Salley Carson might be new to Southern Charm this season, but she’s certainly not new to reality television. The spine surgery robot operator first got her start in Season 26 of The Bachelor and later returned to the franchise for Bachelor in Paradise Season 8. She made her Bravo debut on Southern Hospitality Season 2 when she briefly dated Joe Bradley — and now she’s a full-time cast member on Southern Charm Season 10.

According to Carson — who stopped by DECIDER’s studio this week — she feels “so much more comfortable” on Southern Charm. “I could feel it was a better fit because as much as I love them on Southern Hospitality, I do feel like I’m a little bit in a more mature state in my life to where I just got along with these people better,” she said, noting that her appearance on Southern Hospitality came at “a very messy time” in her life.

Speaking of messy, Carson’s ongoing feud with Taylor Ann Green has become a source of tension this season, with the two women sparring over Green’s current boyfriend and Carson’s ex-boyfriend Gaston Rojas. While they can be cordial for the greater good of the group, they are still “not in a good place” as Carson claimed Green has been “running her mouth” about her in Charleston. “[Green] posted on Instagram the other day and cropped me out of the picture … It’s just a shitty feeling because I wanted to be in a good place with her,” Carson said, adding that their confrontation at the Season 10 reunion “didn’t end great.”

Another hot topic at the reunion was JT Thomas, whose fling with Venita Aspen and sudden decision to quit the show before the season started airing put him at odds with much of the cast. Despite his resignation from anything Southern Charm-related, he decided to show up to the reunion, which didn’t surprise Carson at all.

“I kind of figured he would be there. I mean, the guy makes for great TV,” she said. “But he was in the hot seat, for sure. Venita definitely put him in the hot seat. And it was fun to watch it go down.”

During our chat, Carson also revealed why she thinks Sienna Evans was lying about not knowing who Shep Rose was when they met and whether she believes Rose and Molly O’Connell would make a cute couple. Check out the full interview below.

DECIDER: I’m so excited to talk to you about all things Southern Charm. I think you’re such a nice, refreshing addition to the cast.

SALLEY CARSON: Thank you. It’s been so much fun getting to know everyone more and more. 

I think it’s so impressive that you also work as a robotics technician for surgical procedures. How do you balance both gigs and what made you decide to get into reality TV?

They kind of work around my schedule. My career comes first. So they work around that. And, you know, I never really tried to be on reality TV. It just kind of fell into my lap. So when I canceled my wedding, my ex-fiancé, he was not faithful. And it was 30 days before our wedding. I ended up canceling it while he was at work. And then I had an email and a phone call from The Bachelor. And then after that, it just kind of [took off]. And now I’m on Southern Charm – four reality TV shows later.

You previously starred on The Bachelor, Bachelor in Paradise, and Southern Hospitality. How has this experience differed from your past experiences with reality TV?

I feel so much more comfortable. I’m actually in my home and around people that I am genuinely friends with. It’s just been a lot more fun and easy. I mean, because we really are such a close group of friends and then you just add cameras. That’s what it feels like. It just feels normal and it’s fun. And, you know, obviously dramatic at some times. 

As I mentioned before, your first run with Bravo was on Southern Hospitality. What was it like to make the jump to Southern Charm? How did they approach you about doing that?

I was nervous before filming for Southern Charm, but I do feel like immediately it was a better fit. I could feel it was a better fit because as much as I love them on Southern Hospitality, I do feel like I’m a little bit in a more mature state in my life to where I just got along with these people better. And it was just messy on Southern Hospitality. It just wasn’t really for me. I feel like I wasn’t able to show myself there just because I also was in a very messy time in my life then. Fresh out of a relationship. So yeah, these are just more my people. 

Was it weird to go from working for Leva in Southern Hospitality, to being her co-star in Southern Charm?

Not really. We have history with some people in our past and we’ve had a mutual respect for each other. And I never really saw her. I didn’t really work that much at Republic. But I definitely like being friends with her more than I liked working for. She’s great. I love Leva.

Before we get into the drama, I really loved how open you and Molly were about the different cosmetic procedures you guys have had – especially since so many people in the public eye usually shy away from admitting anything. Why was it important for you to have that conversation in front of cameras? 

