What Dan Wells—who appeared on shows including: “Days of Our Lives,” “Will & Grace,” and most recently, “Watch Over Me”—signed up for was an acting class that concentrated on auditioning skills, but when he got there, his focus was all on fellow actor Rachelle Pettinato. “I couldn’t keep my eyes off her,” says Dan. When she mentioned she was a part-time spinning instructor at his fitness center, he showed up for her next class.

“I always tell people to try my spinning class,” says Rachelle, “and no one ever comes, but there was Dan in the front row.” She had been watching his work in their acting class and had labeled him “hot and very cute.”

They went out for coffee a few times, then lunch and three months later came the proposal. Dan’s intuition told him that marrying Rachelle was the “natural, correct progression” of his life, and that was all he needed. He took her to one of his favorite spots in Southern California for a sunset picnic on breathtaking cliffs overlooking the ocean. She thought it was romantic that he had tossed a bottle of champagne in his backpack, but had no clue as to what was coming. “As we stood there, my heart was beating faster and faster, and the sun seemed to be setting at warp speed,” says Dan. “With only half the sun left in the sky, I dropped to one knee and asked for her hand.”

The couple knew what they wanted and planned their wedding with the help of friends. “Weddings are a time for you to reconnect with every one from various chapters of your life all in one place,” explains Dan, who wanted to provide a beautiful location where that could happen. They headed back to a cliffside setting, this time at The Ritz-Carlton Laguna Niguel.

The black-tie ceremony was scheduled to be outside in the afternoon with the reception inside as day turned to night. The evening before their nerves were tested as a windstorm came up during the rehearsal dinner. “I thought we were in deep trouble,” remembers Dan. But the day of the wedding dawned quiet and tranquil.

The bride, who swears she tried on every wedding gown in Orange County before deciding, wore a beaded organza gown with a long train from the Jewel Collection by Moonlight. Her veil was constructed from the headpiece that both her mom and aunt wore at their weddings. Playing off her childhood nickname, “Shell,” Rachelle’s bouquet of yellow and white roses had seashells worked into it. In a whimsical nod to Dan’s family and its ties to horseracing, the “call to post,” that is trumpeted before every horse race, was played just before Rachelle came down the aisle.

Being actors, the two were well aware of the importance of lighting to a party and brought in Fiori Fresco to set the mood. However, the warmth of family and friends put the heart and soul into the reception. “The thing I’ll always remember about our wedding is how honest and expressive our friends were in letting us know how happy they were for us,” says Dan.

The groom confesses that Hawaiian honeymoons are “such a cliché,” but since the spectacular beauty of the islands is so hypnotic, that is exactly where they headed. There Dan and Rachelle managed to relax in between activities including a traditional luau, snorkeling, diving, fishing and a 40-mile bike ride that made those spinning classes all worthwhile.

Written by Francine Kaplan