Gossip Of The Week: Robin Thicke’s Former Fling Speaks Out!

On Monday, they announced they were separating. Two days later, her ring was off. Last night, he said he wanted her back and dedicated a song to her on stage.

Yes, Paula Patton and Robin Thicke are making our Hollywood gossip roundup once again! Though neither the actress nor the singer has formally spoken to the media about their breakup since their joint statement was released earlier this week, one woman has something to say.

Her name: Lana Scolaro.

Scolaro, as you may or may not recall, was the cute blonde who was photographed with Thicke’s hand on her behind (in the reflection of a mirror) last August. The picture was taken at a bash held at 1OAK, right after the R&B star twerked up a storm with Miley Cyrus at the MTV Video Music Awards.

The snap, which Scolaro uploaded to her Instagram page after meeting Thicke, went viral on August 26, when it was Tweeted to Patton’s Twitter page by a random fan, with a foreboding message, “look at the reflection girl.”

Within a month, Scolaro scored two spreads in Life & Style, which revealed what actually went down between the British socialite and the hit maker. Although Scolaro claimed in the articles that she didn’t sleep with Thicke, many of the details she disclosed in her interviews gave the public a rare, intimate glimpse into Thicke and Patton’s celebrity marriage of seemingly “blurred lines.”

But after the scandalous tell-all, Scolaro went silent. Until now.

With a divorce looming for the childhood sweethearts, Scolaro’s name has returned to the tabloid headlines. Does Scolaro believe she is one of the reasons behind Thicke and Patton’s split? How much does she really know?

After months of playing phone tag and trading e-mails, I finally spoke to the 20-year-old film student living in New York City.

Access Hollywood: First off, what do you do to maintain that butt that Robin squeezed?
Lana Scolaro: (laughs) I do Pilates three times a week. I don’t think my butt’s that great. Yoga sometimes. I do spinning classes.

Access: Are you surprised Paula and Robin are separating? Do you think you’re to blame?
Lana: I’m not surprised because obviously he’s been with other girls. I think if they were going to split up because of me or Miley or anybody else, they would have done it six months ago when the whole thing broke out.

Access: When the picture of the groping surfaced, how did your life change?
Lana: Well, I became known as the butt-grabbing girl, which isn’t exactly a nice name to have. I had never been in the press before, especially for something so unlike me. I was followed by paparazzi going to school, getting to school, crazy amounts of calls a day, texts, emails, everything. Literally being bombarded every day. I mostly just ignored it and continued on with my school life. But it just kept coming back, you know? I couldn’t really escape it.

Access: On August 25, you attended two parties with Robin and Paula — first at 1OAK, then at the Greenwich Hotel. At what point in the night did Robin squeeze your butt?
Lana: Before [we made out]. It was in the club in the smoking area.

Access: Did Robin ask for permission when he grabbed your rear?
Lana: Honestly I think that photo tells a million other stories. I didn’t notice him squeezing. His hand was on my butt but I honestly didn’t notice it until I saw the photo afterwards. You know, when a guy has an arm over your shoulder for a photo, you’re not going to be like, get your hand off my butt. I was [wearing underwear], though [the photo] did make me look like I’m not.

Access: What was the worst pick up line Robin used on you that night?
Lana: “I love the fact you’re so young.” I was like, “Are you serious?” It was just cringe. I found it awkward.

Access: Because you spent an entire night with Paula and Robin, you got to see a lot of their interactions. Why do you think their marriage worked?
Lana: I think they had an open relationship. They came across as very relaxed, which I think is good. I never did at all [feel like the third wheel]. I would have left if I did.

Access: You initially rejected Robin when he made advances towards you. Is that true?
Lana: Yeah, because I knew he was married. I kept trying to move away. Then he told me to go talk to his wife. I went up to her and said, “I love your dress,” and she was really sweet towards me and she was very nice. I went back to speak to him so I assumed she obviously wasn’t mad at me and it was ok. I went up to her to give her a chance to say, “Back off.” She said thanks. There was no drama.

