Curveball

"Oh. I am absolutely thrilled with that. In fact, there are so many things I want to discuss with you, but they can wait. With one exception."

"What's that?" she asked before laying her head back down on his thick, muscled chest.

"I'd like to get braces for Teddy as soon as possible. No later than right after the end of the school year."

"Lloyd, I can't ask you to spend that kind of money this soon. We have so many other things to...."

"But none more important than Teddy," he told her in a way that nearly made her tear up.

"No. Nothing's more important than him," she agreed.

"I...I just want you to know I'm not with you for your money, Lloyd. I don't care what you have or don't have."

She looked back up at him and told him, "I'm in love with you and you alone. Okay?"

"Hey, if I had any inkling you didn't or that I was a...a bank account...I'd never have asked you. Besides, it's not like I've got a fortune anyway so if you did move in with me for my money, you're going to be very unhappy real fast."

She kissed him then said, "I love that you're so generous. It just might take me a while to feel comfortable with letting you do nice things for us. So don't be upset with me if I need some time to adjust to being taken care of, okay?"

"As I said before you can have all the time you need. For anything and everything. I'm just so glad you're here with me. Both of you."

"Yeah, I'm kind of happy about that, too," she told him. "And the fact that you're as good in bed with me as you are with being good to my brother is another um...huge advantage."

She reached for him then said, "Oh, my! Speaking of huge...what is this growing so big in my hand?"

"I don't know but I think he likes you. A lot," Lloyd told her before rolling her over and making love to her again.

Just before they fell asleep Shelby said, "Tomorrow I have to go back to work and Teddy has to go to school."

"I'll need permission to pick him up, but I'd love to drop him off in the mornings," Lloyd said.

"That would help out so much," Shelby said appreciatively.

"Honey?" he said using the term for the first time.

"Yes?" she answered happily.

"I will never, ever try and tell you what to do. You can work, not work, or anything else, but I want you to know you can cut back on your hours if you want to."

"It would be nice to only have one job," she told him. "If you're sure...."

"I'm very sure. I'd love to have you home as much as possible, but that's being selfish, I know. So do whatever you think is best, okay?"

She ran her hand over his chest and said with a happy smile, "I think I hit the freaking jackpot."

"I know I did," he told her before hugging her close then rolling over to go to sleep.

Teddy couldn't wait to ride to school in the 'Black Beast' and he'd called Connor to let him know to watch for him. When his best friend saw the huge, black Tundra pull up in the drop off area, he was standing there waiting and called out, "Wow!!!"

Lloyd waved to him and said, "We'll have to have you come spend the night one of these days, Connor."

"Sure thing!" he yelled back.

The window was down and Lloyd heard Connor ask, "Is that your new dad?"

His answer caused a lump to form in his throat.

"Well, not really. But last night I prayed that he would be so...it's just a matter of time."

That same day Shelby quit her second job and was now working a more normal 40 hours a week. Just enough to be able to be able to keep her healthcare benefits which unfortunately didn't include dental.

That evening she and Lloyd sat down and went over their finances and Shelby felt awful knowing the only thing could bring to the table was credit card debt. She was about $7,500 in debt on two cards, but Lloyd had a plan for paying that off in three months and paying for Teddy's braces.

The 'bad news' was he told her he'd have to go back to work at some point while the good news was he wouldn't need to so right away. With their combined incomes, Shelby would be hugely better off each month, and Lloyd would still come out slightly ahead even with paying for those two major items. After assuring her money didn't matter to him, either, and that it was there for them to use, Shelby did her best to let go of her guilt and in its place feelings of deep gratitude, love, and appreciation for this kind, caring, older man washed over her as she realized she really had 'hit the jackpot.'

That next weekend Connor spent the night, and the boys stayed out in the tent laughing and having fun in a way Shelby could never remember. Inside, she and her handsome boyfriend ate popcorn and watched movies and kissed like teenagers on the couch then made love like adults in their queen-sized bed after the boys fell asleep.

On Monday, Teddy got his teeth checked by an orthodontist who said he was the perfect age for braces and a week later he was wearing them. Shelby tried to insist he could have a tin grin for the next two years, but Lloyd won out and Teddy left with a set of clear braces that were only a few hundred dollars more.

By the 1st of July Lloyd had his resume done by a professional, and he started making some calls. He was pleasantly surprised to be offered two different, very well-paying jobs (both started at $80k) over the phone without even interviewing. He kept looking until he found something he thought would be perfect for his situation—a security consultant who could work from home most of the time with a bare minimum of travel involved. It paid substantially less than the other jobs, but they required him to gone for weeks at a time—much of it in Afghanistan, and that was something he would never do again. So by phone alone, Lloyd had a nearly perfect job that paid just under $50,000 a year with full benefits.

They were sitting outside while Teddy and Connor played in the back yard on the evening of 4th of July waiting for a local fireworks display to begin when Lloyd shared the good news about the job he wanted to take.

"What do you think, honey?" he asked Shelby.

"I think it sounds perfect, sweetheart," she told him. She smiled then said, "Just like you."

"Oh. Now who's the king of corn?" he teased.

Shelby laughed then informed him, "For your information, that would be the queen of corn."

Lloyd laughed too, then said, "There's something else I wanted to ask you about."

"Sure. Ask away," she said having no idea what was coming next.

He took off his Navy Chiefs ball cap then pulled his chair around in front of hers.

"Shelby? You know I'm not a wordy guy and I'm not all that good with speeches."

"Then don't make one," she said sweetly. "Just tell me what's on your mind."

