True Love Stories: She got up her nerve to ask him to dance, and the rest is history

I met my husband Fred at the Wild Erotic Ball, a Halloween party in Reno. I really didn't want to go to the party, but the girls at work talked me into it. I got to the party and was having fun, but felt left out a little since all the girls had husbands/boyfriends with them. I left the ballroom to walk around, and when I came back, I couldn't find my group.

There were more than 2,000 people packed into this small ballroom, and that's when I saw him. Out of all the people in the room, a beam of light shined down right on him. He was tall, handsome and dressed as a doctor. I am usually a little shy when it comes to meeting men, but something told me to approach him. I walked straight over to him and introduced myself.

My lame pickup line was, "I am a nurse in real life, so we have to dance," since he was dressed as a doctor. We danced for hours and were inseparable. When the night came to an end, we didn't want to leave each other. We shared our first kiss, and I gave him my phone number, and left.

The next couple of days, I couldn't get him out of my head. All I could do was smile. Just waiting for him to call was the longest wait ever. Finally, after five days of waiting, I almost gave up on him, thinking he wasn't interested. But he called. He is also shy, and was nervous to call, thinking I was out of his league.

Soon after, he came over to my house and met my daughter.

We grew up one street away from each other, went to school together, but never met. We fell in love and have been inseparable since.

We were married Sept. 9, 2009, and I couldn't be happier. You are the love of my life, Fred. I look forward to all the years ahead of us.

Your loving wife now and forever.

Amanda Parker

Carson City