{ billie's pov }

a few weeks after my small fight with anastasia, things are finally starting to calm down...thankfully it was just in time for anastasia's birthday.

I started by scrambling some eggs as the twins gush with excitement over their mom's birthday.

"do old people still like video games?" jacob asked.

"we could get mom a chemistry set!" jason said excitedly.

"both great ideas...but if we want to find the perfect gift, we need to think about what she likes. starting with what kind of person she is..."

"old!" jacob said loudly, laughing at the end.

"and...nice?" jason said iffy about his comment."

"yeah, old and nice." I said trying not to laugh. "but your mom is also down to earth and hard-working. she likes simple, practical solutions and has a lot of common sense, so maybe... a home cooked meal made by her kids?"

"I hope you're not making a big deal out of another trip around the sun."

I look up just as anastasia entered the kitchen, adjusting her blazer. for just a moment I catch a glimpse of her midriff and swallow.

"good morning everyone." she said letting out a small smile.

"happy birthday, birthday girl."

"oh no, please it's-"

"the anniversary of the birth of anastasia monet! a momentous occasion." I said half teasing, I wrap ana in a tight embrace, but as soon as I feel her body pressed against mine I pull away.

"thank you."

"happy birthday mom!" jason yelled.

"you don't look a day over a hundred!" jacob said smiling.

ana slips onto the stool next to jacob and ruffles his hair.

"well, thats a relief." she said chuckling.

"yeah, what's your secret? for someones so ancient, you look pretty incredible." I said laughing.

"drinking lots of water...and steering clear of beautiful women."

her eyes lingered onto me for a second before she gathered her things for work.

"I'll see you all this evening. jacob, don't burn the house down, and jason...watch your brother."

"what? but I'm older!" jacob said.

"don't worry. i'll keep a close eye on him mom!" jason said with a grin on his face.

anastasia briskly headed out the door for work, I try to shake my mind that she didn't even say goodbye to me.

𝚝𝚒𝚖𝚎 𝚜𝚔𝚒𝚙

later that day, carter, the twins, and I walked through the local farmers market looking for inspiration for anastasia's birthday dinner.

"alright, what should we make your mom for her birthday dinner?"

"chicken nuggets! with a side of quesadillas!"

"and mozzarella sticks!" jason added.

"I'm not sure we'll be able to find those here...carter, you know ana better than I do. do you have any suggestions?"

"ms.monet is a woman with a sophisticated palate. you can't go wrong with a gourmet meal made from fresh ingredients."

"in that case lets go all out. fancy charcuterie board to start, then a beautiful filet mignon over risotto. what do you think, boys? can you help me with that?"

"uh...I think so?" jason said.

"alright then lets get started."

I started putting ingredients in my basket as the boys followed close behind.

before I knew it, we were all back in the car heading to the penthouse.

"mom is going to be so surprised when she sees what we've made!" jason said smiling.

"especially if we don't set fire to the kitchen this time!" jacob added.

"haha yeah lets try our best to avoid that." I said laughing.

"we'll be home in about an hour miss o'connell. there's some traffic on our normal route."

"an hour?! that's basically forever!" jacob groaned.

"thats just enough time to teach you all sorts of car games."

some time later jason was looking outside the car window.

"can we go to the mall? we could get a birthday present for mom too!" jason says.

"I was just gonna draw her a picture or something, but it'll be way better to get her a real gift."

I looked up at carter and he just shrugged smiling.

"no harm in waiting out the traffic at the mall." carter says.

"yeah! and mom deserves a present. she buys us stuff all time!"

"please can we go billie?" jacob asked.

"yeah billie can we, can we? pleaseee?" jason added.

"alright we'll go." I said smiling.

soon enough we were strolling through the mall with the twins, scanning the storefront.

"this place is huge! how're we supposed to find anything?" jacob says a bit nervous.

"I know! follow me!" jason said excitedly as he ran around the corner.

we finally catched up to him inside a build a bear store. jacob had picked up a teal dragon while jason picked up a lion.

"we should get my dragon because its better." jacob said smiling while nodding.

"well its not which one is better but which one your mom would like."

"which is my lion right billie?" jason questioned.

oh lord.

"lets splurge and get both!"

"really!" they both said in unison.

"yeah why not? Its a special occasion."

after finishing up, we started strolling through the mall again.

"we should find carter. hopefully the traffics all cleared up and-"

"-but what about you? aren't you going to get mom something for her birthday?" jason asked.

"me? that wouldn't be appropiaate."

"so? mom doesn't care about appropriate. I bet she wouldn't mind!" jacob said.

"yeah! especially if it means she gets an extra present!" jason said.

"I suppose that's true, but, I don't know what to get her."

"It's like you said before. you have to put yourself in mom's shoes and think about what she really wants."

jason and jacob share a mischievous grin before dropping into an air of mimicking their moms mannerisms.

"boys, I know you want to be in a rock band and that's awesome, but mommy needs to focus, so let's put the pots and pans away." jason said mocking her with an angry voice.

