Slade Smiley and Gretchen Rossi have a long history with the Real Housewives of Orange County. And for both of them, their prior relationships were focal story lines, until they started dating each other in 2009. Slade was featured in the premiere season of RHOC, by proxy of his relationship with Jo De La Rosa. At the time, he was a very eligible bachelor and riding high with a top paying job. Jo’s tagline for Season 1 said it all, “he’s pretty much keeping me.” But his fortune turned with the market crash in 2007. Since then, he struggled with employment and paying off debts pertaining to child support.
Slade tried to stay relevant on RHOC by briefly dating Lauri Waring, before he and Gretchen got together. Rather than put attention into seeking employment, Slade bickered with costars Vicki Gunvalson and Tamra Judge. Gretchen was the bread-winner since the beginning of their relationship and said she would never marry Slade until he paid off his debts. Well, apparently Gretchen is sticking to it because Slade has yet to deal with his financial obligations. And though the two are clearly committed to each other after 11 years together, an engagement, and welcoming a daughter, Skylar, in July of 2019, they still haven’t tied the knot.
