock under which she wore no bra.
Carina paired the floor-length dress with black high heels and a tiny quilted Chanel handbag.
She accessorised with several jewels, including a Van Cleefs & Arpels Vintage Alhambra bracelet and Cartier Juste un Clou bangle.
Carina had her long dark locks down in a half-up half-down style and a perfect application of makeup, which came as no surprise as she was joined by her makeup artist and hair stylist.
The outing comes as Carina’s MAFS partner Paul has come under fire for his ‘toxic’ and ‘unacceptable’ behaviour after he punched a hole in the bedroom door during a heated argument with Carina.
It has now been revealed he has sought professional help following his shock violent outburst on the show.
Following an uncomfortable commitment ceremony on Sunday night where he was called out for his behaviour by the show’s relationship experts, Paul said he spoke to a psychologist.
‘I had to talk to someone on the outside, a professional, to actually talk about it and find some sort of peace as I was so mad and angry at myself for reacting that way,’ he told Nine.
‘It was also sending the wrong message to Carina. I didn’t want her to feel unsafe. That’s the last thing that I would want.’
Paul’s admission comes after he was put ‘on notice’ by the experts on Sunday night’s episode.
Mel Schilling, John Aitken and Alessandra Ramponella told him that he would be unable to continue in the experiments unless he got help for de-escalation strategies.
Doubling down on her sentiment expressed on Sunday night, Carina, 31, told Nine she wanted to put the incident behind her and Paul.
‘It doesn’t matter how much he can apologise and say sorry,’ Carina explained.
‘I wanted the relationship to work. I forgave and I wanted to move forward with him and leave that in the past, and get that reassurance from him that he wasn’t going to do that in the future.’
Sunday’s episode saw the experts confront Paul over his shocking wall-punching outburst.
The atmosphere was tense as relationship expert Alessandra wasted no time addressing the violent incident, demanding Paul explain himself.
Paul recounted the moment that led to his alarming reaction, explaining that Carina had joked about sleeping with someone associated with the music playing in their car.
Feeling ‘disrespected’ and ’embarrassed,’ Paul admitted that when they returned to their apartment, he ‘completely lost control’ and lashed out, punching a hole in the door.
‘I felt trapped, and I completely lost control,’ he confessed.
Alessandra was visibly unimpressed.
‘It does not matter how disrespected you felt,’ she shot back.
‘You do not punch walls. You do not punch floors. Period. Full stop. That intimidates.’
Despite the confronting nature of the discussion, Carina downplayed the seriousness of the incident, brushing it off as an emotional reaction.
Her response prompted an immediate reaction from Mel Schilling.
‘This is not normal behaviour, sweetheart,’ she warned.
‘This is not how you show love. This is deeply troubling.’
Fellow expert John Aiken backed her up, calling Paul’s behaviour ‘toxic, inappropriate, and unacceptable’.
With the panel visibly furious, Paul was then put on the spot, forced to explain why he should be allowed to stay in the experiment.
The experts ultimately allowed Paul to continue in the experiment but made it crystal clear that he was ‘on notice’.
Following Sunday’s commitment ceremony, Carina defended her groom in a statement to Daily Mail Australia.
‘Like, I feel like he’s 100% not a DV person and he is a good human and egg and big heart, she said.
‘Him and I are so similar and just naive with a YES YES mentality… I want people to know that’s not him.’
She also reassured fans that production had provided adequate support for all contestants.
‘If I felt unsafe, I would have walked away, but production implemented good duty of care and regulations/advice and offered us both all the help we needed and still do – you know!
In a statement, Channel Nine said they are providing support to the couple.
‘Nine and Endemol Shine Australia has treated this matter extremely seriously,’ the statement read.
‘Our first priority at all times has been the wellbeing and safety of the participants and after extensive consultation with Carina, she wanted to remain in the experiment with Paul. We continue to provide support for Carina and Paul.’
The statement also outlined the level of support offered to participants.
‘All participants have access to the show psychologist and welfare resources during filming, during broadcast and once the program has ended,’ it continued.
“Nine also have an additional service for participants should they like or need further individual and confidential psychological support.
‘This service gives participants access to clinicians to support those involved in the program in relation to their experiences. This service is available to all participants for as long as they need it, it does not end.’