Caroline and Nick Real Engagement Story

I met Nick quite by accident. It was about three months after I had come out of a five year relationship, and had my whole life turned upside down. I was going through so much, and starting to try and meet other people, pass my driving test, buy a car and get a new job; and I started a blog to use as an outlet.

A couple of months in to writing regularly, through the ups and downs, the heartache of seeing my ex with his new woman, and the highs of looking forward to the next ‘first date’; a girl on the blog set up a kind of ‘daytime show’ blog – where other people could contribute, things like reviews on films and music. She had appointed someone called NickD to be the resident chef, and I volunteered as an assistant, because I love cooking.

It all started over a discussion about Butternut Squash, and the different ways you could cook it. For some reason, NickD made me laugh, and I started flirting innocently with him over the comments section. Then I started reading his blog, and could see that he was going through some of things that I was – dealing with a break-up, thinking you’ll never meet anyone else etc. I emailed him my mobile number and said that if ever he was feeling a bit down, he could always call me for a chat.

A few weeks after that, a few of us decided to get together, to meet in person, and have some pre-Christmas drinks in London. I’d been out with work the night before and was incredibly hungover but somehow managed to pull myself together and go and meet them. I really didn’t feel up to it – and I looked like a frumpy 40 year old, but I had a feeling that it was going to be special.

I had a great evening, Nick and I were of course early, and I remember one instant where we were standing side by side and each talking to someone else, and our arms brushed against each other. I felt such a tingle at that moment, and knew that it was all going to be okay. I spent most of the evening doing the flirting thing – touching him at every opportunity etc!

Half way through the evening, his ex rang in tears and demanded that he come and get her. I knew what she’d put him through, and I was desperately hoping that he’d ignore her. I took the chance to give him a hug and tell him that why should he ruin his evening over her.
As the night drew to a close, Nick and I ended up on the same tube line, but I had to get off before him. We were laughing and chatting, and I was hoping that something would happen, and it did. He kissed me, and we both sat there grinning like loons.

The weekend after, we had our first official date and have been seeing each other ever since. Unfortunately, I had already landed a new job in Bristol, which meant that for a year, we had a long distance relationship. We then decided that if we were going to be together properly, one of us would have to move – my job wasn’t really going anywhere, so I got a new job, closer to him.

We found our dream house, I stayed at my parents while I settled into the new job, and saw more of Nick during the week. We’d talked a lot about getting married, and I knew that one day soon he would propose. The unfortunate thing is that we both think the same way, so it wasn’t a huge surprise when he did!

It was the weekend when our parents were meeting each other on the Sunday, and we were taking them all to see the home we were buying. On the Saturday, I went up to join Nick and his parents for a day out at Hampton Court. I’d always wanted to go around the maze there. It got to the end of the day, which had been a bit wet, and I still wanted to go in the maze, and could tell he wanted to too. When we got there, we raced off ahead of his parents, and then took different routes to get to the centre bit. As we got there, he gave me a hug and said "So do you want to get married then?". I replied "Was that a proper proposal?"; mainly because we’d asked each other a few times, but it wasn’t the official proposal as such.

We then went to sit on the bench and wait for his parents to appear, and as I sat down – he got down on one knee and asked me to marry him!

Although it wasn’t a total surprise, it was still the most romantic proposal I ever could have dreamed of. We told our parents the next day (once my mother had kept quiet long enough for us to get the words out!). I think Nick was more nervous about telling them than asking me!

We’ve set the date for April 21 next year, and I know that however it turns out, he’s made me the happiest girl in the world, and now that we’ve finally moved into our new home, I have it all!