I don’t know, I feel like in Charleston, it’s a hard place to be a woman because there’s just so many girls and they’re all beautiful. And I think there’s just this pressure to kind of stay looking young. And I feel like a lot of girls get insecure and stuff and that’s why they do it. But I think if it makes you feel good, do whatever you got to do. I mean, I got my boobs in because I thought it would make me feel good and it actually made me feel worse. So there are ups and downs to cosmetics and plastic surgery and stuff. But if you do it right and it makes you feel good and you’re doing it for the right reasons. I obviously did my breasts for the wrong reasons. But if you’re in a good place and you’re confident, I feel like you should do whatever you want to do. I just got my boobs out. I feel a lot better. 

The big headline in the news lately has been Craig and Paige’s breakup. There have been some reports that you and Craig were spotted getting dinner together here in New York earlier this month. Is there any truth to those romance rumors?

No. There’s no romance between me and Craig. We’re just really good friends. There were two other people at dinner with us. But we had a great night, and I’m really enjoying getting to know him better. 

What do you think of his breakup with Paige and the whole media storm that’s followed?

I think Craig is handling it very well. I think that a lot of people will always have a side to take or an opinion about them, but at the end of the day, they are the only ones that know what really went down between the two of them. I don’t think Paige is handling it poorly. I don’t think either one of them were. I mean, I obviously have Craig’s back and I don’t think that he should have been obligated to say anything or speak up. And I think that he chose silence. And I think that was good of him. He got broken up with and that sucks. And then he feels the pressure from the audience to talk about it. I don’t know, I think it was easier for him to be silent in those moments. 

It’s definitely difficult to go through – and then have the whole world weigh in at the same time.

I mean, he had his heart broken, so I don’t really think they owe anything to each other after that goes down. That’s just my opinion. 

I’d love to get into some things happening this season. You and Taylor definitely got off on the wrong foot, but I was glad to see you guys put your differences aside in the last couple of episodes. Where do you and Taylor stand now? 

We’re not in a good place. We had fun in the Bahamas and we can get along. Just for everyone else’s sake, we can get along with each other. No one wants to have two people fighting all the time. And I thought we were in a better place. And then I am hearing in Charleston that she’s just kind of running her mouth about me still, and I don’t really ever talk about her or [Gaston]. So it just kind of sucks. It hurts my feelings. And she posted on Instagram the other day and cropped me out of the picture. I mean, it’s fine. It’s just a shitty feeling because I wanted to be in a good place with her. I didn’t think we would ever be besties. But yeah, there’s a lot of instances where people have had to remove themselves from her presence because all she wants to do is talk poorly about me and it just sucks. 

Maddi Reese told us that you guys probably could’ve been friends in an alternative universe. Had Gaston not been a factor, would you agree?

Yeah, 100%. And I wish we could be friends. It’s just, we’ve had a little bit too much crossover in the past.

That’s right. With Shep too.

Shep, too. And Andrew.

What ever happened with Andrew?

He wanted to talk to other girls while he was dating me. It’s fine. 

Sounds like there’s a pattern of his.

Taylor was right about that one. She did warn me about him. And she was right.

Aside from Molly, who would you say you’ve gotten closest to on the cast?

Venita. We FaceTime all day, every day. We see each other pretty much once every other day. And I’ve gotten closer with Madison, too. But she’s a mother. She’s a housewife. And pregnant, pregnant era. But yeah, it’s been good. It’s been really fun getting really close with all of them. And I’ve gotten really close with Rodrigo, too. 

He seems like a lot of fun.

I love him and Tyler. They’re the best. 

Madison announced her pregnancy the day you guys filmed the reunion. What was your reaction?

Well, she wouldn’t let anyone in her dressing room before. And I kept knocking on her door and I was like, “Hi, I want to get a drink with Madison before I go out on stage. This is my first reunion.” And everyone’s like, “She’s in meetings.” Just trying to throw us off. And then she was the last one to come out and she had a bump. I’m just really happy for her. 

I’m loving this Bahamas trip so far. What was your peak and what was your pit of that trip?

Peak would probably be when we went to the Fish Fry. It was me, Madison, Venita, Craig, Austin, I think that was it. I don’t know. But we just had so much fun because there was no drama or anything. We just were getting drunk and just having fun together. And then pit would probably be when JT showed up … Stuff went down. Relationships were fractured. He just doesn’t want to apologize to anyone. And it’s annoying.

