What happens in Vegas …
Who says you can’t meet your future spouse in Sin City?
It worked for Meaghan Ryan and Brandon Romero. Back in 2016, that’s where the Houston newlyweds gambled on love, and won big.
“Neither of us took home grand prizes in Vegas, but we totally hit the jackpot,” Meaghan said of their serendipitous meetcute.
Stakes were high from the get-go. Meaghan was in town on a girl’s trip; her friends wanted to catch Britney Spears’ Piece of Me concert during the pop star’s in-residency at Planet Hollywood. And Brandon’s grandmother, whom he considers his best friend, had never seen the Las Vegas Strip before — so he booked two flights to Nevada on a whim.
The couple initially matched online earlier that year but lost touch after a few months of chatting. Between her job as a marketing and communications professional in Katy and his Spring-area gig in hotel management, a one-hour, cross-town commute kept the future lovebirds apart. Neither offered to make the drive.
Then a video on social media of Meaghan in Las Vegas popped up on Brandon’s phone.
“She never posts anything on Snapchat,” he said. “It felt like fate that we would be there at the same time, in the same hotel.”
He thought their first face-toface meeting would be intimidating — they had entourages in tow. But even with Meaghan’s two girlfriends and Brandon’s grandmother watching their every move, sparks flew over brunch at Hash House A Go Go in the Linq hotel.
“We instantly had a connection,” Meaghan said. “It was surreal because we’d talked for so long … I was excited to see what that would lead to.”
Suddenly a “long-distance” relationship back home didn’t sound so bad. Six months later, they were engaged.
Astros games and exploring Moody Gardens and the Pleasure Pier on Galveston Island helped accelerate their whirlwind romance. Brandon says that no one plans a birthday surprise like Meaghan; she gifted him Matchbox 20 tickets when he turned 29 and took him to see Casting Crowns, a Christian rock band, in June.
For Meaghan, 27, a college friend’s wedding in Austin sealed the deal. “He didn’t know anyone else at this wedding, but by the end of the night, everyone knew Brandon. People were just drawn to him.”
That’s when it clicked: She’d found her forever plus-one. He complemented her introverted personality well, Meaghan said. And had other attractive character traits, too.
She liked that he was “hardworking, Christ-centered and was always looking for a way to help people.”
Brandon fell for Meaghan’s intelligence, preparedness and that she prioritized her education. He admired how she treated people from all walks of life with respect. That summer, one small gesture won him over.
“We took my 72-year-old grandmother on a trip to Seaworld in San Antonio, and she got soaking wet under a waterfall ride,” Brandon said. “Meaghan gave my grandmother her (dry) clothes and wore my grandmother’s wet things so she wouldn’t be cold and get sick. Literally giving the clothes off her back to someone else.”
He decided to propose in September. The timing worked perfectly: A cruise to Honduras; Cozumel, Mexico; and Belize was already on the books with his grandmother, future best man and Meaghan’s best friend.
“There’s always a fine-dining night on board,” he said of his plan to pop the question. “I was extremely nervous and had to excuse myself from the table and walk around for a bit to calm my nerves.”
An intuitive server helped save the day. He shouted a very special announcement across the dining room, and that was Brandon’s cue to drop down on one knee.
Meaghan never saw it coming. She said “yes!” as diners cheered them on and waitstaff sang “Celebration” by Kool & the Gang.
“We’d talked about getting married, but I thought it might happen at the end of the year, so I was completely shocked,” the bride said.
Fortunately, she already had a well-developed Pinterest board underway. “Brandon and I share very similar tastes. He never told me ‘no’ for any of my crazy ideas.”
The pair had seen a dueling-piano show that they wanted to incorporate into the wedding reception at Madera Estates in Conroe. To contrast the venue’s al fresco, rustic aesthetic, Meaghan thought she’d go for a dramatic Mermaid-style gown with a 10-foot train — but she fell in love with an understated fit-and-flair silhouette instead.
“And blue Bombay orchids,” she added. “Those set the color theme for the entire event.”
When cold rain fell from the Texas sky on the big day, Nov. 18., the bride didn’t flinch. She simply whipped out her Pinterest inspiration boards to re-create the would-be “classic, upscale and romantic” outdoor reception indoors.
Their wedding photographer even managed to capture Meaghan’s money shot. The drizzle paused just long enough for the happy couple to spell out “l-ov-e” written with sparklers.
“It looks like a postcard,” she said breathlessly of the prized photo. “Well, almost.”
For Brandon, seeing Meaghan in her wedding dress for the first time brought tears to his eyes.
“Whenever those double doors opened,” he recalled, his voice trailing at the memory. “She’s the most beautiful woman in the world. And she’ll tell you I cried, but I didn’t. I think there were onions in the air.”
Perhaps the couple’s “Taco Bout A Wedding” feast had something to do with it. Because most of the bride’s extended family lives in New York, and the groom’s relatives hail from southern Louisiana, the newlyweds opted to serve Texas-influenced fare. Brandon tapped a colleague at Jack in the Box, and the fastfood chain jumped at the chance to create a pop-up display.
“We love their tacos,” Meaghan gushed. “We thought it would be the perfect late-night snack to offer. Plus, they’re really good drunk food.”
It was the right call. After the dueling pianos prompted a karaoke war — Brandon’s family requested “When the Saint’s Go Marching In,” which led Meaghan’s uncle to cut in with “New York, New York” — and revelers dug into the crawfish-boil-inspired groom’s cake, the taco bar capped the festivities on a savory note.
Once again, the lovebirds hit the jackpot.
“The best part about getting married is just knowing that I’m going to spend the rest of my life with my best friend,” Brandon said. “I’m proud to call Meaghan my wife, my bride and hope our kids will be just like her.”
“It felt like fate that we would be there at the same time, in the same hotel.” Brandon Romero, on meeting Meaghan Ryan by chance in person after connecting online