Peter Cook, the Hamptons
architect who was married to former supermodel Christie Brinkley for a decade,
before embarking on an extramarital affair that ultimately led to the
dissolution of his marriage, now says he is sorry for the choices he made.
Now that the divorce is over and done with, estranged
spouses Christie Brinkley and Peter Cook having reached a settlement in their Central Islip, NJ divorce trial, the architect says he
would know better than to initiate the affair which ended his marriage.
He and Brinkley had been married for a decade and had two
children when Cook met Diana Bianchi, his then 18-year-old assistant, and began
a sexual relationship with her.
The relationship became a tabloid scandal and Christie
Brinkley filed for divorce.
Both sought full custody of Sailor, 10, and Jack, 13.
Peter Cook told Fox News Channel on Sunday that if he had a
chance to do things over again, he would tell Bianchi, “No, I’m a married man.”
The former couple’s divorce trial ended Thursday with a
surprise settlement. Christie Brinkley got custody of their two children and
properties, while Cook got $2.1 million and “parenting time,” in line with the
court-appointed psychiatrist’s assessment that the children should remain with
the mother while the father is involved in their lives.
Prior to the settlement, a week of testimony was presented
in detail by the press, with Peter Cook exposed as a cheating husband and a man
with an expensive online porn habit. He admitted all the accusations and
apologized.
The New York Post reported that over the weekend, the 49-year-old
architect told reporters he did not regret his union with 54-year-old Christie
Brinkley. “We had a great time for 10 years. I’ve got two beautiful children,”
he said.
This was exactly what Brinkley told reporters outside court
last Thursday, commenting upon the divorce trial’s denouement. She said she felt
no regret for the marriage because it gave her “Sailor, my beautiful little
daughter.”
Jack is her son from a previous marriage to Richard Taubman,
adopted by Cook.
