Having met at work, the relationship started as peers on the same team. Then Brittany and James started frequently going to lunch and happy hours with friends, becoming regulars at Wasabi (table A5). James would say the sparks flew when Brittany brought him homemade French macarons. Growing closer over the weeks and months led to James asking Brittany on a date. The first date was on January 12, 2019 at the Botanical Gardens. James and Brittany bonded over many common interests like painting, photography, and music.

In June of 2021 James asked Brittany’s son Richard, her mother Dorothy and her best friend Michelle for permission to propose. A month later, James and Michelle went ring shopping and started planning the proposal. James planned dates on weekends with Brittany where they would go to brunch, escape rooms, get massages, and so on. James planned one special date after another. October 16, 2021, James planned what would be the most special date of all of them. James planned to propose at the Botanical Gardens that day. As usual, Brittany was trying to guess where they were going. James made a detour taking them to the zoo. After a fun morning at the zoo, James took Brittany to the Botanical Gardens. Doing the usual tour of the gardens, stopping first at the herbs and edible vegetation and then heading towards the meditation garden. There was a special Frida Kahlo exhibit that Brittany was excited to see. Shortly afterwards, James led Brittany to the stone observatory tower, walking right by a wedding rehearsal, ironically. Once alone in the observatory, James turned to Brittany and said “I have an important question to ask you”. Then James got down on one knee and asked Brittany to be his wife. James then lead a joyfully tearful Brittany to a surprise engagement luncheon at the Jardin with friends and family.