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Before Priscilla Beaulieu married Elvis Presley, she worried about his intentions toward her. While she moved to Graceland to be closer to him, Elvis was often away to film movies. When he was around, she noticed his attention wasn’t all on her. Often, Elvis’ eyes strayed to other women, even when Priscilla was in the room. She said that she became obsessed with tracking his interactions. 

Priscilla Presley constantly worried about Elvis’ fidelity

Priscilla spent most of her time with Elvis and his entourage. The girlfriends of Elvis’ employees also joined the group.

“Once I reproached him about the attention he was lavishing on the girlfriend of one of the regulars,” she wrote. “She was very attractive, about my height, with black hair and a nice figure. She had come into the kitchen, where several of us were sitting, and Elvis, who was wearing dark sunglasses, began making comments like, ‘Boy, it’s getting warm in here. Anybody else warm?'”

A black and white picture of Priscilla and Elvis Presley standing in front of the open door of an airplane.
Priscilla and Elvis Presley | Bettmann/Contributor via Getty Images

Priscilla was so upset she left the room. When she and Elvis went to bed that night, she reprimanded him. He snapped that she couldn’t tell him what to do and that she was reading too far into the interaction. 

“With that I stomped out, slamming the bedroom door,” she wrote. “I felt betrayed that he’d even desire another woman and was annoyed that he’d never admit it. I became obsessed and watched what Elvis liked, what attracted him, trying to be everything he ever imagined a woman could be, and more.”

Priscilla Presley didn’t think Elvis could ever be faithful to just one partner

Priscilla would worry about this for the rest of her time with Elvis. He cheated on her throughout their relationship. After years together, she realized she no longer wanted to deal with his infidelity.

“He wasn’t faithful, not that he had someone special, but when you’re in the entertainment business there is always that and I tried to turn my back to that, but I just didn’t want to share him. Simple as that,” she said on Sunday Night, per Today. “As much as he wanted to be married and have a family, I don’t know if he was ever cut to be married because I don’t think he could ever be faithful to one woman.”

She felt she couldn’t discuss this with him

Elvis’ reaction when Priscilla confronted him about his wandering eye was his standard one. Whenever Priscilla brought up her problems with Elvis’ behavior, he waved her away. Eventually, she realized she couldn’t talk to him about any of her problems.

A black and white picture of Elvis and Priscilla Presley sitting on a plane together. They look at the camera from between two seats.
Elvis and Priscilla Presley | Bettmann Archive/Getty Images
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“He always avoided problems,” she wrote. “If I was disturbed or depressed, or if I felt we were becoming distant and wanted to get closer by talking it out, he avoided me or told me my timing was bad. There was never a good time.”

Instead, Priscilla put on a bright face when talking to Elvis. She felt it was more important to keep Elvis happy than to address her true feelings.