Photo provided Michael Shaheen and Robyn Shaheen of Shaheen Law Group celebrate 25 years of marriage.

ST. CLAIRSVILLE — As Michael Shaheen and Robyn Shaheen of Shaheen Law Group celebrate 25 years of marriage, the couple is reflecting on their unconventional wedding story.

Twenty-five years ago, Michael Shaheen proposed to Robyn and the next day the couple was married.

“What happened was at the time she worked for an industrial company out in Cadiz. So I had it arranged with one of her co-workers that they said they needed to come for a conference call with some international client, but she had to be there early,” Michael said. “She thought later that day we were going to Atlantic City. We used to go there for weekends to gamble, and I had friends at Caesars Palace and stuff like that. So she was packed to go on a beach vacation.”

He said that when Robyn arrived at her job, there was a package on her desk from him explaining what was going on. Michael then picked her up in a limo to go to the airport. While in the limo, he proposed, and Robyn said yes.

Michael said that upon arriving at the airport, the 25 to 30 people who were going to the wedding were holding a sign that read, “I hope you said yes.”

The very next day in Florida, the couple was married.

“It’s one of those things I look back on that you know how you do things in life, and sometimes you wish I would have done this differently, I would have done, and that was probably the one thing I can say in my life that I did exactly right,” Michael said. “I had arrangements made at a bridal salon, I gave them her sizes, and so her and all of the girls went to the bridal salon, and she picked her dress, and she took Hannah, Michael’s daughter, and got her flower girl dress, and the very next day we had a wedding on the beach, dinner, dancing and everything.”

Robyn said the entire event was a complete surprise.

“I had no idea whatsoever. We were sailing along just on a normal day. I had gone to work that morning, and there was no one in the office. It was completely dark. I got there, and there was a package on my desk with a note that read, ‘today is the first day of the rest of our lives,'” Robyn said. “Michael pulled up in a white stretch limo, and on the way to the airport proposed to me, and I had absolutely no idea. When you look back and you think, oh yes, there should have been signs. There were no signs. I had no clue.”

She added that the whole event was completely surreal.

“It was beautiful, everything was perfect. Everything was planned perfectly, from the dress to the cake, everything was great,” Robyn said.

Michael added that the family has a running joke about Robyn’s love of cake, saying he told the wedding planner they could not mess up the cake and to this day the couple agrees it was the best cake they’ve ever had.

He said he is a hopeless romantic.

“In The Great Gatsby, I don’t want Jay Gatsby to get killed, I want Daisy to run off and stay with him. I always want a happy ending, and I kind of had this planned from when I first met her,” Michael said. “I was always hoping that I’d have this opportunity, and it’s just the one thing that worked out great. Everybody in our world cooperated and wished us well, and so far it’s worked for 25 years. You know, I’m a divorce lawyer by trade, so it can be rough sledding, and she works here at the office, but we’ve managed to navigate everything, and it worked out fine.”

Robyn has worked in Shaheen Law Group’s office on and off, but for the past 10 years has served as the office manager.

“For most lawyers it’s taboo to have their wife in the office. I look at it differently. If I’m here to support our family, why not have people who help run the family be here with me? So business wise, it’s not like we have any secrets or anything,” Michael said. “I’m sure she’s the staff’s favorite Shaheen, not me.”

He added that it can sometimes be difficult to “turn it off” when he gets home because Robyn prefers to leave work behind at the office, while he has 16 questions he did not get a chance to ask her during the day. He said despite the growing pains, working together has strengthened their bond.

“Looking back, it seemed really obvious to me, but it was probably a lot for her. I mean, she goes off to work one morning, and she gets surprised, we get engaged, and then I have already taken care of 30 people, including some of her family members, to fly to Florida,” Michael said. “Sometimes we joke that she didn’t really have a choice, but obviously she did, and I’m glad she said yes, but since that time she goes along with all my nonsense because I always want to make a big production of everything, and she’d be fine not to have a big party or not draw any attention to herself. But we understand each other’s strengths and weaknesses.”