Answer:
Three years.
Step-by-step explanation:
Charles Dickens was eighteen years old when he met Maria Beadnell. Maria was two years older than Dickens. In 1830, when Dickens met with Maria, he fell in love with her.
This relationship lasted only three years. Since Dickens was poor, Maria's family thought their relationship to be unmatched, so they send her away to Paris.
Maria was the inspiration for Dickens Dora Spenlow in David Copperfield.