‘He is older and a true gentleman who knows how to treat a lady’ (Picture: @breannarachaael/Mercury Press)
A woman, 26, who’s fallen for an older man, 47, is forced to defend her relationship to strangers who think he’s her sugar daddy.
Breanna Newton first met Ryan Whitehill in 2020 because estate agent Ryan sold a house to her sister.
The pair connected on Facebook and hit it off, but now that they’re together, the childcare provider, who lives in Oklahoma, US, gets quizzed by strangers about what they think is a purely transactional relationship.
Breanna says: ‘This is the first time I have dated an older man and I couldn’t be happier.
‘Unfortunately, people fail to see that we are in love and automatically think I am with Ryan, who is a real estate agent, for his money.
‘Strangers stare at us when we are out and more people I don’t know ask me how to find a sugar daddy.
‘I don’t know as I haven’t got one nor did I go out looking for an older man.’
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Breanna travels 900 miles per month to see Ryan and always pays for her own flights despite Ryan’s offers to do so.
She said: ‘Chivalry is an understatement when it comes to Ryan. We don’t separate money – as we both bring money to the table we now share funds.
‘He is older and a true gentleman who knows how to treat a lady.
‘For the first four months, I paid for all of my own flight tickets but as we grew closer, I let him do more because he wants to.’
‘I know what we are, so it doesn’t bother me’ (Picture: @breannarachaael/Mercury Press)
Breanna – who has been divorced once – said she felt a little uncomfortable with the attention she’d get while being out in public with Ryan in the beginning.
She said: ‘I used to feel frustrated by people staring and calling him a sugar daddy at the start, but now I just find it funny.
‘I have learnt to ignore them. I know what we are, so it doesn’t bother me.
“Previously, I was married to someone three years younger than me and that didn’t work. Whereas Ryan has a lot more life experience and is in tune with his emotions.
‘He has been divorced three times which was alarming, but it was because he now knows it is because he needed to work on himself.’
‘We and have everything in common’ (Picture: @breannarachaael/Mercury Press)
Breanna enjoys Ryan’s openness with his emotions and appreciates the impact that’s had on her in turn.
She said: ‘Neither of us had ever dated someone of a different race before.
‘The Black community keep our mental health on the low whereas Ryan is very open about mental health struggles.
‘He has allowed me to be more vulnerable and express myself. We get on very well and have everything in common.
‘I thought it would be hard but we both watch the same crime shows, enjoy the gym, cooking and fashion. I have never met someone that I have more in common with – it’s scary sometimes.
‘I thought I would have to compromise.’
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She also shared how his age certainly doesn’t slow him down in the bedroom, saying: ‘Ryan’s age doesn’t stop him being intimate or affectionate – it’s a myth that older men aren’t intimate.
‘He is like a rabbit.’
Breanna wanted to speak out about what their relationship is really like in a bid to normalise age gaps in love.
She said: ‘I don’t have to prove myself to anyone, but it would be nice if there was less judgement around age gap relationships.
‘Normalising them is so important to me – just let love happen and if it works, it works.’
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