Rulla Nehme Pontarelli Reveals Why 'The Real Housewives of Rhode Island' Is Unlike Any Other Show on Bravo: 'Very Real'

Rulla Nehme Pontarelli knows why The Real Housewives of Rhode Island is every Bravo fan's latest obsession.

The wealth manager made a splash in episode two of the network's latest franchise, going head-to-head with good friend Liz McGraw and not holding back on what she thinks of people speaking about her life.

Pontarelli speaks exclusively with OK! about why the New England women are unlike any other cast, where she stands with McGraw, what she's looking to get out of the reunion and how she's felt since the show began airing.

With RHORI marking the network’s first New England franchise, Pontarelli believes audiences will be drawn to the women’s distinct appeal.

"Most of us are a little bit more authentic. It's not necessarily about pretenses here," the financial planner explains. "It's not necessarily about facades. I'm very real. What you see is truly how it is on a day-to-day basis."

"We're also more connected. There's a lot of longevity in the state, generations of families. It's so small that we all know one another or know people who know this person and that person and one another," she points out. "Word gets around really quickly, regardless of what it might be. There are pros and cons to that. Of course, being known and trusted, or if a person's hated, you're hated, but it's home. It's such a lovely state. We have so much culture. There's so much that's real."

In Pontarelli's first 10 minutes on camera, she and McGraw have a tense exchange when speaking about having biological children versus stepchildren.

"I have felt a little hot and cold from Liz sometimes," she admits. "She is a little difficult to decipher. I'd love to be on great terms with her. I really like Liz. We have a lot in common — not everything, but there are lots of areas where we align. I feel like those words, which were not meant that way, were completely taken out of context. I don't undermine anyone who's a mother. It was not meant that way. It was sort of a heat-of-the-moment comment."

"Seeing how everyone has run with it has been so hurtful to me because I'm not the type to say things to offend people like that," Pontarelli says. "I didn't expect her to take it that way. I thought maybe she'd move past it, but I'm hoping that we can get past this."

Like every Housewife before her, Pontarelli will face her first reunion, and she says she’s more than ready.

"I know the reunion will allow me to expand on things more that I didn't get to expand on during filming," she says. "Obviously, as we get to watch episode by episode and see how things played out, but I want the opportunity to explain how things really are and what really happened and dive a little bit deeper."

"If I have to call somebody out, I'll call that somebody out, only because I do tell the truth," the businesswoman explains. "I don't like to be accused of hiding something, or protecting something, or not shooting straight. I have my own way of handling things."

Despite the drama, Pontarelli is having fun being a television star.

"Premiere week was amazing. It was surreal. I didn't know exactly what to expect," Pontarelli says. "I feel like I was prepared. But people were ecstatic, and so many fans already felt like they had gotten to know us. It was nice to see how excited everyone was. There's just so much hype. It still hasn't hit me yet."

New episodes of The Real Housewives of Rhode Island premiere on Bravo on Sundays at 9 p.m. ET and stream via Peacock the next day.