Rumors of a breakdown dogged Blake Shelton and Miranda Lambert’s brief marriage. Both are now contentedly wed to separate partners.
Given their prominent positions in the music industry, it is understandable why Blake Shelton and Miranda Lambert fell in love so soon.
Even though he was still married when he met her, their shared love of music drew them together. Their love affair ended in divorce eventually.
Following their introductions at CMT’s 100 Greatest Duets Concert, the two musicians first came into contact with one another in 2005.
From the beginning, she was drawn to him, but he ignored her because he was married. In a similar vein, Shelton was instantly smitten with the “Drunk” singer.
The beginning of their romantic tale
In a subsequent interview, Lambert claimed to have seen Shelton’s wedding photo in Country Weekly and to have known he was married. She continued, saying:
“I should have known better—this is forbidden. For crying out loud, my folks work as private detectives. I’ve witnessed affairs my entire life. I am one of the few who can truly know better than this.
Even still, she was powerless to ignore the “inevitable chemistry” they shared from the start. Shelton separated from his wife Kaynette Williams a year later and went after Lambert.
Shelton asked Lambert to marry him in 2010, but he did so in remembrance of her father. The “God’s Country” singer gave Lambert’s father a call to get his OK before proposing on May 9 and bringing out a platinum and diamond ring that he had personally picked out.
“It’s so much more perfect than I could have picked myself, but we’ve been together for five years, so he knew exactly what I wanted,” Lambert remarked. The country music artist cherished the casual party that was the proposal.
Apart from that specific instance, 2010 was an exceptional year for Lambert, as she achieved her first number one song, “White Liar,” in January and won both Album of the Year and Top Female Vocalist at the ACM Awards.
The pair married in 2011, but problems soon arose in their union. Rumors of a breakup surfaced in 2013, which the couple refuted.
In order to demonstrate that there were no secrets in their marriage, the “The Voice” judge at the time said that his wife had access to his phone anytime she wanted. He declared:
We truly do have that level of trust. Nothing is hidden. “Go search through my drawers or my computer if you feel like it,” is what I’ll say, and it’s been extremely helpful since I don’t want her to ever question anything.
Even though there were still rumors in 2014, the pair didn’t seem to be affected and even made jokes about the supposed divorce. In the past two years, Lambert joked, “I think I’ve had like five sets of twins and we’ve been divorced four times, and one of us had a $100 million divorce.”
Shelton and Stefani were married in a modest chapel on the “Home” singer’s property in July 2021 in a private ceremony held in Oklahoma.
The pair sent heartfelt wishes on social media to commemorate their third wedding anniversary the same year.
Lambert acknowledged that marriage was difficult, but he also stated it was a wonderful gift that shouldn’t be taken too seriously. She continued, saying:
It is our constant goal to be together. On our anniversary, I wouldn’t want to be on the other side of the nation! That moment is precious.
However, the pair soon shown that there was turmoil in paradise, proving the claims to be real. Gwen Stefani collaborated with Shelton as a coach on season nine of “The Voice” in April 2014.
After four years together, Shelton and Lambert announced their divorce within a year. They said in a statement that was released:
We are actual individuals with actual lives, families, friends, and coworkers. As a result, we respectfully request your understanding and privacy in this very private situation.
The couple disclosed that they were surprised by the split and that they had to take a risk by choosing to continue living their lives on their own.
Both before and after the publishing of the statement, Shelton and Lambert said nothing about the matter. They had ten wonderful years together, including their courtship phase.
LIFE AFTER PARTNERSHIP
Shelton quickly started dating Gwen Stefani, his co-star on “The Voice,” following their breakup. On November 4, 2015, they made their relationship official via Shelton’s agent, who stated:
“Gwen and Blake have been friends for a long time, but they recently started dating.”
The couple claimed that their congruent divorces and life events strengthened their bond.
Shelton eventually told Lambert about his divorce in 2020. Details regarding their breakup were disclosed in his song “If I’m Honest.”
He answered, “Maybe not specifics.” However, you get the gist of it. It is my chronicle of divorce, but perhaps even more than that, it is also my record of happiness and infatuation.
