Fans think Christina Haack is ‘introducing us to a new boyfriend’ three months after splitting from Josh Hall

Christina Haack (formerly Hall) left fans reeling with her latest Instagram post!

The HGTV star posted a photo with her “great boyfriend” Jared Merrell who celebrates his birthday on Saturday.

“Congratulations to my brother from another mother. @jaredjstar25 Thank you for ALWAYS being such a great friend. I love you and our family so much. I’m so happy that I get to celebrate you all weekend,” he said Christina on the coast host wrote alongside a photo of her and Merrell posing close together with their arms around each other.

The comments were immediately flooded with fans interpreting the post as Christina revealing a new romantic partner just three months after her separated from her third husband, Josh Hall, with whom she is currently involved in a controversial divorce.

“Omg! Not another husband.” wrote one follower.

“WHO IS YOUR MAN NOW,” another commented.

A third simply wrote: ‘Ut-oh.’

Several commenters admitted that they initially felt the same way, but realized they were mistaken after reading the caption more closely. “Lmao! At first I thought she was going to introduce us to a new guy! I was like a damn girl, slow down!!” wrote one.

Another fan speculated that the message was intended to cause confusion, writing: “She wanted us to believe at first glance that she was introducing us to her new boyfriend… she wanted that”

Yet another follower thought the photo was a bit too cozy for friends. “If I were his wife…I wouldn’t agree with such a close photo. I’m just saying…girl code.”

For his part, Merrell simply replied, “Thank you, I love you,” and added a red heart emoji.

Merrell is the owner of JStar Auto Group, a used car dealership based in Anaheim, California, according to his Instagram bio. He also posted a photo of his birthday cake, which featured a collage of photos of himself from years ago, apparently modeling.

Christina also appears in her Instagram Stories reshared a photo posted by a friend showing her in a hot tub with three other women, one of whom appears to be Jared’s wife since her username is @mrsjstar25. He wished her a happy 20th anniversary in a recent Instagram post of his own. The group appears to be on a birthday trip for Jared to Punta Mita, Mexico.

The car salesman seems to be friends not only with Christina, but also with her ex-husbands. He is followed by Tarek El Moussa, to whom Christina was married for seven years until 2018, and Ant Anstead, to whom she was married for two and a half years until 2021. Tarek’s new wife, Heather El Moussaalso follows him.

Christina and Josh split in July 2024. The formerly Austin-based real estate agent filed for divorce on July 15 citing “irreconcilable differences” and asks for spousal support on July 15. Christina responded with a submission of her own on July 24, requesting that neither party receive financial aid.

Christina has since claimed as much Josh was asking $65,000 a month from her, which he has denied.

The pair too currently in a dispute over her home in Tennesseewhere a source previously told PEOPLE that Josh has been staying there since the split. The exes agreed to the arrangement in a September legal filing obtained by PEOPLE, but Christina put the house up for sale for $4.5 million shortly afterwards.

So was Jos intended to be part of Christina’s upcoming new HGTV show, The flip-off, which also stars Tarek and Heather. But the three of them were filmed multiple times since the divorce filing and Josh was not present. HGTV has not officially discussed the status of Josh’s involvement in the series, which premieres in early 2025.