"boys, this is the first chance Iv'e had to take a hot bath in years, so please, please, please tell me what you just exploded in my bathwater.."

"It was a bottle of alka-seltzer" jacob said.

"that's it!"

"a-alka seltzer?" jacob asked confused.

"seems a little boring doesn't it?" jason said letting out an awkward smile.

"no silly, I figured out what I should get for your mom." I said chuckling.

a few minutes later I'm looking at the shelves in the spa center.

"what is all this stuff?" jason asks.

he picked up a seashell bath bomb and sniffed it

lmao the fuck

"stuff to make you smell and feel good. now, let's get your mom a bottle of massage oil."

all she needs now is someone to rub it all over her.
god billie shut up

"well, I still don't get it, but if you think mom will like it.." jacob said smiling.

"yep I do, now let's go."

𝚝𝚒𝚖𝚎 𝚜𝚔𝚒𝚙

the kitchen was a complete war zone of sauces,flours, and a shit ton of ingredients that I didn't even know were in the house.

"are the sauces suppose to be boiling that high?" I asked.

jason skimmed through the recipe and made a face before he looked up at me.

"okay..first don't freak out..second.. I think we added double garlic.

"that's okay...we'll just double other ingredients. easy peasy, plus you get to practice your math."

I continued slicing and dicing as the boys garnished the plates. soon, there's nothing to do but wait for the entree to cook.

"whew I'm exhausted!" jacob said as we all sat in the living room.

"yeah, I don't know how you do this all day every day billie!" jason said.

"well, I don't always make a three course meal...but it is hard work."

"haha. what time is mom getting home? do we still have time to get ready?"

"get ready..?"

"yeah, we always dress up fancy for moms birthday.
clip on ties and all." jason said smiling.

"that's sweet. I'll keep an eye on the food while you two go get ready." I said.

"what? no! If I have to wear something fancy,so do you!" jacob said.

"right. I'll just uhm...go look in my closet."

I took the timer with me as I entered my room to search through my closet. what the hell is a girl supposed to wear for her boss's birthday dinner?

I grabbed my phone and started typing

╭───────────────╮
claudia 🦸🏻‍♀️

fashion emergency
answer quick bitch
what should i wear tonight
h&m's are insisting i wear
something fancy for dinner

I've been waiting
for this moment
since I've met
Finneas
SUPER CLAUDIA
TO THE RESCUE 💃🏻

claudia shut up

I got you, just send
me some
pictures of what
you have and I'll
combine shit.
╰───────────────╯
I took pictures of 3 skirts and 3 shirts since I really didn't feel like wearing a dress and sent it to her.
╭───────────────╮
claudia 🦸🏻‍♀️

okok get the light
brown gucci skirt
and pair it with the
brown long sleeve shirt.
I expect deets about this later.

yeah yeah 🙄 thanks

╰───────────────╯

𝚘𝚞𝚝𝚏𝚒𝚝

hopefully this is fancy enough for the boys...and anastasia

the timer dinged and I rushed out to the kitchen to check on the dinner.

I found jacob and jason peeking in the oven trying to get a closer.

"beep beep! coming through." I slipped on the oven mitts and pulled the dish out.

"billie, you look so beautiful!" jason said smiling at me.

"yeah, and you're as fancy as us!" jacob said.

I laughed and straighten jacobs clip on tie.

"well thank you. looks like we just have to plate the dishes and set the table."

"and put the finishing touches on dessert!"

"right."

the sound of the elevator dinging interrupted us.

"Is that your mom? she's not supposed to be home yet!"

"you have to stall her! or else the surprise is going to be completely ruined." jason said freaking out.

"go go go!" jacob said practically pushing me into the hallway before I could say anything.

"oh!"

"coming to greet me at the door now, billie?" anastasia said smiling but stops as she looks up and down at me.

"you look...." she gulped and shook her head and refocused her attention to me.

"I wasn't expecting you home so soon...and you brought company." I said.

"sorry about that. my employees practically pushed me out the door. something about enjoying my birthday..."

"apparently she was coming home to a present none of us knew about." the girl behind her said.

"billie, this is jade, my assistant."

"come on ana. we're practically sisters. just because that's my title at work doesn't mean you have to introduce me to a gorgeous women like that. I mean, look at her outfit. she's already out of my league, you don't have to rub it in." jade said.

"jade, this is billie, the boys new nanny and a woman of impeccable virtue." anastasia said a bit sassy.

"that's a strange way to introduce someone." jade said chuckling.

"oh, anastasia knows my virtues are...flexible like me."

jade grinned widely and she glanced at ana. "It must be hard to sleep with her down the hall, huh?" It looked like jade was going to say something else but anastasia shot her a glare.

"ah. I'll take that as my cue to leave."

"yeah, I believe we have a family dinner to get to, so..." anastasia had already started to walk down the hall towards the kitchen.

oh fuck if she goes in now it'll ruin the damn surprise.

"ana wait!" I said a bit loud.

she turned around a bit confused.

