"I live in San Francisco, but was visiting the UK for my cousin's wedding. It was taking place in Henley, a very quaint, red-brick English town by the river Thames. There was a heatwave in Europe that summer, and the 9th was the hottest day on record. The wedding reception was on a beautiful lawn leading down to the river with a large oak tree offering the only shade.

So there I stood, under the oak tree, sweltering in a dark wool suit (it was a formal wedding) waiting for the reception lunch to start. On the surface I was chatting amiably with aunts and uncles, but my attention was firmly caught by a beautiful woman in a red dress and sunglasses also under the tree. As we were seated for the lunch, I glanced at the name on the place setting next to mine. The thought crossed my mind that I couldn't be lucky enough to have the woman in red sitting next to me. But I was."