Weddingbee Blog

If you missed part one of this story, click the back arrow to read my previous post.

This time, Mr. Hot Tea would not be deterred. After no luck searching for my business card in the office, he contacted my teammate to get my number. She called to ask what happened and if it was OK to share my info with him. I was surprised and totally not interested. I mean, I had just had my heart broken by a “younger” man and wasn’t looking for someone like this as my rebound:

Image via Not Just New Movies / Movie credit: Love and Other Drugs

She assured me that he was “older” and that it wouldn’t hurt for me to have friends in the field. Point taken, and I gave up the digits for a good time. Anyone old enough to remember this?

Image via Geekologie

Ten minutes later, little did I know, I was chatting it up with my future husband! Mr. HT apologized profusely about the office incident. I learned that he lived with and took care of his mom and that his grandparents’ house had burned down a few weeks earlier. Through it all, he maintained a positive and cheerful attitude. There’s something very attractive to me about a man who cares so much for his family. Hmmm, maybe there was potential here.

He texted a few days later and invited me out for coffee, except he doesn’t drink coffee. He prefers TEA! And he was feeling hungry, so he asked if I would like to eat soup instead. How tricky! He got me out on a date, and I was none the wiser. We met at P.F. Chang’s where the wonton soup would win over my heart.

From this…

Image via brand channel

…to this.

Image via My Daily Fix

We talked and talked. I thought he was a slick 25-year-old salesman. When Mr. HT told me he was 39 years old, I didn’t believe it—he looked so young! I know age ain’t nothing but a number, but this was quite an age difference. I had dated guys two to three years older, but not seven. Then again, I wasn’t looking for a date, so it didn’t really matter either way. Right?

A few days later, Mr. HT visited me to go for a walk on the beach. We were still in friend mode—so I thought—until he showed up with my childhood favorite ice cream (mint chocolate chip) and homemade lumpia (a Filipino egg roll) from his mom. Yum!

Image via Big, Bold, Beautiful Food

Here’s where we shifted from friends to something romantic. This man listened to what I had to say and heard my express wants and needs. He paid attention and demonstrated thoughtfulness to go out of his way to do something nice for me. Whoa. Totally unexpected and exactly the best thing to happen to me. I accepted his generosity, a value I had yet to be fully shown in a relationship. To commemorate the walk and in true Asian style, we captured a photo of that first date.

* personal photo *

And that, my friends, is how our love story began!

Do you remember the first time you had those feelings shift to more than friends? Was it a slow simmer or hot right from the start?