Who doesn’t love Black love?! We do and we have the “Put A Ring On It” series just to prove it. Each week, we’ll feature YOUR engagement and wedding stories, articles on love, romantic photos and even a few tips that’ll help you on your Big Day. Check back each week for a new installment in our “Put A Ring On It” series!
This week, we’re sharing Rashida Maples Watkis’ story on her engagement to now-husband Brian Watkis. The couple got married on August 31, 2013, but Rashida remembers her engagement clearly.
September 29, 2012, my girlfriends and family decided to host a birthday dinner for me in Brooklyn, New York. At that time, Brian and I had been dating for a little over 3 years, but we were currently living in different cities as he had just moved out of New York for work. I was pretty bummed that he would not be able to make it to New York for my birthday, but I had already booked a flight to go see him the next weekend, so I wasn’t totally bummed. My girlfriends came to pick me up from Harlem for my birthday, and as we made it over the Brooklyn Bridge, we got pulled over by the cops. So here we were: 1) LATE for the dinner 2) receiving constant phone calls from the other guests like, “Hurry Up” 3) my girlfriend is freaking out over getting a ticket and 4) the humidity that night was crazy so my hair was poofing up.
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Needless to say, when I arrived at the birthday dinner, I was quickly handed a cocktail and sat down to enjoy the evening. I noticed that my best girlfriend from Memphis was there, but was just surprised and happy about it. No red flags were waving because I figured she decided to come to NY for my birthday since she knew I was bummed about a lot of things going on around that time.
We drank, we ate, we laughed and right when I made a declaration to everyone that we were all going out, I got a text from Brian. It was a picture of the Brooklyn Bridge with a note that said, “Come Find Me.” I dashed out of that restaurant like Usain Bolt and ran straight to the middle point in between the Brooklyn and Manhattan Bridges. Brian was standing there waiting on me with candles, champagne, music, a very big smile and an equally big hug. I was crying and did not want to let him go. We had gone looking for rings several months before, but I never knew when he was going to ask me. With his move out of town, and a family gathering that passed, which I initially thought would be the “proposal,” I just never knew when or if he still planned on popping the question.
After getting down on one knee and asking me to marry him, I, of course, said yes!! We kissed, I cried, I called my mama on the phone, then we went back to the dinner for toasts and well wishes from our friends. It was, honestly, one of the happiest nights of my life!
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PUT A RING ON IT: Rashida & Brian’s NYC Love Story & Engagement Will Make You Swoon…Promise [VIDEO] was originally published on hellobeautiful.com
