The year was 2017. Everyone was breathing confidently on each other and high-fiving with their hands instead of elbows. Working from home was shameful and we all knew if you did it you weren't actually working. No one was Tik Toking. Jessica decided she had enough of high fashion corporate lady-bossing and took up an offer from her mentor to join a burgeoning movie streaming company called EPIX. She heard that the engineering department was sidestepping the hiring rules and had to act. She quickly identified the rogue culprit, Ben Van Wagner. Calling him into her office, she was immediately underwhelmed. This was the guy everyone was telling me about? Her mentor had even specifically mentioned she would like him. Sure he was tall, and OK he is handsome, but he is breaking the rules and that isn't cool. When confronted with change, men tend to fight for the status quo. Ben was no different. What was he doing wrong? Things had been working out very well, why make the process more complicated? Just let them handle the hiring. Jess found him very annoying and conceited, and sent him on his way unsure if he was going to listen to her direction. Luckily, things only got better after that. The two really hit it off at the Halloween party, and stayed out all night talking. The next day they both pretended to be sick, something you could do at the time, and had a classic New York date; they grabbed sandwiches at The Original Sandwich Shoppe, had coffee in Washington Square park, and bowled at Chelsea piers before walking along the river. That is when, on a pier as the sun set, they had their first kiss.

Ben really wanted to make the proposal meaningful, fun and unique. He knew it would involve making Jess's favorite meal of Chicken Piccata, but where should he pop the question? They had spent most of their time together in NYC, so that was a top pick. Jess also loved Napa so Ben began planning a trip out west. It was still early in Covid, so travel was a possibility, and a Airbnb with wine tours sounded amazing. He could drop down on one knee at her favorite winery! Quickly that idea faded as the country shut down. Ben was un-phased, after all he could make an incredible Chicken Piccata anywhere. He remembered seeing signs for chalets when they visited Hocking Hills State Park just south of Columbus which sound fancy and romantic, so he started looking. The couple then went on a trip to Chicago in October to visit a specific jeweler and made a date weekend out of it. That served as inspiration for visiting a local jeweler and they quickly discovered their shared love for an oval ring. Ben secretly snuck out the following weekend and purchased the ring. He booked a chalet and put time on Jess' calendar for the magic weekend of December 19th. He stocked up on groceries, wood for a fire, flowers, candles and even bought comfy blankets and hid them in the car until they were ready to go. They arrived Saturday morning and quickly unloaded to take advantage of the perfect winter day, starting with a hike at nearby Rock House trail. They relaxed in the hot-tub and enjoyed some wine, playing darts before getting ready for dinner. The meal was great, and they opened a special bottle of wine to celebrate the weekend together. When they finished, Ben asked if she would like dessert, and to check the microwave where he had previously hidden her favorite Chips A'hoy cookies. Perplexed and intrigued, she went over and saw the cookies. When she turned around asking how these got there, Ben was down on one knee. Will you do me the honor of making me your husband Jess?