Laura & Brendan in Chevy Chase, MD

After Brendan MacCarthy told Laura Orgon he was leaving the New York City party where they’d just met to head to a bar down the street, she knew she had to follow him. “As my mom always told me -- when you know, you know!” she says. Brendan was just visiting New York for the weekend, but the two hung out both nights he was around; and soon after, Laura went to DC to visit him. The Bride Laura Orgon, 28, archives technician The Groom Brendan MacCarthy, 31, software sales The Date October 9 After a year of long-distance dating, Laura moved to Charlottesville, Virginia, to go back to school -- and to be closer to Brendan. A year later, while the couple was vacationing in North Carolina’s Outer Banks, Brendan surprised Laura with a proposal. The couple soon began planning a Maryland wedding for the following fall.