Cynthia Bailey wants her marriage to Mike Hill to last forever. The former Real Housewives of Atlanta star wed the sportscaster in Oct. 2020 after a three-year courtship. They met through a dating segment on The Steve Harvey Show and have been inseparable ever since. Unlike Bailey’s first marriage to Peter Thomas, Bailey and Hill’s union has been seemingly stress-free. So much so that she recently admitted that one of the reasons she opted to quit the show is to focus more on her marriage.

Cynthia Bailey and Peter Thomas’ marital woes played out on ‘RHOA’

Bailey and Thomas were introduced to RHOA viewers in Season 3. The couple had been together for four years and Bailey relocated from New York to Atlanta for their relationship. He proposed midway through the season.

An admitted runaway bride, Bailey was hesitant about marriage but felt Thomas was the one. But all came crumbling down just weeks ahead of their wedding when Thomas closed his struggling supper club. Bailey had invested $20k to help the business stay afloat, but it didn’t work. The two struggled to pay off the remainder of their wedding. Things were so bad that Bailey’s mother and sister even conspired to hide Bailey and Thomas’ marriage license as an attempt to stop the nuptials. 

The wedding went on but was a constant struggle. Thomas constantly found himself in bad business deals. Bailey was accused of not having a backbone and allowing her friends and family to become too involved in her marriage and business. There were also cheating rumors that plagued their marriage. She officially filed for divorce after seven years of marriage.

The Bailey Wine Cellar owner says she wants to protect her marriage to Mike Hill

Being married the second time around, Bailey is looking to do things differently. One of which is not airing out all of her business on the show. “After going through my divorce with my ex [Peter Thomas], I’m very protective of my second marriage because, you know, I really want it to work, and I want to do everything that I can to protect it and to protect Mike,” the Alabama-bred beauty told Page Six

Bailey adds that reality television is not “the most positive atmosphere” which she learned while married to Thomas. Having the opinions of her co-stars and viewers made difficult moments in her marriage to Thomas even more complicated. While she says the show is not responsible for the demise of her and Thomas’ marriage, she says it wasn’t helpful. 

“Honestly, whether we were on the show or not, I don’t think it would have worked out now,” she says. “Now, let me be very clear, I don’t think being on the show helps your relationship. But if your relationship is not solid or there’s issues you guys are dealing with, those issues are going to play out, whether you [are on] the show or not. So that’s just what it is.”

Still, she insists Hill did not ask her to leave the show. “Mike is supportive either way,” she confirms. “But I think he is very excited for me to to be in on television in other ways, something a little less drama based.”