Bethenny Frankel may be single once again -- or she may be simply pumping the breaks on her romance with Dennis Shields.

After first hinting that she may have put her relationship on the backburner, the Real Housewives of New York City star, whose divorce from husband Jason Hoppy was finalized earlier this year, confirmed that Shields is still in her life. 

"Dennis is in my life," Frankel told Us Weekly of her rumored boyfriend. "He is an amazing person who I love and care about very much."

Although Dennis may still be in Frankel's life, the couple may be pulling back on their romance. As Frankel recently explained to Entertainment Tonight, she is currently in "purgatory" and has "pulled back" from dating.

"I want my message to be about women's independence versus being defined by relationships, which is exactly the opposite of the message of B Strong. Men can be wonderful partners, but they don't define us," Frankel explained to Us Weekly. "For the first time, I realized that I have to save myself and then help save others. That is my priority."

Months ago, Frankel opened up about her ideal man. 

"Integrity and kindness now are so much more important than I ever even realized, because I didn’t realize how many people don’t have it," Frankel told the magazine in September. "I think I’ve been pretty sheltered in my emotional estimation of people. I’ve gotten pretty surprised."

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