Her heart stopped when he pulled out a small, blue box and got down on one knee.

"I know I should have taken you to a fancy restaurant, but that's not who I am."

Shelby's hands were shaking and covering her wide-open mouth.

"I'm a simple man who doesn't need a lot. I have the two people I love the most right here with me and I want to spend the rest of my life with one of them and be a father to the other one. So...Shelby Claypool? I love you with all of my heart. Will you...."

"Yes, yes, YES!!! Just put the damn ring on my finger!!!" she squealed cutting his proposal short.

Lloyd laughed and did as he was told causing Shelby to shriek louder than she ever had in her life as she literally jumped his bones knocking him to the ground on his back before she started kissing on him.

The boys heard the scream and came running around the house to see what happened and by the time they got close to the happy couple Teddy said, "Come on, Connor. It's nothing. They do this all the time."

The newly-engaged couple laughed loudly before Lloyd called the boys to come back.

"Your sister has some news to share with you, buddy," he told he boy who now smiled proudly knowing he would one day no longer have the teeth he'd been so ashamed of for so long.

"What news?" he asked.

He saw his sister grinning from ear to ear and tried to guess.

"Am I getting a PS3?" he asked excitedly.

She and Lloyd laughed again before she said, "Close your eyes."

She stood up and held out her hand then said, "Okay, open them."

It took him a second to figure out what she was showing him, but as soon as he understood, his face lit up like a Christmas tree.

"For reals?" he said asking both of the adults.

"For reals," Shelby told him. "We're going to be a real family, buddy."

"Speaking of which," Lloyd said. "Come here for a minute, okay?"

Teddy came over while Connor stood there watching.

Lloyd pulled him down onto his lap and said, "I haven't formally asked your sister yet, but something tells me I won't have to."

"Ask what?" he said looking at both of them.

"Well, I was wondering if you would let me adopt you so I can officially become...your dad."

This time, Teddy got it immediately, and he didn't care who saw him as he put his arms around his 'dad's' neck and began to cry. Lloyd hugged him tightly until he cried it all out and could breathe again.

Teddy sat up on Lloyd's lap and said, "Can I call you Dad now?"

Lloyd glanced at Shelby who'd been crying, too, and when she nodded Lloyd said, "Nothing would make me happier...son."

Teddy dried his tears with the sleeve of his shirt then asked very seriously, "Do I have to call you 'mom', Shell?"

"Oh, my gosh. I never even thought of that," she said. Her initial reaction was to blurt out, "Don't you dare!" but she was glad she hadn't.

"Hmmm. How would you feel about that, Teddy?" she asked sweetly as she next to him and put her hand on his back.

"Well, you're a better mom than Mom was so...I wouldn't mind," he said innocently.

She looked at Lloyd and said, "Legally, I think we need some help on this one. I'm not sure how all that would work."

She looked back at Teddy then said, "But other than the legal part, nothing would make me happier than to be you mom so...if you want to call me Mom, I'd like that very much."

Teddy put his chubby arms around both of their necks and said, "I love you, Mom and Dad."

"We love you, too, son," Shelby and Lloyd both said.

"Can I go play now?" he asked the way any normal ten-year old would.

"Sure. Of course," his mom said.

As they walked away, Teddy said to Connor, "This is the best day of my life—EVER!"

"Mine, too," Shelby told her fiancee.

"Yeah. Same here," Lloyd told her.

Having no real family and only a handful of friends, Shelby had her only aunt serve as her maid of honor and her only two remaining friends serve as bridesmaids for the August wedding. Lloyd's mother, who fell in love with Shelby the first time she met her, along with a dozen of his closest former teammates who flew in, were there for Lloyd. All of them wore their uniforms and did a sword arch for the happy couple after they said 'I do'.

Other than that, it was a simple ceremony done at the baseball field were they first met and where Lloyd had shown his future son how to throw a curveball.

Lloyd and Shelby brought their son back to the field the following year each week during baseball season, and then brought Teddy's little brother with them the year after that.

By then Teddy had his braces taken off and he had a perfect smile just like his dad, the man he looked up and admired more than any other. Able to buy better food, he'd also been able to lose most of the baby fat that had caused the rest of the vicious teasing.

No longer 'Teddy' Ted Mullens was considered a 'hottie' by the time he started high school, but thanks to the example set by his parents, he remained a quiet, humble guy eager to help anyone in need.

The year after his brother was born, Ted had a baby sister, and by the time he graduated from high school he'd lettered in three sports, kept up a 3.5GPA, and had dated quite a few very pretty girls.

No one was surprised when he told everyone he knew he decided to join the U.S. Navy and that he wanted to become a Navy SEAL just like his adoptive father. And anyone who knew Ted Mullens had no doubt that he would.

The proudest day of his parents' lives came the day retired Navy Senior Chief Lloyd Mullens flew his family to California where he wore his uniform for the first time since retiring. He did so because he would be pinning the coveted Trident on his son's chest as he too, joined the ranks of the military's most elite group of warriors.

Shelby Mullens wiped away many tears that day as she sat there in a beautiful dress as she watched her still-handsome husband and very handsome son standing there together in their white uniforms for the first time as Navy SEALs.

As she looked on, she smiled when she recalled the day that handsome older man asked if there was room to sit next to her, and the way he'd taught the boy who'd been her little brother to throw a curveball. That was the day her life had begun anew, and she couldn't possibly have happier or more proud as she sat there between her other two children who only knew that Ted was their big brother just as much as Lloyd and Shelby Mullens were their mother and father.