US Weekly Cover - Did Vanessa Hide Her Party Girl Past From Nick?

On June 3, a British newspaper published several shocking photos that showed Lindsay Lohan holding a sharp blade to a mystery brunette's neck as she posed provocatively for a camera. The next day the photos hit the web and the identity of Lohan's partner in knife play was revealed: former MTV TRL host Vanessa Minnillo, 26.

The shots were taken at musician Sean Lennon's apartment in the wee hours of June 16, 2006, after a night out at NYC hot spot Bungalow 8. But when the news broke, was Minnillo's Mr. Nice Guy, Nick Lachey, completely blindsided by the revelations about her hard partying past?

The answer is likely no. In fact, Lachey, 33, had already spent quite a bit of time defending Minnillo's wild-child reputation when they first started dating, just weeks before the scandalous shots were snapped.

"A lot of Nick's friends were complaining about what a party girl she was," says a Minnillo source. "There were many nights in the beginning when Vanessa was a total mess and Nick didn't know what to do." "Vanessa used to be a completely crazy, wild girl," confirms a Minnillo pal. "She'd be the girl that would jump on the tables at every nightclub."

So will the evidence of the outrageous episode in Minnillo's past jeopardize their relationship? Those close to the couple, who recently moved in together, maintain that the scandal won't be a romantic roadblock.

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