What it Took to Meet the Man of My Dreams

I am engaged to my soulmate. I know, I know, you've heard it all before right?

Well, I really am.

I met Ryan a few years ago on my birthday. Let me tell you, it was very unexpected.

Here's my story:

I've had the WORST luck in relationships in the past. I've dated one cheater after another. No one I dated treated me right. I've been emotionally, mentally and physically abused one too many times.

I won't bore you with stories about any of those relationships though. They are in the past and over with. Thank God! (I am going to briefly talk about the last one though)

My last relationship lasted more than a year and it was with a very immature, lying, cheating guy. It was a VERY irritating and stressful time for me. I also got pregnant. During most of my pregnancy, I spent most of my time alone or at my mother's house with her and my sister. The guy I was dating was constantly out with "friends", supposedly "working", somewhere high or drunk, or who knows where else. We constantly argued when he was around. After I gave birth to my adorable baby boy, I developed post partum depression. I was put on medication to help me feel better and I spent more time with my mom and sister.
I finally tried to break up with my ex and he attempted to commit suicide. Enough was enough. I was traumatized, super stressed, and exhausted. I moved in with friends and eventually my son and I left the state to stay with my dad and stepmom. We came back a couple of months later, and the ex tried to start bothering me again. He wanted nothing to do with my son. Instead, he constantly complained that he couldn't understand why I wouldn't get back with him.
SERIOUSLY? SERIOUSLY. Some guys are just idiots...

I decided that I didn't want to be with anyone at the time. I wasn't ready to meet anyone just yet since it seemed like it was always one disappointment after another. And this time, I had my son to worry about too. I had to make sure that the next person I met would be good with my son too.

 

ANYWAY,

My birthday came around and a group of my friends and I headed downtown to bar hop. I hadn't been out in months, thanks to all the ex drama and stress, so going out with friends was just what I needed.

At the bar, I locked eyes with a handsome green eyed guy in a suit. He just stood out. He approached me, introduced himself as Ryan, we talked a bit, he bought me a drink and we danced. We were having such a great time. I don't know what it was, but somehow, and NO, I never did this before actually knowing someone, but, we ended up kissing.

-I honestly believe that EVERYTHING happens for a reason!!!!-

I don't know who leaned in first, but there was something about the kiss that sent chills down my spine. We exchanged numbers toward the end of the night and said our goodbyes.

I could not get that kiss out of my mind. I didn't know how I should feel or what I should do. Should I call him? Should I just move on with my life? I still didn't know if I was really ready to start a relationship with anyone. What if it ended up being like all the rest?

I talked to my mom and my sister. My younger sister thought I should text him and my mom said to just be patient and let things just happen on their own.

I took my sister's advice and sent him a text. We started to text back and forth, getting to know eachother a little better, but I still wasn't sure I was ready for anything else. I learned that he was a writer (so was I!), he was funny, and he did house remodelling with his family.

He asked me out on a few dates, but I just couldn't yet. Not only did I not have a babysitter on those particular nights, but I was also still too scared to get into anything with anyone.

I knew he was probably getting sick of being blown off, but I was not ready. PERIOD. I stopped texting for a little while...

A few weeks later, I was on facebook and decided to look him up and then I saw his picture. No, not this picture above. It was an entirely different picture, but anyway, just looking at him made me think of that night and the kiss and how I felt then. I don't know how to explain it, but I just had this feeling in my stomach.
I told myself that it was time to give it a shot. I sent him a message. He replied. He asked me out on a date and I finally agreed!

However, the night before the date, a friend of mine invited me to a night club with her to meet up with some of her other friends too. I went and she suggested I invite Ryan. I thought, well, maybe it might make our date the next day a little easier if we met up in a group. I called him, invited him and he brought his cousin along too. I was really nervous at first when he showed up. He looked at me and I instantly got butterflies. Something about those green eyes. They were such a gorgeous color. He was dressed really nice too and he smelled really good. He introduced us to his cousin Drew and then we all got drinks. We talked and danced and everyone had a great time. I was excited about our date the next night and so was he.

When he picked me up the next night, I started to get a little nervous again. I know, we had already met up the night before, but I was still a bit nervous. He asked me what my favorite restaurant was and that's where we went. The whole car ride, I felt a little shy. I didn't know what to say or how to sit or how to function when it was just us two. LOL.

We ate at a nice Italian restaurant and got to talking. I could tell he was really intelligent and had a great sense of humor. Everything he said was interesting or funny. He kept eye contact and talked and talked and talked. I'm glad he talked as much as he did (I think he might have been a little nervous too actually), because I had no idea what to talk about, on my own.

The date went great. By the end of the night, it got easier to talk to him. He made me feel very comfortable and was really sweet to me. He took me home and told me he'd love to take me out again.

About 2 and a half years later...

We are engaged at the moment. He asked me a few months ago. We are very much in love. He is the most intelligent, passionate, and hard working man I have ever met. He is also the greatest "stepfather" to my son, who loves him dearly and calls him dad. My son is barely going to be 4 and so Ryan is really the only father that he has ever known.

Ryan is my best friend and my partner. I feel like we are very much alike and can talk to eachother about anything and everything. Sure occasionally we have our disagreements and arguments, but what relationship doesn't? Even when we do argue, we eventually apologize and remind eachother how much we love eachother.

We live together, work together, wrote a book together and are raising our son together. We have also become closer to God together. In fact, we both believe that it was God who brought us together in the first place. I can't wait to get married and am ready to spend the rest of my life with him.

He is the most amazing person I have ever been with. He has shown me that not all guys are the same. He has never cheated on me, nor lied to me, nor done anything to really hurt me. So if you are reading this and have been in horrible relationships or are in one at the moment, don't give up! I believe that there is someone out there for us all, and if you keep your eyes open, you will eventually meet them.