My ex’s faith came between us

DEAR DEIDRE: I lost the love of my life over our differences in religious beliefs.

Even though it’s been several years since we split, and he is now married to someone else, I can’t get over him.

I’m 38 and still single. He is 40.

We met ten years ago at a pub quiz and it was love at first sight.

Talking to him was so easy, it felt like I’d known him for ever. He said he felt the same.

We started dating but though our relationship was wonderful, there was a big gulf between us – he’s a committed Christian and I’m an atheist.

He told me he could only settle down with another Christian. I knew I couldn’t convert or go to church so, eventually, we split.

But we carried on being best friends and, even when he met another woman, continued to talk for hours every week.

Then he told me he was getting married. He loved his fiancee but wasn’t “in love” with her the way he was with me.

We tried to stay friends but, every time we spoke he realised it was me he wanted.

So he broke off contact. That was three years ago. I still miss him so much and look at his social media every day. I haven’t dated anyone else. No other man compares.

DEIDRE SAYS: Your ex did the right and kind thing by breaking off contact. It’s time to accept that, just as he has moved on, so must you.

He may seem like the perfect man for you, but you’re looking through rose-tinted glasses. He wasn’t, because of your irreconcilable views on religion.

You can meet someone again, even someone more suitable, if you allow yourself to be open to try. You need to stop following his life online and concentrate on building your future.

Read my support packs Moving On and Mending A Broken Heart.