*As told by Rob.

In the 8 years since Hannah and I have been together, we’ve gotten to know and love each other better than anyone else. This also means that she has developed an acute ability to press my buttons at every possible juncture, whenever she so desires. Pulling off a surprise engagement proposal is a nerve-racking enough endeavor for any guy, and it is made that much harder when the girl of your dreams – wittingly or not – almost foils it at each stage. Instead of the fulsome story, I thought I would share some of the evening’s highlights below:

- Walking around midtown Manhattan with a newly purchased engagement ring in your pocket naturally puts you on high alert. The last person I would expect to reach into my pocket is, of course, Hannah, as she gives me all her belongings to hold.

- While at the restaurant, Hannah breaks the silence with her casual question of “So, any new developments?” This is, of course, referring to updates in my plan of proposing to her and a go-to question that she teasingly enjoyed asking me for the greater part of 2023.

- As we make our way up to our apartment rooftop, I slowly open the door to the arrangement of flowers and lights decorated into a walkway to the mezzanine where I planned on proposing. Hannah, of course refused to take my hand and follow me. As I asked her to come join me, she shockingly responds “Rob, stop! Clearly someone up here is getting engaged.”

- To say I did not know how to react was an understatement, and the only reply I could muster was “Yeah… and who do you think that might be?”

- While taking a picture of her ring near the railing, it slips off her finger and nearly plunges 21 floors onto Park Avenue.

Whether it was luck, divine intervention, or my learned ability to maneuver Hannah’s curveballs, it seemed like we were destined to enjoy the perfect engagement night together.