A Transatlantic Love Story during a Global Pandemic

After a whirlwind transatlantic romance during a global pandemic, Steven got down on one knee to propose to Ashley in Scotland with an elegant and timeless engagement ring. Here, in Ashley’s own words, she tells us about how they met, keeping their relationship alive across an ocean, and the marriage proposal. Congratulations to Ashley and Steven!

How We Met

I live in San Diego and Steven lives in the UK (in London and Scotland). We met in September 2019 while he was on holiday here in California. He decided to make his way down to San Diego from Los Angeles. We matched on Tinder and it turned out that he was less than half a mile away from me, which put us both at Sunset Cliffs where we were watching the sunset at the same time!

We decided to meet for drinks and spent the entire night talking and laughing together. He ended up walking me home – being the perfect gentleman that he is – and asked if I would do something crazy with him and spend the weekend with him in Santa Monica. I am always up for an adventure and knew I felt an instant connection from the moment I saw him and ended up saying “yes”! The weekend was wonderful; full of live music and fun. We decided to keep in touch via WhatsApp when he went back home.

A Long-Distance Relationship

We ended up speaking, FaceTiming and texting every day! Learning the times that would work for the both of us was a challenge as we lived thousands of miles from each other, but we made it work.

In November 2019, we planned for me to visit him in London and when I got there, he surprised me with a mini trip to Paris. It was a very romantic second date! After spending time together (where I had my very first Sunday roast), I knew I was willing to put in the work to enter a long-distance relationship.

As the months went by, we tackled all the hardships of being alone for the Holidays as well as the time difference, but our communication skills grew stronger and stronger by the day. In February 2020, we met for a week in Miami and had planned a big trip to Scotland the following month in March.

And then the Pandemic hit. 

Our trip was cancelled and the USA issued a travel ban that prevented any non-US citizens from coming here. I joined the Love Is Not Tourism group on Facebook for support and it helped immensely. 

As the months passed by slowly, I was working more than ever due to the many furloughs and some of my employees having to quarantine. I did not know when or how I was going to be able to see Steven again. My little ray of sunshine came in September 2020 when I was able to take 4 days off and fly to London. We had to quarantine the whole time, but I was ecstatic to be able to hold and kiss my man.

The Proposal
In December 2020, I was able to leave and we planned to meet in Scotland for Christmas and New Year. It was at the Eilean Donan Castle that Steven surprised me and asked me to marry him-, saying every King needs a Queen by their side and if I would be his. Steven had made my dreams of being a princess come true! I love Disney and he has given me a real-life fairytale. 

The Future

There is still so much uncertainty surrounding the pandemic, but we know that we will always have each other. If this is the hardest thing we have to get through in our lives, then we can get through anything!