WE WENT ON HOLIDAY BUT HE NEVER CAME BACK

Becky Shepherd, 46, was enjoying a family trip in the sun when the unthinkable happened

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Packing for our annual Italian summer holiday, I can't wait for a week of relaxation, sunshine and delicious food, and my children, Jake, 14, and Archie, 11, feel the same. Soon we'll be on the beach, along with my parents, sister and nephews, like we've been doing every year since 2016. But it'll always feel strange seeing our three suitcases lined up by the front door, when not long ago there were four. Paul - my husband, the boys' dad - loved nothing more than this annual family trip and although he's not here to do it with us any more, I know he'll be watching over us.

Paul and I had been together since 2002 after meeting in a nightclub. He was studying to become an architect and living with his mum in Dudley, while I was working as a fashion buyer and living with my parents in Lichfield. It was hard not to fall in love with Paul, then 25. He’d make me giggle by serenading me, changing song lyrics to make them about me. ‘Lichfield girl,’ he sang to the tune of Michael Jackson's Liberian Girl. Our relationship moved quickly, with us buying a home together in 2004, and marrying in 2008. Two years later we welcomed our son Jake, and in August 2014 Archie came along.

Paul was such a family man and doted on our boys. By now he was working hard as an architect and most of his spare time was taken up with fixing up our dream family home. But when it came to the summer holidays, Paul was all ours. Every year, we went to Italy with my family, and Paul would spend hours with the boys in the pool, or giving in to their daily requests for ice cream.

As the boys got bigger, they bonded with Paul even more over their shared love of football. He was always at their games, running up and down the sidelines cheering them on.

DEVASTATING CALL