"I was scared of being judged"

WORRIED about office gossip, Renee Murphy put off going out with Il Divo's Sebastien Izambard, but he had other ideas.
Seb and I met eight years ago. His group, Il Divo, was touring Australia and I was a publicist for Sony Music. At the start, I paid him no attention - I was way too focused on my career to look at a recording artist in that way. Plus, he was a very suave Frenchman and not my type. He had this following of women everywhere he went!
I didn't realise Seb was interested in me until I sat in on an interview the group was doing and he kept winking at me. I ignored him at first, not wanting to jeopardise my job, but he wouldn't give up. He convinced the tour manager to give him my number, and when I returned to the office, he'd left a message asking me to call him. After many similar messages, I finally gave in and we started chatting on the phone quite regularly.
I was scared of being judged. When people hear about a romance between a publicist and an artist, they start making assumptions. But when you work long hours, you don't get to go out and meet people. I was 26 and had been single for seven years. I'd go straight home to bed after work and spend the weekend in my pyjamas.
After six months of talking on the phone, Seb booked a trip to Thailand and asked me to go with him. Even though I said no, he booked my ticket anyway. I ended up telling my family and close friends about us and they said, "Just go! What do you have to lose?" I thought, well, my job! But I knew there was something special about Seb, so I met him in Thailand. We spent a week together and basically fell in love.
Before the relationship turned into office gossip, I went to see our chairman and told him everything. I was terrified, but he was happy for me, which made things easier.
Of course some people made mean comments about my relationship and about me personally. Being a publicist, I thought I knew the dynamics of how negative criticism worked, and was sure I could handle it. But there were moments when it was difficult to deal with.
Over the next 12 months, we only saw each other twice, because he on tour and I was consumed with work, so I decided to leave my job in Sydney to live in London with Seb. Moving was scary but amazing. Soon after arriving, I set off on a world tour with Il Divo. When it finished, we bought a house in Paris and started renovating - an interesting thing to do when you're discovering how different your tastes are!
After two years together, Seb proposed. We were in a little bar in Brussels when he took a box out of his pocket and passed it across the table. I opened it, closed it, passed it back to him and started giggling. He looked upset that I was laughing at him, but it was the perfect proposal.
We'd been trying to have a baby at the same time as planning our wedding and, after fertility treatment, I fell pregnant with twins. We had to postpone the wedding, but we didn't care - we were over the moon to not only be having one, but two babies. Now we have three amazing kids, Rose and Luca, 4, and Jude, 1.
Even though it's a bit of a handful, we all travel together when Seb goes on tour. I base myself somewhere with the kids and two nannies, and Seb does his shows and comes back to us on his days off. It's tiring, but we wouldn't have it any other way.
I haven't worked in publicity since I left Sydney. Initially, I was in charge of our home renovations, then the kids came along. At the moment, I'm setting up a children's vintage clothing and homewares company.
We're hoping to move to Australia in the near future. We want to enjoy the lifestyle and the sun while the kids are young.
Although I was nervous about how we met, now I wouldn't change a thing. Everything happens for a reason and I think the universe takes care of whatever's meant to be. If I hadn't followed my heart, I wouldn't have my amazing husband and beautiful children.