Carmella Garcia was Playboy’s Miss April in 2003. The following year, she was declared Playboy’s Playmate of the Year.

New RHOC Housewife and former Playboy Playmate answers the question ‘everyone’s thinking’ about Hugh Hefner

Carmella Garcia was Playboy’s Miss April in 2003. The following year, she was declared Playboy’s Playmate of the Year.

By Marina Watts

Marina Watts

Marina Watts is a news writer for with seven years experience covering entertainment, pop culture and celebrity news. Her previous work appears in PEOPLE, Bustle and Newsweek.

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July 10, 2026 11:33 a.m. ET

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Carmella Garcia in Universal City in June 2026; Hugh Hefner in Los Angeles in May 2016. Credit:

- Carmella Garcia made her debut on season 20 premiere of *RHOC*.

- The former model was the Playboy Playmate was the 2004 playmate of the year.

- On the show, she addressed whether or not she slept with Hugh Hefner.

Carmella Garcia is putting rumors about sleeping with Hugh Hefner to bed.

The *Real Housewives of Orange County** *newcomer addressed her past as a Playboy Playmate during the season 20 premiere of the reality show on Thursday.

While sharing a car with fellow Housewife Jennifer Pedranti en route to castmate Heather Dubrow’s Hearts & Heels party, Garcia spoke about her time at the Playboy Mansion.

Pedranti asked Garcia if she lived in the infamous mansion while she was a Playmate. The newcomer noted that she didn’t have a bedroom in the main house. “I lived in the Bunny House, which was across the street from the Playboy Mansion,” she said.

Hugh Hefner in Holmby Hills, Calif. in May 2013.

Charley Gallay/Getty

The next question, however, got more to the point. “Hef was there? Did you enjoy him?” Pedranti asked.

Garcia seemed prepared for that line of questioning, laughing before making a surprising confession. “Everyone’s thinking, ‘Did you sleep with Hef?’ I did not!” the former model revealed.

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The former Playmate entered the *Playboy* media empire in the early aughts after she received a personal invitation to one of Hefner’s birthday parties. (The media mogul died in 2017.)

Garcia was featured as *Playboy’*s Miss April in 2003 before being crowned the magazine’s 2004 Playmate of the Year. After her *Playboy* appearances, Garcia went on to model for several magazines, appear on *E!*’s *The Girls Next Door* and was featured in the 2008 *Sports Illustrated Swimsuit* issue.

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Now, Garcia is a realtor/developer who is a “busy mom of four with teens 14 to 18,” that she shares with her ex-husband, the retired NFL player Jeff Garcia, per Bravo. “A self-proclaimed ‘girls’ girl,’ she makes fast friends, but some of the women question her choices and motives.”

The bio continues: “Comfortable in the spotlight, Carmella isn’t intimidated easily and proves she is ready to confront just anyone when tension begins to build between her and Vicki.”

Carmella Garcia at the ‘Real Housewives of Orange County’ season 20 premiere in Universal City in June 2026.

Todd Williamson/Getty

Months before the season premiere, the told BravoTV that she “probably” will case the most drama on the upcoming *RHOC *installment.

“Just because I’m the new person,” she clarified. “I think I just came in, and I just do me. And it was either gonna go one of two ways. It was either going to be accepted or not, and I was okay with either side of it, but I think we’re going strong at this point.”

Dubrow, meanwhile, told ** that she’s a good addition to the show.

“We have a great new cast member, Carmella, and she brings a really different dynamic onto the show,” she said. “A lot of friendships are tested... truly. But I also think everyone’s personal story is very interesting, different, heartfelt, scary sometimes. It’s a good, classic season.”

*The Real Housewives of Orange County *airs new episodes Thursdays at 8 p.m. ET/PT on Bravo and on Peacock the following day.

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