He’s got to admit that his second divorce has devastated him to the point of no return. Even though Shelton did not create the song “She’s Got a Way With Words,” which describes a partner who strayed and lied, he isn’t stopping people from believing it was a reflection of his own relationship. He declared:
“You have to let go of it when you’re feeling down, or at least that’s how I feel. You want to be able to relate to other individuals. I was in the midst of hell, at my lowest point.
But there was also someone who understood him quite well. It was a day he will never forget. “Gwen, who I didn’t really know, had these enormous tears in her eyes when I looked at her. It struck me, “Wow, she really feels bad for me.”
The singer of “Candyman” had recently filed for divorce from Gavin Rossdale, her husband of 20 years. Later, she spoke with Shelton by herself, and that’s when their close relationship began.
As time went on, their friendship grew; they went from communicating their understanding to exchanging emails once a week. He declared:
“Then I wake up, and she’s my entire world, and I wonder if she feels the same way about me.”
Shelton and Stefani were married in a modest chapel on the “Home” singer’s property in July 2021 in a private ceremony held in Oklahoma. Luckily, Stefani’s family and kids adore her new husband and have a wonderful impact on her. Says she:
“I’ve never had a more feminine style. I think it’s because I have a pretty macho man and I’m genuinely in love. Now that I’ve let that side of myself show, I enjoy it.
Within three months of their first date, Lambert also wed Brendan McLoughlin, an officer in New York City. Even though he was married when they initially met, their love remained. It was made public in 2022 that the couple was attempting to conceive.
Man Finds a Smashed Phone on the Roadside—When He Inserts the SIM Card Into His Own Phone and Calls ‘Daughter,’ His Heart Stops
They usually say curiosity got the cat, but in my situation, it helped a desperate family find the help they had needed for a long time. My curiosity on the day I found that broken phone also ended up leading to a happy life I never anticipated.
It was a crisp morning when I stepped out of my house, the autumn air cool against my face. My mother, Helen, had already started breakfast, and like every morning, I was on my way to the bakery to pick up fresh rolls for her. Little did I know that this was going to be a very eventful day for both of us.
A man and his mother | Source: Midjourney
It was my mother’s and my little tradition to have breakfast together—something that made our small world feel stable. You’re probably wondering why a 30-year-old successful man would live with his mother.
See, I never knew my father. He’d abandoned my mother when she told him about her pregnancy. So my mother was as lonely as I was, and to prevent that, we decided to live together.
A man living with his mother | Source: Midjourney
What about my romantic life, you ask? Well, I’m not exactly a social butterfly—never have been. My lack of conventional good looks also means that dating has always been a struggle, and I’d long given up trying. Instead, I poured myself into my programming work, spending my days coding and my nights tinkering with gadgets.
That morning, as I strolled down the sidewalk, my sneaker scuffed against something hard. I looked down and saw it—a phone, its screen shattered like a spiderweb, lying in the grass just off the curb.
A broken phone | Source: Midjourney
With my curiosity piqued, I picked it up. The casing was dented, the back partially peeled off, as if it had been run over by a car. It wasn’t a model worth much—an older keypad phone, the kind you only saw in hands that couldn’t afford better.
I turned it over in my hand, seeing an interesting challenge. “Maybe I can fix it,” I murmured.
Slipping it into my pocket, I continued to the bakery, but the phone was on my mind the entire time. It wasn’t just the damage—it was the way it was just lying there, abandoned, as if someone had discarded it in a hurry.
A man at a bakery | Source: Midjourney
By the time I arrived back home, I had forgotten about the broken phone tucked into my pocket. My mom and I had the delicious breakfast she prepared before we set about our Saturday. Remembering the broken phone, I pulled out my own and removed its SIM card.
If the old phone was dead, maybe the SIM card inside still worked, I thought. I carefully slid it into my backup phone and powered it on. A list of contacts appeared. Most were hospitals, schools, and emergency services. Only one number was marked as a favorite—”Daughter.”
A man looking at his phone | Source: Midjourney
Something tightened in my chest. Who had lost this phone? And why did it seem like the only person they truly cared about was this “Daughter”? On impulse, I dialed the number. It rang once. Then twice.
A small, excited voice eventually answered. “Mom?!”
