When I pictured my marriage proposal, I had no expectations. I trusted Pete. I knew that whatever happened, it would be thoughtful, loving, and special, mostly because it was something that would be just for the two of us. And what happened on Saturday was nothing short of a fairy tale.

Jess and I went on our cruise, and when I came back, Pete kept telling me how much his family wanted to see me in Punta Gorda. They wanted to see me so much that we had to go down there that weekend, the weekend after I had gotten home from the cruise, which I was not happy about. I hate traveling two weekends in a row, and being thrown right into a work week. So I bitched to everyone: my friends, my coworkers, my mom. I couldn’t understand why he wanted to go down there so badly. His grandfather hasn’t been doing great, so I figured either something was wrong and Pete wasn’t telling me, or he was going to propose to me in Punta Gorda in front of our parents.

My suspicions were confirmed when I talked to my mom on Friday night, before Peter and I were supposed to go on a double date with Cristin and Matt. I kept telling her how much I didn’t want to go, and she said, “I’m sure you’ll make the best of it. You’ll probably have fun! That’s what we do!”

That is so not my mom. My mom usually would sympathize, saying how she knew it was hard to travel a few weekends in a row and how busy I’ve been. By the time Pete was there, I had asked my mom if Pete was going to propose on Saturday in front of his parents, and I was really upset. I couldn’t imagine why he would make an “us thing” a “family thing” without my family being there too.

As soon as Pete walked in, he knew something was wrong. But of course I said I was fine. He told me I was quiet, and I told him I was just listening to his story. Unfortunately, I can’t hide anything from him, and I blurted out “Peter, you’re not proposing this weekend in front of your parents are you?”

Shock registered on his face. “You think I would do something like that?? You should know me better!”

I shed a few tears of relief, and we went about our night. The double date was fun, and we play fought about how he could have gone to Miami to ask my Dad’s permission while I was on the cruise. By the time we got home, I was fine, and he was a little drained. I told him I was fine with him not proposing. And I was. For the first time in a long time I was really ok with it, because I knew he loved me.

The next day we left for Punta Gorda around 2 pm. I was giving him a hard time, telling him that he could be my domestic partner and I didn’t want to get married to anyone. That I was going to plan the wedding and just didn’t show up. How fun it would be to pick the wedding music. We stopped at a gas station, went to the bathroom, and got back on I4.

Peter got off at the Sarasota exit. I thought maybe he needed to use the bathroom or something, so I waited a few minutes before asking where we were going.

“I didn’t tell you? My parents are meeting us up here for dinner. They’re going to the casino tonight.”

This was news to me. If I had found out that his parents weren’t going to be there while we were driving three hours to spend time with them, I wouldn’t be in that car. But he seemed so upset that he forgot to tell me, and that he hadn’t paid attention when he was talking to his mom, that I let it go. We were having fun, and I was playing DJ, making him listen to Coolio and the Fugees. We pulled into this hotel looking thing, and I said, “We’re meeting your parents at a hotel?”

“Lindsay, it’s the Ritz,” he replied.

“We’re at the Ritz? What are we doing here?” I started to get a little freaked out, because we had never been anywhere like this before.

“Happy belated birthday!” he exclaimed.

My birthday is in March, but he was still working at the Lob, and I wasn’t able to spend much time with him. In the back of my mind, I thought the proposal might be coming, but I didn’t say anything. I figured once we got up into the room it would be filled with roses or something. We checked in, went in the room, and there was nothing there. I brought jeans for dinner, which are definitely not acceptable in the Ritz dining room, so the hostess suggested that I get some bermuda shorts in the boutique downstairs. Since Bermuda shorts were $110, I ended up walking out with a $200 dress. I felt so bad, because I knew whatever he was paying for the hotel room was a lot, and then to add the dress.

We went to dinner, had great conversation, laughed a lot, and then Pete got really serious and told me that he couldn’t propose yet. That things were just starting at his job, and he needed to get a little more established. I kept expecting a ring to pop out of whatever food I was eating, but nothing happened. I was a little disappointed, but still feeling ok.

Afterwards we went to the Ritz’s beach club on Lido Key to watch the sunset. We walked on the beach, and there was a couple in a tent eating dinner, being served by one of the employees. I noticed that the employee was taking pictures of the sunset, and thought that was weird, so I pointed it out to Pete. We turned to face the sun, and Pete asked me to marry him. All of the sudden I look over and the employee was taking pictures of us! And then there was chapagne and strawberries. By the time we got back up to the beach club building, she had printed out a few of our pictures and framed them.

When we got back to the room, there were rose petals everywhere and more champagne, and chocolate covered strawberries. It was amazing.

“I have one more surprise for you,” he told me. Like it could get any better. “You have a massage tomorrow morning before we leave.”

I have never felt so special and loved. And it wasn’t the Ritz, or the ring, or the champagne. It was the thought and time that he put into it. He thought out a more perfect proposal than I could have hoped for myself, and I still can’t believe that it all happened. These last few days have been so busy, and this weekend we’re going to Miami to try to book a place for the reception. I never thought I would be old enough for this. When I look back at my high school self, the girl who never had the boyfriend or the first kiss, I wish I could show her that what she was waiting for would be so worth it.

So here I am, 24 and engaged to a man that I never thought I’d find. I’m a happy, lucky girl. 🙂