Olivia and Brett’s story started in a way neither of them saw coming. They both transferred to Clarkson University the same year but had never met—until a baseball game, a lucky $20 bill, and a jersey brought them together. Olivia went to a baseball game with some of her hockey teammates when they noticed old baseball jerseys were being sold for $20 cash. Olivia almost never carries cash, but for some reason, she had exactly $20 on her that day. The girls thought the jerseys would be fun for parties and summer hangouts, so they each decided to grab one. Olivia ended up with #13—Brett’s number. Brett likes to joke that Olivia totally knew who he was and picked his number on purpose, but she swears she had no idea. Later, out of curiosity, she looked up whose jersey she had just claimed and saw that Brett had gone to Notre Dame. Since she had also gone to Notre Dame, she was pretty surprised. A little while later, she ran into Brett in the basement of McDuff’s and brought it up, thinking they might have some mutual friends. That’s when Brett clarified, “Not the Notre Dame you’re thinking of—I went to the one in Red Deer.” But as it turned out, his dad and uncles had all gone to the Wilcox Notre Dame, just like Olivia. They both thought it was a cool little connection. Fast forward to the next year—Olivia and Brett were chatting at McDuff’s again when Brett randomly asked, “Hey, do you know if anyone from your hockey team bought a white #13 baseball jersey last year? I’ve been trying to track it down for my mom’s birthday.” Olivia grinned and simply said, “I do,” but in her head, she knew she wasn’t going to make this too easy for him. Brett explained that his mom had been planning to buy that exact jersey but had waited until after the game to make sure he would still be wearing #13 the next season. By the time she went to get it, it was gone. When Brett found out Olivia was the one who had it, they exchanged numbers—and the rest is history. They like to think it was meant to be, and they’ll always have a special appreciation for that jersey.

Brett’s proposal was months in the making, carefully planned with the help of his parents for the ultimate surprise. It all happened in Las Vegas at the Skyfall Lounge on the 64th floor of the Delano, during their last night in the city. Olivia may have been enjoying the night a little too much when a photographer approached the group (Dean, Carmel, Jessica, Parker, Brett, and Olivia) and asked if they’d like a photo. The first to respond? Olivia—who immediately asked, “How much?” Completely unaware that this was all part of the plan, she suddenly cared about the price of a photo (which, let’s be honest, was pretty out of character). If that wasn’t a giveaway, Brett and Dean quickly chimed in, “It’s our last night! Let’s get a nice family photo.” The group stepped outside onto the patio for pictures. After a few group shots, the photographer suggested taking couple photos, and Olivia and Brett went first. Olivia wasn’t thrilled with how the photographer was positioning her—with her back to Brett—but she went along with it, attitude and all. Then, things got suspicious. Carmel started recording, Dean yelled at Jessica to stop taking selfies, and the photographer told Olivia to turn around. When she did, there was Brett, down on one knee, asking, “Will you marry me?” In total shock, Olivia gave him… her right hand. And now, here we are!