Our Love Story: How We Met

Lately, I’ve read so many sweet love stories that I decided I wanted to share mine and Cory’s. Not only so I can remember it one day {because my brain is already forgetting so much of it} but so y’all can get to know me and my sweet hubs a little better. Over the next couple weeks, I will be sharing how we met, our proposal, our wedding and our honeymoon! I’m so excited to relive these pre-blog events and hope y’all will enjoy our love story!

I’ll be popping in from time to time to tell you how it really went. –Cory

Cory and I first met in 2005, towards the end of my senior year of high school, when he started working as a bag boy at my dads grocery store {where I worked}. Funny story, Cory actually applied for a job a couple of times because his friend Zach worked there but my dad wouldn’t hire him with his long hair and all. A few months later, my dad was out of town and my Uncle Mark was shorthanded and Cory came in to see Zach and left with a job. When my dad got back, he didn’t know Mark had hired him but what could he do at that point? Little did he know that one day that “long haired hippie” would be his son in law. {Don’t worry, my dad was completely wrong about Cory and now I think he likes him more than me}

Cory: The first time I met Jeff, I had been out with Zach that day and was wearing a pair of blown out jeans that had no knees and the hind end was covered in duct tape to hold it together. Due to unforeseen circumstances, I couldn’t get home in time to change into appropriate clothes before work. I found out that Jeff was back in town and I was trying to hide from him because the other workers had told me he was angry that I had been hired. I accidentally passed him in one of the aisles and had no choice but to say hello. He responded by looking me up and down and walking off. Not a good start. 

At the time, we were both in relationships but quickly became work friends and for months, that’s all it was. He was my go-to bag boy and my break partner but we never hung out outside of work and I don’t think I even had his number.

Cory: I still have the scrap of receipt paper that Paige first wrote her cell phone number on for me. Obviously I liked her more than she liked me. 

In the fall of 2005, I started my freshman year at Clemson, moved on campus and didn’t work my first semester. And honestly, I really didn’t think about Cory again until Halloween night.

Cory: Liar. 

My parents used to have a hoedown at their barn, always around Halloween, for their employees and families to come out, eat some good food, and listen to some live music, which just so happened to be provided by Cory and his friends. So that Halloween, I went home to go to the hoedown. I was still in a relationship with the same guy from high school but I remember thinking that night how lucky Cory’s girlfriend was because he could play guitar and sing to her.

Cory: Look how cool I look! I need that tie and my hair back… Yes, that is a pink/gray clip-on tie with a thermal shirt, cowboy hat, and rope sandals. Apparently doesn’t take much to impress Paige. 

Little did I know that Cory and his girlfriend had recently gone through a pretty nasty break up and my dad, who had gotten really close to Cory, told him the best way to get over her was just completely put her out of his life- no texting, no calling, no Myspace {I’m really showing my age here, aren’t I?}.

My boyfriend had come with me to the hoedown and I introduced him to Cory and over the next couple weeks, he and Cory hung out a few times because Cory was helping him on the guitar. Awkward.

Now, something I’m not proud of is how I handled things with the relationship I was in. I was young and dumb and felt smothered by him for the majority of our relationship. I had tried to break up with him once before but he seemed really unstable and I was afraid of what he might do to himself. I soon found myself making up reasons to go to the store to see Cory, eventually we exchanged numbers and we even hung out a few times {just a friends} but I started to have feelings for him and I neglected to tell my boyfriend. In the beginning of December, I finally had the guts to break things off with the boyfriend and I knew it would be messy. He was really upset and I felt bad for hurting him but also felt so relieved.

Cory: So was I. Jackpot. 

For the next month and half, Cory and I spent nearly every day together but desperately tried to keep it a secret. You see, my dad’s grocery store is a family business and many of the employees have worked there my entire life. Sometimes, it felt like I had six or seven dads because I could never get by with anything at the store. Everyone was in my business! And that’s exactly why I didn’t want everyone knowing.

Since I was on Christmas break, I was back at the store working and Cory I were watched like hawks because we had already both been asked by my dad if there was anything going on and we both told him we were just friends but it was pretty obvious we were more than friends.

Cory: Most Terrifying Moment: Sitting in the office with Paige’s dad and he says, “So what’s going on with you and my daughter?” 

When I didn’t answer right away he said, “She says y’all are just friends…is that true?” 

Panicking, I stammered, “Um…yeah. W-whatever she said.” 

He says “If it turns into more you will take care of her. Correct?” 

“Y-y-yessir.” 

He ends the conversation with “Go get buggies.” 

When Jason, one of the managers, caught us kissing on the security camera, the cat was out of the bag. But in our defense, I was getting in my car to leave and Jason was trying to catch us since neither one of us would admit we were dating.

Cory: All up in our business. Every employee on duty that night was crowded in the office watching the security camera. 

Since Cory and I had both just gotten out of relationships, we didn’t want to rush anything or immediately jump back into a relationship even though we were both exclusive. So we were dating but technically not in a relationship {makes sense, right? Ha!} and I made sure that Cory knew he had to actually ask me to be his girlfriend. It was now January of 2006 and Martin Luther King weekend rolled around. Since I had long weekend from school, Cory asked me if I wanted to go to Charleston with him. No hesitation on my part, of course I did!

When we got to Charleston, Cory wanted to go straight to Folly Beach to watch the sunset and on the coast of Carolina, Cory asked me to be his girlfriend. I know, cue the “awws”.

Cory: I’m precious. 

I quickly fell in love with Cory’s crystal blue eyes and his free spirit and it was a feeling like I had never known. My heart was just so crazy for his long hair and unique sense of style collection of t-shirts!

Cory: Judging by the photos here, my entire wardrobe consisted of a straw cowboy hat and thermal shirts. I did have pretty hair though.  

He was so different than any guy I’d ever dated {which was a good thing} and very early in our relationship, I knew he was the one I wanted to be with forever. But I’m not stupid and didn’t want to scare him away, so I didn’t tell him this until a couple years later when we actually started talking about marriage.

Now, I have to keep it real and say that our relationship wasn’t all gum drops and rainbows. We were so young {18 and 20} when we started dating and in the beginning there was plenty of deceit, lies, and heartbreak galore but when I pictured my life without him in it, it always hurt worse than whatever we were going through. In 2008, Cory made the life-changing decision of accepting Jesus Christ and our relationship made a complete 180. After he was saved, our relationship got so much easier {“easier”, not “easy”!} and we were able to start talking about a future together.

Join me next Wednesday to find out how Cory proposed!

Cory: It was precious.