‘Gold Rush’ Couple Back Together After Cheating Allegations, Breakup

Gold Rush star Rick Ness and his fiancee, Leese Marie, kicked the new year off getting back together. The couple had split up in November amid allegations that Ness had been cheating on Marie. She also told one fan this is the “absolute last chance” she will give him. Ness has been a member of the Gold Rush cast since Season 2.

Ness shared a picture of himself with Leese in front of a Christmas tree on Jan. 1. “I’m not much for little quips like ‘New Year, new beginning’ but this year I’m gonna make an exception,” he wrote. “Happy New Year from Leese and I, and let’s all get on with the business of making 2023 as big, successful, exciting, and important, as we want it to be while we leave 2022 behind us in the dust, carrying nothing from it with us, except for lessons learned.”

Leese later posted the same photo and Ness’ message on her private Instagram page, reports Starcasm. Many of her followers were puzzled by her decision and she responded to a few comments. She told one fan they were back together, “but on everything, this is the absolute last chance that I give… I literally can’t take any more pain, I am at the end.” When one fan said they were “confused” by the news, to which Leese replied, “Yeah, truthfully me too.” On Jan. 8, Leese shared a photo of the reunited couple on a “date night” the night before.

Leese accused Ness of cheating in a TikTok clip she posted in late November. On Dec. 1, Ness admitted to being responsible for their split, notes Starcasm. Leese has “seen me at my worst and she has stuck with me through it all and believe me my worst was about as awful as it gets,” Ness wrote in part. He also said it “sucks” to see Leese get blamed for their split.

“I’m an adult, what I’ve done, I’ve done, I won’t hide it all I can do is try and do better,” Ness wrote on Facebook. “So why don’t you lay off the innocent one and start throwing some of your misplaced accusations at my doorstep, because that’s where they belong.”

Leese’s recent TikTok videos hint that the reunion has not been smooth so far. Last week, she posted a clip of herself saying, “I burn bridges because I can swim.” In another post, she lip-synced to a comment about lying. “You lied to people so they would hate me. I lied to people so they would like you. We are most definitely not the same,” she said. One fan asked Leese exactly what was happening with them. “Exactly what he stated on his last post,” she replied, adding a heart emoji. However, Ness has not publicly posted on Facebook since Jan. 1.

Gold Rush premiered on the Discovery Channel in December 2010. Ness joined during the second season. He was missing for most of Season 13 until a crew member visited his home in Milwaukee. Ness said he has a seasonal affective disorder and was struggling with depression. He said he was also struggling with his mother’s 2018 death. Gold Rush is available to stream on Discovery+.