How I met my partner: ‘After our third date we never spent another night apart’

MALLOW native Victoria Shorten Randolph has worked with everyone from Lady Gaga to Rihanna and the Black Eyed Peas.

However, the celebrity that brought her and now husband, Jason Randolph, together remains nameless to this day.

The couple are grateful to have made the connection almost 10 years and two children later.

Victoria, who owns a luxury lifestyle company called One Lifestyle Management and VSL Jewelry, recalled how they began dating after working with the same client on Fisher Island.

Located just off the coast of Miami Beach and accessible only by helicopter or boat, the location is known for being one of the most expensive zip codes in the US.

“Jason was working in medical concierge and we both had the same client,” Victoria told The Echo. “Everyone at the time was telling us ‘Oh my God, you two should meet’ so we did. We ended up becoming really good friends.”

It took a deeply painful event to make Victoria realise just how much Jason cared for her.

“To this day I feel like my mum had something to do with us ending up together. She passed away and I disappeared to Ireland for a while. This was before Jason and I had even been on a date. We were still only friends at that point so when I returned back from Ireland I lay low for a while. He found me and asked where I had been. That was how our relationship ended up turning from friendship to something more.”

Victoria and Jason chose a high-end restaurant for their first date. However, it wasn’t until their second date that nerves began to kick in.

“I was fine on the first date but there were some nerves on the second date since I realised how much I liked him,” Victoria said. “He brought me to a baseball game. Later - at our wedding - he said that you should never bring an Irish person to a baseball game. This is because they have no idea what’s going on and think it’s a game of rounders. There’s so much to baseball and so much to explain. He was really putting his heart into explaining everything, from the rules to how fast the ball goes, to this little Irish girl. I thought he was amazing because he was taking all this time to teach me something I had no interest in and wouldn’t remember anyway. The game normally lasts three hours but one hour into it he asked me if I wanted to go to my favourite restaurant for dinner. I thought to myself ‘great’ and off we went.”

The spark was instant for both Victoria and Jason.

“After our third date we never spent a night apart. We moved in together after three months and he proposed to me after another three months. Another three months after that we were married. 

"I didn’t tell my dad that we had moved in together at first. It was so soon after mum died so I didn’t want him to be worried. I kind of forgot about Christmas and when he sent gifts to my old address they were coming back ‘returned to sender.’ That was how he found out we had moved in together. I explained that I had planned to tell him in the new year because I didn’t want him worrying. Of course, he was over almost straight away to meet this man so he didn’t need to worry anymore.”

Victoria described her husband’s unorthodox proposal.

“He proposed on the Memorial Day weekend while putting up a new roof on the patio. He asked me to help him before taking a ring out of his working gloves. We live beside the beach and there were so many places he could have proposed. However, he wanted to ask me in our own natural environment which I thought was cute. The whole thing was really lovely and romantic.”

The couple celebrated the wedding at their home in Fisher Island surrounded by friends and family.

In the years that followed they welcomed now seven-year-old Jack. Victoria and Jason subsequently adopted a second son Luke, who is now three years old.

“I can honestly say that each journey was equally as beautiful. However, when you are adopting you are fully present. There are not C sections and you’re not full of drugs and hormones. It’s nice to be fully aware and fully healthy.”

Jack and Luke are now as close as ever.

“There was a period where Jack was asking what was going on and were we giving Luke back,” Victoria laughed. “As far as he was concerned we had just taken a baby from the hospital. As the weeks went on there were more and more questions.”

She laughed that Jason is ‘practically Irish’ and loves the company of her friends and family back home.

“Jason is from Indiana and midwestern people are very like Irish people in that they’re very friendly as well as being sweet and kind. They call him Ireland’s favourite American because he loves Ireland so much. He gets on really well with my dad and my family and is practically half Irish at this point.”

The couple make a special effort to keep their relationship fresh.

“Date nights are an absolutely necessary part of the calendar and happen on a weekly basis. We also enjoy going away on trips so it’s not just about us and the kids. It’s important that we get as many opportunities as possible to feel like newlyweds again.”