Brinkley Hubby's Not So Model Behavior? by Gina Serpe Jul 18, 2006, 9:15 AM PT
http://www.eonline.com/News/Items/0,1,19523,00.html?fdnews Apparently, there was more than one Lolita lurking on Long Island. Just a week after Christie Brinkley announced she and her architect hubby of 10 years, Peter Cook, were separating, a teenaged former employee of Cook's has come forth claiming to have had a yearlong affair with him and threatening a sexual-harassment suit. Diana Bianchi, 19, said she first met the 47-year-old Cook in 2004 when he was shopping at a Hamptons toy store where she worked. "He used to come in the store all the time when I was there," she told the New York Post. "I didn't know how old he was at first." Bianchi told the newspaper that after several run-ins with Cook in the store, he offered the then 17-year-old a job as an assistant at his architecture firm. "He first physically made advances at me...probably around a month after I started working there...He just started being physically around me more and physically closer to me more," she told the Post. "One time, I was standing at the desk," which, she claims, featured a large photo of Brinkley and their children, "and he was doing something on, like, Microsoft Word, and he wrote, 'How would you feel if I told you I was attracted to you?' " According to Bianchi, it wasn't long before Cook began seducing her more openly with lavish gifts and money: On top of her $50 per hour salary, Bianchi said he gave her up to $1,500 in cash per month, as well as buying her a new car and giving her "jewelry all the time." While Bianchi says she was aware Cook was married, she claims the father of two assured her that his marriage with the CoverGirl fixture was already rocky. "We started talking about things, and he was telling me that he was unhappy and that he was having problems at home," she told the tabloid, adding that even in the early stages of the affair she "felt uncomfortable." "I had never been with anyone who was married. I was always on the right track," she said. "This was all new to me." Bianchi's lawyer, Joseph Tacopina, confirmed to the paper that the sexual affair lasted about one year and that it was the Bianchi who broke it off. Bianchi said that after ending the relationship, Cook "kept trying to get in touch with me. He kept emailing me and calling me...And I wouldn't call him back." According to the Post, Bianchi's father, Brian Platt, a local police officer, spoke with Cook several times about the architect's relationship to his daughter, each time receiving the brush off. Platt claims he resorted to approaching Brinkley herself with news of the affair while the model was speaking at a local high school graduation. According to the paper, Brinkley confirmed the extramarital relationship after finding intimate emails Cook and Bianchi had exchanged. While Bianchi has refrained from contacting Cook since the split, she claims that the affair was not a one-off incident, claiming she's been "hearing that I'm not the first person that this was happening with. "I guess...there's a lot of other girls in this position right now, and it's not a good place to be. We were all tools of his little game, I guess." Brinkley and Cook have yet to comment on Bianchi's claims, aside from Brinkley's publicist saying the model had never met the teenager. The spokesman, Elliot Mintz, adds that the model mom had taken her kids away from their Hamptons home "temporarily" to protect them from pushy and prying reporters. Tacopino tells the Post that Bianchi may be asked to testify in a potentially huge divorce trial between the estranged duo as their collected wealth is upwards of $60 million. As for Cook, a divorce trial it may not be the only legal trouble he faces. According to Tacopino, Bianchi is considering legal action against her former boss, claiming his client has "got a great sexual-harassment claim. He hired her to bed her. He used her, abused her. "I don't think he bought her a car because he's a philanthropist. It's just outrageous; her eyes are starting to become open. We're evaluating our legal options." Gregory S. Williams [EMAIL PROTECTED] Reply with a "Thank you" if you liked this post. _____________________________ MEDIANEWS mailing list [email protected] To unsubscribe send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