Speaking of the Bahamas, Sienna recently posted some videos claiming she never knew who Shep was until her grandmother, who’s a Southern Charm fan, informed her. She also shut down the allegations that she had reached out to Whitney first and provided receipts where he seemed to message her first. Did you see these videos and what did you think? 

I mean, they matched on Raya, right? Even if Shep reaches out to her or Whitney reaches out to her, you can’t say you didn’t know who they were. I mean, they’re on Raya. You’re going to go look them up or what they do, see what their job is. I just don’t think it’s true that she didn’t know who he was when they started hanging out. But I think she was fine. And she was nice. I just felt bad for Shep, to be honest. She was just clearly so not into it. 

What did you think about that text he sent her?

So cringey. I love Shep but I think it was more cringe because of the fact that we all knew that she wasn’t into it. If she was super into it and, like, super in love with them, maybe it’d be a cute text. But the fact that she wasn’t into it and he was sending texts like that, it just made it super cringe. I don’t ever want to get a text like that from a man I’m not interested in. I would throw my phone across the room … He’s in such a good place too. It was sad to watch. 

Well, maybe he needed it to be that way with her. And maybe the next one will be his person.

Yeah I agree. Well, I just think he just jumps at looks, which I guess everyone in the beginning is going for looks, but I think that was what he was focused on in that relationship. 

Speaking of a next possible suitor for Shep, in the midseason trailer, we see Molly lean in to kiss Shep. What can you tell us about that? And as someone who has been involved with Shep in the past, do you think they would make a good match?

I do think that they would make a good match. It’s hard to say because I know Molly is jealous. She can get, like, super crazy and jealous. We all can. And I don’t know how that would fit with Shep’s personality and him wanting to be carefree and solo all the time. But I like that she’s into him … I think he’s blinded by his love for Sienna. And he can’t see what it’s right in front of him. And Molly’s obviously flirting with him and trying to get things going and he’s just all upset about [Sienna]. 

I think Molly would definitely be good for him. I’m not sure if he would be perfect for her, but she would definitely be good for him.

No, I agree. Even if it doesn’t work out – if they do get together and it doesn’t work out, she’s a strong girl. 

I’m absolutely loving all the BTS videos you guys have been posting to social media. Was there anything that didn’t make it to the final cut of the show that you wished had made it? 

More of the girls night because we had a really fine girls night. Me and Taylor got along that night. So it was just fun to see all the girls just being carefree, drama free and just hanging out and supporting each other. It was really fun. 

I noticed that JT showed up to the reunion after all. Can you tease anything about how that went? Were you surprised? 

I wasn’t surprised by it. I kind of figured he would be there. I mean, the guy makes for great TV. I really do think that. But he was in the hot seat, for sure. Venita definitely put him in the hot seat. And it was fun to watch it go down. 

Did anyone get any apologies from him?

Honestly, I started drinking at nine. I can’t remember if he apologized to anyone … I was nervous!

The Season 10 reunion also happened to be your first. How were you feeling that day?

Honestly, I was excited. Everyone else was like, “Ugh, this is going to be such a long day.” And I just was high spirits all day. Just super excited to be there. 

Did you feel like you got everything off your chest? What was one thing you went in hoping to address?

Yes, definitely with Taylor. But it didn’t end great. I got a lot off my chest with JT too. 

I also have to ask – have you seen the new season of The White Lotus?

No, but I just saw that!

They modeled their accents after the Southern Charm cast. What do you think of that?

I think that’s so cool because I do have a lot of friends that watch it and they love that show. And it’s just interesting to see that they’re going off of Southern Charm of all the shows. It’s kind of crazy to me. 

What are you most excited for fans to see the rest of the season?

Gosh, I can’t remember what happens the rest of the season. I’m excited for y’all to see all the JT stuff go down in the Bahamas. And then also some things that happened after the Bahamas. But I don’t really know what made the show yet because I haven’t seen [everything]. So it’s hard to say. They did follow my story of getting my breasts taken out. But I don’t know if it made it or not. 

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

New episodes of Southern Charm air on Thursdays at 8/7c on Bravo. New episodes are available to stream the next day on Peacock.