Escape Room

Trevor was in another world with Tyler as his mom quietly mentioned his father's name and passing.

"You're very lucky to have him," Neil replied with a smile.

"I agree. And Amanda is like the sister I never had."

They talked about their families the rest of the way, and although it shouldn't have bothered her, Abby felt...cheated...when Neil didn't kiss her hello or even take her hand during the drive. It was silly, but as she looked over at him, she realized she really liked this handsome, younger man; a man she really still barely knew.

What Abby didn't know was that Neil was very concerned about making a good impression on her family, and he was preoccupied with reminding himself to smile, take any kidding in stride, and try and win them over. Even so, he couldn't stop thinking that they would look at him and decide he was much too young for Abby, and his worst fear was that becoming some kind of focal point that would ruin the evening.

But from the moment he walked inside, nothing could have been further from the truth. Paul met him, shook his hand, and warmly welcomed him into their home. Amanda hugged him, and as he let go, Paul asked him who the little Neil was.

As he introduced his son, he heard Amanda say, "When you said Neil was handsome, you weren't kidding!"

Abby knew Neil heard it, and when he only glanced over and smiled at her, she felt like this was going to be a very pleasant... What? Get together? First date? Second date? Whatever it was, she had that happy, pleasant feeling again and forgot all about the non-kiss and no hand holding.

"I hear you're some kind of Albert Einstein," Paul said to Tyler as he bent down to shake the boy's hand.

"I prefer Stephen Hawking to Albert Einstein, but both of them were really smart, too," the boy replied, causing everyone's eyes to open wide as they suppressed the urge to laugh.

"Well, black holes are a lot cooler than boring old general relativity, right?" Paul said very seriously.

"Exactly!" Tyler said as his father just shrugged. "But you can't actually see black holes."

That was too much, and Paul chuckled as Amanda took Neil's jacket as the adults all went to the family room to talk. Dinner was in the oven and nearly ready.

"You were a Marine?" Paul asked after Neil explained how he ended up doing HVAC work.

"I'd have stayed for a career if, you know..."

"Neil, we are SO sorry for your loss," Amanda told him very sincerely.

There was a moment or two of quiet before Paul said, "So what did my sister tell you about me?"

Abby gave him a horrified look, but Paul told her it was a legitimate question.

"She said you like to kid around."

"That's accurate," Paul replied with a faux kind of smugness. "I mean, someone has to make up for my overly serious sister."

Abby gave him another 'what are you doing' look that made Paul laugh before Neil spoke.

"You know, I haven't dated much at all, but the few times I have gone out with other woman, I went away each time thinking they were all so...silly. Or maybe just...non-serious."

When no one said anything, Neil looked at Abby, who was sitting next to him, and said, "That's not the case with Abby. In fact, her...seriousness... if you want to call it that, is one of many things I really like about her."

Abby's smile told him that was a home run, and Paul only said, "Well, alrighty then!" before asking Neil if he'd like a beer.

Again, he glanced at Abby who said, "Or maybe a glass of wine? I think I'd like one."

"In that case, a beer sounds great!"

For the next half hour, they talked about quite a few things. Some were trivial. A couple were serious, but all of it was very pleasant. And as much as Abby was enjoying the conversation, she was thrilled when Neil took her hand as they walked to the dinner table when Amanda told them it was ready.

"I really like your family," he whispered as they walked.

"They really like you," she told him. "And...so do I."

They were behind Paul, so Neil thought the coast was clear and leaned over and kissed Abby. It was a short, soft kiss, and just as it ended, the sound of young boys making sucking sounds of surprise filled the room.

"Your dad just kissed my mom!" Trevor said.

"I told you they were in love!" Tyler announced authoritatively.

That caused Paul to turn around and ask what he'd missed.

"Nothing! Keep walking!" his sister told him as she squeezed her new boyfriend's hand as he smiled at her.

"Abby told me you were an excellent cook, but this was really, really good!" Neil said after sampling a little of everything on his plate a few minutes later.

"Why do you think I married her?" Paul quipped. "For her looks?"

Amanda elbowed him hard enough that it made him wince, and that made Abby laugh.

"You're not exactly Matthew McConaughey," his wife quipped back, using her favorite 50-year old actor/hunk who was still 30 to her, against him.

"I'm...close, though, right?" Paul said as though his feelings were hurt.

