19-year-old guy has found love with a 72-year-old woman

They say that love has no boundaries, meaning that you never know where and when it will strike. For some people, it's a gradual process, with them falling in love with someone over an extended period of time. But, for others, it can happen instantly, in the most unexpected places and with the most unexpected person.

That certainly seems to be the case for this couple.

Much like everyone's favourite pop star Rihanna, Almeda Hardwick claims that she found love in a hopeless place. Well, a children's pizza restaurant.

According to the 72-year-old, as soon as he set her eyes on Gary (her future husband) she knew that he was the one.

Despite the 53 year age difference, the couple now live together in Tennesse and claim that they immediately hit it off after their chance encounter at a Chuck-E-Cheese.

Such was their love for one another, Gary ended up popping the question to Almeda and asked her to be his wife. Surprisingly, however, it's not the first time he has been in a romantic relationship with an elderly woman. Just months before he became entwined with Alemda, he had left a relationship with a woman even older than the grandmother of six.

Gary told Barcroft TV:

"The first thing that attracted me to Almeda was her beautiful, gorgeous blue eyes. And her personality.

"She's always full of laughter and we just connected so well. The chemistry was great. Everything about her has just captured my heart since day one."

Luckily for him, it turns out that Almeda feels pretty much exactly the same. According to her, age difference simply doesn't matter to them.

She said:

"If you love somebody, age is just a number. I've now been happily married going on two years with my true soul mate.

"We met at Chuck E Cheese, there was a birthday party there. I looked into his eyes and I just fell in love.

"I knew he was the one I wanted to spend my life with. I was never intimidated by the age at all."

According to Gary, the age difference never really comes into play in the relationship, with him saying that they're pretty similar in the like and dislikes.

"I never feel as though I'm missing out on anything by being married to Almeda," Gary said. "I'm really mature for my age, I do not fit into the young age bracket at all."

"I've never been attracted to younger women. Even when I was 13 or 14, I've always had an attraction for older women and when I told my grandmother, who raised me, I didn't know how she would take it. But she accepted us.

"A lot of people wait years to get married and everyone has different opinions on getting married quickly. But we knew we were in love, so I jumped on that.

"The first time we made love was on our wedding night. It was an amazing experience. There was such a deep connection there. She's a wonderful lover."

The couple is aware that their relationship will divide opinion, with Almeda's son refusing to speak to her since they got together. But other members of the family have been more accepting. Almeda's grandson, Aaron, 22, is happy for his grandmother.

"I only called him 'Grandfather' once and it was when I was drunk," Aaron said. "In my head, I see him as a friend more than a grandfather. But you know, our Grandmother is happy."

Aaron has hit the nail on the head. Yes, their relationship is a little unusual, but at the end of the day, they're happy. And that's all that matters, right?