Why Real Housewives of Potomac’s Stacey Rusch Won’t Let Boyfriend Thomas Anthony Jones Come to Her Home (Exclusive)

Stacey Rusch continues to have firm boundaries in her relationship.

The Real Housewives of Potomac season 9 newbie has a frank conversation with boyfriend Thomas Anthony “TJ” Jones on Sunday’s all-new episode, telling him that she’s still not comfortable going on public dates together as her divorce to husband of 16 years Thiemo Rusch hasn’t been finalized.

It goes beyond that, though. In PEOPLE’s exclusive preview from the episode, Stacey tells TJ that “in the next couple of days,” her husband is finally moving out of the house they share with 8-year-old daughter Arabella.

“Where does that leave us? Can I come to your house?” TJ quickly asks.

But Stacey isn’t ready for that. “I think it’s too soon for you to come to the house with Bella there,” the former QVC host says.

“While I love TJ, it just doesn’t feel right to have TJ at my house yet,” she explains, in confessional. “It’s where my daughter sleeps. It’s my sanctuary. My husband and I have been very cordial and respectful during this entire divorce and I don’t want to mess that up.”

TJ for his part, appears to understand her reasoning, but admits to Stacey, “it feels like you’re hiding me.”

“How on earth can you say I’m hiding you? You’re my best friend,” she says, before asking TJ, “What do you need from me to make you feel good about us?”

“I want you to tell people that we are dating, and I want you to tell your husband that we are dating,” TJ says.

And though Stacey wonders how that would make TJ feel, TJ hints that the move would be more beneficial to her than him. “I think if you do that, you will feel better.”

Stacey and TJ first met when he was auditioning to be a host at QVC. “It was this genuine friendship and then, after about six months, we just both couldn’t deny that we wanted to be a part of one another’s lives,” she explained on a previous RHOP episode.

The two have a unique dating relationship, in so that they’ve both chosen to remain celibate until marriage because TJ is a devout Christian.

“Our relationship is grounded in our faith and God, and we’re choosing to take things slowly,” Stacey explained on Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen back in November.

Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE’s free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer​​, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

Wedding bells aren’t ringing just yet, but the two are still going strong. “He’s my best friend,” Stacey told BravoTV.com’s Daily Dish in November. “He is one of the best people I’ve ever met in my life. And I’m so happy to have someone that really loves me and really supports me. And for me, that is enough. That’s more than enough, quite frankly.”

The Real Housewives of Potomac airs Sundays (8 p.m. ET) on Bravo. Episodes stream next day on Peacock.