Brittany Cartwright claims fans will see why she filed for divorce from Jax Taylor in the upcoming second season of The Valley.
As she opened up about the challenges she faced as she considered ending her five-year marriage, admitting that the decision wasn’t easy and suggesting Jax, 45, never thought she’d pull the trigger, Brittany, 35, said Bravo cameras held her “accountable” for the situation she was in, and ultimately, she knew she had to break their “toxic” cycle.
“Even through our separation, I still was holding on hope that we could work things out,” Brittany, 35, told PEOPLE on September 19. “I think it’s been very obvious [how] much I loved him and how hard I tried to work on our relationship. I wanted to make sure I did every single thing I could possibly do to give it a chance and to try for my family, for my son, for my future, but I couldn’t do it anymore. I had to put myself first.”
Because Brittany, who shares three-year-old Cruz with Jax, announced her separation in February, months before the start of production on season two, and filed for divorce in August, just as filming wrapped, fans are expected to have a lot of questions answered when the show begins airing.
“You’ll see why I had to do what I had to do,” Brittany teased. “I think I’ll look back on [the season] and be like, ‘Thank God the cameras were there because I don’t know if I would’ve been strong enough to go through this without it.’ And I know that sounds crazy, but I know I’ve got all these people in my corner and I’m not going to disappoint. I’m going to stay strong and do what’s right. I finally broke the cycle.”
“It would’ve been easier for me to stay in this house from the beginning, stay with him, continue fighting. I wouldn’t have to change my house, I wouldn’t have to change my family, but it would’ve been so toxic,” she continued. “And at the end of the day, that’s just not good for my son. I feel like I did the harder thing and I’m being strong and I’m just going to keep moving forward.”
As she looks to her future, Brittany has returned to her $1.9 million mansion, which Jax recently moved out of.
“I’m finally back home. It feels good to be back where I was meant to be and not have to move around anymore for a while,” she revealed. “[Jax] finally got out of the house after eight months of the crying. I still think that he didn’t think that I was going to do [file for divorce], even to this day.”
While Brittany is officially done with Jax, she’s not yet ready to date.
“I’m being flirty,” she shared. “I don’t need a relationship right now. I have a lot of healing to do from this relationship. I never thought that I would be going through a divorce. I always thought Jax was my forever, so this is something I’m going to have to navigate. I am having fun, but nothing is serious.”
According to Brittany, any future love interests will have to be okay with the spotlight.
“I’m very open. I’m very honest,” Brittany noted. “Even on my social media and different things that I go through with my son and my whole entire life, I’m going to keep doing this while I can. It doesn’t last forever, so whoever dates me is going to have to be okay with all this craziness in my life, but I think I’m worth it.”
As Britany and Jax move on from their marriage, they are prioritizing their son Cruz.
“He’s a great dad. Great dad, terrible husband,” Brittany explained to PEOPLE. “I’m not ever going to take Cruz away from him. We will always put Cruz first and we are going to work towards a healthy co-parenting relationship.”
Although Brittany filed for full legal and physical custody of Cruz, she told the outlet she’s committed to making it work with Jax when it comes to parenting their child.
“It’s going to take some time. Still, things are very raw between us, but for the most part, I do know if I needed something, if Cruz needed something, I could call him and he would be there for us,” she said.
The Valley season two is expected to premiere on Bravo sometime later this year or early next year.
