It all began in August of 1996, on the corner of Madison St. and Mason Ave, just a few steps away from Nicole's mother's flower shop on the Westside of Chicago. Nicole had the day off and was with her mother, Mary, when they noticed a group of city workers sitting around—supposedly repairing a fire hydrant, though they didn’t seem to be working much at all. Cedric, was sitting on a milk crate, enjoying a popsicle. Nicole, always with a sense of humor, decided to have a little fun. She walked up to the workers and said, “Hi, I’m from Channel 2 News, Walter Jacobson’s investigative reporting. Can you tell me if you’re on break?” At that time, city workers were being investigated for inefficient use of their work hours. The workers immediately scrambled to get to work—except Cedric, who calmly continued eating his popsicle on his milk crate. It was then that Nicole noticed him. She saw his broad shoulders, his bright white smile, and the fact that he wasn’t wearing a wedding ring. After revealing she was just joking, Nicole went into the flower shop with her mother, but the encounter stayed on her mind. Later that day, she ran into one of Cedric’s coworkers and learned that he had a child. She decided to leave it at that assuming he probably was married. But the story didn’t end there. The very next day, Cedric went into the flower shop and asked Mary for Nicole's number. Mary called Nicole to ask if she should give it to him. Nicole, intrigued but cautious, asked if it was the person she was interested in. Mary wasn't sure so Nicole told her to “Just give it to him” hoping it was the right person. A few days later, Cedric called Nicole from a payphone and asked if she could “pencil him in” for a movie date. And from that moment on, their love story began! He was in fact the right person! Nicole & Cedric married on August 28, 1999