I met Tony on 24 January 2002 in the lift at the Moat House Hotel in Stoke on Trent. I was staying there on business and had decided to go for a swim before dinner. As I got in to the lift I was aware of someone else following me so I held the door open. Tony got in to the lift, looked down at my bare feet and said ‘you’re not going far then!’. I laughed and we got chatting. Later in the bar we continued our conversation and got on famously.
The next day Tony went home to Norfolk and I went off to work and then home to Birmingham. The following Monday I returned for my second week at the hotel. I was astonished when the receptionist allocated me the room Tony had used the week before. I emailed him to say what a coincidence this was and that was the start of our relationship.
For two years we did the ‘long distance’ thing and saw each other at weekends and holidays. In November 2003 we started talking about getting married and one Sunday we went to look at engagement rings. I tried a few on and was just admiring one when Tony said ‘you can have that one if that’s the one you want’. Well my mouth flew open and I burst into tears on the spot. The girls in the shop presented us with chocolates and champagne and off we went. I still had to wait two weeks for the proposal though. On the day Tony asked me to be his wife it was freezing cold. He took me to several different sights and places in Norfolk throughout the day until, at 3.50pm in the freezing cold and drizzling rain we ended up on a deserted and very beautiful beach. I looked out to sea and as I turned round to look at Tony he was standing on the beach in the dusk with the ring in his hand. He said ‘I love you as much as I love this place. Will you marry me?’. I’d said yes before he even finished speaking and then, laughing with excitement and joy, we jumped back in the car and went home for hot chocolate and to tell everyone the great news.
I moved to Norfolk in January 2004 and the wedding is booked for September 2006. I love Tony with all my heart and feel so very lucky to have found such a wonderful man to share my life with.