My breath caught. “I—no, I’m not your mom. I’m sorry for calling,” I quickly replied, ready to drop the call, but the next thing the little girl said made me pause.
“Where is she?” Her voice wavered slightly.
A worried man on a call | Source: Midjourney
“Um, I’m sorry, but I don’t know,” I admitted. “I found a broken phone and used its SIM card. Who are you?” I asked curiously, sensing that something was wrong.
The girl hesitated. “Julie. My mom went to the store yesterday and didn’t come back,” she revealed, her voice cracking with emotion.
A cold feeling spread through me. “Julie, where’s your dad, grandma, or anyone I can speak to?”
“I don’t have a dad,” she said softly. “Or a grandma. Just Mom.”
I swallowed. “Do you know where you live?”
“Independence Street. Building seven, apartment 18.”
A rundown apartment building | Source: Midjourney
My hands gripped the phone tighter. “Okay, Julie, are you okay? Are you alone right now?”
“Yes, I’m okay and alone,” she whispered. “But my legs don’t work. I can’t leave.”
I stood abruptly. “Your legs—what do you mean?”
“I have a wheelchair,” she said simply. “But it’s hard to move with no one around to help me. I’m scared.”
I didn’t hesitate as my protective instincts kicked in. “Julie, listen carefully. My name is Alan, and I’m coming to get you. I’ll be there soon, okay?”
“Okay,” she replied weakly before I dropped the phone.
A little girl on a call | Source: Midjourney
My mother, who had been listening, immediately grabbed her coat. “You’re not going alone,” she said firmly. “If there’s a child in trouble, we need to help.”
This wasn’t how I had imagined spending my weekend, but it felt like the right thing to do. Finding that phone when I did was fate. We caught a cab and arrived at the apartment complex in less than fifteen minutes.
It was a run-down building, the kind with flickering hallway lights and mailboxes stuffed with overdue bills.
I held my breath as I knocked on Apartment Eighteen, uncertain of what I’d find.
A man about to knock on a door | Source: Midjourney
A soft, hesitant voice came through the door. “Who is it?”
“It’s Alan,” I said. “I spoke to you on the phone.”
She replied, “The door’s open. Come in.”
The door creaked when I pushed it open just a few inches. A tiny and frail little girl, no older than six or seven, peered up at me from a wheelchair in the makeshift living room. Her hair was unkempt, her face pale and full of sadness, and she looked at me with tired, wide eyes.
My heart clenched.
A frail sad girl | Source: Midjourney
“Will you find my mom?” she asked, her voice trembling, tears in her eyes.
At that moment, I understood that the journey ahead would uncover truths I wasn’t ready to face, but it was too late to turn back now.
So I knelt in front of her and said, “We will, I promise. But first, let’s make sure you’re okay. Do you have food?”
She shook her head. “I ate a sandwich yesterday. That was the last one.”
“I’ll go find something in a bit,” I comforted her.
Taking a breath of resignation, I asked, “Julie, what’s your mom’s name?”
“Victoria,” she said softly. “She never leaves me alone this long.”
That only made my anxiety worse.
A anxious man | Source: Midjourney
“She is the best mom ever and usually returns when she goes out to run errands, but this time, she didn’t. I tried calling her, but her number didn’t go through. None of the neighbors would come to check on me because people here keep to themselves,” the little girl confessed.
My heart ached, and my mind raced. I realized that this wasn’t a simple case. Something was terribly wrong. Julie’s mother had gone missing, and now she was alone, in a wheelchair, unable to move properly, with no one to rely on.
A sad little girl in a wheelchair | Source: Midjourney
But we were here now, so I said, “I’m going to look for food. My mom, Helen, will stay here with you, okay?”
“Okay,” Julie replied.
When I returned, my mother quickly prepared food for the little girl, who scarfed it down hungrily as we sat together. I knew we couldn’t waste time. We needed to find Victoria as soon as possible.
Whipping out my phone, I searched online, checking news reports, and my stomach dropped when I found it: a woman had been hit by a Ford yesterday on Parkova Street. She was in critical condition at a local hospital.
A woman in a hospital | Source: Midjourney
I called immediately but had to ring more than once to get through the busy line.
