Chapter 110: Chapter 110

The buzzing sound of her cellphone jolted Andrea out of her sleep. She carefully fumbled for it on the nightstand, her heart racing with a mix of excitement and anxiety, afraid of waking up the twins, who were sleeping peacefully beside her. With a sense of anticipation, she glanced at the caller ID, her smile growing wider as she recognized the name.

Gently getting out of bed, Andrea made her way towards the balcony in her nightdress, seeking a bit of privacy as she answered the call. "Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you, happy birthday, dear Andrea, happy birthday to you. Hip hip hurray!!" Elena sang into the phone, her voice filled with warmth and gratitude.

"Oh, Lena, you are the best! Thank you so much for remembering my birthday," Andrea whispered, her eyes welling up with tears of happiness. "I wish you were here tonight. Everything went perfectly."

"How can I forget your birthday, Peach? It's literally unthinkable if I forget mine, but definitely not yours," Lena replied, her voice tinged with mock hurt. "Besides, Mr. Wilson already beat me to it anyway. Just look, it's almost twelve in New York, and once it hits twelve, it's no longer your birthday, so of course, I almost missed it."

Andrea couldn't help but laugh, feeling a surge of love for her dear friend. "Thank you, Lena. It's alright," Andrea reassured her, her voice gentle despite the yawn.

"I'm sorry for calling so late; I know how much you value your rest. You should go back to sleep."

"Please don't apologize for calling," Andrea responded, her tone warm and understanding.

"I'm here for you, and I'll be more than happy to chat in the morning. And don't forget to send my best wishes to the twins. Their special day is just around the corner." Elena spoke for a while longer before hanging up.

....

Months later,

"I'm just so happy that Sonny and Alicia are finally getting married," Andrea said excitedly as she helped Sean put on his coat.

Sean smiled and pulled her cheeks cutely. "I'm glad Sonny has decided to settle down this time for real."

"Indeed, miracles do happen," Andrea said, and her phone began to ring. She did a silient prayer, hoping it wasn't a call from Mrs. Jones. For the past few months, Mrs. Jones has been persuading her to talk to Jacob about finding a girlfriend, which she couldn't discuss with him after she accidentally overheard his conversation with Tyler.

"Ruby, give mommy her phone," she said in a gentle tone. "Good baby," Andrea patted her hair sweetly as Ruby handed her phone over to her.

Glancing at the caller ID, Andrea almost cried. Ever since Mrs. Wilson found out she was the daughter of the Jones, her attitude towards her has far improved. Andrea picked up reluctantly, "Yes, mom."

"Andrea, where are you? Mom has been expecting you. I hope you guys are still coming over for dinner tonight." Before Andrea could even reply, she then added, "It's fine if Sean is too busy to make it tonight; you should come with the kids; I'm sure it's boring there."

"Don't worry, Sean is with me. We are about to leave the house," she managed to reply after recovering from the shock.

"That's great; everyone is waiting." Mrs. Wilson said before hanging up.

"Mom is scaring the hell out of me." Andrea felt a cold shiver run down her spine just at the thought of it. Sean laughed lightly and wrapped his arms around her from behind. "Let's look at the positive side; mom is starting to accept you, which is a good thing, right?" He whispered softly and kissed the corner of her lips.

"Indeed, it is," Andrea said, releasing herself from his embrace and putting Pearl and Ruby's coats on to keep them cozy from the chilly wind blowing outside.

"Let's go, babies," Andrea said, holding Pearl and Ruby's hands, and the family of four headed out together.

As they arrived at Crescent Wood, they met Mrs. Wilson by the door with a warm smile on her face. "Oh, Sean, Andrea, it's good to see you both again after a while," she said, giving Sean a hug.

"You too, Mom," Andrea complimented. "You look lovely in this dress." "Oh, you are such a cutie, Andrea," Mrs. Wilson responded enthusiastically, placing her palm on Andrea's cheek in the process.

Sean and Andrea exchanged glances with one another as they walked into the dining room with Pearl and Ruby.

Linda, Alec, and their son Richard came downstairs shortly after. Andrea and Linda embraced each other with heartwarming smiles. They hadn't talked much or hung out a lot, but the impression they had of one another was priceless.

"Since everyone is here, let's eat," Mrs. Wilson announced as the maids entered, carrying trays with dishes that filled the dining table, creating an atmosphere as if a fiesta was about to commence.

