Steven’s plan; bring Lily’s 40th birthday celebration to the perfect finale by getting her to her favorite beach in Puerto Rico and proposing with the waves at her feet and the sun setting behind her.

What actually happened; celebrated harder than expected the weekend before the trip and barely made it to Miami before Steven started feeling ill. Lily spent a few days in South Beach nursing Steven back to health in hopes of being able to still travel to their island destination. When informed that Puerto Rico was not an option, Lily swallowed her disappointment and immediately got to work on extending their stay in Miami where they were stranded until he was well enough to travel back home. In that moment, as she’s deep in concentration with cancelling flights and reservations while reminding herself that Puerto Rico will always be there for a next time, Steven pulls her hand in for what she thinks is a need for comfort from his pain…

“I’m sorry… I had a whole different plan for this moment for you”, he says as he slips the ring on her finger. “But let this be my promise to spend the rest of my life making it up to you.”

Reality; the moment was perfect. The mood was changed and being able to share the understanding, appreciation and acceptance for each other during the unexpected turn of events led to a more intimate and raw moment that will forever be their own unique story.