My name is Ronald James O'Neal, but I go by RJ. This is the story about the woman I fell in love with and married, But first a little back ground about me. I was fortunate enough to be a three Sport All-Star in high school. Senior year I started getting offers from D2 and D3 colleges, but they didn't interest me. I really wanted to go to an Ivy League school. Not having taken enough of the courses, I would be required to have to make that happen. I accepted the conditional scholarship to a prep school in New Hampshire.
The school hadn't had a winning football season in 10 years and with my abilities as a kicker, and to be their backup quarterback, if my contributions lead them to a better than 500 season, I would get a full scholarship for the rest of the year. It was a 12-game schedule, at the end of the season we finished 9 and 3. The quarter back went down on the last play of the second game and was out for the rest of the season. Our record was 0-2 at that point and we went 9 and 1 the rest of the season. That earned me a full scholarship.
My roommates name was Absalom, He told me he was named after his great grandfather. but he went by Happy or Hap for short. Hap and I got along great, he lived outside of Cleveland and an area known as Shaker Heights.
Hap was having trouble with a couple of his courses that I also was taking, so I became is his de facto tutor. I was two years at the prep taking courses I needed for an Ivy League school to consider me.
It was during the spring break the second year that Hap asked me to go with him to his parent's place for the 10-day break. It was then I found out my friend was in what is considered the one percent. His dad's great grandfather made his money and oil and railroads. His mother's family trace their roots back to the Mayflower and their fortune was made after the Civil War buying Southern plantations for pennies on the dollar.
His father was a graduate of Harvard Business School and his mother had her degree from Radcliffe. They really enjoyed Greater Boston from their time in Cambridge. They took a liking to me talking about places we had eaten at and things we did that were the same.
I had applied to several of the Ivy Leagues Schools and had gotten rejection letters from most. Then I got one from Harvard that was not a rejection. I also learned Hap was also going there and it had been arranged for us to be roommates.
I had no doubt his parents had something to do with it. I wasn't going to complain if they did. With my background I would need to be in the top 10% of my class consider for the better jobs when I graduated. For that reason, I gave up playing sports to devote my time to my studies and it paid off as a graduate in the top 5%.
I interned the summer before my junior and senior years at the Boston division of the company Hap's father was the CEO. After graduation I was offered a job at the company. Plus, I was fast tracked to move up in the company.
I went out Friday nights with some of my colleagues, the bars we would go to were in the financial District of Boston. The women that would frequent them mostly worked in banks, brokerage houses or one of the many insurance companies in Boston,
The next four years as I moved up in the company and felt it was time to look to meet a woman to get serious with and settled down. A girl I had gone out with a few times, we had become what is now called friends with benefits told me she had a friend she thought would be a great match for me. I put her off the first couple of times she asked me then she told me; I had nothing to lose, if it doesn't work out, she and I could still be friends with benefits.
Victoria and I met outside the restaurant, when I asked if she was Victoria, she told me: "Call me Vicky. I was named after my father's, great grandmother and from everything I've learned about her. She was not a nice person so, I prefer Vicky how about you, I know your name is Ronald."
I told her: "My middle name is James and all my friends call me RJ."
We had a nice meal, including dessert, followed by coffee. Vicky was very attractive and didn't wear any make up. In my opinion she didn't need it. She only lived three blocks away from restaurant so, I offered to walk her home. She accepted we continue talking and I learned she was a dancer. Vicky was part of a small local dance company that toured the country.
When we got to her building, she told me: "I very much enjoyed the evening and hope you will call me to go out again."
The next couple of weeks every few days I called, but I always got her answering machine and I didn't understand why I wasn't getting callbacks. When she finally did call me back it was a Sunday and told me: "I have been on tour with the dance company and I just got back last night and saw that you had been calling. I won't be going back on the road for a couple weeks. But between local shows and rehearsals my only day off is Sundays."
Thinking back our first date was on a Sunday so, I made plans to meet her again at a restaurant of her choosing that night.
Again, we had a wonderful meal at a little Italian restaurant close to the building she lives in. I found Vicky very easy to talk to and enjoyed my time with her. I could see this relationship, possibly developing into a romance. The next two Sundays, we went out, again each time the restaurants she picked were close to where she lived. When we got to her building that second Sunday.
She informed me: "The dance company is going on the road for the next six months."
I was disappointed, but I understood this was her livelihood and since her performances were at night till late. I knew she had to get enough sleep, so when I could call her, I was already at work in the morning. The only time we got to talk on the phone was from 5 to 6 in the evening.
The week before the tour was to end, I got a call from her telling me: "I she fell off the stage and broke my leg, I am coming home."
I met her at the airport, she had a cast from her ankle to her hip. Luckily the front passenger seat my car reclined fully with my help she was able to get in. We got to her building to get her back out, I needed the doorman's help.
