Married At First Sight’s Domenica Calarco has revealed she has ‘never been happier’ after announcing her new romance with Sydney skater Jarod Bogunovich.
The 31-year-old, who famously tied the knot on MAFS with Jack Millar in 2022, was spotted enjoying the high temperatures at the beach with her new man on Sunday.
The affectionate lovebirds held hands as they strolled through the crowds at Bronte Beach and cooled off in the ocean together.
Domenica showed off her incredible figure in a skimpy bikini while Jarod revealed his inked figure in navy shorts.
‘We’ve had a great long weekend and made the most of being able to spend some extra time together,’ she told Daily Mail Australia on Monday.
‘We both love the beach and it’s our favourite place to be.’
She also revealed the Eastern Suburbs hotspot holds ‘special meaning’ for them.
‘Bronte is a special place for us as it was one of the first spots we spent some time together in the early days of seeing each other,’ Domenica explained.
She first met the Bondi man on Bumble in 2021 and went on a date with him before she was cast on Australia’s ratings bonanza television show.
The timing wasn’t quite right, she said, and they went their separate ways. Then they bumped into one another at a boxing gym Pad Flow in Sydney, and reconnected three years later.
The brunette beauty found fame on season nine of MAFS where fellow TV bride Olivia Frazier leaked her OnlyFans account to the other cast members in an attempt to embarrass her.
Domenica later revealed that she had opened the account in 2021, amid the pandemic, because she was cash-strapped after her divorce and couldn’t afford to buy herself a fridge.
She re-launched her OnlyFans account in 2022 and said thanks to the unfortunate notoriety she garnered on the TV show, soon earned enough to put down a house deposit.
Married at First Sight is a ratings hit for a reason and the path it provides to national fame isn’t necessarily smooth.
Domenica spent 21 days in a mental health ward earlier this year after facing intense public scrunity and backlash.
She and fellow MAFS star Ella Ding found themselves in hot water after they interviewed divisive season 11 groom Jack Dunkley on their Sit With Us podcast.
The interview was widely slammed, and most publicly by Abbie Chatfield, over the apparent ‘soft’ line of questioning they gave Jack over his infamous ‘muzzle your woman’ comment directed at MAFS bride Lauren Dunn during a dinner party.
‘I think the first step would be, because you aren’t equipped to have these conversations, would be to not have him on at all,’ the FBoy Island host said.
The former Bachelor contestant also stated that her fellow reality dating show contestants-turned-podcasters were ill-equipped to have conversations about misogyny and feminism.
‘And say, “I’m not going to platform misogynist if I can’t call him out”,’ Abbie ranted.
‘Another thing you could do is if you are going to platform him, stand your ground and question him on why he thinks this is okay and also understand why the muzzle comment was wrong.’
The Sit With Us podcast uploaded a follow-up episode to address the backlash where Domenica issued an apology.
‘I now understand that by having Jack on the podcast people are upset because it potentially had shown that we weren’t supportive of women because we platformed him,’ she said.
‘For making people feel uncomfortable and for triggering them in that situation by having Jack on, I apologise.’
The online response and trolling from critics snowballed.
Domenica shared several TikToks on the verge of tears.
By the end of May, she had deactivated her public social media accounts after announcing she was checking into a mental health facility.
However, Domenica said she’s found a new lease on life after her turbulent start to the year and a renewed appreciation for the people in her world.
‘Jarod has the best smile in the world,’ she told Daily Mail Australia. ‘Whenever he smiles at me, I melt.’
‘It feels amazing to have met someone at this time in my life after going through a very difficult period.
‘Someone who has supported me through it all and stuck by me. He didn’t run away. We actually got closer during that time,’ she shared.
‘I’m grateful for everything I’ve learned in the last five months after going through what I did. I can see boundaries so much more clearly.
‘I never had any kind of boundaries when it came to any of the relationships in my life, whether they were friendships and romantic. I feel like this is my first REAL relationship because I took the time I needed to heal wounds within myself and now I’m finally ready and open for real love.’
Things are moving quickly between the pair, with Domenica referring to him as her ‘soul mate’ on social media and even hinting at the idea of an engagement by saying: ‘Third time lucky!’ in a recent Q and A response to a fan.
Meanwhile, Domenica and fellow bride Ella called time on their four-year friendship and unfollowed one another on Instagram in recent weeks.
The pair, who were recently pictured together, confirmed that they are no longer on speaking terms, confirming rumours of a rift that have been circulating for months.
Ella, 30, and Domenica, 31, both addressed the situation, confirming that their once-strong bond had come to a close.
Speaking to Daily Mail Australia, Ella stated: ‘I’ve got nothing to say but I wish her the best of course, always will. All good things come to an end.’
Meanwhile, Domenica echoed her sentiments, saying: ‘We definitely unfollowed each other. I don’t even know where to begin.’
This revelation follows reports that Ella had ‘distanced herself’ from Domenica during a difficult period when she was hospitalised.
Sources close to the pair claimed that Ella treated Domenica ‘like a mental patient’ and acted as though she was a completely different person, which strained their relationship further.