Nikki Bella Claims Photos With Mystery Man Were a Prank

Nikki Bella was recently spotted with a mystery man while filming Total Divas. However, the WWE Diva has an interesting explanation for the moment.

Bella, who was seen “canoodling” with a man named Brandon on Thursday, told TMZ the moment was staged as a prank on paparazzi.

In the wake of Bella’s breakup with John Cena, unsanctioned cameramen have been following the Total Divas cast around Miami and capturing behind-the-scenes moments. The cast was apparently fed up with the constant paparazzi and wanted to pull a fast one on them.

As Bella explains it, Brandon was a 21-year-old model hired to bartend for the cast while they were at the Fontainebleau Miami Beach suite. Bella, who apparently had some “liquid courage” at the time, brought Brandon out onto the balcony to jokingly flirt and freak out the paparazzi.

The E! personality apparently assumed the action would be seen as a joke, but that was not the case. Paparazzi soon sold the shots and caused a small scandal for Bella, who is currently trying to restart her relationship Cena.

She then clarified that she is still single, meaning she and Cena have not settled back into their old ways quite yet.

The Dancing With the Stars alum also noted that she does not plan to prank the photographers again after this miscommunication.

While things might not be officially back on for the WWE couple, they are apparently on the verge of making things official once again.

Anonymous sources recently dished to Us Weekly that the pair have had enough time apart and now know they “want to be with one another.”

“Nikki called off the wedding earlier this month so she could have more time to make a decision with what she wanted in life,” the source said. “Calling off the wedding was the right decision at the moment and their relationship only grew from it. It didn’t mean that any love was lost, or that they lost any feelings for one another, but they both have realized that they love each other and want to be with one another.”

Cena has not addressed the paparazzi controversy or the status of the pair’s realtionship as of press time.

Total Bellas airs Sundays at 9 p.m. ET on E!. The series is currently exploring the lead up to Bella and Cena’s breakup and cancellation of their wedding.

Photo Credit: NBC / Nathan Congleton