KYLE We were introduced by a close mutual friend, Nicole. She and Mallory had recently run the Beach to Bay Relay Marathon. Soon after the race, Nicole showed me a picture of her teammate, Mallory, and I thought she was really cute. I was definitely interested, and asked for her number. MALLORY See what really happened was… A couple of weeks post Beach to Bay, Nicole randomly asked if I was interested in having a “ManFriend.” It definitely peaked my interest. Kyle came highly vouched for. Of course I gave her the go-ahead, hoping Kyle would make the first move : ) That same day, we began texting each other and we quickly connected. Messages turned into long phone conversations. After one week, we went on our first date to Trout St. in Port Aransas, Texas. The weather called for coastal thunderstorms, but we took a chance, and asked to be seated outside on their patio. The lightning storms to one side, with the beautiful view of the sun setting on the other half, created an amazing backdrop to what we refer to as “the perfect 1st date.” We had so much fun getting to know each other, we didn't realize the restaurant had closed for the night. It felt so natural just to spend that much time together from the very first date. We both knew then that this could be something special.

MALLORY Kyle and I had only been dating for a month when Dominic had surgery. We were instructed to remain on “lockdown” post operation, until his clearance two weeks later, as a precaution. Kyle was so understanding and considerate. He dropped off a gift basket full of goodies for Dominic to keep him entertained. He didn’t want us to worry about cooking that first night home, so Kyle sent over dinner for our family. He respected the “lockdown”, and was incredibly supportive of Dominic and I. One week into “lockdown”, I felt bad that Kyle was going out of his way to show his support for us, and at that moment, I wouldn’t be able to return in kind. That’s when I came up with my brilliant idea for an extremely cheesy date night. I didn’t want to be away from Dominic for too long, so I set up a table in my backyard, covered it in candles of all sorts, fake flower arrangements, and the finest china Dollar Tree offered. Dinner was “catered” by Chipotle, (a known favorite of Kyle’s). All he was told was to be prepared for a night “under the stars.” As we sat there enjoying our date, listening to the cheesiest playlist I had created for this special occasion, I looked over at Kyle, and I could see he was just as into this moment as I was. He let me indulge the cheesy, over the top, side of me without any judgment. I could be my complete self with him. That’s when I knew I was in Love with Kyle Michael Sauriol. KYLE We had only been dating for a short time and I knew Dominic’s surgery was coming up. Mallory kept apologizing that they had to be on “lockdown” after the operation that she wouldn’t be available for dates for those few weeks. I assured her I understood and that we would be ok. I had already started to feel something towards her and I wanted to see where things went. Post surgery I wanted to help with things/take care of anything that I possibly could. So I would call and check on them all the time, bring food, bring gifts for Dominic so he wouldn’t get bored etc. One day Mallory invited me over for a surprise and all she would tell me was be prepared to be outside. Little did I know this was going to be the night that I knew I was in love with her. I showed up and she had a table all set up with candles, flowers, and one of my favorite meals-Chipotle. As we were sitting there holding hands, listening to the music, really bring in the moment “Who I Am” by Wade Bowen started to play, and it all clicked. No one had ever done anything like that for me before. At that moment, I knew I was in love with Mallory and wanted to spend every day falling more in love with her.

K: I knew early on I wanted to marry Mallory, I just wasn't sure how I wanted to propose. I wanted to give her the surprise of her life. After a lot of searching and help from friends and family, I decided to use a company that specialized in custom picnic setups on the beach. The reservation for the proposal location was set for 4pm. In keeping with the surprise, I told Mallory to be ready for an early birthday dinner at that time, and to be dressed. I knew she would kill me if I didn’t give her the slightest heads up. M: I had a feeling Kyle was going to propose, but after a few special occasions had come and gone- and it hadn’t happened, I started to think maybe he needed more time. A couple of weeks before my birthday- Kyle had asked to take me out for an early birthday dinner- and to “get fancy for outdoors.” I really had no clue what was going on, and yes I griped about getting cute for hot 4pm early dinner. I’m not proud. K: The day before our plans, the company called and suggested that we do it closer to 6pm, it would be closer to sunset, with fewer people, and a better setting for photos- they were completely wrong with their assessment. I surprised her by taking her to where we had our first date- Trout St. I figured we could kill a couple hours here as it was typically busy, and then head to the beach for the big moment. Unfortunately, we both experienced the fastest service of our lives, and within 30 minutes of being there- we had finished our meals. At this point, I had to think of anything to buy some time. I pretended to go to the bathroom at least three separate times, each time checking in with picnic setup. They informed me that there was a lot of traffic over the bridge, so they were going to need additional time; I was panicking. I couldn't stall at the restaurant anymore. M: We were having a great dinner, just enjoying our time together, but I did notice Kyle had gone to the restroom quite a bit. It was alarming, but I thought- hey we all have those days. When he finally came back, it surprised me that Kyle didn't have any after plans, and when I suggested a few ideas- it was met with a “yea maybe” K: So we get into the truck and head down the road. I was running out of ideas to stall. I faked the bathroom one last time and stopped at Whataburger to check the status of the proposal site. They said they needed ten more minutes. When I finally came back to the truck I caved-in and told her I had one more surprise for her, but we needed to wait a bit longer. M: I promise I had no idea what he was up to. I really thought he was setting up something silly, or a cake was involved- I’m a huge cake person. We ended up driving to the seawall, walked a bit by the beach, and sat for a few minutes to talk. Kyle has always been good at making any moment feel special. K: FINALLY, I get the text saying they were ready. We made our way down the road to the beach entrance closest to Bob Hall Pier. As we were turning onto the beach, I handed Mallory a blindfold and asked her to put it on. M: Honestly, I was nervous when he handed me the blindfold. I just told Kyle “You’re scaring Me!” K: We pull up to the spot, which was not at all secluded - and parked. When I get out of the car and look around, there were probably 40 cameras pointed at me from onlookers at the beach! Kids were in the dunes watching us excitedly. I made my way around the truck and brought her out to the picnic area, which was set up beautifully. I got down on one knee and asked her to remove the blindfold. My nerves were going wild with everyone around watching. When she removed the blindfold, I don’t remember what exactly I said, but i know I prepared a speech- then asked her to marry me and she said YES! The crowd erupted with cheers and well wishes. M: Blindfold removed, Kyle down on one knee- I was excited and crying, a hot mess- Of course I said YES! It truly was a memorable moment that we will both cherish for the rest of our lives.