“Yes,” the nurse who answered confirmed after I explained who I was and that I was with Victoria’s worried daughter. “She was admitted yesterday. She’s stable now but unconscious. We couldn’t reach any family.”
My chest tightened. “I’m coming,” I said without bothering to wait for a response.
My mother and I decided it would be best if we dropped Julie off at our apartment while we went to confirm whether the patient at the hospital was really her mother.
A nice apartment building | Source: Midjourney
We had to reassure Julie that she was safe with our friendly neighbor, Maureen, who gladly offered to watch her in our absence.
When Helen and I got to the hospital, I explained everything to the staff. The nurse hesitated but eventually said, “She just regained consciousness. She’s very weak, and her condition is still quite serious, but I’ll try talking to her about everything. Maybe she’ll want to see you.”
When the nurse returned, she had a hopeful smile. “She’s willing to see you, but please don’t take too long. She needs her rest.”
A happy nurse | Source: Midjourney
We entered her room cautiously. Victoria was pale, her face bruised. Her eyes fluttered open when I stepped closer.
“Who…?” she rasped.
“My name is Alan, and this is my mother, Helen,” I said gently. “I found your phone, and I spoke to Julie. She’s waiting for you.”
Tears welled in her eyes. “Julie… is she okay?!”
I nodded. “She’s scared, but she’s alright. She’s been waiting for you to come home.”
Victoria turned away, guilt written all over her face. “I never wanted this.”
An upset woman | Source: Midjourney
I pulled up a chair. “Victoria, what happened?”
She swallowed. “I was hit on my way to get medicine for Julie. She has a condition… I’ve been trying to save up for surgery, but it’s impossible. I have no family. I was adopted as a child—no relatives, no safety net. I’m an orphan. It’s just been me and Julie for as long as I can remember.”
My heart ached for her.
“We weren’t supposed to be in this situation. After I divorced Julie’s abusive father, I was left with nothing, and I’ve been struggling ever since. My ex-husband and his family won’t help me, and I didn’t know who else to turn to.”
A mean-looking man | Source: Midjourney
She continued, her voice shaking. “I never wanted Julie to feel abandoned, but I was too scared to reach out for help. I thought if I kept quiet about our situation, maybe no one would find out how I’d failed as a parent.”
“I couldn’t afford a car, so I walked everywhere. Last night, I was hurrying home when the accident happened. I was so scared when I came to, not for myself, but because I knew Julie was alone,” she revealed.
An upset woman | Source: Midjourney
I exhaled, gripping the arms of my chair. “You’re not alone anymore.”
Her gaze lifted, wary but hopeful.
I made a decision right then. “I’ll help you. Julie deserves a chance.”
I reached out to some contacts, and with the help of donations and a specialist, we arranged for Julie to have surgery. It was a long process, but one that changed everything.
A little girl ready for surgery | Source: Midjourney
Months later, I watched as Julie took her first steps. It was shaky, and she clung to my hand, but she was walking! Victoria, who had fully recovered, stood beside me, tears streaming down her face. She turned to me, her voice barely above a whisper. “I don’t know how to thank you.”
“You don’t have to,” I said.
A man and woman talking | Source: Midjourney
We became something more than just strangers who had crossed paths. Over time, Julie and I grew close, and my bond with her mother deepened because of the love we had for her. Eventually, our relationship turned into something deeper.
I never expected to have a family, but now, standing beside the woman I’d fallen in love with and married, and the little girl whom I had saved and adopted, I realized I had found one.
And I wouldn’t trade it for anything.
A happy family | Source: Midjourney
Here’s another story to keep you entertained. When Charlotte’s fiancé failed to arrive on their wedding day, her world shattered into a million pieces. Finding strength in her friends and family, she made the most of the occasion and found something unexpected.
This work is inspired by real events and people, but it has been fictionalized for creative purposes. Names, characters, and details have been changed to protect privacy and enhance the narrative. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental and not intended by the author.
The author and publisher make no claims to the accuracy of events or the portrayal of characters and are not liable for any misinterpretation. This story is provided “as is,” and any opinions expressed are those of the characters and do not reflect the views of the author or publisher.
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