Patricia Araki almost didn't go to a charity event at the Hawaii Prince Hotel in September 1996.

An avid ballroom dancer, she didn't want to go the function without a dance partner.

So when the emcee began taking bids to dance with longtime Midweek columnist Eddie Sherman, Araki quickly grabbed her wallet.

"I was like, 'I know him!' " said Araki, 61. "But I really didn't."

In the meantime, an embarrassed Sherman, now 83, stood on the dance floor, waiting for someone to bid on him.

The wait seemed eternal.

"Suddenly it looked like a staring contest," said Sherman. "No one moved."

Then he saw Araki, heading to the dance floor and waving a $5 bill. (Her girlfriend said $20 was too much.)

"I had never done anything like that in my life," Araki said. "It was so out of character for me."

Sherman was relieved.

"I thought, 'Thank God someone's gonna save me,' " he said, smiling.

As soon as they started dancing, Sherman felt an instant connection with Araki.

"I just felt like I wanted to see her again," he said. "I felt something. I wasn't sure what it was. But there was something about her."

Araki, though, didn't feel a thing.

"I just thought it was cool dancing with Eddie Sherman," she said, laughing.

They danced twice that night. And on that second spin, Sherman asked Araki to lunch. She handed him her business card and agreed to the date.

Later that week, they decided to meet for dinner at the Surf Room at The Royal Hawaiian hotel, where Sherman had spent many evenings hobnobbing with visiting celebrities and finding fodder for his three-dot columns.

The dinner went well, though Araki was worried Sherman liked her too much, too fast.

"I came on too strong and I knew it," Sherman said. "I thought I blew it. I didn't think she'd give me another date."

A couple of weeks later, Sherman redeemed himself. He treated Araki to dinner, a show and a night of dancing.

"He was just so nice," Araki said.

The next morning, Araki flew to Los Angeles and found she couldn't stop thinking about that night. So she called Sherman to thank him for a great night.

"That really blew me away," Sherman said. "So I asked, 'Does that mean I can call you again?' "

Araki said yes.

For the next few months, they would meet for morning walks around Ward Avenue and for dinner on the weekends.

"He'd talk and tell stories," said Araki, who was an avid reader of his columns. "It was so fascinating."

Around Christmas, Araki caught the flu. Sherman offered to take care of her.

She had never seen this side of Sherman before.

"You start to look at someone differently when they're taking care of you," said Araki, who was general manager of 15 Jeans Warehouse stores at the time.

Closer than ever, Sherman decided he was ready to make their relationship official.

He proposed.

"I just felt what I felt," Sherman said about popping the question just three months after meeting. "You can't put these things into words ... She's a very special person. She's intelligent, sexy, everything. I liked everything about her."

The couple wed on April 25, 1997, at The Royal Hawaiian in a ceremony attended by just a few guests.

Araki admitted she was scared to marry again. She worried she wasn't going to be a good enough wife for Sherman.

"It all happened so quickly," Araki said. "I kept thinking, 'Am I worth this man?' I didn't want to blow it."

So she prayed with the reverend before the ceremony, and that prayer has kept her strong for the past 10 years.

"I always remember that prayer," she said, tearing up. "Let me be a good wife to this man, because he's a good man."

After the wedding, the couple moved in together. That took some adjustment.

Both had been divorced for awhile and had grown accustomed to their independence. But their past experience with marriage has changed the way they've approached this one.

"For me, it's really different," Sherman said. "I've found my soulmate."

Despite having such diverse backgrounds — he grew up in a Jewish orphanage in Boston; she lived her entire life on O'ahu — they share many common interests, including watching movies and reading.

"Nobody would give this relationship a shot," Sherman said. "But if they say opposites attract, they sure do."

For the past two years, the couple, who live in Waikiki, has been focused on the operation of a few retail shops at the Pearl Harbor Visitor Center.

Between running their business, Sherman, who left Midweek in December 2005, penned "Frank, Sammy, Marlon & Me" (Watermark Publishing, $22.95), a fascinating peek behind Hawai'i's celebrity scene. (See box.)

He dedicated the book to his wife: "For Patty, my inspiration and the love of my life."

"Every day is precious to us," Araki said. "I really feel we're blessed ... It's still an adventure with Eddie. You never know what's going to happen next."

Reach Catherine E. Toth at ctoth@honoluluadvertiser.com.