During the Southern Charm cast’s most recent getaway, Austen Kroll wanted to keep his breakup with Audrey Pratt hidden from two people: Craig Conover and Shep Rose.
The reason? “I don’t want to tell Shep or Craig because I know that if I tell them info, they will just wait for an opportunity to throw it back in my face,” Austen explained in a confessional from Southern Charm Season 11, Episode 11.
Heading into the trip to Whitner Slagsvol’s family farm, Austen had personally let Venita Aspen, Madison LeCroy, and Rodrigo Reyes in on the secret of his and Audrey’s split. Word quickly spread to most of the others, but Shep remained in the dark when he sat Austen down to discuss his “indecisiveness” and advised him to “pick a lane and go” in his relationship with Audrey.
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Austen almost immediately shut down the conversation, however, telling Shep that he would “just rather not talk about” the situation, suggesting “another place, another time.” Even so, Shep continued to press the issue, calling into question Austen’s willingness to show “vulnerability.”
“I’ve talked about it with countless other people,” Austen shot back, specifically naming Madison and Rod. “I just haven’t chosen to talk to you.”
When Shep asked for more clarity, Austen further claimed that he had “reveled” in unsolicited cheating rumors that two women had randomly spilled to him on the streets of New York City. Austen added, “It broke my heart a little bit. I feel like everything I tell you, I have to worry about if you’re gonna run and tell somebody. It f–king kills me, dude.”
Inside Austen Kroll and Shep Rose’s conversation about his breakup with Audrey Pratt
Austen’s breakup news didn’t stay under wraps for much longer, however. Later, during a fishing expedition, Shep made a “catch and release” joke about Austen’s romantic life that didn’t land well with him.
So, Austen took the opportunity to remind him, “You asked me about it, and I didn’t tell you.” Shep, meanwhile, asked if he thought it was a better time to talk about his relationship, but he answered, “No, I don’t. I’ve already talked about it.”
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Shep couldn’t ignore the dig and shot back, “OK. I mean, I guess we’ll just have a friendship where we, like, kind of, like, pick and choose what we tell each other.”
At that point, Austen started to vaguely share that he “just had this conversation” with Audrey that “had to happen at some point or the other.” As he trailed off and began stammering, Shep asked him point-blank, “Are you single right now?” That’s when Austen finally revealed, “Yes, we’re broken up.”
Shep, for his part, opined that it was “very big” of Austen to look inward and make that decision. In a confessional, he added, “I am happy that Austen finally followed his heart and was able to be honest with himself.”
How Craig Conover found out about Austen Kroll and Audrey Pratt’s split
While Austen, Shep, and Rodrigo were fishing, Craig was canoeing with Charley Manley elsewhere. At that point, Craig had already found out about the breakup from his date, however.
When Austen briefly excused himself from a group dinner the previous evening, Charley privately told Craig that he really should “repair” the rift in their friendship.
Craig insisted that he “didn’t do anything,” but Charley reminded him that they “have so much history,” before spilling the tea that Austen was “going through a breakup.”
That, of course, came as news to Craig. Though Charley said that everyone on the farm knew about it already, Craig replied, “Me and Shep don’t. But it’s OK. It’s not a big deal. … He’ll come to me when he’s ready.”
In the meantime, Craig shared his reaction to Austen’s breakup with a producer, saying, “I’m happy he did it. The anger will be gone, the resentment towards me. Now we can move on with our relationship — at least I hope.”
As you wait to see how everything plays out on Southern Charm Season 11, don’t miss exclusive details on Austen and Audrey’s split.
