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Gretchen Rossi was in the hot seat about her fiancé Slade Smiley’s finances during Season 19 of The Real Housewives of Orange County, and she continued to defend him and his contributions to their household during Part 1 of the reunion.
“Well, what you guys didn’t see on camera, [is] when Slade goes to the grocery store, it comes out of his account,” Gretchen clarified as proof of his support during the Nov. 6 episode.
It came after Emily Simpson and Heather Dubrow grilled Gretchen about her finances with Slade during a sleepover in the Sept. 18 episode, including the question of if they have joint bank accounts.
“We’ve never done that,” Gretchen told them at the time. “I’ve always liked to have my own money. My home is in my name. I’ve always been very strict about that. I never wanted a man to be able to control me financially.”
Gretchen also admitted Slade “doesn’t pay rent” as she pays the mortgage on their home, and added that she pays for groceries when she’s at the store. Heather eventually asked, “Does he pay for anything?” Gretchen avoided a direct answer saying instead, “I feel like this is weird questioning.”
What does Slade Smiley do for a living?
Gretchen decided to also help clear the air about the question of Slade’s career during the Nov. 6 episode, telling reunion host Andy Cohen, “Well he’s a consultant, and he also sits on the Liberace foundation board.” When Andy pushed for more clarification on how Slade was connected to Liberace, she explained he’s friends with Jonathan Warren, who runs the foundation.
Gretchen Rossi defends accusations of not marrying Slade because of his finances
Although Gretchen memorably proposed to Slade on a rooftop during RHOC Season 8 in 2013, and the two now share daughter Skylar Gray, they have not legally married more than a decade later. Heather claimed on the Sept. 18 episode that, as Gretchen told her in a 2012 conversation, they didn’t get married because Slade was “trying to get caught up on some of [his] back debt,” and she didn’t “wanna take it on” through a marriage to him. It led to some of the ‘Wives questioning the realness of Slade and Gretchen’s relationship during Season 19.
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“Whatever your relationship is with Slade is absolutely your business,” Heather clarified during the Nov. 6 episode. “The only reason it was even a conversation is because we were talking about getting married, and you said you couldn’t marry him because of financial reasons. That was never going to be on the table. And then you got engaged. That’s why we thought it was fake.”
But Gretchen defended her engagement to Slade as anything but fake. “That was a very real moment for me. To be there, getting engaged to the man I love…I wanted to show that man how much I loved him. That’s what that was about.”
Gretchen also told Heather and Emily during the Sept. 18 episode that she no longer worries about Slade’s finances. “It’s not even that it’s all handled, I just feel like I’ve been with him for 16 years and I know who he is. And I feel much more confident.”
RELATED: RHOC Producer Confronts Gretchen Rossi About Slade Smiley: “The Question Is…”
Does Gretchen Rossi plan to legally marry Slade Smiley?
Gretchen was asked point blank by Andy during Part 1 of the reunion if she’ll every legally marry Slade.
“I mean, I’m ready whenever,” Gretchen answered. “I just don’t think that’s something that we wake up every day talking about.”
Jennifer Pedranti pointed out that Gretchen “is married in God’s eyes” because she and Slade “had a ceremony” with an ordained pastor in 2022. That prompted Andy to ask again, “You’re married?”
“Well, we didn’t go down to the courthouse and get like legal paperwork, but we did have the ceremony,” Gretchen responded. “And Skylar was there, and it was very special for us.”
Earlier in Season 19, Gretchen pointed out that’s more than enough for them. “Slade and I never got married, but we are more in love than we were 16 years ago,” she confessed during the July 17 episode.
ICYMI, Gretchen shared how she and Slade are parenting their daughter Skylar in an exclusive interview.
