Phaedra Parks finally revealed why she never talked about her divorce on "The Real Housewives of Atlanta" ("RHOA").

Since her divorce to Apollo Nida, the "RHOA" star has been mostly tight-lipped about her relationship issues. Apollo and Phaedra filed for divorce in May 2014 — the same year Apollo started his eight-year prison sentence after pleading guilty to identity theft and bank fraud. Although the 43-year-old lawyer recently told her friends/co-stars Porsha Williams and Cynthia Bailey that her divorce was finalized this season, Phaedra still did not reveal what was holding the process up.

Speaking with PEOPLE, Phaedra said keeping silent about the divorce was a conscious choice she made for the sake of her two kids with Apollo. Opening up about the split will surely lead her to say some unpleasant things about her ex, so she decided to stay quiet about it instead.

"I never wanted to negatively speak about Apollo," the Bravo personality shared. "At the end of the day, Apollo is the children's father. And so I want them to be able to make their own opinions about who he is as a father."

In addition, Phaedra admitted that she did not want to discuss her divorce with her "RHOA" co-stars because none of them were really helping her get through the painful process. Phaedra has two kids with Apollo: Ayden, 6, and Dylan, 3.

Meanwhile, a familiar face might be returning to the show next season. NeNe Leakes is reportedly close to signing a deal with Bravo that leads her to "RHOA" season 10 and a possible spin-off in which she would be the lead star. According to TMZ, a source working close to production said NeNe is getting closer to a new deal, but she has not signed the necessary paperwork yet.

The insider claimed that Bravo is trying to convince NeNe to return by offering her a spin-off, similar to "RHOA" star Kim Zolciak's "Don't Be Tardy" show. NeNe also wants to be paid as much as Kim and return to the program as a part-time cast member only.