It all started on an ordinary day at Starbucks, when Rylie was in line placing her order.

“What are you ordering?” a guy asked, a smile playing at the corners of his lips.

Rylie looked up and met his gaze. He seemed friendly, maybe even a little nervous. “An iced caramel macchiato ,” she replied, amused by how he seemed oddly intrigued by her indecision.

“Anything with caramel sounds good to me,” he said with a casual shrug, his eyes warm and inviting. “I’ll get the same.”

Rylie raised an eyebrow. “You just copied my order.”

He grinned, clearly unbothered. “Guilty. But… I didn’t even like coffee. I just needed an excuse to talk to you.”

Her heart skipped a beat. She couldn’t help but laugh. “Well, that’s one way to get a conversation going.”

The two chatted while they waited for their drinks, the connection instant and undeniable. As they grabbed their orders, Bret casually asked for her number, and Rylie, intrigued by his honesty and charm, happily obliged.

Their first date was a few days later, and from that moment, it felt like they’d known each other forever. Bret never left her apartment after that. They quickly became inseparable—laughing together, talking for hours, and building something deeper than either of them had expected.

It wasn’t until months into their relationship that they discovered an unexpected coincidence. One day, as they were talking about their pasts, Rylie casually mentioned a walk she’d taken around a pond two years ago with her dog. To her surprise, Bret’s eyes widened. He’d been there too, sitting in a hammock, and even asked to pet her dog. He also was a frequent customer at Rylie’s first job. Neither of them had noticed the other, but it was a strange feeling, knowing they had crossed paths long before they even knew they’d eventually meet.

Just three months into their relationship, life threw them a beautiful curveball: they found out they were expecting a baby. The news was overwhelming at first, but it brought them even closer. Their little boy, Parker, is the light of their lives. Every day, Bret and Rylie marveled at how much love they had for this tiny person, and how much more their love for each other had grown since becoming parents.

And now, as they prepare for their wedding, they look back on their journey with hearts full of gratitude. From that simple moment at Starbucks to their growing family, Rylie and Bret knew that their love story was just beginning. And with Parker by their side, their lives were about to be even more wonderful than they'd ever dreamed

(written with help from chatgpt)

Photos