"I uh, I have something I need to discuss with you. in...private?" I said trying to find out what to say.

"oh. of course. Is my office okay?" she asked.

"yeah absolutely."

we made our way into her office and i sat down on her couch.

"so, what did you want to talk about? nothing too serious, I hope."

"actually..I wanted to ask about my performance."

ana started to pour the two of us some bourbon. "oh?" she looked at me confused.

"I realized earlier that I've been at this post for a couple of weeks now, and I wanted to make sure that you're getting everything you want from me."

her hands froze in midair and her eyes got up to meet mine. "yeah everything is all good." she offered me a glass and my pulse raced as her fingers brushed mine.

"sorry about jade, by the way. we were practically raised together, but I know she can be a bit much.
I hope she didn't make you feel awkward."

"not at all..she was cute."

"mhm, women tend to think that."

"she also seems like the kind of girl who calls everyone gorgeous so I won't take it too personal. so how's this birthday so far?"

"It's hard to judge since it isn't over yet. but it'll be pretty hard to beat one a few years back when the twins tried to make me a birthday banner. It said 'heepy bertdai!' under a big doodle of what i think was supposed to be me. not the most flattering portrait, but they tried."

"please tell me you still have it." I said laughing.

"i do actually, it's in the hall closet. but what about you billie? tell me about your favorite birthday."

"that would have to be the one where my friends kidnapped me. my first year of grad school i was stressing over midterms, and my friends literally carried me out of the library. they basically forced me to relax. we went skinny dipping, played spin the bottle.."

"skinny dipping, huh?"

"i may have been a bit drunk at the time.."

"almost wish i had been there." she said chuckling.

"maybe monet enterprise should look into inventing a time machine."

"i'm not sure my board would approve, especially with such personal motivations." she finished her drink in a swift gulp before moving to stand.

oh fuck i have to buy more time.

I pretended to stumble and sent myself right across her lap.

"billie! are you okay?"

she pulled me up and at this point i completely forgot about the act as she looked me in my eyes. "i'm alright..just a little weak in my knees."

she reached out and brushed a stray of hair back from my forehead. our lips were moving closer together...

"billie.." she whispered.

just then jacob opens the office door.

"dinner is served!" jacob said happily.

"we'll uh, we'll be right there." anastasia said.

I took a step back, trying to calm my pounding heartbeat.

"are you ready?"

I took a deep breath and nodded.

I followed anastasia to the dining room, where the twins presented their special birthday dinner to their mom.

"tadaaa!" jacob said smiling.

"start with the appetizer!" jason said.

"this is delicious. thanks, boys."

"we did it ourselves! ....well...mostly." jacob said.

"billie helped!" jason said smiling.

"thank you too."

"It was easy with these two."

𝚝𝚒𝚖𝚎 𝚜𝚔𝚒𝚙

soon enough we finish the appetizers, then i went to help the twins bring out the entrees.

"dig in mom!" jacob said excitedly.

ana all but moans as she took her first bite.

"oh my god..I can't think of a single thing that would make this birthday more perfect."

"we can!" jacob said getting up.

"right! don't move mom!"

"thank you again. I know you downplay what a big role you play here, but i appreciate it."

"It's my pleasure, especially when it makes the boys happy. you should've seen how happy they were at the mall."

"did they have their mischievous little grins." she asked laughing.

"that's just what their smiles look like."

we both laughed for a minute there.

"I actually got you something."

"you did?"

"yeah, nothing to extreme but here you go."

she gently opened the tissue paper and examined the bottles of massage oil with a cocked eyebrow and a scandalized little smile.

"how'd you know i needed these." she asked chuckling.

"when it comes to you i pay attention to detail. you're on your feet all day,working, chasing kids,running a business. and i couldn't help but notice the way you groan when you finally have a chance to sit."

"i'll have you know that, the couch is really comfortable."

"I guess you'll have to show me sometime."

she smirked as we looked into each other's eyes.

"surprise!!" jason and jason said at the same time.

they gave ana a huge gift bag that was overly stuffed with tissue paper.

she took some out revealing a stuffed dragon.

"see mom! Its you!" jacob said happily.

"there's more in the bottom!" jason said.

"more? i'm getting spoiled tonight." she said chuckling.

she digged up a bit more to reveal a stuffed lion.

"It's a lion cause you're our fierce protector!" jason said smiling.

"and sometimes you breathe fire like a dragon when you're mad." jacob added.

"I love them both so much. thank you boys."

"just wait till you see what we have for dessert."

"not to be all cliche but first i'd like to make a toast..for anastasia, the best boss, the best mom, and quite possibly the best woman i've ever met."

"billie you flatter me...I-"

the sound of the elevator dinging interrupts anastasia before she could say anything else.

"I wonder who that could be."

"I'll go check, after all it is your birthday." i said as i stood up and made my way to the hall seeing a stranger standing next to the elevator.

"oh, you must be the new maid, we'll talk about your uniform later. here, take this."

she tossed her coat at me but i quickly recognized her face.

it was victoria...anastasia's fiancee...