Mateo and Cody first met online on OkCupid in 2014. “Cody messaged me because he liked the shirt I was wearing in my profile picture,” says Mateo. “I quickly responded with ‘thanks, but it’s my roommate’s shirt.’ It was a tank top with cats all over it. We chatted for a few months and finally decided to meet the following summer. We’ve been together ever since!”
Six years later, after a snowstorm derailed his original plan, Mateo proposed the Cody by waterfalls on the Potomac River. “I pretended to take a picture of Cody with the waterfalls in the background, but really I was filming his reaction,” says Mateo. “It was just the two of us in this park. It was such a special moment. I had hurt my knee a few days before hiking in Virginia and so I couldn’t get down on my knee, but he was completely surprised, which just made the moment even better. He quickly said yes. That night we were staying at an Airbnb in Durham, North Carolina. We celebrated with some champagne, calling our closest friends to tell them the news, and watching The Nutty Professor.”
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For their mountain wedding in the fall of 2022, the Greenville, S.C.–based grooms chose Bald Rock, a mountain overlook in South Carolina. It was just the two of them plus their photographer, D. Hayman Photography, who photographed them by the pool at Hotel Domestique and on the mountain.
These sweet lovers share even more about their relationship. Cody says what he loves most about Mateo is “his ability to make me smile and laugh, plus how encouraging and caring he is.” Mateo follows that with telling Equally Wed he loves how “loving and gentle” Cody is. “He has such a special and tender soul.”
As for their marriage following their mountain wedding, the husbands are looking forward to so much. Cody says, “I’m looking forward to spending the rest of our lives together. A partner I can always rely on. Double the food options at restaurants. A lifetime hiking partner. Seeing him every morning when I wake up.” Mateo says it’s the “lifetime of cuddles” he’s excited for, adding “I love how much fun we have together.”
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Photography: D. Hayman Photography, a preferred Equally Wed photographer
Hotel: Hotel Domestique
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