Patrick Dempsey Fell for His Hairdresser — He Only Asked Her Out after 3 Years & Strived to Never Let Her Go

• Patrick Dempsey fell in love with his hairdresser when he went to her salon.

• For three years, he could not ask her on a date, and then she became his wife.

• But he almost lost her once.

TV heartthrob Patrick Dempsey courted his future wife for years before they eventually clicked. At the time, the pair were still involved with other people, but as soon as Dempsey heard his potential lover was single, he made a move.

Dempsey met his future spouse, Jillian Fink, at a salon – she was his hairdresser. The couple went down memory lane during an interview with People in October 2002 about how it all began.

Fink was working at her Los Angeles hair salon, Delux, when she came across the name "Patrick Dempsey" in her appointment book. She did not believe that it was the TV star.

Fink thought it was another one of her prankster employee's jokes. "All the people he had written in were names of celebrities famous in the '80s, like Molly Ringwald," the make-up artist explained.

But Demspey indeed showed up at her hair salon in 1994. Fink recalled that she was stunned by his appearance at her establishment at the time:

"I was shocked. But at the same time, I was happy because he was so cute."

Even with her enthusiasm, Fink was not entirely single at that point, and both were in relationships. Regardless, Dempsey consistently went to the salon for three years to get his hair cut. He later revealed that Fink constantly flirted with him before they became a couple, to which she argued, "That's not true!"

In 1997, the "Grey's Anatomy" alum found out through a mutual friend that Fink was a single woman, and he did not waste time and contacted her.

The pair went on their first date, wherein Dempsey cooked pasta for Fink at his house. Three months later, she moved in with him. The duo currently resides in a three-bedroom Spanish-style home.

The Couple Got Married & Started a Family — They Almost Divorced

Dempsey and Fink tied the knot in 1999 in a private ceremony at the groom's farmhouse in Maine. The bride's sister, Kirsten Mason, revealed Dempsey shed tears after seeing his future wife walking down the aisle:

"He saw her and started crying."

The pair welcomed their daughter, Talula, in February 2002. Their twin sons Darby and Sullivan arrived in 2007. In 2020, Dempsey gushed over his kids and said he was in awe of how they quickly pick up on things and how aware they are of their surroundings. He added he was more riveted about putting their curiosity at ease.

"I'm constantly amazed by their insight and their observations. It's fascinating and fun to come up with answers to their questions. And the questions are getting harder!" Dempsey said.

The father of three has been swamped with work previously, but he managed to get off his busy schedule to spend more time with his brood and even started coaching soccer.

One of his boys, Darby, loves the sport, and his two other children, Sullivan and Tallulah, are passionate about different things. Like his dad, Sullivan aspires to be an actor while his sister enjoys cooking, the proud dad revealed.

The father of three spoke about his teenage daughter, whom he admitted was growing up too fast for his liking. "It's a big transition. You have to weather the storm!" he said.

The race car driver added that making time for his kids is the most important thing for him. He loves being in the company of his loved ones and does not take the precious time he has with them for granted.

While things seem like they are good at home, there was a period when Dempsey and the mother of his children contemplated getting a divorce.

In January 2015, TMZ reported that the couple had issued a public statement announcing the dissolution of their union after 15 years of matrimony:

"It is with careful consideration and mutual respect that we have decided to end our marriage. Our primary concern remains the well-being of our children."

It turned out that it was Fink who filed for divorce, and she cited irreconcilable differences. In the filing, the mother of three asked for joint custody of the couple's sons and daughter, including spousal and child support.

There were speculations that Fink had an issue with her husband's ego and believed it was too much to bear from him. Further reports suggested that she wanted out of their marriage because he was obsessed with car racing.

How Dempsey Salvaged His Marriage

However, things changed when Fink and Dempsey were spotted out and about in Paris the same year they filed. They were pictured holding hands and riding bikes to show that there was still love between them, and they even posted about their trip on social media. By May 2016, they asked to drop the divorce proceedings.

Back in 2011, Dempsey revealed his version of a successful marriage. He said one party should accept "the other person" for who they are and do what their significant other requests:

"Accepting that you're not going to change the other person. And the words, 'Yes, dear. Whatever you want.'"

When asked in May 2016 whether they had decided to mend their relationship, Dempsey told ES magazine that they had to "work" at it because something had to give, and he eventually gave up racing.

The TV star had a successful run in motorsport but decided to take a backseat to devote his time to his family. He wanted to avoid missing out on their kids' milestones and became determined to help them discover their own "passions."

In September 2016, Dempsey got candid about the fragility of his marriage to Fink and admitted that he was not "prepared" to give up on it. He said they both needed to do more and were willing to get it right. That was how they managed to get it back on track.

The "Loverboy" star confessed that the possibility of losing his marriage scared him. "It's always destabilizing when you're potentially breaking up a family, or you have a big section of your life that's ending," he explained.

He and Fink went to couple's therapy to work on their issues. Most importantly, they wanted to set a good example for their brood by educating them that they could always work out differences.

For Dempsey, the most significant takeaway from the experience was learning to put his marriage first. He and Fink were unwilling to let go of what they had built together, and so they did whatever it took to keep it going.

The "Enchanted" star now refers to his union as a "new beginning" and has discovered what it takes to have a long-lasting relationship:

"You've got to keep at it. You've got to communicate, and stay open and not get lazy. And not give up. And lots of sex!"

When his wife celebrated her birthday in February 2022, he paid tribute to her on Instagram. The Hollywood star posted a photo of the couple in an embrace, beaming, and he expressed his love for her.

The duo marked their 23rd wedding anniversary on July 31, 2022, and Dempsey commemorated the occasion with a throwback snapshot of the happy couple posing on the lawn wearing sunglasses.

"Happy anniversary to my love of 23 years, a pic of our first trip to Maine together! I love you@jilliandempsey," Dempsey penned alongside a heart and face-kissing emojis.