For the past four years, on the 10th of every month, Ricki-Mae Paisley and Jessie Smulders have celebrated the day they fell in love. Usually the former My Kitchen Rules NZ contestants exchange chocolate, flowers and homemade cards, but Ricki, 26, upped the stakes last month when she popped the question and gifted her girlfriend the big, black diamond ring she’d been pining for.
“It still sounds really weird to call her my fiancée, but it feels so right,” beams Jessie, 28, as the brides-to-be reveal their engagement news exclusively to Woman’s Day.
Marrying has always been on the cards for the Christchurch sweethearts – who met as McDonald’s co-workers in 2012 – but it was Ricki who made the first move. She’d been saving up for the custom-made engagement ring in Jessie’s favourite hue for months and when it was ready just two days out from their February “month-iversary”, Ricki took it as a sign it was the perfect time to propose.
“I booked our favourite spot in Hanmer Springs – the same hotel where we spent our one-year anniversary – and told Jessie she had two days to pack as we were going away for the long weekend,” tells Ricki. “Jessie absolutely hates surprises, so I even made a fake GrabOne receipt as if there was some really great online deal that we’d be stupid to pass up.”
But when the time came to leave for their romantic road trip up the coast, a few hiccups left Ricki feeling uncomfortably superstitious. Not only was Jessie “in a bit of a grump”, but the bottle of celebratory bubbles smashed on the driveway, a hearse was trailing them on the journey and at one point a herd of sheep ran in front of the car.
“I was starting to wonder if they were bad omens, but it was too late to back out,” jokes Rikki. After checking in to the hotel, Ricki suggested they take the 30-minute hike up the alpine village’s Conical Hill – and Jessie reluctantly agreed.
“It was stinking hot and I was recovering from a cold, so I was spluttering the whole way up,” says Jessie, who thought it was very odd that Ricki insisted on taking her handbag on the trek. “I kept thinking, ‘Why on earth is she making me do a big walk in the middle of the day?’”
At the summit, Ricki approached a fellow holiday-maker to take their picture, but on her phone was a secret message that read, “I’m about to propose. Pretend to take photos but actually film it … thanks.” And while posing for a “snap” before the breathtaking 360° views, Ricki got down on bended knee – and the surprise proposal was caught on camera!
“I was in shock,” recalls Jessie. “It caught me totally off-guard. Ricki does fake proposals all the time, so even when the ring was right in front of my face, I didn’t really register. For the first time, I was genuinely speechless. Then a few F-bombs came out, followed by some tears and finally a ‘Yes!’”
It wasn’t until the next morning, when Jessie woke up to a sparkly black diamond on her finger, that the special moment sank in.
But she says the feeling was bittersweet because her fiancée didn’t have a rock of her own. “I felt bad that people were commenting on my ring and Ricki had nothing to show,” says Jessie. “I didn’t think that was fair – every girl deserves a ring.”
Soon after returning to their Christchurch home, Jessie treated Ricki to her own surprise. “Our first cat Stuart dug a hole in the backyard and every cat since – there’s been four – has had a go at it. You can probably fit two fists down there now,” laughs Jessie, urging Ricki to pick up the story.
“She gets so embarrassed when she tells this story – but it’s adorable. Lately I’ve been working on trying to make our lawn look beautiful. One day Jessie called out from the backyard, ‘Come look at your new grass – it’s growing.’ When I got out, there were rose petals leading up to the hole with a ring box in it. It was incredible – I got the ring and the girl of my dreams.”
The loved-up pair – who own Healthkicks, a nationwide salad delivery company – have thrown themselves into wedding planning. They’ve set a date in 2019, found a venue, created a guest list and decided on the colours of their bridal gowns – black for Jessie and white for Ricki.
“We can’t wait to go dress shopping,” beams Jessie. “We even thought about catering the wedding too – it would be so much cheaper – but I think we’ll allow ourselves the day off.
“You always think a ring won’t make a difference, but it definitely feels like we’ve gone up a notch. This new chapter feels so special and I can’t wait for the day when I get to marry my best friend.”
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