Since they were the hosts, they could not afford to disappear for too long from the party, especially with Cedric still downstairs alone. "Grandma, Grandma," Melody walked over to Beatrice and called out a few times.


    Beatrice had not woken up yet, but they could not let her continue sleeping on the couch. Sleeping like that could easily lead to catching a cold. "Hmm?" Beatrice finally opened her eyes, looking around a bit disoriented. "Oh my, I really am getting old. Did I really doze off just like that?"


    Melody helped Beatrice sit up while Lucas poured her a ss of room-temperature water.


    "You must''ve been exhausted, Grandma. From now on, let Lucas and I take care of these things," Melody said.


    Beatrice was heartened to see how close Lucas and Melody had be with each other. After she tidied up a bit, Melody helped touch up her makeup before they returned to the party.


    "Where did our birthday girl disappear to? We were looking all around for you," joked Amber Hoyles, one of Beatrice''s longtime friends.


    "me it on my age. Just a couple of drinks, and I dozed off on the couch. I''d probably still be sleeping right now if Melody hadn''t woken me up. Melody,e here, this is Amber. Say hello," Beatrice said, introducing Melody to Amber, whom she met for the first time.


    Melody greeted her politely, and Amber smiled so much that her eyes became a line. "No wonder you like this girl. She''s so well-behaved, I like her too. Melody, if one day Lucas doesn''t treat you right,e to me, and I''ll introduce you to someone else," Amber said jokingly.


    Beatrice yfully swatted Amber''s hand. "Don''t you dare set your sights on my granddaughter-inw. If you like her so much, go find another one! I''m not going to let you steal Melody away."


    "Pfft, I''ll find an even better one. Just you wait," Amber retorted.


    The two elderlydies exchanged a few more teasing remarks before wrapping their arms around each other and leaning in closely to chat. It was rare for Melody to see


    Beatrice in such high spirits. This belongs to N?velDrama.Org - ?.


    Seeing Beatrice and Amber talking so happy together, Lucas took Melody to another area and handed her a ss of wine.


    "I rarely see Grandma so happy. Is Grandma Amber a good friend of hers?" asked Melody.


    Lucas nodded and took a sip of his drink. "When I was little, Grandma Amber used toe over asionally to keep Grandmapany."


    Melody''s mouth widened. "So Grandma Amber is Grandma''s best friend, then. It''s not easy to keep a friendship going for so long."


    Lucas nodded "Later, Grandma


    Amber moved away with her children, so it became inconvenient to visit each other. However, they still spend a month at each other''s houses every year, which is why they''ve been able to maintain their friendship all these years.


    "Wow, that''s quite a rare feat," Melody remarked as she took a sip of her champagne. She could only detect a faint fruity fragrance, suggesting that it was not very


    strong, so she took another big sip.


    "Mmm, this tastes really good."


    Lucas gave a subtle smile. "If you like it, you can drink it every day at home."