Nick and Emma met during the depths of the 2020 Covid lockdown via a popular dating app. Nick had just moved to Atlanta one month prior after graduating with his PhD and Master's from Virginia Tech, and Emma had just finished her first of four years at Emory getting her JD and MBA. Nick was excited about "meeting new people" as a brand new Atlantien, but Emma was feeling a little tired of the dating app scene, so when Nick first reached out, it took Emma about 2 weeks to reply to each of his first couple messages. But luckily Nick stuck with it, and the two enjoyed a series of fun (mostly outdoor) first dates, including hiking Atlanta's Stone Mountain, playing tennis (Emma won, of course) and adventuring down to Columbus, GA to go whitewater rafting. At the end of the day, both Emma and Nick are so incredibly grateful that they found each other despite the obstacles that the global pandemic had on dating.

Nick remembers clearly leaving their first date - which was filled with plenty of laughter, thought-provoking discussion, and genuine authenticity - thinking "I've done it - I found my girl and I'm so relieved to be done dating." His faith in Emma was further cemented a few weeks later when she watched with him every second of a Columbus Blue Jackets playoff hockey game that unexpectedly went into 5 overtimes and lasted over 6 hours - and she stuck around for the whole thing! It didn't take long for him to be saying "I love you" shortly after that!

Despite Nick turning her down for a evening walk around town (at 8:30 pm) on their first date - making Emma skeptical about whether he was even interested - Nick quickly scheduled a second date for a few days later. On their second date, Emma remembers both of them spilled their dinner, at which point she knew they were kindred spirits. After their second date, Emma knew that Nick was going to be the one, and clearly remembers calling her mom after Nick dropped her off and walked her to her front door, saying "I guess when you know you know!"

Nick proposed to Emma in March of 2023 in Breckenridge, Colorado on a ski trip with a bunch of their friends. Emma was none the wiser (and may have made it a little difficult for Nick to plan a full surprise), however Nick executed the proposal of Emma's dreams perfectly. Nick set up rose petals and candles on the patio of Emma's parents' home in Breckenridge, and got down on one knee. Afterwards, all of their friends who were in Breckenridge with them came out with matching "She Said Yes!" hats, and Emma's two brothers even surprised Emma and came out of hiding, which was total icing on the cake! Obviously Emma said yes...the easiest question she has ever been asked!