Facebook Pixel A second chance at LOVE | Woman & Home UK - womens-interest - Read this story on Magzter.com

Try GOLD - Free

A second chance at LOVE

Woman & Home UK

|

August 2022

Falling for someone isn't always straightforward or expected - but love later in life has made these women happier than they thought possible

A second chance at LOVE

Happiness can be snatched away so quickly

Stacey Macdonald, 45, lost her first husband to a heart attack at Christmas in 2013. A year later, she met Angus (pictured, right), 50. They are now married and live on the Isle of Lewis with Stacey's daughter, Ronah, 21.

I was a high-flyer in banking and a single mum when I met Chris in a Glasgow bar in 2008. I was 31, he was 41 and we immediately clicked. His life's mission was to make people happy - especially me and my daughter Ronah, then six. Within months, we were a family - Chris quickly became a fantastic stepfather and we married in 2013.

But one December morning, just 62 days after our wedding, I came downstairs to find Chris slumped, silent and still, on the sofa. My wonderful friend and husband was dead, taken from us by a massive heart attack.

Telling 12-year-old Ronah that her dad was in heaven was the worst thing possible, and we wept together.

Chris and I had planned a Christmas house-warming party on 28 December. Instead, we held his funeral that day. One thousand people came to commemorate his life that's how special he was.

Getting through that first year was hard. Each anniversary - Chris' birthday, the day we'd first met, the day he'd proposed - reminded me so painfully of what I'd lost.

Then, on the first anniversary of Chris' death, I realised I didn't want to be lonely any more. I knew Chris would have wanted me to be happy, so I took my courage in my hands and posted a profile on a dating site.

MORE STORIES FROM Woman & Home UK

Woman & Home UK

Woman & Home UK

Good HAIR DAYS!

Want healthier, more youthful locks? Add these products into your regime and sort your summer hair gripes

time to read

2 mins

June 2026

Woman & Home UK

Woman & Home UK

Ready for a GREAT BRITISH SUMMER?

Britain is at its loveliest during the warmer months of the year. From chic coastal weekends to inexpensive city days out, here's your hit list for the 2026 sunshine season

time to read

8 mins

June 2026

Woman & Home UK

Woman & Home UK

HOME from HOME

Influenced by a childhood in South Africa, Claire Hadley has created a light and spacious abode with a sunny indoors-outdoors vibe

time to read

4 mins

June 2026

Woman & Home UK

Woman & Home UK

Women out-earning men is still taboo

In these liberated times, people feel free to talk about anything - sexual fetishes, colonoscopies, hell, you can openly dress up as a Klingon in cling film if you want. In the words of Cole Porter, Anything Goes...

time to read

2 mins

June 2026

Woman & Home UK

Woman & Home UK

You break wind

From relief to social embarrassment, it can cause all sorts of emotions

time to read

2 mins

June 2026

Woman & Home UK

Woman & Home UK

Hot off THE GRILL!

Speedy dishes to make a weeknight barbecue a breeze

time to read

5 mins

June 2026

Woman & Home UK

Woman & Home UK

Come on OVER

Make our gorgeously relaxed prep-ahead menu

time to read

4 mins

June 2026

Woman & Home UK

Woman & Home UK

Protection PERFECTION

Enjoy sunny days with these ultimate skincare tips

time to read

2 mins

June 2026

Woman & Home UK

Woman & Home UK

In conversation with PATRICIA CORNWELL

The bestselling forensic crime author talks to Zoe West

time to read

3 mins

June 2026

Woman & Home UK

Woman & Home UK

How to STOP LYING AWAKE AT NIGHT

Too frantic to nod off? Quieting a whirring brain is possible with a little practice

time to read

6 mins

June 2026

Translate

Share

-
+

Change font size