Lordy, Lordy! When you talk to Eva and Lance, you might as well turn into a stack of pancakes because when these two lovebirds start describing their thoughts and feelings for one another, they pour maple syrup and hot butter all over you. It’s so very good to hear about love, kindness, being open and good things in these times when being mean is in style, awful celebrity breakups are in the news and rappers aren’t allowed to smile for fear of looking soft. I got a good, sticky warm feeling from this interview. These two very successful actors are enjoying life and one another and I just loved hearing them gush all over one another because I’m not a hater.

But what kind of ingredients went into developing their personalities, morals and ability to love so strong and pure? There has been some vinegar in their lives, but it did not make them bitter. They even love each other’s faults. This is not just the magic of new love because they’ve been together for a couple of years now. Somehow they were raised to become the special people that they are. How did it happen? Well, let’s dive in and see:

***

Jamie: First of all, congratulations, sweetheart.
Eva: Thank you.

Jamie: I know you all are happy. How did Lance propose? Or did you propose to him?
Eva: No, he proposed to me, but you can tell them how you did it, baby.
Lance: We were out in Big Bear with both of our families. We went last year and we decided to invite our families this year. I told her I wanted her to open up one gift on Christmas Eve; I wanted everyone to open up one gift. I had this pink box with a pillow inside; she opened it and the pillow had a note attached saying, “I hope you like it. Give this to the man you love.” So she gave it to me, and I put it on the ground and then I did my whole little spiel and got down on one knee and asked her to marry me.

Jamie: What? She gave you the pillow to protect your knee while you got on the ground? You go on with your bad self. I knew that’s why I loved this boy. Were you surprised, Eva?
Eva: I was in a state of shock. I had no idea it was going to happen. Then when it was happening, it felt like a dream. It didn’t even feel real. I know the answer is supposed to be yes, but I couldn’t get anything out of my mouth. My eyes were big as saucers, my chin was on the floor and I began to cry and I fell down. “Yes, forever and always.”

Jamie: Didn’t you think he was going to ask you at some point anyway? You weren’t asking him? You weren’t pressuring him?
Eva: I wasn’t pressuring him. He knew I didn’t want to be with anyone else and that I wanted to be with him forever. I knew that eventually the question would get popped. I just had no clue when it was going to be, so it caught me by surprise.

Jamie: Lance, why did you decide to do it then?
Lance: I felt like it was the perfect time. I’d had the ring for like a month before, but I wanted to wait until Christmas Eve because the family would be around.
Eva: As nosy as I am, I cannot believe I did not know.
Jamie: I can’t either!
Lance: It made it kind of easy for me because I was still working on “House of Payne” in Atlanta. She was in LA, I bought the ring in Atlanta, so it was kind of easy for me to keep it a secret.

Jamie: What did you say, Eva?
Eva: I said, with it being Christmas time, it was actually a perfect time because you buy gifts and you don’t want anyone to see the gifts. The box was sitting on our bar and I had no idea what was in the box. So I asked him, “Who is this box for?” He said, “Don’t touch the box.” I said, “No, don’t take it upstairs because you might forget to take it to Big Bear.” So then when we get to Big Bear and he gives it to me, I was like, “That’s what was in that box this whole time?!”
Lance: To go back to what you guys were saying earlier, she didn’t pressure me, but she did throw out hints. When that Beyoncé song [“Single Ladies”] came out--I don’t like that song today because of her little hints in that song.
Eva: “If you like it, then you should’ve put a ring on it.” I would sing that song.
Lance: She would sing the song all the time and throw up her hand.
Eva: Yeah, he asked me to stop singing that song.

Jamie: Sometimes, men are slow. But did that prompt you at all though, Lance?
Lance: I had thought about it before.

Jamie: He don’t need Beyoncé to tell him what to do.
Eva: Exactly.
Lance: I don’t need a song.

Jamie: Let’s go back to Big Bear: You flew in your whole family? What’s up in Big Bear?
Eva: [In 2007] for Christmas, Lance and I wanted to do something special. We were trying to figure out where we should go, and I said, “You know what, honey? Maybe we should go to Big Bear.” And he’s like, “Yeah! Let’s rent a cabin!” We had a great time. After leaving, I said, “Babe, let’s make this a tradition.” He even suggested maybe we bring our families up. So I remember calling my mom saying, “Next year, Mom, I want the whole family to come up for Christmas. She was also thinking she has had Christmas with my family every year. But I told her that Lance’s family is also coming: His mother, father and one of his sisters and her son live in Las Vegas, so they drove over to LA And then another one of his sisters flew down from the Oakland area, and then my brother, who is here in LA, and my mother and father. We all met together at our house and we drove up to Big Bear together.

Jamie: Now, working away from one another, how do you all make that work? Have you all even visited that? Have you had any counseling?
Eva: I remember when we first began dating, we decided we were going to make this thing real. I knew that he was the one for me and that I loved him dearly and he loves me. There’s something about when you’re in love, you just want to profess your love to the world. And so with that, we also have to remember we’re not regular nine-to-fivers. When we walk on the street, people know who we are. Things will be said and there are going to be the haters in the world. So we made up this concept of always living in a bubble. We have our bubble, which is our world, and our world is so different from the rest of the world.

Pick up the April/May issue of Sister 2 Sister magazine to read why Lance and Eva used to hate they looked.