A Love Story...continued

A Love Story...continued

If you missed Part 1 of this story, you may want to start here.

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 okay to share my info with him. I was surprised and totally not interested. I mean, I just had my heart broken by a "younger" man and wasn't looking for someone like this as my rebound:

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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?

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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 burnt 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... 

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to this.

Image via innasdailyfix.blogspot.com

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 2 to 3 years older, but not 7. 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 eggroll] from his mom. Yum!

Image via bigboldbeautifulfood.blogspot.com

Here's where we shifted from friends to future love. This man listened to what I had to say and heard me 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?

The 2nd Time We Met - A Love Story

Thinking about how Mr. Hot Tea and I met reminds me of those adorable couples in the movie "When Harry Met Sally" who describe how they fell in love.

Image via thelexicinema.co.uk

Harry Burns: The first time we met, we hated each other.

Sally Albright: No, you didn't hate me, I hated you. The second time we met, you didn't even remember me.

Harry Burns: I did too, I remembered you. The third time we met, we became friends.

Sally Albright: We were friends for a long time.

Harry Burns: And then we weren't.

Sally Albright: And then we fell in love.

via

Whenever we begin telling our love story, it starts with a similar script, only set in a doctor's office. You see, Mr. HT and I work for different companies in pharmaceutical sales. I like to say that we are legal drug dealers! 

don't we look professional?

We met three different times in the same year. The first time was in a doctor's office. Mr. HT warmly introduced himself. I, on the other hand, was private and reserved. I shook his hand, said hello, and went back to reviewing my product information while he waited to speak with the doctor.

Mr. HT says of that meeting he thought I was cute and stand-offish, and noticed an engagement ring on my finger. What he didn't know at the time was the failing state of that relationship. Instead, he accepted I was taken and that was that.

Fast forward four months. I had mustered the courage to leave my ex after discovering hundreds of text messages written to a "friend" on our joint cell phone bill. Suffering a bruised ego and broken heart, bi-weekly therapy sessions with a psychologist called in just for the occasion helped me get over a major depressive episode and confident enough to work again.

Image via images.cheezburger.com

It was a late Friday afternoon in a doctor's office in a nearby town. This time the tables were turned -- I was in the back waiting to talk with the doctor when Mr. HT came in. The receptionist decided to revoke my welcome and called my name over the announcement system. Mortified, I rushed to the front desk. There stood a grinning Mr. HT. I remembered his name, but not our first meeting several months earlier. Annoyed to be called out, I reluctantly accompanied him back since he offered to introduce me to the doctor I was waiting for. 

The doctor was nice enough and asked why Mr. HT was not yet dating me. [Sidenote - doctors and office staff had tried to set up dates for Mr. HT for years in an attempt to get him to settle down, so this question was apparently not out of his norm.] Mr. HT politely replied that I was married. 

Dear Hive, you already know that this was not how my story ended. And so I explained that while no longer engaged, I was one week in to my fresh new start of work and life. Whaaaa?

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Stunned, mouths agape, they tried to smooth over the situation with apologies. I was okay with it, part of healing was being honest with myself. Just like it says in the Bible, the truth shall make you free.

Of course there is a third time we met...and I'll save that story for next time!

Now it's your turn to share. I'm interested to know if it was at first sight or after a few choice encounters for you to fall for your beloved?