As the title suggests, they first met on Valentine's Day.

An overly eager mutual friend of Mary Louise and Tom figured it would be a great idea for everyone to hit the town rather than spend the night alone. To clarify, Tom and Mary Louise had never met before, so this friend decided to play cupid, setting them up for a Valentine's Day rendezvous. Both Tom and Mary Louise were fully aware of the plan.

At that time, Mary Louise was very much feeling like part of the lonely hearts club, protective of her heart and cautious about any potential romantic connections, though still hoping for the best.

Meanwhile, Tom was fully focused on his beloved son, Jack, and his music career.

Both of them were in a place where they didn’t want to waste time on anything that wasn’t of utmost importance—relationships included. But, despite their guarded hearts, they were open enough to meet each other.

That evening, Tom was performing a gig, and Mary Louise and her friends came to see him play. As soon as Mary Louise saw him on stage, she was impressed. Not only was he a musician, but he had such natural charisma, talent, and confidence in front of a crowd (and the list of his qualities goes on, but you get the idea). She was immediately intrigued.

After the performance, the group decided to continue the night at another venue. Everyone arrived separately, so they trickled in slowly. Tom got there first and was seated in a U-shaped booth with friends on either side of him. Mary Louise sat down across from him, but the loud music and dim lighting made it impossible to even read each other’s lips.

Feeling a little hesitant but determined, Mary Louise decided to stand up and move over to the booth, sitting right next to Tom. She wanted to get to know him better. But with the bar’s noise, holding a conversation was nearly impossible, so they all agreed it was time to move on.

Tom then said he had to head home, and Mary Louise, thinking he wasn’t interested, assumed that was the end. What she didn’t know was that Tom was heading home to be with Jack.

They said their goodbyes to everyone and to each other, walking off in opposite directions. Then, out of nowhere, Mary Louise felt a sudden urge: Turn around, run to Tom, and kiss him. “It’s Valentine’s Day!” she thought. Without hesitation, she did just that.

Tom, clearly surprised but delighted, was caught off guard by the kiss.

They parted ways that night, but soon after, they began seeing each other. Their hearts knew they were meant to be together, even before their minds did.

Oh, the power of love!