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WATCH: 'RHONJ' Star Danielle Staub Gets Engaged for the 20th Time: 'Is This Really Happening?'

Dave Quinn
Updated


She has famously been engaged 19 times before. And on Wednesday’s The Real Housewives of New Jersey “Reunion Secrets Revealed” special, Friend of the Housewives Danielle Staub made it to 20!

The 55-year-old reality star, who starred on the hit Bravo show’s first two seasons before returning this year, dropped the news that she and boyfriend Matt Caffrey are engaged to be married — news of which PEOPLE first reported in May.

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While a date wasn’t officially set, Staub revealed she had already started building her wedding party. “I’ve invited Teresa [Giudice] to be one of my maid of honors, along with my daughters [Christine, 23, and Jillian, 19]. And Margaret [Josephs], and Melissa [Gorga], and about 12 other people who are in my wedding party.”

Marty Caffrey and Danielle Staub
Marty Caffrey and Danielle Staub

Caffrey’s proposal was caught by RHONJ cameras, footage of which was shown on Wednesday’s episode.

“The engagement was simply beautiful. He is such a gentleman,” Staub said.

She wasn’t kidding. Caffrey had arranged for Staub (with the help of Giudice and Josephs) to tour the grounds of a beautiful mansion, where they stumbled upon an outdoor fountain. There, a violinist played Pachelbel’s “Canon in D” as a handful of couples danced around them.

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Just then, Caffrey emerged from the crowd, taking Staub by surprise. “Oh my god,” Staub said upon seeing him. “Is this really happening?”

“Baby, when I first met you, I was struck with how beautiful you are. As I got to know you, I fell in love with you. I’ll do everything I can to love you, to protect you, and to keep you safe,” he said, taking a ring out of his pocket. “Danielle Staub, will you marry me?”

Staub’s response? “Absolutely. One hundred percent,” she said, kissing Caffrey and throwing her arms around him.

The ring was a sight to see too. Caffrey picked out a round cut diamond with four prongs and an eternity band — a perfect representation of their love.

“She does,” Giudice added. “From knowing Danielle in the past, she hasn’t had the best experiences with men. It took awhile to find Marty, but sometimes you have to kiss a lot of frogs before you find your prince. And I’m really, really happy for Danielle.”

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Staub and Caffrey have been dating since April 2016. She celebrated their one-year anniversary on Instagram, sharing a selfie of the two and writing, “Here’s to my #first year #anniversary with this cutie … you are a wonderful man and I’m blessed to have you in my life … #happyoneyear.”

The couple haven’t shied away from sharing their relationship on social media, often posting photos together of their romantic date nights.

This will be the third marriage for Staub. She and her last husband, businessman Thomas N. Staub, split after 14 years together before RHONJ began filming. They share Christine and Jillian together.

Staub’s past relationships were a huge subject of gossip among her fellow New Jersey Housewives on RHONJ — specifically her first marriage to former FBI informant Kevin Maher, who spoke openly about their past in his biography Cop Without a Badge.

That book (and the gossip surrounding it) was the catalyst for the show’s most iconic moment when Giudice flipped a table while arguing with Staub during the season 1 finale. The two have made up since and even bonded over a shared love of yoga as they rekindled their friendship.

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