The early days of Taylor Frankie Paul and Dakota Mortensen’s whirlwind romance played out in season 1 of The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives.
Season 2 sees the pair picking up from where they left off, trying to figure out things between them while co-parenting their son Ever.
Taylor talks with PEOPLE exclusively about where the relationship stands today and what she thinks the future may hold.
Taylor Frankie Paul is relishing in the journey.
The MomTok star has had a whirlwind few years, from outing the soft-swinging scandal that ended her marriage to finding love and growing her family once again. But as season 1 of The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives illustrated, Taylor’s life shows no signs of slowing down.
Taylor and Dakota Mortensen’s relationship was a point of contention among fans throughout season 1, but the cliffhanger ending — and some revealing TikToks in the months since — have indicated the on-again, off-again couple’s connection remains strained.
Speaking with PEOPLE exclusively about the show’s upcoming second season, Taylor says that how things look between them “depends on the day.”
“I feel like right now we are individually working on ourselves and trying to heal, for not only ourselves, but for our son. So that’s been the main focus the last few months, last half of a year,” she explains.
“But to me, I don’t know, I never say never, but right now it’s just individually trying to heal and work on things we needed to work on.”
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Koury Angelo
Taylor Frankie Paul
Taylor isn’t just dealing with her own feelings about what the future may bring her and Dakota. The relationship, and its ups and downs, have garnered the attention and concern of Taylor’s family and her fellow MomTokers.
When asked about an emotional scene that shows Taylor and Dakota breaking down into a tearful argument while enjoying a meal with her parents, Taylor tells PEOPLE, “That was really heavy, because they all love him too.”
“It’s like, ‘We love our daughter, but we love him,’ and they just want us to work. Not only that, but they don’t want to see another child in a broken home. So I think they were very, ‘We want you guys to work out, but obviously, if it’s not working out, then we want what’s best for you guys,'” she continues.
“Obviously, two happy homes is better than one miserable one, but that’s really hard to swallow when it just happened with my other family. So yeah, it was very emotional at the time and we got through it, but as you see, it is heavy, for sure.”
Taylor Paul/Instagram
Dakota Mortensen and Taylor Frankie Paul
Mayci Neeley, one of Taylor’s closest friends who found herself in the middle of their relationship drama when she was tipped off to alleged infidelity on Dakota’s part, says it’s still “very difficult” to see the two trying to figure out their next steps.
“There was a time when we were filming where I was like, ‘I just have to take myself out of the situation because it is affecting me after filming,'” Mayci admits to PEOPLE.
“At night I wouldn’t fall asleep because I was so frustrated… I just want to help so bad that it starts to affect me because I almost want to make the decisions for her and be like, ‘Let me help you. I know the right way.'”
“But then I realized I can’t do that because she’s going to have to make her own decisions. And at the end of the day, sometimes if you’re telling someone too much advice they’re going to do… She pretty much does the opposite of anything we say,” Mayci continues. “So I just had to kind of pull away. I still obviously give my two cents when asked or he’s talked about for sure. I can’t help myself. But yeah, no, it’s definitely difficult to see because I just want the best for all my friends.”
Koury Angelo
“The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives” cast: Mikayla, Jen, Jessi, Layla, Whitney, Taylor, Miranda, Mayci and Demi
Taylor is focused on maintaining positive relationships where co-parenting is concerned. In addition to sharing Ever with Dakota, Taylor also shares two children, Indy and Ocean, with her ex-husband, Tate.
“As of right now, for me and my first baby daddy, Tate, it’s always been really good. Of course, when we were post-divorce, it was an adjustment phase,” she explains. “But overall, we’ve always been great friends, so it’s been very smooth sailing with him, and we’re very flexible with that.”
They’ve made tons of progress and yet, Taylor admits it’s “hard” to “give my kids back to him.”
“I cry almost every time,” she says.
When it comes to co-parenting with Dakota, she notes it “has been a struggle.”
“Obviously, there’s still feelings involved,” she clarifies. “There’s not wanting this, but needing this to happen. Yeah, so it things harder and not a smooth sailing, but hopefully, over time we learn.”
The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives‘ new season will premiere May 15, with all 10 episodes available on Hulu and Hulu on Disney+.
Read the original article on People