"Sorry, honey. No one's really close to Matthew," Amanda told him before taking a bite of the mashed potatoes and gravy on her plate.

She finished chewing then said, "But I do believe Abby's found herself someone who's definitely in the ballpark."

Neil's surprised look made Paul laugh before Abby assured him that was high praise.

"Oh. Well, in that case...thank you!" Neil told her.

"It's true," Abby said. "For the life of me, I have no idea what he sees in me."

Neil set his fork down, turned a little towards Abby then looked at Paul and Amanda.

"She's fishing for a compliment, isn't she?"

"What? I am not!" Abby replied defensively as Paul and Amanda laughed.

"You have to be," Neil told her.

He then turned to the other adults and said, "It's always the most beautiful women who don't realize how attractive they really are."

"I've known that since I met her," Amanda said. "In fact, she's the prettiest woman I know, and I know a lot of women."

"Okay, okay. That's enough!" a mildly embarrassed Abby told them all.

But Neil wasn't done. He put his hand on hers, looked right at her and said, "You're also the most beautiful woman I know."

Abby's heart was pounding as she looked into his eyes and saw the sincerity to back up his words.

"Would you...like some dessert?" she asked Neil to try and play down the rosy glow that was filling her cheeks.

"Yes. Definitely," he said as Amanda asked if he'd like apple pie with ice cream or chocolate cake.

Before Neil could answer, the boys both said, "Chocolate cake. With ice cream!"

Because the boys had school the next day, they needed to get home and get ready, so at eight o'clock, Neil and Abby said their goodbyes.

Paul and Neil were shaking hands when the latter again overhead Amanda talking to Abby.

"I think he's wonderful!"

Even better was Abby's quiet reply.

"Me, too."

Neil gave Amanda a hug, thanked her for a wonderful evening just before Tyler did the same.

"Both of you are welcome here anytime, okay?" she said to Tyler while looking at his father and his girlfriend.

Once they were all outside, Paul put his arm around his wife and said, "I had my reservations because of the age difference, but as far as I'm concerned, Neil's good to go."

"I thought Abby might have lost her mind, but after seeing them together, I've changed my mind, too."

"My sister hasn't looked that happy since before Terry found out about the cancer."

"I agree," Amanda told him before telling her husband how happy she was.

"Does this mean you think I'm in Matthew McConaughey's league?" he replied with a smile.

"Ha! Dream on. But I don't love him. I love you. So why don't we go to bed a little early and let me show you how much, okay?"

"Well...okay!" Paul said as he took her hand and let her show him.

On the ride home, Abby was very quiet.

"You okay?" Neil asked.

"Oh. Sure," she told him with a weak little smile.

"No you're not," Neil replied. "Talk to me."

He saw Abby looking into her lap for a few moments before answering.

"I can't shake this feeling that you...that you can't really feel this way about me."

She turned to look at Neil then said, "That you really believe everything you said. And I feel horrible for feeling this way because you've given me every reason to trust you."

Neil felt he understood what was going on and reached for her hand.

"You're worried about our difference in age. You think I'll suddenly wake up and realize you're older than me and stop lov...caring about you."

Abby's heart swelled as she heard his words, but her brain still hadn't internalized them.

"After losing Misty, I was so torn apart and so angry at the world I never thought I'd be happy again. And those few dates I went on only served to reinforce those feelings. "

He looked over at her, smiled, then said, "And then I met you. A beautiful, loving, caring woman who's intelligent, a great mom, and...and I...I fell for her. Hard."

It was dark inside the car, but Neil saw the reflection of light from the tear that fell down Abby's cheek.

"Abby? I've never met anyone like you. And I know we only just recently met, but I'm in this for the long haul. And I'll be right here for as long as you'll have me."

Abby's spirits soared, and she lightheartedly said, "You might get tired of sitting in the car that long."

Her attempt at humor was so lame it made Neil laugh louder than he ever had in front of her before.

"What's so funny, Daddy?" Tyler asked, suddenly aware of the adults.

"Abby made me laugh."

He looked at her then said, "And she makes me very happy."

"Oh, okay," his son said before going back to his video-game conversation with Trevor.

"So...we like each other. Our boys like each other. What's next?" Abby asked with a warm, happy smile.

"The rest of our lives?" Neil replied as he squeezed her hand.

