Vicki Gunvalson has taken a humiliating pay cut and has promised to get engaged to her boyfriend Steve Lodge to save her gig on The Real Housewives of Orange County, RadarOnline.com has exclusively learned. Gunvalson took to her Instagram account on Saturday to tell fans she was back for the new RHOC season, writing as a video caption, “First night of filming for me and @stevelodge_oc in the books. Season 14 @evolutionusa #bravo #rhoc.”

But there’s been huge drama behind the scenes! A source told Radar that the original Bravo housewife, who was rumored to be demoted into a “friend” role on the show, “took a nearly 50 percent pay cut per episode, and she has no guarantee for episodes.

“Vicki already missed a week of filming.” According to the Radar source, “Vicki’s attorney pitched to the show the idea of her getting engaged to Steve as part of a big storyline. That was basically her only leverage.”

Another source told Radar, “It’s soon to tell whether Vicki will be an RHOC full-time member or a part-time member. She will, however, have getting engaged and getting married as a major part of her story line this season. That was a game changer when she brought that to the table.”

The insider added that producers “will let Vicki say whatever she wants about the negotiations. They aren’t going to trash talk her.”

However, some in the housewives world believe that Gunvalson “should have walked like NeNe Leakes did after The Real Housewives of Atlanta season 7.

“Producers did the same thing to her that they did to Vicki. But NeNe left making $50,000 an episode and then ratings tanked without her. NeNe then returned at $100,000 per episode, getting the last laugh!” But Gunvalson, 56, has made her deal, and she told the source she got “exactly what she wanted.”

It’s so far unclear if she’ll be termed a “friend” or will be a “full-time” housewife. As Radar previously reported, Gunvalson’s rivals Jeff Lewis and Kelly Dodd first started the talk that she was being demoted. After that, Gunvalson shared a romantic photo of herself and Lodge on a Bahamas getaway but said nothing about her RHOC status.

This weekend, however, she finally said she’s back filming the reality show that made her a household name.

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