It was 4am in the morning on Thursday, May 11th, 2006 when my alarm rang, waking me up for my early flight to Las Vegas. My best friend and I were flying out to Vegas for Mother’s Day weekend with my parents and we were all looking forward to a weekend of sun and fun! Little did I know, my life was about to change forever. We scheduled the first flight out on JetBlue so we could be at the pool before noon. After a smooth check-in, breakfast at the terminal, we boarded the plane and settled into our seats; my parents on one side of the aisle, my best friend, Shari, and I on the other. I glanced over to see who was seated next to my mother and to my surprise, there was this incredibly good looking guy. We immediately noticed each other and exchanged smiles. I instantly thought to myself “I am sitting in the wrong seat! I should be sitting where my mother is!‿ I was piqued with curiosity about this handsome stranger and felt there was an instant connection in our glances. I even whispered to my friend that I wished I were sitting in my mom’s seat!

The plane took off and periodically I noticed my ‘mystery’ man glancing over and smiling at me. I smiled back and watched as he engaged in conversation with my mother every so often. I wondered what they were talking about, wishing it were me having that conversation and not my mother! Midway through the flight, my ‘mystery’ man got up to use the restroom so I seized the moment and got up as well to see if we would exchange more than glances. Luckily, there was a line and the second I got there, my ‘mystery’ man turned around and started talking to me. We were locked in casual conversation for several minutes as we waited. Both of us seemed gripped by our chat, but then the line ended, we each used the lavatory and returned to our respective seats. Still glancing over at one another from time to time, I felt my heart beat faster and I filled with excitement. How could that be for a guy I didn’t even know?! Shortly after, I noticed him checking his wallet to see if he had a business card handy. He did, and I watched him put it somewhere he’d have easy access to. Was he going to give it to me? Hmmm….I wondered.

Later on, a series of circumstances transpired that resulted in me sitting next to this incredible stranger. We immediately continued our conversation and more formally introduced ourselves. My ‘mystery’ man now had a name, Darren. We talked about everything from New York City, where we grew up, where we live now, what restaurants we like, what our plans were while in Vegas, etc. Conversation flowed easily – almost as if we had met before that day. There was an obvious attraction between he and I and both of us seemed very excited as we shared our stories. Time passed quickly and before we knew it our flight was about to land. By then, Darren and I had already exchanged business cards, cell phone numbers and I was hopeful we would meet up at some time in the future. Multiple times he asked me if I ever wanted to go to dinner to drop him an email. I wondered if he was serious or not. As we got off the plane, we said our goodbyes and secretly I hoped to myself that we would meet again. We had an instant connection, an ease in our conversation and I felt like I knew him more than just a few short hours on the plane.

After being ‘peppered’ with questions by the inquiring minds of both my mother and my best friend, we collected our luggage and headed off to the Bellagio to begin our weekend of fun in the sun. Less than 30 minutes after we arrived at the pool, a text message came in on my phone. I assumed it was a friend checking on our safe arrival, but much to my surprise – it was Darren checking to see if we made it to the hotel and had our room. I responded to his text and as I closed my phone I thought to myself…‿I think I just met the man I am going to marry’. I never shared that thought with anyone. Later that night Darren arranged for us to meet up for drinks, and then again a few more times while we were in Vegas. We were leaving a day apart so we said our goodbyes, me wondering if this would be the typical ‘What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas?‿ or will he be true to his word and we would see each other back in New York ….

Much to my delight, Darren contacted me immediately upon his return to NY and we arranged for our first official ‘date’. From that day forward, we continued to see each other often, and our dates quickly developed into a solid, loving relationship. We met each other’s friends and family, escaped for a few weekend getaways and just enjoyed each other as our love and friendship deepened with each passing day. At the beginning of December, we boarded another JetBlue flight to Las Vegas to celebrate our six-month anniversary. It was another magical trip, one that solidified our amazing connection; a connection that I believe, only a few people in this world are lucky enough to find.

Six weeks later, I traveled to Budapest on a business trip and Darren flew over to join me for the weekend. Shortly after his arrival, we took a walk along the Danube River and while admiring the beautiful lights illuminating the city, Darren started recapping our relationship, the day we met on JetBlue and every detail from the time we met to the present. Then right there he turned to me and asked me to marry him. It was the most beautiful and special moment of my entire life and I could not say YES fast enough.

Darren is the love of my life, my best friend and the man I cannot wait to share the rest of my life with. There is no greater love than the love we share and I look forward to someday telling our magical story to our children, grandchildren and great grandchildren. Maybe one of them will be as lucky as we were to be on a JetBlue flight and find the person they want to be with for the rest of their lives.