‘I felt so alone after my husband’s death’
Mum-of-two Mel Hayden, 45, was widowed in 2014 after her husband Darren died of cancer. Mel says, “Darren was my best friend. We’d been together for nine years when we married in August 2007. In 2012, doctors discovered he had melanoma after I noticed a mole on his chest had changed shape. It was removed, but we were told the cancer had spread and was terminal. During his final months, he said he didn’t want me to be alone forever, but I couldn’t see the future at all. “He passed away in 2014 – I’d never known heartbreak like it. If it hadn’t been for our daughters, I would’ve struggled to get out of bed each day. I missed him so much, and it was hard to move forward. I’d just turned 40. I thought it would just be my children and me forever. I felt so alone.
“In April 2016, one of my friends suggested I try Tinder. I was unsure, but I craved company. I knew Darren would want me to be happy – so I signed up.
“I wrote on my profile I was widowed with children. I knew it would scare off some people, but I wanted to be honest.
“Two weeks later, I started chatting to Jeremy and we started dating. As we grew serious, I introduced him to the girls, then to Darren’s parents. I wanted to have their blessing.
“Jeremy proposed in September 2016, and we married a year later. Jeremy is now adopting my daughters Maisie, nine, and Poppy, eight.
“The girls call Jeremy, ‘Dad’, and Darren, ‘Daddy Daz’. We talk about Darren all the time – no one can replace him, but Jeremy didn’t try to.
“When I lost Darren, I feared I’d never be happy again and my heart was broken. I’m so lucky Jeremy fixed it.”