Access: Is Robin Thicke a good kisser? On a scale of 1-10.
Lana: (Laughs) I don’t remember if he was a good kisser or not. It was so short… It wasn’t a pleasant experience. He was married. It was a little bit forced… It wasn’t bad, I’ll say that.

Access: This is another one for all the fans out there– what does Robin Thicke smell like?
Lana: I can’t remember his smell. Masculine smell. There was [cologne]. I don’t remember how much [or what brand]. If I recognized it, I would have said something… He wasn’t smelly. He definitely bathed.

Access: How many minutes did you make out with Robin? You hung out with him until 8 AM.
Lana: It was kind of toward the very end of the night. It wasn’t very long. It was a hug, just him leaning in, a kiss, him trying to stick his tongue down my throat. Me pushing him. Him doing it again. And then me pushing him.

Access: You got in the car with Paula and Robin at the club, to go to the hotel. Who did you sit next to?
Lana: It wasn’t just us three in the car. We were in a minivan. There was a whole bunch of us. I was sitting in the back next to two other people. They were Robin and Paula’s friends. [Robin and Paula] were sitting in front of me, in the middle. There were two friends in the car who were my girlfriends. Then there was another guy in the car that I knew.

Access: Paula released a statement shortly after you came out about your flirtation with Robin. She said, “It’s just a girl looking for some attention.” How did you feel about that?
Lana: I wasn’t too bothered. I mean I would probably say the same thing if I was in her position. I didn’t put my hand on his butt. He put his hand on my butt. I didn’t do anything wrong in that equation. If I was looking for attention, I would have done something a lot more drastic.

Access: When you parted ways with Robin last fall, you said that he told you he’d try to link up with you during New York Fashion Week. Did that ever happen?
Lana: No it didn’t happen and I wasn’t disappointed because I wanted to stay away from all the drama. I was actually invited to his album launch but I didn’t go. I avoided it. I was invited by a friend, not by Robin. It was mainly because I didn’t want to cause even more conflict in their relationship by showing up. If I wasn’t invited by either of them, I wouldn’t go.

Access: Looking back, are you happy you didn’t sleep with Robin?
Lana: Yes, very. I didn’t want to sleep with a married man.

Access: Has Robin contacted you since that night?
Lana: No.

Access: Why did you decide to speak out initially?
Lana: I was very naïve and had just moved to New York at the time. I didn’t have any experience dealing with the media. When I spoke out, I gave out way too much information than I wanted. I guess I was kind of excited about it. I was excited about meeting Robin Thicke in the first place. He was the first big celebrity I hooked up with, yeah.

Access: You, Robin and Paula have mutual friends together. Did they ever try to pass along messages to you to tell you not to speak to the media?
Lana: Yes I got a lot of that. I started shaming myself for it. I started hating myself for it. I told a few of my friends [I was getting calls]. They warned me to not tell the media. And then it was too late… they’re still my friends.

Access: Does that mean you regret talking to the press?
Lana: I feel silly about speaking out in the first place. I feel like I’m stabbing Robin in the back. I feel like I’m stabbing Paula in the back. At the end of the day I should have kept my mouth shut. I’m being portrayed as being not very classy, when at the end of the day, I posted a photo on my Instagram which at the time was private. I had a ghost follower who posted on Twitter for the whole world to see and then I got caught up in this mess. If I had gone back to that night I would have hung out with [Robin] but I wouldn’t have made a fuss about it.

Access: On Thursday, Robin told paparazzi that he was attempting to get Paula back. Do you think it’s really over between Paula and him?
Lana: I don’t think it’s over between them. I think they’ll get back together because they have a child and they’ve been together for years now.

Access: After all that’s happened, are you still a fan of Robin Thicke?
Lana: I like his music. I am a fan of him but not as much as I was.

Access: What’s your dating status nowadays? Have you moved on from Robin Thicke?
Lana: I am seeing someone. I can’t really say [who he is]. He is kind of [famous] around the world.

— Genevieve Wong