I was surprised to see that arrangements had been made for a special wheelchair for her. I offered to be the one to push the chair and go with her up the elevator to get her situated.
Vicky said: "No, I am very tired and George will take care of that for me."
I watch from the curb till I saw the elevators doors open, and George pushed her in and the doors close. I then got in the car and drove home. For some strange reason, I had the feeling she didn't want to see her apartment. I called her the next morning on my coffee break to see how she was feeling when I asked her if she'd like me to pick up some food and bring over for her supper.
She said: "That isn't necessary, my parents were come to picked me up and I am going to be staying with them at their home in Meredith New Hampshire."
It was three months before she was back in her own apartment. Even though we talked daily our first date when she got back, felt awkward, and I didn't know why.
After desert while we were drinking our coffee, she told me: "I most likely wouldn't be able to dance for another few months, but I'm going on tour with the company to be the traveling secretary."
I asked her: "How long will you be gone?"
She told me: "At least two months, but the manager is negotiating to be able to extend the tour for four additional weeks."
This was a Saturday night and we had plans for lunch on Sunday, but they were leaving in the morning. The restaurant was three blocks from my apartment and when we finished our coffee.
Vicky asked: "Could we go to your place.?"
I was happy to have her see my place, because she still had a slight limp, I called an Uber to take us there. My place was not in a fancy building with the doorman like hers. It was however in a nice upper-class neighborhood of brownstones. Mine was what was called a Garden apartment. Which meant my front entrance was down a few steps from street level and I had two small windows that faced the front, but in the back, I had two larger windows and steps down to ground level. Vicky surprise me how much she commented on the way I had furnished and decorated the place saying, she felt it was much more comfortable to live in than the cookie cutter modern place she has.
In the back, there were four fenced off sections one for each apartment in the brownstone. We enjoyed a bottle of wine in my little section and when it got a little chilly. We went inside and as the door closed, she turned around and put her arms around my neck and kissed me. I wasn't expecting it, but I was extremely glad it happened.
From there she took my hand, led me to my bedroom. We made love several times before we feel asleep and again when we woke up in the morning. I made us breakfast before I called an Uber on my account to take her back to her place. She was already packed to leave at ten for the tour.
We talked every night till the tour ended, then two weeks later she was gone again for two months. The night before she returned she told me that when she gets back, she told: "I'll be home for six weeks before the next tour."
I asked her: "Do you want me to pick her up at the airport?"
She said: "No, we are coming in by train to South Station and the tour manager has arranged transportation for everybody to get home."
We made plans to have dinner the next night, I went straight from work and met her at the little Italian place we like that is a couple blocks from her apartment.
We had a wonderful time catching up during dinner after dessert and coffee, I walked her back to her apartment. When we got to the door and the doorman opened it for her. She took my hand and we walked in. This was the first time we were going to be together at her pace.
When we get off the elevator, she led me to the right, she had the end unit on the south side of the building. Once inside she put on the lights, it was not what I was expecting. It didn't look it all feminine. It looks more like a place that was staged for sale, it did not feel live in.
She opened a bottle of wine, then she picked up a remote and soft music started to play and soon we were making out on the couch. I knew she had lived there for three years, but the furniture felt it had never been used more like it was just delivered that day. I set the alarm on my phone for 5 AM as I would need to get back to my place, and take a quick shower and change, So, I wouldn't feel like I was taking the walk of shame the next day when I walked in to the office. By having on the same clothes as the day before.
We met up most nights and either went to her place or mine. I now had a complete change of clothes at her place and toiletries. She also had outfits and toiletries at mine.
Then one day she called me at work telling me: "The company is going out for a two-week tour, I think another company cancelled. We're flying out this afternoon."
While, she was gone, I asked my secretary if she knew any good jewelers and told her why. I had decided to ask Vicky to marry me. During lunch, she took me to the Jewelers Exchange Building at 333 Washington Street and introduced me to her cousin who work on the fourth floor at one of the jewelers.
When he asked me: "What are you looking for?"
I told him: "An engagement ring."
He said: "Give him an idea of how much you are willing to spend, then we can go from there."
He showed me the different rings in the price range I told him. His suggestion was to show her diamonds in my price range and let her pick the one she wanted. Then he would show her settings to mount it in.
My secretary said: "That way if she says no, you won't have laid out money for a ring that you will not get back what you paid for it. Because no woman would want a ring that you originally bought for somebody else."
Vicky got back on Monday morning; we had arranged to meet at the Little Italian restaurant we both love so much. I called earlier to make sure we got the table we liked and have champagne chilled. I wanted it ready if she said yes. The owner and I had a prearranged signal if she said yes to bring the champagne to the table to celebrate.
When we finished our entries, Vicki commented: "You seem extremely happy. did you get a raise or something?"
I said: "No, but there is something I want to ask you."
I stood up move to her side and got down on one knee and said: "Vicky will you marry me?"