Abby smiled again then said, "Okay. I'm in!"

The following weekend, a very nervous Abby met Neil's family for the first time. They'd been 'warned' she was a 'little' older, but they didn't know her age. His parents assumed she was about 35 or so and never asked. At least not that night.

The weekend after that, Amanda happily agreed to keep the boys on a Saturday night so that her sister-in-law and younger boyfriend could be 'alone' for the first time. Of course, Paul was just as happy to have two other 'men' in the house, and he played like with them like he was their age most of the time they were there.

The romance between them had been blooming and growing, but it was that first night together that caused it to explode. The lovemaking itself was amazing, but it was the closeness of being alone together and sharing intimate thoughts that bound them together.

The two of them, or more aptly, the four of them, made it a point to spend as much time together as work would allow from then on, and they alternated going to each other's place every other day. Once they boys were used to the routine, the parents individually asked their sons if they'd mind if they spent the night.

Both boys were beyond excited and had no idea what the real motivation was for the 'sleepovers', but they soon became the norm.

After doing the ping pong thing for nearly three months, Abby told Neil one morning as they lay in bed together, "This back and forth business is getting old."

Neil went to respond, but Abby put a finger on his lips and said, "Don't you dare say one word about 'old'."

Neil laughed, kissed her, then told her he agreed.

"So how might we resolve this?" he asked.

"Well, I was thinking we might want to, you know, move in together."

"Oh, okay. I like the way you think," Neil replied as though he'd never even considered that.

"School's out in another month, and the boys could help us move," Abby offered.

Neil looked at her in a way that made her say, "What? Why are you looking at me like that?"

He smiled then said, "You've heard the saying, right?"

"What saying?"

"One boy, a whole boy. Two boys, half a boy. Three boys, no boy at all."

Abby made a spurting noise before laughing.

"No, I haven't heard that one, but I do get it. Okay, maybe they wouldn't be all that much help."

"But it would be another experience they'd never forget, so if we keep a close eye on them..."

"And only give them tasks they can easily complete..."

"It might be a lot of fun."

Abby was so happy the words just came out.

"I love you so much!"

Her eyes opened wide as soon as she realized what she'd said, but Neil only smiled and told her he loved her, too.

"I've loved you since we hugged at the escape room."

"You said you thought you'd never be happy again. I'd given up. I was 43 and I had a son. It seemed like I'd never meet anyone who'd love us both."

She smiled then used Neil's words.

"And then I met you. A wonderful man with a son he loves and who loves mine like his own."

"Dittoes...honey," Neil called, using that endearment for the first time.

"I don't think the boys are awake yet," she said with that look in her eyes.

"You have the best ideas, Abby!" Neil told her as he rolled on top of her causing her to make a happy sound as she pulled him close and kissed him passionately.

*****

First Week of Summer Vacation

"Tyler? Can you put your toys in this box and your video games in this one?" his dad asked as he set two cardboard crates on his bed.

"Okay, Daddy!" he replied knowing why they were packing and moving. Abby had a larger, nicer home, and it made sense to move there.

By the end of that first day, Neil and Abby were worn out. The boys had helped, but mostly they played, and as long as they stayed out of the way, that was fine.

Abby ordered pizza for them, and as they were sitting at the table eating, Neil asked Tyler to bring him the box on his bed. Tyler gave him a puzzled look, but went to his room and found one right where his father said it would be.

It was also a plain, cardboard box, and when Abby saw how big it was, her heart sank because she thought it might possibly be a smaller, black, white, or fuzzy blue box with a diamond ring in it.

"What's that?" she asked when Tyler handed it to his dad.

He shook it and they all heard what sounded like another box rattling around inside. When he opened it, there was the second, smaller box which he also shook.

"This is like a Matryoshka Doll!" Abby said as she took another bite.

When Neil opened the fifth smaller box, Abby saw it and gasped. There it was. A small, fuzzy, blue box which, when Neil opened it, had a large diamond ring inside of it.

As he got down on one knee, Abby's entire tired body began shaking. Tears welled up in her eyes, and when Neil smiled at her and held the open box up to show her, she began crying.

"Why is my mom crying?" Trevor asked.

"They're getting married!" Tyler told him.

"Right now?" his new 'brother' asked.

