"Yes, but Mommy, don't worry. We will help you keep an eye on Daddy before you come back!" Adkins calmly assured Erica that he and his brothers wouldn't allow those bad aunts to succeed in seducing their father. E
rica glanced at the man beside the boys, but his face didn't reveal anything. No reaction. No emotion. Instead, his eyes remained focused on something else as if he was deep in thought.
'Does his silence… mean yes? What a jerk!'
She thought about confronting him, but ultimately decided to comfort her sons. "It doesn't matter. Mommy will be back soon. You'll probably see me in two days."
She wondered if Matthew would come and pick her up then.
Next, the boys chatted some more with Hugo before they reluctantly ended the video call.
Matthew didn't say a word to Erica after all, and she sighed all night about it.
'Didn't he say that he loved me very much? Why didn't he say anything to me just now? We've slept together earlier, haven't we? Why is he still mad at me then?' she thought unhappily.
Later, as planned, Erica got to meet her niece—Wendy.
The little toddler in pink casual clothes had her hair tied up in a ponytail, revealing the whole extent of her round and soft cheeks. She was the cutest girl Erica had ever seen. Although Erica already had her four sons, she couldn't help loving Wendy so much that she didn't want to stop holding or kissing her.
'Well, I changed my mind. I know I have four sons, but I would love to give birth to a beautiful little girl like Wendy for Matthew in the future!' she thought to herself.
Wendy was shy around strangers, so Erica wanted to break the ice and spend more time with her. In the evening, she asked Yvette if she could take the little girl to her bedroom, which her sister agreed. Soon after, they fell asleep together.
Two days passed, and Erica was still at the Li family's house. Concerned about it, Wesley found his daughter eating durian when he came over to ask her, "Since you're not training in the base anymore, when will you leave for Y City? Your in-laws have called you several times already. Do you want them to come and pick you up again?"
Wesley disliked the smell of durian, so he kept himself a few meters away from Erica.
She shook her head and swallowed a piece of durian before answering, "I've booked a flight back to Y City tomorrow afternoon. But please, don't tell them. I want to surprise Matthew!"
"Surprise him? Is it really necessary?" Wesley mocked.
"You're an old man and understand nothing about young people's love!" Erica said absently.
Wesley was immediately displeased on hearing that. "Who are you calling an old man?"
"I'm calling you! Is there anyone else here?" Erica blinked innocently.
Wesley was rolling up his sleeves, ready to teach his naughty daughter a lesson, but when he saw the durian in her hands, it was like she was holding a biological weapon against him. In the end, he had to give up his intentions under the smug look on her face.
The next day, Tessie left the Li family's house with a generous amount of money and rented a house. With the rest of the sum, she opened a flower shop for herself and decided to settle down in A Country for the time being.
As for Erica, before she left, she paid a visit to her best friends—Rhea and Hyatt.
The moment Rhea saw her, she wasn't able to hold back her tears. Because of Erica's disappearance, Rhea and Hyatt hadn't gotten married yet. Rhea wanted to wait for Erica to return so she could be her bridesmaid.
Hyatt was about to cry too. After several years together, Rhea would never plan the wedding with him until now. Recently, he had opened a film studio in A Country, and the business was good. Rhea had her own job as well, so the couple had been living a stable life.
Finally, after bidding her friends and family farewell, Erica flew back to Y City.
Taking off her sunglasses, she looked at Matthew's villa in the Pearl Villa District when she got there and could barely contain her excitement.
'I, Erica Li, am back! From now on, I will never leave Y City again!' she swore inwardly.
She walked to the door and put her finger on the biometric lock as she always used to do. However, she was surprised to hear the "beep" granting her access inside the villa.
It had been over three years since she left, but Matthew had never erased her fingerprint from the system. Instantly, she felt warm in her heart.
Once she came inside, she realized there was no one in the villa. The place was as clean as usual, and the carpet was still the same white one as before. Still, there was plenty of new furniture that she didn't recognize.
After she ended her tour around the living room, she went straight to the third floor.
Pushing open the master bedroom's door, she quickly noticed that most of the objects in there were still the same from three years ago. The only thought in her mind then was that she was finally home.
Yet something was bothering her. Despite not expecting to see Matthew at the villa at this time, she found it strange that her children weren't there either. But then it occurred to her that since Matthew had to go to work, he might have dropped the boys off at the Huo family's manor. After all, Carlos and Debbie would be worried sick if the children were left at home with no one to look after them.
As she had come to surprise Matthew, she put her stuff away in the bedroom and took a taxi to ZL Group.
Her first setback revealed itself when she found out that all the security guards at the company's entrance had been replaced by new ones who didn't recognize her.
If it weren't for an old employee nearby who remembered her and explained to them that she was the CEO's wife, she wouldn't have been allowed past the main entrance of the building.
After thanking the old employee, Erica walked in the elevator.
As soon as she got on the CEO's office floor, she found out that except for Paige and Owen, all the other assistants in the secretary department had also been replaced by new ones.
Fortunately, Paige hadn't left for the day yet. In fact, she was astonished to see Erica in front of her after such a long time and so unexpectedly. "Mrs. Huo! You're here!"
Embarrassed, Erica smiled and greeted her, "Hello, Paige. It's been a while!"
Paige approached her and nodded before asking, "When did you come back from A Country?"
"I've just arrived."
"Will you be staying for good now?" Paige asked cautiously. Erica grinned. "Yes. I won't be leaving again." She would never leave her dear husband again!
"I'm glad to hear it!" Then Paige turned around and introduced Erica to the other curious assistants. "Hey, guys, this is our CEO's wife. From now on, you should treat Mrs. Huo with the same respect you treat our CEO. Understood?"
Paige's words laid a solid foundation for Erica among the special assistants. Immediately, several of them stood up and greeted her in unison, "Hello, Mrs. Huo!"
Erica gave them a big smile. "Hey, guys!"
After exchanging greetings, Erica pointed at the closed office door and asked Paige, "Is he inside?"
Paige turned to look at the door behind her and shook her head. "Mr. Huo is going to attend an important party tonight. He left about ten minutes ago."
"Seriously? What a shame!"
Paige thought for a while and said, "Why don't you call Mr. Huo and ask him to come back? Or maybe you could go after him. Tonight's party is really a big deal. If you're free, you could go and meet him there."
Honestly, Paige hoped that Erica went to the party and showed everyone that Mrs. Huo was back. The longer she was away, the more women would approach Matthew in order to seduce him. But if Erica exhibited their love to the public, she would be able to get rid of the other women who had been surrounding Matthew since she left.
The sudden appearance of the four boys had already been the cause of much envy among all the socialite divas in Y City. They were shocked to find out that the Huo family wasn't just wealthy and powerful but also the bearers of incredibly good genes.
From the daughter of the mayor to the international superstar, all of them were eager to put their claws into Matthew and become the next Mrs. Huo.
Surely, Erica was puzzled by Paige's words. "If the party is so important, why should I, an irrelevant person, attend it?"
