As Pattos was lounging with Gussos at Janice Way, chowing on some Grimaldi's and waiting for Tommy boy to take the field, he was nonchalantly swiping right on all sorts of Bumble babes, stacking the odds in his favor. Then all of a sudden, he stumbled across a rare gem and quickly forgot about all the other bees. She was blonde, athletic, ambitious, and the ranch to his fries! When she didn't respond on bumble, he used his sales tactics and slid into her DMs ("Direct Messages" on Instagram for you elders ;)) with a witty comment, reeling her right in. He quickly found out she lived in California and naturally started gearing up his status to A-List Preferred. After a year of exchanging messages off-and-on from AZ to CA in 2017, they decided it was time to finally meet. A couple of bloody mary's garnished with sliders and the rest was history!

The ring arrived on March 25th, 2020. Patrick wondered if he should wait a few weeks for the dust settle with this COVID thing (ha!), and try to carry out the original, elaborate proposal. But the impatience quickly set in, and I mean quickly. After he picked up the ring in the AM, he decided it had to happen tonight and a new plan was put in motion. Lauren fell for the bait. She was working from home and over being inside after several weeks (ha!), so Patrick threw out the idea of getting take-out and hitting the beach for some fresh air and a classic CA sunset. As they got to Newport Beach, Patrick became super nervous, and luckily, Lauren missed the glaring sign that something was up... he didn’t EAT his dinner! If any of you know him, he usually finishes his plate before Lauren can start hers and then finishes her scraps. But this time "he wasn't hungry" (!) as the nerves were setting in. As Lauren took her sweet time finishing up her tacos, Patrick asked if she wanted some wine, but surprisingly pulled out a ring box and got on one knee. Having no recollection of what was actually said, and trying not to choke on that last bite of taco, they were engaged!! Within minutes of proposing and getting out as many tears as possible, quarantine buddy and bridesmaid, Kelly Collins, showed up with a bottle of Veuve and a backup photographer to capture the epic moment. It ended up being the perfect night that will never be forgotten.

Lauren's MOH, Katie Chacon and her husband bought a house in Scottsdale, AZ in 2013 where Lauren frequents a couple of times a year. Coincidentally, Patrick's older brother and sister-in-law, Kirk and Marisa, owned the house 2 doors down from 2007-2018, where Patrick briefly lived as well in 2013! When the Chacon's first moved in, Allan remembers meeting some guy that was like 8' tall with a yellow puppy. Needless to say, Patrick didn't get lost picking Lauren up for their first date. After Patrick and Lauren went on their first few dates, they found out they each had upcoming bachelor/bachelorette parties.... in Austin... on the same weekend! After Patrick crashed the bachelorette party with his trusty wingman, just to see Lauren again, they knew it was the beginning of a lifetime together! Thanks, Erin and Litwer! Patrick, Lauren and their friend Kelly all call themselves "THE CINDYS". Let's just say it started with some fries, Chris Farley and a dream. So if you hear them call Patrick, "Cindy", it's completely normal. Lauren and Mrs. Griff ran a background check on Patrick prior to their first date. Haha. Safety first!