Cassandra & Derek in Grand Lake, OK

Years of distance couldn't keep hometown sweethearts Cassandra Brown and Derek Coats apart. The pair started dating as teenagers and maintained their relationship while living in different cities throughout their undergraduate and graduate school years. After nearly nine years of dating, Derek had graduated from pharmacy school and Cassandra was just a year away from her law degree -- and the timing was finally right to take the relationship to the next level. The Bride Cassandra Brown, 25, attorney The Groom Derek Coats, 30, pharmacist The Date June 7 While on spring break, Cassandra visited Derek at his house on Grand Lake. They decided to take his boat out one evening for a casual dinner. At the end of the meal, Derek appeared with a silver platter of strawberries. Just as Derek revealed to Cassandra that he had had the platter engraved with the message What a Difference a Day Made, Jamie Cullum’s song of the same title started playing and Derek dropped to his knee.