It all started whEN...

I met Ashley when she first started working at the Middle School. I thought she was very attractive in a nerdy-librarian-sort-of-way. I admired her grit and determination from afar for three years as she excelled as an educator. We had always gotten along since we are both life-long nerds and have very similar interests. I knew that I would love to find someone just like her to call my own, however I thought she was out of my league.

Then one fateful July evening with the encouragement of some of my colleagues, I made my move. I flirted hard; harder than I've ever flirted with any woman. EVER. I was smooth and charming and witty. She laughed at all my jokes. We talked for hours at a time. We grew very close, very quickly. It was all going perfectly!!!

She had no clue.

She thought I was just being nice.

But I was persistent. I began to ask others if she knew what was going on, because I was absolutely certain that I was making some headway. I wasn't. It wasn't until a co-worker let her in on it that she finally figured it out. She had suspicions that I had more grand interests, but she wasn't sure and didn't think that I could possibly be interested in her at all. I fell for her. And I fell hard.

LOVE STORY

We began seeing each other regularly. We talked until the bitter hours of the night. We learned about each other's hopes and wishes and dreams. We shared our darkest secrets. All the while, we grew closer and closer. Then one day as we embraced each other in her classroom before school started, she slipped up. She said something that altered the course of my life forever. She didn't even mean to do it and I still don't think she knows how powerful that moment was, but she said those three magic words that set my soul on fire: I love you. I think she tried to take it back by burying her head in my chest and I think she thought that I might not have even heard her, but I did. And through tears of utmost joy and exhilaration I said, " I love you."

She is now wearing the engagement ring that I gave her only a few days ago, and I cannot wait to be her husband. This is the beginning of what will be the greatest love story ever told. And it's ours...

THE PROPOSAL

I picked a fight. On purpose. Ashley is one of the smartest women I’ve ever met in my life and she can read me like a book. I was sweating bullets all day long and when she came into my class to tell me about the field trip the eighth grade went on, I was certain that I was going to show my hand. When the conversation turned to test scores, I took a calculated (and stupid) risk: I pushed the issue. We argued and I knew exactly how to push her buttons. I’m not proud about that and have apologized profusely since. She left my room hurt and confused and with good reason. I hoped that she didn’t hate me, but it wasn’t over yet. Another teacher had agreed to use the cheerleaders to announce the proposal and planned everything. All I had to do was hide my parents, her mom, and her grandparents until the last possible moment. I also had to run to my classroom and change. I waited impatiently for what felt like an eternity in the hall outside the gym. I had no idea where Ashley was if she was even there. I knew how much I hurt her and I knew there was a chance that she wasn’t even in the gym. Luckily, she had been tipped off by our principal and another teacher and she knew something was up. When the cheerleaders lifted the signs and I walked in with my improvised engagement ring and a bouquet of roses, the whole school erupted. I’ve never heard that place anywhere near that loud. It was amazing. I got down on one knee, shaking like a leaf. Ashley asked me if I had started that fight on purpose and I said yes. I won’t tell you her response, but just know that I deserved every bit of it. I asked Ashley to marry me and she said yes. We were surrounded by the cheerleaders and teachers, and the football team was bouncing up and down. Ashley motioned them all over and we were swamped. I got completely knocked out of the way, but this was their moment, too. My parents, her mom, and her grandparents were right there behind us and bore witness to the single greatest moment of my life.

WHAT MOMENT ARE YOU MOST LOOKING FORWARD TO ON YOUR WEDDING DAY?

James - I'm looking forward to the moment when I get to see Ashley in her dress for the first time. I'm going to cry or pass out. Ashley - I'm looking forward to hearing James's vows.

WHY DID YOU CHOOSE TWIN LAKES?