"Mom, where is Father?" Sean asked as he looked around the house. "Your dad went to California with his friends for a game night," Mrs. Wilson responded, busy filling Andrea's plate with food.

"It seems like Dad has forgotten that he isn't getting any younger." Sean shook his head in disbelief.

"Come on, eat up. I made these mashed potatoes myself. I hope you enjoy them," Mrs. Wilson said softly to Andrea, causing her to choke on her food momentarily.

"Dada, give Mama water." Pearl pointed to the glass of water in front of Sean. He quickly poured a glass for Andrea and kissed Pearl on her forehead.

"Wow, Andrea, it seems Pearl is learning a lot so quickly," Linda said, feeling amazed by Pearl. She remembered that when Richard was two, he could only say a few words.

"Same with Ruby. I guess my genes are paying off," Andrea joked, earning a scoff from Sean. "You mean my smarts are rubbing off on them?"

"Of course not. Your good looks rubbed off on them, but certainly not your smarts." Andrea retorted, rolling her eyes.

"Fine, fine. You don't need to argue like kids to prove your points. Son, don't argue with your wife; I'm sure she's right anyway; you didn't start talking properly until you were three," Mrs. Wilson said, supporting Andrea.

At this point, Andrea thought that if Mrs. Wilson's continued treating her this way, then she might as well choke and die right on the spot.

"Little Pearl, Ruby, Richard, Grandma made you yummy brownies. I'll feed it to you after dinner," Mrs. Wilson said to them in a soft voice.

"Yay! Grandma, can I have it now?" Richard asked eagerly.

"Only if you eat your dinner quietly like a good boy," Linda answered, ruffling his hair.

"Excuse me," Andrea said as her cellphone began to ring. She answered the call, and she heard her assistant's voice over the phone. "Boss, I've sent you every piece of information regarding the company's performance to your email."

"Alright, thanks. I'll go through it," Andrea responded and hung up. "Is everything okay?" Sean questioned her as soon as she returned her phone to her bag.

"Yes, everything is under control. Just work-related stuff," she said, giving him a reassuring smile. For the past month, Mr. Jones had been showing her how to run the company, and in a couple of weeks, he would be resigning from his duty as the CEO completely, handing over the company to her.

IAfter dinner, Andrea made coffee for everyone while the kids were fast asleep after playing with Richard for a while. Mrs. Wilson went upstairs to take a nap while Sean and Alec went to the study to discuss work, leaving Andrea and Linda in the living room.

"So how is it being a CEO?" Linda said, taking a sip from her coffee. "I must admit it's quite demanding." Andrea laughed, also taking a sip from her cup.

"My parents always wanted me to take over our family's business, considering the fact that I was the only child. They had high expectations from me, but then I got pregnant with Rich, and I was forced to choose between my family and him. Of course, I chose Rich. He is the symbol of our love, even though we didn't plan for his arrival."

Linda smiled sweetly as she reminisced about her past. Her family was never in support of her relationship with Alec because he was just the adopted son of the Wilsons after he lost his parents in a plane crash. They believed Alec didn't deserve her because his status was no match for theirs. They all had the impression that he had gotten Linda pregnant so he could marry her and inherit all of her properties.

"Whoa! I'm sorry about that, but it was all worth it in the end, right?"

"Of course. It's worth it. Do you ever wonder why my mother barely likes me?"

"I have always wondered about that, but I didn't think it was right of me to ask."

"It's fine; I'll love to tell you everything. We are like sisters now. I must say I really do adore you a lot, Andrea. You are such an amazing mom and wife."

"At the time of my pregnancy, Alec was just in college, and he had to drop out to be with me because I was scared. I guess this is the reason why mom doesn't like me because Alec went against her decision for me. It's been years now, and I thought that she's going to finally accept me when she sees me in person, but I guess I was wrong."

"Lin, you are such an amazing person, and I'm sure mom likes you deep down. Mom might act indifferent toward us, but that doesn't mean she's a bad person. She's just looking out for her boys like every mother would do for her kids."

"I see things between the both of you have improved. She smiles at you and even calls you sweet names too." Linda said, fiddling with her fingers.

"I also saw the way she looked at you tonight, different from the other times. Just give her a little time, and everything will be fine again." Andrea encouraged her, smiling.

"You see why you are the best, and everyone loves you the most." Linda said, wrapping Andrea in a tight hug.