"No, this is called 'getting engaged'," the budding Stephen Hawking replied.

"Abigail Stevens? We've said everything that needs to be said, but I want to tell you again how meeting you changed my life. How you gave meaning to it and how you brought from despair to happiness again. I love you with all my heart. I always will love you, and if you'll marry me, I'll be happy for the rest of my life, and do my best to make you happy, too."

"I will," she managed to say. "And I'll love you as long as I live, Neil Silvan."

Neil slid the ring on her finger, stood up, then bent down and kissed his fiancé. He sat down, but Abby couldn't let go of him and got up herself and sat down on his lap and just held him.

When she kissed him in a way the boys had never seen, Trevor said, "Eeeew!"

Tyler, however, was just observing.

"That's what grownups who love each other do, Trevor," he told his best friend like he was an adult himself.

"It's still gross!" Trevor said, causing his mother to finally come up for air because she had to laugh.

"My three beautiful young men," she said as she looked at Neil then Tyler, and then Trevor. "I must be the luckiest woman on earth."

"But we're the luckiest boys!" Trevor blurted out causing everyone else to laugh before he joined in.

Abby was so happy she was on the verge of letting her emotions get away from her. She was holding it together until Tyler asked a question.

"Daddy? Is Abby my new mommy?"

She was trying to finish a bite of pizza, but her throat choked up to the point she couldn't.

Neil looked at Abby and saw tears start to fall.

"Tyler, you know your mother's in heaven, right?"

"Uh-huh. But I can have a new mommy, right?"

The look in Abby's eyes told him all he needed to know.

"Well, you'll only ever have one mother, buddy. A mother is the woman who gives birth to you. But a mom is the woman who raises you, who's there for you, and who loves you more than anything."

His very intelligent mind was working at full tilt, and in a few seconds he said, "Oh, okay! So Abby won't be my mother, but she will be my mommy!"

He looked at Abby then asked if that was true.

She couldn't even speak, but she could hold her arms out. When she did, Tyler ran over to her and hugged and said, "I love you, Mommy!"

Abby pulled him close and managed to say, "I love you, too, honey."

Trevor's light came on then, too, and he asked if Neil was his new dad.

"I know you're not my father, but you are my dad now, right?"

Neil did the same thing only without the tears, a big smile on his face.

Trevor hopped up in his new dad's lap and got the biggest hug he'd had in his life.

"Yes. Yes I am. And I'll always be your dad, buddy."

He looked over at his mother who was still hugging Tyler and said, "Mom? I love our family."

She finally found her smile and told her...other son..."So do I, honey. So do I."

Tyler lightened the mood when he spun around and said, "Trevor. Guess what?"

Trevor waited for his younger friend to tell him the answer.

"You have a new dad. I have a new mom, and you and I are brothers now!"

"Really?" Trevor asked, looking at his mom and dad to be sure.

"Yes you are!" they both said together as they hugged their boys again.

"Okay. Who wants more pizza?" Neil asked.

Two small arms shot up in the air, but neither of them moved from the lap of their new parents, and that was just fine with everyone.

As Abby picked up her slice of pizza, Neil did, too, and said, "To the escape room!"

Abby laughed and said, "I'l...eat to that!"

*****

Fifteen years later, Tyler and Trevor Silvan both graduated from the US Air Force Academy in Colorado and spent five years serving their country. Their parents, and their little sister, Katie, who was 14, were sitting in the crowd watching them.

"Second Lieutenant Trevor Terrance Silvan."

"We did good, honey," Neil said to his wife, his right arm around her and his left around their daughter after they sat back down after cheering for their son.

"Yes, we did. Tyler changed Trevor. In the best way possible. I knew he had potential, but he just changed so much."

"A lot has changed since the escape room."

"Yes, it has," Abby Silvan agreed.

"But one thing has never changed."

"And what that might be?" his still-beautiful wife asked.

"You're still as beautiful as the day I met you, and I love you even more now that I did then."

"If I didn't know you better, Neil Silvan, I'd say 'liar, liar pants on fire'."

"But you do know me, and you know it's true."

"Yes. Yes, I do. And I love you even more now than ever before, too."

Neil went to kiss his wife just as they heard, "Second Lieutenant Tyler James Silvan."

The kiss was forgotten as all three of them stood up and cheered again, a blended family that was happy, whole, and complete.