Love lingers online

LOVE took just two weeks to blossom for a Limerick man and his American bride.

Nigel McGill, 38, from Abbeyfeale, had been swapping love letters with American poet and novelist Rio Rox, a woman he had met on the internet, for just two weeks when he decided to follow his heart halfway around the world and ask her to marry him.

After connecting on a dating site, the pair embarked on a “whirlwind” digital romance swapping emails, stories and heavy metal music videos.

Nigel then flew to North Carolina with an engagement ring. Two days later, the pair were married.

Rio, who moved back with Nigel to live in Abbeyfeale last month, said that the marriage fulfilled a prophetic vision she had in a dream years before.

Nigel said he never once doubted his heart. “Love is the ultimate truth. Love isn’t a decision, it’s a feeling.”

He said their mutual love of art, poetry and music laid the foundation for a fairytale union. “I’m the red and white knight and the black and white horse. She was a princess, a damsel in distress who needed rescuing. Now she’s my queen and I’m her king.”

Rio said that she is loving living in west Limerick because “I love overcast weather and rain”.

Picture: Nigel McGill, from Abbeyfeale, Co Limerick, with his new bride, Rio Rox, from North Carolina, in the US. The couple met online and got married two weeks later. Picture: Press 22