She put on a brave face alongside her fiancé, Ryan Thomas, and their two children last week – just days after snaps surfaced of the actor nuzzling the neck of his former Coronation Street co-star at the NTAs after party.
Insiders tell Closer how Lucy Mecklenburgh, 31, was “hurt and embarrassed” after seeing pictures of her beau of five years, 38 – best known for playing Jason Grimshaw on the hit soap – cuddling married Zaraah Abrahams, 35, at the glitzy bash.
A source says, “Lucy was upset when she saw the snaps – especially given she wasn’t there with Ryan and he’d
been out partying the night away while she was at home with the kids.
“Seeing them splashed across the papers was humiliating and hurtful – even more so when she’s only four months post-partum and is understandably tired and emotional.”
While there’s no suggestion anything untoward went on, onlookers watched Ryan – who shares two-year-old son, Roman, and four-month-old daughter, Lilah, with Lucy – “cuddling and nuzzling” Zaraah’s neck, adding how they were getting on “like a house on fire.”
One onlooker reportedly said, “Ryan was inviting Zaraah to come to his house with her family. They were laughing together, and he was looking at something on her phone.
“Then he pulled her in for a cuddle. The drinks had been flowing all night, and he was obviously just feeling affectionate.”
The source says, “Ryan insisted he and Zaraah just got really excited to see each other and reconnect – laughing off the snaps as ridiculous. He claims it’s all been massively blown out of proportion and told Lucy it was totally harmless.
“While Lucy trusts Ryan and understands things can get misconstrued, it naturally triggered deep-rooted issues from past relationships and made her feel a little unnerved.”
There was more drama for Lucy and Ryan earlier this year when Ryan’s ex Tina O’Brien – with whom he shares 13-year-old daughter Scarlett – allegedly “smashed” Ryan’s Land Rover with a baseball bat in the early hours of the morning after the pair became embroiled in a furious row.
Former TOWIE star Lucy – who has also had relationships with Dan Osborne, singer Max George and Olympian Louis Smith – is no stranger to drama and heartache. She rose to fame on the reality show back in 2010 and had a toxic relationship with Mario Falcone play out on screen.
She was left heartbroken back in 2013 when Mario admitted cheating on her with a string of women and the pair broke off their engagement after a three-year romance.
And the source adds, “Lucy’s been through a lot of pain over the years due to infidelity. So naturally when anything even remotely inappropriate happens, it sets alarm bells ringing and brings back negative memories.
“Ryan has apologised for any embarrassment caused and Lucy has vowed not to let it get to her and move on – but she asked him to be careful in future. For now, they’re moving forward and determined to stay in their happy little family bubble with newborn Lilah.”
