Being fairly new to Houston, Nisla was shopping around for a new insurance company in February of 2019. A mutual friend of Leland and Nisla, Steven V., connected the two. Once a few conversations were had, chemistry was immediately felt on both sides. Leland was intrigued by her devotion to travel for a Christian conference, and Nisla was captivated by his deep voice and how he carried himself as a young Black man. A few weeks after their initial call, which stayed strictly business, an organization that Leland is a part of, Emerging 100 Black Men, was having a classy party called "Bourbon & Bow Ties" at Henke & Pillot in Houston, TX. It was that day, March 28th, 2019, where they finally met in person. Attraction was met along with genuine interests for each other. Leland followed Nisla on Instagram the following day. She accepted his request and they spoke for weeks via DM until he asked her out for an in-person date. Being extremely busy, Nisla pushed the date all the way to June 7th; however, it was that day when their date, that started at 3 p.m. and ended at 9 p.m., did they know they found something special in each other.

Leland and Nisla's values, lifestyle, and morals all synced beautifully. Seeing that they knew they were God's best for each other, they sought pre-marital counsel while they were courting to make sure that they were prepared for marriage. Once Leland felt led, he purchased a ring in February 2020, right before COVID-19 temporarily shut all businesses down. Leland planned it out with his and Nisla's closest family and friends to meet in Houston, Texas on July 12th, 2020. Leland and Nisla's official anniversary is July 11th. He knew Nisla would be suspicious of a proposal that day, so he made a plan to make her think it was happening that day. Leland planned a professional and couples photoshoot on July 12th. Unbeknownst to Nisla, while she was posing away taking her many photos, Leland had their entire family and friends (in-person and Zoom) walk up behind them while her back was turned. Leland then played one of their favorite songs, "Deep End," by Xavier Omar. He grabbed her hand softly and turned her around. To Nisla's surprise, their entire family was there and so was Leland with an engagement ring in a ring box. Leland asked for Nisla's hand in marriage and she said "Yes!" before his knee even hit the ground. Leland, got on one knee, slid the beautiful ring on her finger, and celebrated their love with those closest to them.