Bethenny Frankel's divorce from estranged husband Jason Hoppy is reportedly getting nastier by the day.
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"Jason wants to publicly embarrass Bethenny since she is so image-conscious," a Hoppy insider told Us Weekly in its latest issue.
While Hoppy had reportedly planned to "play nice" at first, he changed his mind in light of how the Bethenny Ever After and former The Real Housewives of New York City star has allegedly been treating the divorce like another business deal.
"Jason is livid with how cold Bethenny has been with him since the split," a Hoppy friend told the magazine. "He wants to make her pay."
Therefore, Hoppy has allegedly been trying to exert his power in recent days. For instance, he reportedly denied Frankel the opportunity to take their two-year-old daughter Bryn on an upcoming business trip to Australia.
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Frankel, who filed a summons for divorce from Hoppy in New York last month, and Hoppy are both allegedly seeking the same exact things in court regarding their divorce. Both parties are reportedly requesting primary custody of Bryn and child support.
In addition, they both want to be taken care of by their former spouse when it comes to medical and dental insurance, life insurance and exclusive use of their currently shared $5 million New York City home.
According to Us, Hoppy wants primary custody of Bryn because he simply "feels he's the better parent," said a Hoppy pal.
"Jason is more hands-on with Bryn," the Hoppy insider explained. "Not that Bethenny is a bad mom. But Jason is more of the family man."
Due to Frankel's time-consuming career, Hoppy apparently feels he can make a case that he's already the more involved parent.
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"Bethenny is a great mom, but that doesn't change the fact that Jason had more time with Bryn because of her work," said another Hoppy source, who added that Hoppy's aggressive approach to the divorce has caught Frankel completely off-guard since he was always a fairly passive and easy-going partner.
"Bethenny thought she could just roll him over and get out with no hassle."
Despite Hoppy's attempt to fire back at Frankel, the reality TV star reportedly "won't back down" because she "adores" her daughter.
Frankel initially announced herself and Hoppy, her husband of nearly three years, were separating in late December. The estranged couple met in November 2008 and got engaged 11 months later. They wed in March 2010 when Frankel was seven months pregnant with Bryn.
According to Us, the couple's split was caused by ongoing issues that escalated due to "gender roles" and couldn't be resolved with time or effort.
About The Author: Elizabeth Kwiatkowski